I recently noticed a red patch on both sides of my tongue right at the very back and I was wondering whether it is something to be concerned about or part of the normal scenery.

There are two patches - one either side of my tongue, right at the back and both sides are nearly identical. They look almost like two red slits, although they could actually be oval (its difficult to see that far back) They are much redder than the surrounding tissue.

I was wondering whether they could be lingual tonsils, or foliate papillae. I read that oral cancer doesnt often occur bilaterally, but it is possible, and Im scaring myself.

Any ideas of what this is to put my mind at rest

Also the work you do here is great and I would like to make a donation to support it. I was wondering whether you had any plans to have a Paypal donations button - Im sure many folk including me have some spare cash lying around in Paypal accounts and it would be nice to give it to a good cause.

Have a good weekend everyone

Hello SHowes

As you say, it is unlikely to be a cancer if it is symmetrically present on both sides of the tongue. It is probably normal anatomy. See your dentist and see what he says.

Will look into the PayPal idea. Thanks.

Best wishes
Vinod

Thanks Dr Joshi for your reply. I figured it was probably normal but I will check with my dentist. For some reason they are both a lot less red now