Thank you to those who kindly replied to my previous question. I'm new to this forum, so I hope I'm posting in the right thread.

I've now seen an ENT specialist. I have a painless 5mm lesion on the tonsilar bed ( red, raised, erythematous). No lymphadenopathy. There's pooling in the right piriform fossa.

He says he's sure the lesion is non-cancerous but wants to do a biopsy to make 100% certain. My problem is, I'm PHOBIC about having general anaesthetic. He'll try to do it under local and use the flexible camera again to check out the pooling. But if the pooling remains I may have to have gen. anaesthetic to check further. Would a scan supply the same results, so I could avoid a gen. anaesthetic?

Maggie,

when i was a kid i had the usual - removal of tonscils and appendics and have since avoided being put to sleep. just gave me the willies thinking about it.

however, due to the location of my tumor i had no choice.... it was so easy, didn't phase me at all + the 2nd trip was just like getting a flu shot since i knew what to expect and didn't have to worry......

plus if you are knocked out you will not be distracting the surgeon....

the only thing i don't like about it, is that you have to bring someone with you to drive you home.

later, pete

Maggie,

Anesthesia these days has drastically improved from the past. I remember having ether as a kid when having my tonsils out - the odor was so hideous that I can conjure it up to this day. As a teenager I had wisdom teeth removed and did that thing where you count backwards from ten. I can remember being groggy when I woke up and a little sick from the anesthesia afterwards.

Now there's no sense of 'going under' or 'coming out of it.' You kind of slide in and out and twice now I've told my daughter that I could swear I didn't even go to sleep! As Pete said, once you experience it you won't have to worry again.

There are features in a scan that can be specific for cancer but a biopsy would still be necessary if there is a concern that the scan result looks like cancer - that's what a biopsy tells you for sure.

I hope your doc is right when he says the lesion appears to be non-cancerous - this is a great message board with some wonderful people but you're better off not having to join all the fun!

Best of luck to you,