Hi,
I was wondering if anyone has gone through biopsies of the tongue post treatment for tongue cancer. I finished treatments in dec '07 and had a biopsy of an unhealing lesion in oct '08, which was negative for cancer, and turned out to be keratosis. Now, I have another unhealing lesion for 3 1/2 weeks, close to the surgical scar on my tongue, which will be biopsied on june 2nd, if it hasn't healed by then. My doctor says this lesion is different from the one I had in october. Has anyone had a similar situation in which painful lesions appear over a year after treatment that don't resolve on their own, but aren't cancer?

Thanks,
Pamela

hi pamela
i had biopsies done in dec o8 my treatment for base tongue cancer finished april 07,i felt a lump in my throat and thought oh no not again.they did several biopsies on lesions and thankfully it turned out to be negative,i know you must be worried sick about this just as i was but i hope you get a negative too,please keep in touch and let us know how it goes,love shirl xxx

Hi Pam

I had one post-op biopsy, about 4 months after Flappy was attached. So far, that's the only one. Apart from an irritated tastebud last year, I've had no problems. Is it possible that you have a rough or broken tooth rubbing against that spot on your tongue?

Let us know how everything turns out.

Julia

Thanks Shirl and Julia for taking the time to write me. The lesion is under the right side of my tongue, close to the area where the original tumor was. There are no teeth rubbing against the area. My doctor prescribed some oral rinses to try and heal it, but so far I just find them to irritate the sores (there are 2) further. I also have jaw and ear pain on the same side, which I know is normal with a sore because its pressing on a nerve, but nonetheless, still freaks me out. I'll let you know how it goes.

All the Best,
Pamela

Hi again, Pam

Sorry to hear that you've got both ear and jaw pain, along with everything else. I had an idea for something that might soothe the lesions on your tongue. It's called "magic mouthwash," a blend of children's liquid benedryl, liquid lidocaine, and maalox or mylanta (I can't remember which)--just in case you swallow some. You might want to ask your doc to give you a script for it.

I'd tell you not to worry, but that's always been counterproductive for me.

Julia

Hi Julia,
Thanks for the advice, I actually found some magic mouthwash in my pharmacy, I mean cabinet :-). My doc also advised me to use liquid lidocaine, so I will try them both.

Thanks again and have a great day,
Pamela

Just wanted to say hi and let you know I had two biopsies on the surgical side of my tongue, both of which came back negative!!! Diagnosis was fibrosis. Has anyone had this condition on their tongue post-treatment? Although it is painful, at least it's not a recurrence. :-)

All the Best,
Pamela

I'm very glad to hear that. What can your doctors do for it?

Good news, Pamela!

As Julia asked, what can your docs do for the fibrosis? I think we've all become very curious about the glitches that can occur and want to know how to recognize them.

Best of luck to you.

Mimi

Thanks very much, Julia and Mimi. The doctor did not tell me much about the condition, but from what I've read it is irreversible, causes inflammation, pain, and stiffening of the tongue in the affected area (yuck). It appears just like a sore does, starting with redness than ulceration, but thankfully is not malignant.

Warmest Regards,
Pamela

Warmest

Good news Pamela.

liz