Lump in neck and now a mouth ulcer

[Allidee]

Hi! This is my first post on these boards, although I've been reading them over for a bit now.

To start off, I'm a 24 year old female. A bit overweight, smoker of a pack a week for two years (haven't smoked for 4 months now) but relatively healthy from what tests I received. Also have always had bad anxiety and depression, but my health anxiety has only seemed to manifest itself until recently.

So about 3 weeks ago I had the feeling of a lump in my throat and I was freaking out. I made an appointment with my doctor that day and she checked me for swollen lymphnodes and my nose throat etc. Her diagnosis was that my left tonsil was slightly swollen and I had post nasal drip. She prescribed me steroids and I was on my way. After taking the steroids I developed very bad pelvic/ lower abdominal pain. Was prescribed antibiotics twice and also had two fun visits to the ER. At the ER I received multiple blood test, urine tests, an EKG, pelvic exam, ct scan of the abdomen, and ultrasound of the pelvis and abdomen. Everything came back normal except for a burst cyst in my right ovary. All of this is fairly irrelevant to what I'm experiencing now but I just wanted to get the whole story out.

As soon as my lower andominal pain started to subside, I began to notice the lump feeling in my neck again. I started feeling around and noticed a lump on the left side of my neck under my jaw towards the back of it. This lump can only be felt when I touch my chin to my chest, it sort of pops out from under and it is highly mobile so it slips back in very easily. It isn't painful and feels hard and is probably about 2cm x 1cm, oval shaped. I noticed this about a week ago and immediately made an appointment with my dr. She gave me a ENT check and said she couldn't feel any lumps and referred me to a psychiatrist. This past Friday I decided to go back because I felt as if the lump was getting bigger and I wanted to try to point it out to her better. Again she couldn't feel it and recommended if I'm worried to make an ultrasound appointment so I got a referral for that. I wasn't able to get an appointment until next Monday the 30th so you'd imagine that I'm going to go nuts until then. Also yesterday I noticed an ulcer on the inside of my lower lip.

It isn't completely unlikely for me to get mouth ulcers, maybe two times a year, usually in that same area. Also I've been incredibly stressed these past three weeks so I'm wondering if that could contribute. But of course I go to googling and everything just screams MOUTH CANCER at me. So at this point I'm terrified and would appreciate any feedback anyone could give me. :(

Thank you all,
Alli

[stacyct]

In regards to your biggest worry- mouth cancer- I can tell you that is not what you have. Mouth cancer is nearly unheard of in those under age 55 with the average age of diagnosis at 62. Also, smoking one pack a week does not put you at a high risk- to get mouth cancer at 24 you'd have to be smoking like 3 packs a day since you were 12....and even in this scenario mouth cancer is still unlikely! Also...congrats on being four months smoke free!

When you say mouth ulcers I am assuming you are talking about canker sores? If so, I've suffered from these and of course they are a symptom of anxiety and STRESS! It's like a vicious cycle, canker sores give you stress and stress gives you canker sores. So to alleviate your fears- these mouth ulcers are completely common and totally normal. Try swishing salt water around your mouth..this helps tremendously. You can also make a paste out of baking soda and salt and attempt to rub it into the canker sore. This may sting a bit but it will help clean it and heal faster.

Also to touch upon the lump you found...it's tiny and mobile...cancerous lumps are more than anything immobile and larger than you described. I have a lump in the same spot you described and my doctor said its nothing to worry about. Pushing and prodding it will irritate it and can even make it bigger by inflammation! Also if your doc said you have PND you may have or had an infection; lymph nodes can take weeks or even months to go back down after swelling due to illness.

Basically, everything you have described I have also experienced, and I'm 100% healthy :) I hope this helps even a bit...please don't worry !

[Allidee]

In regards to your biggest worry- mouth cancer- I can tell you that is not what you have. Mouth cancer is nearly unheard of in those under age 55 with the average age of diagnosis at 62. Also, smoking one pack a week does not put you at a high risk- to get mouth cancer at 24 you'd have to be smoking like 3 packs a day since you were 12....and even in this scenario mouth cancer is still unlikely! Also...congrats on being four months smoke free!

When you say mouth ulcers I am assuming you are talking about canker sores? If so, I've suffered from these and of course they are a symptom of anxiety and STRESS! It's like a vicious cycle, canker sores give you stress and stress gives you canker sores. So to alleviate your fears- these mouth ulcers are completely common and totally normal. Try swishing salt water around your mouth..this helps tremendously. You can also make a paste out of baking soda and salt and attempt to rub it into the canker sore. This may sting a bit but it will help clean it and heal faster.

Also to touch upon the lump you found...it's tiny and mobile...cancerous lumps are more than anything immobile and larger than you described. I have a lump in the same spot you described and my doctor said its nothing to worry about. Pushing and prodding it will irritate it and can even make it bigger by inflammation! Also if your doc said you have PND you may have or had an infection; lymph nodes can take weeks or even months to go back down after swelling due to illness.

Basically, everything you have described I have also experienced, and I'm 100% healthy :) I hope this helps even a bit...please don't worry !

Thank you so much for responding. This is exactly what I needed to hear. And yes, I meant canker sore lol oops!

I used to avoid the doctor if I thought something was wrong and in the past month it's the complete opposite, so strange. But I thought talking to some people would be really helpful. :)

[sarahsparkleshine]

You are totally fine. I can find a lump anywhere. I mean anywhere if I feel around enough. Good for you on quitting smoking! Your anxiety can sometimes get worse for a bit when you take away your cruch. And as far as the canker sore. I get them too. I had an ent tell me cancerous sores are very hard in the mouth. You can't push on them.

[stacyct]

Thank you so much for responding. This is exactly what I needed to hear. And yes, I meant canker sore lol oops!

I used to avoid the doctor if I thought something was wrong and in the past month it's the complete opposite, so strange. But I thought talking to some people would be really helpful. :)

Trust me I've been there. But you have to think of it like this: a doctor's sole job is to diagnose patients. If there were ANY reason for them to worry they would let you know. If they ever seem dismissive or unconcerned with something, it's because they have seen your symptoms a thousand times before and they've also seen cancerous lumps before as well. They know the signs and symptoms, they know what to look out for. Sometimes if they order tests it can make you worry but many doctors do this just to diminish your fears and concerns to show you there is nothing wrong.

Also I wanted to add, if the canker sores are really bothersome (sometimes mine would last days or they'd just keep popping up and they're so painful!) you can try putting Alum on them- it's a cooking ingredient found in any grocery store. I personally haven't tried it because I haven't had canker sores since I found this article but it apparently works wonders. It won't let me post the link but if you google "canker sores alum" there's an article on Jezebel entitled "a seriously simple way to banish canker sores" with all the info you need!

Feel better ! And no more worrying ;) xoxo

[Allidee]

I'm definitely going to try the salt rinses. I already feel as if the canker sore has gotten smaller and I think I'll feel a little better when that's gone. The neck lump is driving me crazy but I keep trying to tell myself there's nothing I can do if it's something bad. The left side of my neck does feel sore (not so much the lump) but I also have been constantly feeling it and checking it every day....I have to stop with that and also stop with the googling.

I've found myself to be sleeping a lot because I feel like that's the only time I don't worry. And I've lost 15 pounds in the past three weeks because I have no appetite due to the anxiety. I feel like I have taken for granted the times before this crisis I'm having. I miss feeling just "okay" and being able to relax.

I just hate how this has completely taken all of the enjoyment out of my life recently. I've just been going to work and then sleeping. The stress exhausts me.

But thank you all again for your responses and kind words. It makes me feel better knowing there's people going through the same thing as myself.

[Allidee]

Feeling a little anxious now I'm having pretty bad jaw pain. I think it's from my gums being inflamed by my wisdom teeth. Also I do clench my jaw a lot. Ugh. Very stressed out and scared tonight.