Hi Lauraann. Welcome to the forum.

I'm sorry to hear you're having symptoms.

I recently went through a similar referral, having a persistent sore throat for some months.  Maybe if I explain the process I went through then you will know what to expect:

At the first appointment, I saw the consultant who took a medical history, then he looked in my mouth. He then put a small endoscope into my nose and used it to have a look around. This wasn't particularly difficult for me. He decided that I need an MRI scan on my neck/throat.

After the MRI, I had a follow up appointment.  I didn't see the same consultant. Although my MRI results seemed OK, they were still unsure what was going on, so decided I needed a "panendoscopy" under general anaesthetic. They would also take biopsies at the same time. There was a rush to fit in a pre-op assessment on the same day, and the actual procedure 6 days later.  

The panendoscopy went ok, and I had the results two weeks later. Luckily there was no cancer found.

I was accompanied by my wife for most of the appointments, and I was glad to have her support. 

Laura

welcome to the forum and sorry to hear of the worry this is causing you

first and foremost we are not medically trained here just people who have, are going through or partner of someone going through cancer treatment

i myself am now 3.5 years post treatment for throat cancer and doing well

i talk to many people on here who come to the site with throat issues and I am glad to say that after a few tests they go never to be heard of again as they have no need for this site.

it does sound irresponsible of your Gp to put the fear of god in you without having any tests ... I know there is being honest, but without the facts, one person has turned your world upside down

let me try and break this down for you

you have now been referred to ent, so a new doctor will have a look at you and may put a very small camera up your nose and down your throat to see what’s going on. You will not get a diagnosis at this appointment because not enough information may be there to give one.

you may then be sent for an ultra sound and maybe a biopsy or mri scan. It will take a couple of weeks to arrange this appointment, then on average a couple of weeks to get results

its only at this stage that they can rightfully diagnose what it is, so without putting a downer on it for you, you still have a fair few weeks to go before a better diagnosis is available

so how’s do you get through this period without making youself ill with worry

well having been there these are my two key pieces of advice

1. Try to distract yourself for short period of time ... do something energetic, go for a brisk walk, get out with friends or go watch an action or comedy film .... this temporary distraction just give you 10 minutes in the day when you have forgotten about what’s going on ... it does work and believe me 

2. Stay off of Dr Google. Trying to search for your symptoms on google will only convince yourself you have two weeks to live and will make you ill .... in reality you have years.

and I am going to throw in a third

3. If you have worries, need advice, or just want to talk, use this site it’s full of all the advice you need at this point and we are here to listen to anything that’s on your mind

There are more than 200 different types of cancer and just because a family member may have had something breast cancer does not mean you will be prone to throat cancer .... it does not work like that, they are two totally different types of cancer, it would be like standing next to someone who has a cold and getting a broken arm, that’s how unrelated some cancers are

let us know how you get on, but don’t expect too much at this point other than a further appointment

shout whenever you want there is always someone on here to listen to you

i hope I have been of some help

vatch

Hi Lauraann

I should have said this in my first post, but only 1 in 10 of these rush referrals actually turn out to be cancer. Nine out of ten of them turn out to have benign causes. 

Vatch has written some sensible advice, particular when it comes to coping with waiting, and NOT using Google. Also Vatch's take on the actual process matches mine. You may be in for a battery of tests over the next few weeks. Please don't try to read anything into which tests you're given; often these tests are more to rule cancer out than to rule it in. Nor should you read anything into the silences or "looks" by doctors, nurses, radiographers, etc. And there's no point asking radiographers (that's the technicians who operate X-ray machines, MRI and CT scanners, etc) what they've seen because they can't tell you.  Their job is to get the best possible pictures, but interpreting the pictures is strictly the job of a specialist. 

I think your doctor was right to tell you of his/her concerns, otherwise you'd end up with this sudden referral with no reason given, which would probably be more confusing and frightening. But the thing to remember is that it's not cancer until ALL the tests have been done and all the results collated and examined by a specialist - and the vast majority do turn out not to be cancer.

Don't forget, we'll be here when you need us.  

Hi I hope you don't mind me asking what were the first signs of your cancer I've been referred in emergancy ent but struggling to get by with a choking feeling from a lump in the back of my throat it very painful and I've lost over a srtone in a week because I cannot eat

Kayha

sorry to hear that all this is causing you so much distress.

we are not medically trained on here just people who have gone through or going through the cancer process.

coupled with this, people have their own individual cancer journey regarding the same type of cancer, so what symptoms prevailed at the start of mt treatment, may not be the same as the next person with a like diagnosis.

if you are not eating and loosing weight, it would be sensible to schedule an emergency ent appointment, as these symptoms will prolong if not attended to, regardless of what it is.

being now 4 years plus post treatment, I and I am sure many others will agree, that the diagnosis process is one of the worst parts .... as you are dealing with the unknown and our minds go exponential on this.

my advice to you is threefold during this process

1. Stay off of DrGoogle, you will only convince yourself you have 2 weeks to live and the worry of that will just make you more ill than you are at the moment.

2. Try little pockets of distraction. You are not going to be able to switch off what you are going through, but a brisk walk, a swim, going out with mates or just watching something good on tv will distract you foe 30 mins or more. All these little periods of distraction do in the end add up and help

3. Come and talk to us on here about anything and everything at anytime. We have all been there and further and we do spend a lot of time helping people through th3 diagnosis process, only to see the quickly go when they have been diagnosed with something else. So shout whenever you need to let off steam.

please let us know how you get on with your appt

vatch