Hello All - I'm new here please bare with me as I explain what's been happening
29 year old, physically active non drinking, non smoking male.
a couple of months ago I woke up to find a very sudden but large lump in my gum, on the bottom row of my teeth, which very rapidly over the course of a few days got larger to the point where my entire cheek was swollen and I could barely open my mouth
an emergency trip to the dentist ended up being very worrying, as they were very concerned that one of my lymph nodes under my chin was also raised, and as my teeth were feeling fine they were really not sure what this issue was. I was referred to the hospital to see a maxillofacial surgeon on a 2 week referral
Once with the hospital I very quickly received a head & neck CT, blood tests, MRI scans and a biopsy of the lump in my gum, and the surgeon reassured me that there were '1001 things it could be' and they had to wait for the biopsy to find out
Unfortunately last week I was called into the office with my father and given the news that I had infect developed a cancer called a lymphoma in my neck, which had materialised in my mouth very quickly. Truly devastating news
I cannot fault the NHS, since that meeting I have had countless scans, tests and meetings with my specialist, leader of the MDT meetings for cancer in my area. I'm currently waiting on a PET scan tomorrow, to find out the type, extent, severity of this lymphoma as the doctors have said it's hard to have a definitive answer until the PET scan
to say im Extremely worried is an understatement. My specialist has said that this kind of cancer is 'emminently treatable' and 'in most cases curable', but this is all depending on the results of the PET scan, and at what stage my particular form of cancer is at
if anyone has any lymphoma stories, or any advice on how I can possibly navigate this utter nightmare, I'd be pleased to speak to you
