Hard lump on lower jaw
Comments
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Yeah thankfully it won’t be a long wait now x ray is tomorrow and ultrasound is in the same department, the NHS do have a target of checking for suspected cancer within a time frame of 31 days and treatment if it is within 61 days
thank you so much I will leave an update when I find out the results
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Hi there I had my ultrasound today
he said he thinks it might be a bony prominence but is unsure so he will arrange for me to have a MRI scan
I assume if he thinks it might be none that he doesn’t want to risk doing a biopsy but that assumption might be wrong
I have to wait for his report to my GP to then have my MRI arranged, so reassuring but his not entirely sure
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I hope you get more diagnostic tests (MRI, PET scan, biopsy) soon. Happy holidays to you.
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Thank you & Happy holidays to you too
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Well, Sheep I never heard the term bony prominence before. It's amazing what can go on with the human body and the lliad of terms that can come with it, especially in the medical field. So I looked it up.
bony prominence
Any point on the body where the bone is immediately below the skin surface, which can be:
(1)Normal, these being known as bony landmarks; or
(2)Abnormal, which corresponds to reactive outgrowths of bone(exostoses), benign tumors (e.g., osteoma), or malignant tumors (e.g., osteosarcoma).
bony prominence
A part of the body with limited subcutaneous tissue over a bone. Examples include the heels, the iliac crests, and the sacrum. The skin that overlies a bony prominence is more prone to pressure ulceration than more padded body parts.
I think we are on the right track here.
I think he is correct in getting an MRI to see if it is bone as suspected, makes perfect sense because to just go in and not knowing and jabbing around on bone instead of some sort of tissue, well you know it just may chip a piece of bone off creating an infection or some other problem. This way he can be sure if it is bone or something else.
If it is bone I can imagine they would not need to do anything possibly since maybe your jaw got what might be considered a bone spur or something on it. That would be unless it would keep enlarging over time and cause a problem or discomfort.
If it is something else I guess they would go ahead with the biopsy.
I am impressed with your doctor he is taking it step by step and doing what is prudent in your situation to be sure the correct procedure is done to give you an accurate answer and not miss anything important.
So thanks for the update and we will see what you come up with next on this situation.
Also in the meantime do a search with these words "bony prominence on external lower jawbone"
You may find something there that means something to you in relation to your situation, I see the term Mandibular tori (bony growths) in the search results a lot but it seems to be referring mostly to bony growths inside the mouth.
I can't post a search results link here their site security rejects it outright.
Wishing You The Best
Take Care, God Bless
Russ
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Thank you so much for explaining that to me I was struggling to find out much about it - I did see on my ultrasound report the mri is to rule out anything sinister so thankfully I am on the right track now, they still have not looked at my x ray but probably no rush as the ultrasound is done and need an mri
lately the bone next to the growth has been hurting sometimes mostly when touched so I will make sure my doctor is aware of that also, hopefully they will do the mri scan and it will just be normal. The report said it measures 9x4 mm currently
same I could only see it refer to things inside the mouth but I don’t think I have anything like that but I am very glad I did not trust my dentist now debating asking for a different one next appointment.
thank you I will look that up and see if I can find anything
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Sheep, in the beginning, I stressed the need to have an ENT involved in your case. At this point, it probably doesn't make a difference but I was just wondering do you have an ENT involved in your case with the other doctors? You may have an ENT and I missed it.
Also, yes so much information referring to bone growth in the mouth on the jawbone base of tooth upper and lower but I figure if it can form there it can form externally also under the skin.
Take care, God Bless
Russ
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I don’t think I do unless they have been showing the images to an ENT but on my ultrasound report the doctor who performed it says ‘specialist radiologist’
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I spoke to my doctor today about my results and now I am finally on the correct path
she put it on the suspected cancer path so I will see a head and neck specialist as soon as possible and mri has already been recommended so hopefully they will do that straight away
the nhs have targets for seeing the specialist within 2 weeks from refferal
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Dear Sheepstew21,
I’m thrilled to hear you are now on the path of proper treatment with a heck and neck surgeon. Let’s hope a biopsy will occur as soon as possible.
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Thank you
I saw the specialist today who looked at my x rays but she thinks it’s just the way my jaw is how it’s shaped? All she did was look at the x ray and feel it which didn’t seem right to me so i pushed for the scan and she will refer me for a ct scan but i will get that within 10 weeks as it’s no longer classed as ‘urgent’ I’m bothered by this tbh as this lump is new, I used to feel my jawline alot growing up cause I do makeup art and I never ever felt it then!
what should I do? Wait until the ct scan because maybe if it is sinister it’s not showing up yet? I feel more at ease from her opinion but I also am not sure if I fully agree with it
I have a dentist appointment on the 13th February I can try and mention all this to him
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OK sheep, I am a little confused as to where you are at here with testing.
So you had an x-ray and an ultrasound, am I correct?
And the last thing I thought they were going to do was an MRI which should be pretty definitive.
But now you say she is referring you for a CT Scan.
So are you getting an MRI or a CT Scan or both just so I know where we are in this situation?
I am not sure exactly what to tell you I thought you would have a definitive diagnosis by now one way or the other.
I looked back over this thread and you said around Dec. 11th... "Hi there I had my ultrasound today
he said he thinks it might be a bony prominence but is unsure so he will arrange for me to have a MRI scan
I assume if he thinks it might be none that he doesn’t want to risk doing a biopsy but that assumption might be wrong
I have to wait for his report to my GP to then have my MRI arranged, so reassuring but his not entirely sure"
So did they not do the MRI and now want to do the CAT Scan?
Anyway, I agree with you her opinion can put you at ease but it still is not definitive as to what this bump is now and as you said it is new so it has just recently started.
I would definitely talk to your dentist about it and I would think if they get the proper scan that should tell them all they need to know but you may still need a biopsy somewhere down the road.
Has this bump grown since you first posted about it?
This thread was started in November and it is nearly the end of January so here we are 3 months in and it seems we don't know any more than when we started. You need an answer on this and I think you should have had one by now. I would push for a quicker scan.
Wishing You The Best
Take Care, God Bless
Russ
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Dear Sheep,
I wholeheartedly agree with Russ. It appears you are caught in a slow infinite loop and you’re going nowhere very quickly. Perhaps your situation is due to the United Kingdom’s NHS healthcare system. If this is the case, I understand why your journey to a definitive diagnosis is so slow. That said, if you do have a head and neck cancer, particularly an aggressive deadly kind, you are losing precious time for treatment and a chance for survival. At this point, if I were you, I would do whatever it takes to get a biopsy—not tomorrow, today! Did you contact Iain Hutchison in London, as I suggested? Might you consider raising money to go to a private otolaryngologist (not a dentist!) to order an immediate biopsy? Or, could you possibly travel to another country in the EU and get a biopsy immediately? Please try to get yourself out of this medical run-around. I’m sorry to sound so fatalist, but your life is at stake.
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Yes back in early December I had an ultrasound and an x ray done, the radiologist recommended ‘mri to exclude sinister features’ I spoke to my doctor who said she will put me on the cancer pathway, (2 week wait) and the specialist today looked at my x ray, felt my jaw and said she thinks it’s just how my chin has grown and I gave her a funny look and she then mentioned she can refer me for a ct scan but will take me off the cancer pathway and it will be routine which may take 8-10 weeks.
she did not really ask me much about any oral symptoms either only what medication I was on and any existing health problems.
yeah it feels like the lump has grown my mum feels it once every week or two and she thinks it has and thinks she can now somewhat see it on the outside.
Yeah it did not seem right to me as I have read that x-ray is not really used to diagnose cancer scans can give clues but biopsy is the definitive way. I also used to do makeup art every single day on my face and I never ever felt a lump or bump on my jaw.
thank you for the advice - I am seeing my GP tomorrow about a potential heart issue and she did my cancer referral to the specialist so I will tell her my concerns and she might be able to help get a second opinion
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You are completely right, the UK is generally awful at diagnosing cancer unless it’s routinely tested for I did not expect this today I just expected her to at least order an MRI scan
Yeah I completely agree I also thought about it and I would have maybe not noticed the lump at all as my son headbutted me there which made me aware and if it was cancer it could be in early stages which might be missed on scans - thank you for the ideas actually! I will enquire how much seeing someone privately would cost and go from there.
Thank you
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Just wanted to say I have my CT scan tomorrow, I made a complaint and they gave me a faster CT scan
if someone can help me understand what the OPG results mean?
they were: abnormal, bony outgrowth in the mandible. It is not visible on AP there is alveolar resorption at the site of absent teeth
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Hi Sheep,
An "abnormal, bony outgrowth" doesn't give you much more information than you had before. The mass is either benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous). You still need a definitive diagnosis. What advice did the doctor give you? Has a biopsy been performed? If not, do you have an appointment for a biopsy? Are you in any pain? Is the mass getting larger, smaller, or remaining the same size?
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Does well defined mean anything? Or is that why she just assumed it was okay? The specialist I saw was happy to just say ‘it’s part of my face’ and leave it at that. She also asked me where it was when feeling for it but everyone else and all other people felt it with no problem kind of felt like she couldn’t be bothered
my doctor never spoke to me about it, it was on my health record, they haven’t mentioned biopsy yet just I will have a ct scan tomorrow and then speak to the specialist again I assume when I speak to her again it would be in my best interest to ask about a biopsy.
in terms of growth and pain when I first felt the mass I had to dig my finger into my jaw to feel it but now I can run my finger gently across my jawline and feel it. It sometimes aches when I touch it but not always
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Sheep,
You should ask your doctor to explain the results of all your diagnostic tests. You've now had a few diagnostic tests: an x-ray, including an orthopantomogram (an "OPG") x-ray, an ultrasound, and most recently, a CT scan. This is the typical series of diagnostic tests. I'm guessing the doctor will either refer you (or not refer you) to get a biopsy. If the doctor recommends a biopsy, try to schedule the procedure as soon as possible.
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