Hello all, I am writing because I am a health professional, with great physicians living in a large city with teaching medical hospitals and three major medical schools within 60 miles yet I was treated for LPR for over six months before asking for a second look at my raspy throat by my ENT. The second look revealed a 2 centimeter squamous cell carcinoma. This was undoubtedly present fo some time yet was NOT visible on the first ENT exam (ENT is a cancer specialist).
I am posting this especially for the younger LPR patients who are not responding to conventional treatment, there is a tremendous increase in base of tongue, lingual tonsil squamous cell carcinoma which appears to be related to Human Papilloma Virus exposure ( much more common now). If you are not responding to treatment, DEMAND a thorough ENT exam with a scope and even if negative it may be necessary to do imaging studies to find these lesions early. Early is the key, mine has already spread to a lymph node, the cure rate is much better if found early.
I am starting treatment in a week, being in a great hospital I am getting the best, most up-to-date treatment possible but now it it is not sure what my future will be.
Be pro-active, true, the statistics are in favor that you have LPR but pain and hoarseness, dysphagia, etc lasting longer than three months needs to be carefully and completely looked at as possible canver, if this saves one person from what I am experiencing it will be worth a lot to me. As a physician I heard horses when zebras were stampeding through my throat, my physicians were lulled in the same way, but I believe now that the protocol for evaluating patients with LPR symptoms needs to be re-evaluated.
Thank you for your attention to this long post By the way I am a non-smoker non-drinker and not all that young, but in excellent physical condition, this can find anyone
Good luck to all
(as an aside l suggest reading the book "A Taste of My Own Medicine" by Joseph Rosenbaum, made into a movie in 1991, "The Doctor"