Off I went to the dentist for my routine check up. My dentist is a very lovely lady and always thoroughly checks my mouth, so when she asked me if I had any concerns about my teeth, I replied that I did not, but I did have a large tonsil I would like her to look at. This was when I first knew something serious was lurking in my tonsil.
As soon as she saw it, she wanted to take a photo and send it to the Maxillofacial team in the hospital. Then she started talking about it being smooth, not ulcerated, pink in colour, etc. All of these things were clearly intended to reassure me, but all it did was make me realise she was talking about cancer. She said I should hear from the team within 5-6 weeks, but I left the surgery knowing I had cancer, and there was no way in the world I was waiting another 6 weeks.
We are fortunate enough to have private medical insurance, so when I got home I immediately called a private GP and asked for an urgent referral to an ENT specialist. I couldn’t find a cancer specialist with availability until the end of May – another 4 week wait – so I opted for the earliest appointment I could get just to get the ball rolling. I wasn’t aware of the NHS 2 week cancer pathway at this stage, so while I organised my own private appointments, I was oblivious to the fact I was also being given a 2 week appointment on the NHS, which in hindsight, I thought, was excellent service.
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