[pavulon]

Of course, lots of variability in situations, pain tolerances and surgeon technique leads to lots of variability in patient experiences.

Another concern to consider is the unusual occurrences of tonsil cancer.

Lymphoid tissue helps protect the body against infection. The throat has three types of tonsils: the pharyngeal tonsil (adenoids) in the back of the throat, the palatine tonsils on the sides of the throat, and the lingual tonsils on the base of the tongue.

Cancer of the tonsils usually involves the palatine tonsils on the sides of the throat.

Most tonsil cancers are squamous cell carcinomas but some are lymphomas.


Symptoms:
Tonsil cancer may have one or more symptoms, including:

A sore in the back of the mouth that will not heal
Tonsil is larger on one side
Blood in the saliva
Mouth pain
Difficulty chewing, swallowing or speaking
Persistent sore throat
Intolerance to eating or drinking citrus foods
Severe ear pain
Lump or pain in the neck
Pain when swallowing
Bad breath


Causes and Risk Factors
Squamous Cell Carcinomas

Men are diagnosed with tonsil cancer three to four times more often than women. People are generally diagnosed at age 50 or older but it can develop at any age. The most significant risk factors for tonsil cancers are tobacco and alcohol use, including smokeless tobacco (snuff and betel nut).

Other potential causes include people with certain infections or decreased immunity, such as:

Exposure to the human papilloma virus (HPV), especially strains 16 and 18.
Organ transplant recipients
People with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease

There are no accepted general risk factors or causes for lymphoma.