Opinions on this please!

Hey Vets, could you please give me some advice on what this is?? My vet thinks it may be a tumour but didn’t want to take a biopsy to confirm. Below are the photos the vet took on Thursday while she was sedated. I asked them to take x-rays which they said they did but I haven’t seen.  She is 11, has been drooling (which has now virtually stopped) & has lost a little weight with not being able to eat her dry food (now on soft pate & kitten food). She is still active & jumping up onto wardrobes & my daughter’s cabin bed **Update - since yesterday evening she has been eating some dry food, both hand-fed & independently, Dreamies treats & a chew stick! 👏🙏

Hello!   I'm afraid that, rather boringly, I think that your vet may be quite right not to identify this until they have tested it - it is the main reason that we biopsy.  I have seen "this must be cancer" lesions that have turned out to be inflammatory / a foreign body reaction.  I have also seen 'dead cert inflammatory lesions' that have turned out to be cancerous.  I can't even rule out chemical burns from here, although you and your vet may be able to.  Your vet has seen more of this lesion than us and had chance to examine your cats' lymph nodes etc, so they have more information than me.  Their opinion is probably worth listening to.  Your cat is losing weight in the face of plenty food and this looks sore, so it does seem that time may be of the essence.

I have just reread and it seems as though there may be good reasons against biopsy (the underside of tongues do appear to bleed rather and remember that I know nothing about the general systemic status of your cat).  This may leave the options of trial treating, referral or potentially euthanasia, depending on the wider situation (again, your vet who knows the details of the case - indeed, the cat attached to the tongue - and is the best person to advise).

Severe ulcers in cats can be related to pre-existing illness eg. ulceration due to kidney disease.  Again, your vet may well have gathered enough information to advise.  It may be that there are no perfect answers as to what to do next, but options to choose.  In this case, it makes sense to go through each option and say 'what is the worst / best outcome you can predict if we do this?'  Or even, 'what would you do in my situation?'  I hope that something here helps.