Bump on chin - normal or not?

I'm not sure how exactly how to explain this, but I'll try my best. I've attempted several pictures but they just aren't showing what I need them to show.

I noticed this morning that one of my cats has a lump on her chin. At least I think its a lump. Its directly under her front teeth, so at the front of her chin. It feels solid, almost like bone, but I need to feel it a little more to get a better idea. She just turned a year old, but she's been a sickly cat since the day we got her. She had a pretty bad abscess a while back, and because of other random things that have gone wrong with her, she is definitely a cat who acts sick when she's sick. The abscess was on the side of her face and she was having very obvious problems chewing/eating when it was there.

I guess the best way to describe what I am feeling is that its almost like a human who seems to have an elongated underside to their chin. I've been annoying my other cats because I've been trying to feel all of their chins to see if its normal, but all of them have very smooth undersides to their chins.

She's not acting sick at all. She's eating fine, and based on how she ate with the abscess, I feel like she's be having problems eating if it was a tooth problem. She's using the litter box and playing, and everything seems absolutely normal with her. I know that cats can mask pain really well, but she never has before. Its always been very obvious when something is wrong with her.

My biggest fear is cancer, because I know that its sometimes a silent killer. Also, from what I can tell, it doesn't seem to be a liquid-like or squishy lump. It feels very solid.

I always rush the cats to the vet for just about anything, but I called today and the earliest they can get her in for a non-emergency is Wednesday. I took the appointment, but now I've been googling and can't find anything like this. If any of her normal habits change before Wednesday then she'll be rushed to the vet, but for now I guess I have to wait.

So my questions are - has anyone had a cat that had a lump/bump on the underside of the chin right underneath the front teeth that didn't seem to be bothering the cat at all? Is it normal for some cats to just have a lumpier jaw than others? Or is this something that requires immediate medical attention?

If I'm able to succeed in getting a picture that shows what I am feeling then I'll post it here. In the meantime I guess I'm off to go worry for the next 2 days .

Could it be feline acne? Do you use plastic plates? How long has it been there? does it loo inflamed at all? has it gotten bigger?

I do have another cat with feline acne, and we use ceramic bowls for that reason. But his chin feels more like its just not smooth though, not that there's a pronounced bump. Can feline acne present itself in the form of a hard, solid bump? Instead of just tiny little rough bumps? She's a solid black cat which makes it hard to see what it is. My other cat with feline acne has a white chin, so its easy to see that something is there.

I'm not sure how long its been there. I just noticed it today. But I have rubbed her chin many times before and never noticed it. I don't know if its just that I wasn't looking for it and didn't notice it, or because it just wasn't there. I can't tell if its inflamed because it completely blends in with her fur. I wish she was a little lighter so I could get a better look! Now that I know its there though I can see that her chin looks like it has a bump on it, just from looking at her. But I don't think thats something that would be noticable if you didn't know it was there. I just found myself looking at her earlier thinking "Yep, I do see that it looks like there is a bump or lump or growth or something making that part of her chin look larger." But I honestly don't think I would have noticed that just by looking at her if I hadn't felt the bump first.

I really wish I could explain it better, or get a picture, or see it better .

If feline acne can cause something like this though, that would definitely make me relax slightly until her appointment on Wednesday.

Oh yeah, Acne can feel pretty solid and can be a pretty big lump too... Vibes for that to be the case!

Could it be a Rodent Ulcer, or maybe something left over from the abcess that did not quite heal ? Good luck

I was also thinking of rodent ulcer. My Pinky gets those chronically and it looks like he has a fat lip when he gets them.

Is it like my Sophies was in this picture?

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...ghlight=sophie

I had a cat that had feline acne. Yes, once she had a very hard lump on her chin up front from one "pimple" and it turned into a small absess. Similar to what you are describing. My vet did lance (sp?) it and open it up. Then the cat was on antibiotics and it cleared right up. Don't worry for the next two days, you have the vet appt. and I am sure it will be an easy fix

Rosiemac - From what I can tell, it doesn't look like the picture you linked me too. But her fur is so dark that its just so hard to see anything and its really frustrating me. I can't get her to sit still long enough for me to get a close look. I googled rodent ulcers though, and again, I can't tell if it looks like any of the pictures, but I'd say that its slightly smaller than a small pea. I don't know if thats larger than anyone who responded was thinking or not.

Twokatz - Its definitely not left over from her abscess. I suppose it could be a new abscess, but its no where near where the old one was. This is on her chin and the abscess was on her cheek. As stupid as this probably sounds, its concerning me more that she's NOT acting like anything is wrong. With the abscess she had a fever and was having trouble eating. This time she's acting completely normal. I just feel like if it was something like the last time, then I wouldn't like that she was feeling bad, but at least I'd feel somewhat reassured that what she had was something that could be cured.

On a positive note, I called the vet again today to see if they had any cancellations today. I really stress out about this kind of stuff so its killing me to wait until tomorrow. They did have an opening and I'm taking her in in about 45 minutes. Here's hoping its acne or a rodent ulcer or something else that isn't cancer . Please send some positive vibes her way.

Sophies was only about 3mm dia. I didn't realise how common rodent ulcers were until i did a search here on the site, so stay positive

Lots of healthy for your little girl and i'm pleased your able to get her straight in

Well we just got back from the vet and now I'm terrified. The vet is almost positive its not acne and it doesn't appear to be an abscess. I have to bring her back on Thursday for a biopsy. She said she didn't want to scare me with the word "tumor" but thats what she fears. I had prepared myself for that possibility, but its still so upsetting. Its going to be a long wait until Thursday. The vet did say that she can count on one hand the number of young cats she has seen with "scary" (her words) facial tumors, but at the same time, if thats what it is, and its malignant, then there usually isn't much that can be done. I still have hope though that its benign or not a tumor at all. I like this vet because they do the most of what they can do first. For example, she's going to biopsy 2 pieces of it, plus x-ray it to see if its in the bone at all. I've been to other vets who would want to try other options before the biopsy, and while the biopsy is expensive, I'm thankful thats the first thing she wants to do. So please send good vibes my way. Samantha has been a sickly little girl since the day we got her and I just want her to be healthy. I made the mistake of googling jaw bone cancer and now I'm just trying not to cry. She's only just over a year old, so I hope to God that this is just something benign. I have such bad luck with my cats. I just want a healthy cat for once. Its starting to really wear on me that I'm just constantly dealing with sickness.

Sending major vibes your way!

Originally Posted by Brooklet425

I made the mistake of googling jaw bone cancer and now I'm just trying not to cry.

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Stay away from googling health problems. I've seen so many people on this site make themselves ill through doing it

Did the vet say if she could move the lump like mine did, because that's how he knew it was benign if it wasn't a rodent ulcer?. I really hope it is benign and it'll be away once and for all come thursday

Lots more mega healthy coming for Samantha

Originally Posted by Rosiemac

Stay away from googling health problems. I've seen so many people on this site make themselves ill through doing it

Did the vet say if she could move the lump like mine did, because that's how he knew it was benign if it wasn't a rodent ulcer?. I really hope it is benign and it'll be away once and for all come thursday

Lots more mega healthy coming for Samantha

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Ugh I know. I'm a compulsive googler when it comes to problems with myself and my cats. I've convinced myself that I'm going to die numerous times,and the same with my cats. Its just one of those things that I always tell myself NOT to do, but I do anyway. One positive thing though is that I've been googling since I got back from the vet yesterday and I finally found pictures that look exactly like Samantha's chin, and they weren't tumors. One picture I found on here from 2008, and it was an acne infection, and the other pictures were just other non-cancerous things that it could be. I'm feeling slightly better about it now, but still a nervous wreck at the same time.

The vet didn't say if she could move it or not. She just said that it felt like swollen tissue which could indicate a tumor or just swollen tissue thats infected for some other reason. We both think its odd that she isn't acting like anything is bothering her though, which an infection of sorts would likely do. The scariest thing I read though was something about cancer of the jaw bone, and how if the tumor is in the bone, the tissue surrounding it will swell. I am still just hoping and praying that that isn't what it is. The vet didn't think it was acne yesterday, but again, her fur is solid black so her skin is pretty hard to get a good look at. She'll be under anesthesia tomorrow for the biopsy, so all I can hope is that when they get a better look at her, that it will seem less likely to be something bad. Since she's so young I'm really hopeful that its nothing bad, but she's always been a sickly cat which is what worries me.

Thank you for the good vibes though. I hope the results don't take too long to come in because I'm going to be driving myself crazy waiting for them.

Try to stay positive until you know more, paws crossed.

As for googling I do too, but I only visit sites with good information, like Vets , vet hospitals, etc. I stay away from the others. Yes I get scary information at times but at least when I go to see the Vet I go with some knowledge of the situation so I don't just take what they say as the absolute truth. I can ask the right questions and make an educated decision. I feel I owe that to my furkids, they can't make choices so it is up to me. I have no problem saying NO and I have the information to explain why. It has saved me and the "kids" from mistakes many times. My Vet has learned from me many times things she didn't know, or gone in a different direction she hadn't thought of. She has come to respect my opinions, even if I do frustrate her at times. I am lucky, my Vet realizes she is not God, she has no ego and is willing to think. There is nothing wrong with knowledge you just need to keep an open mind and stick to quality information.

My cat has same exact hard bump-feels like bone.  Can you tell me the outcome of the vet tests???

fatgizmo said:

 
My cat has same exact hard bump-feels like bone.  Can you tell me the outcome of the vet tests???

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Hi there, this thread is from 2011, so the original poster may not be around to respond. Bumps on the chin can be many things from feline acne, all the way to tumors or cancer. My sweet Shizu had a big bump under her chin that turned out to be jaw cancer. So if your kitty has a bump that wasn't thee before, I'd really suggest going to the vet asap to rule out anything serious. Hopefully it's something simple! 

brooklet425 said:

Ugh I know. I'm a compulsive googler when it comes to problems with myself and my cats. I've convinced myself that I'm going to die numerous times,and the same with my cats. Its just one of those things that I always tell myself NOT to do, but I do anyway. One positive thing though is that I've been googling since I got back from the vet yesterday and I finally found pictures that look exactly like Samantha's chin, and they weren't tumors. One picture I found on here from 2008, and it was an acne infection, and the other pictures were just other non-cancerous things that it could be. I'm feeling slightly better about it now, but still a nervous wreck at the same time.

The vet didn't say if she could move it or not. She just said that it felt like swollen tissue which could indicate a tumor or just swollen tissue thats infected for some other reason. We both think its odd that she isn't acting like anything is bothering her though, which an infection of sorts would likely do. The scariest thing I read though was something about cancer of the jaw bone, and how if the tumor is in the bone, the tissue surrounding it will swell. I am still just hoping and praying that that isn't what it is. The vet didn't think it was acne yesterday, but again, her fur is solid black so her skin is pretty hard to get a good look at. She'll be under anesthesia tomorrow for the biopsy, so all I can hope is that when they get a better look at her, that it will seem less likely to be something bad. Since she's so young I'm really hopeful that its nothing bad, but she's always been a sickly cat which is what worries me.

Thank you for the good vibes though. I hope the results don't take too long to come in because I'm going to be driving myself crazy waiting for them.

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Did you ever get the results of your cat? My cat just recently is having a similar issue and I'm concerned.