Rock 'n' knoll in the mouth: A man with a lump on the hard palate

A Caucasian man aged 63 years with a history of heavy smoking and occasional alcohol drinking (<1–2 standard drinks per week) presented with concerns regarding a hard lump in the middle of his hard palate, which had been disturbing him for a few months. His main concern was whether the lump could be ‘cancer’. He did not have any pain or tenderness, bleeding, oozing or discharge from the lump, and he reported that the lump was not growing. Systemic enquiry was unremarkable. On physical examination, there appeared to be a smooth, approximately 1.0 cm × 1.5 cm, multilobulated, hard, non-tender, non-mobile, non-fluctuating lump, with the consistency of bone and natural colour of the oral mucosa in the midline, on the hard palate (Figure 1). There were no signs of discolouration or ulceration. There was no lymphadenopathy and no further concerning lesions.