<human>: I have a hard painful lump in my cheek (mouth).  At first I thought it was my jaw, so maybe an abscessed tooth, but my gum area is not sore.  I can feel the lump in my cheek tissue (for lack of a better description) and it is very sore like a bruise.
<bot>: Hi. Thanks for your query. As per your description of the lump: hard-painful lump which is sore like a bruise can be an inflammatory in origin. The cause could have been a bitten cheek or a small injury which has inadvertently gone into infection. I would advise:A course of an antibiotic and anti-inflammatory for 5 days should solve the problem. If no response within 2 to 3 days consult an ENT Surgeon / Oral Surgeon to make sure that there is no serious underlying problem