painful glands

My lymph nodes in my neck and under my arms are tender.  I have had a bad cold, but all of the symptoms have gone away except the tenderness in my glands, which I have had now for about 10 days.  

1. How long should I expect to have this tenderness to continue if it is associated with the virus that brought on my other cold symptoms?


2. Is the fact that the lymph nodes are tender and painful, and that I have the pain in my neck (on both sides) and both sides under the arms, mean that they are probably not due to a cancer?

[Kevin Pho, MD]

To answer your questions:
1) Normally the lymph nodes will return back to normal several weeks after the acute illness.

2) Painful lymph nodes can be caused by an acute infectious illness.  However, this fact cannot be used to make any predictions about whether they are cancerous or not.  

If they persist past several weeks after the infection, you can discuss a referral to a surgeon for a possible biopsy to exclude the possibility of cancer.

These options can be discussed with your personal physician.

Followup with your personal physician is essential.

This answer is not intended as and does not substitute for medical advice - the information presented is for patient education only. Please see your personal physician for further evaluation of your individual case.

Kevin, M.D.
http://www.straightfromthedoc.com