Scared silly

[poodlegirl75]

I was having some problems with swollen lymph nodes under my right arm along with tenderness in my right breast.  I have swollen lymph nodes in my right collar bone also.  My whole body was aching and other such symptoms.  My Dr, in an attempt to rule out things, tested me for ANA and was positive.
I am scheduled for the 5th of this month to have a mammogram, but I read that positive ANA can happen when you have cancer too.  She is currently treating me for connective tissue inflammatory disease.  I am really hoping that is all it is, because trust me that is enough.
My question is, is it possible that my Positive ANA is related to cancer or is it more common with Lupus or autoimmune disorders?  I am really scared here.

[Buffy1970]

You may be able to order online.  Have they checked your blood sugar levels (diabetes can cause thirst but I'm not sure about dry mouth - maybe something controllable by diet)?  

Anything that dries your mouth puts your teeth at risk.  You may also want to check into sources of calcium that aren't the typical animal by-product.  A lot of veggies offer good sources of calcium.  

P will need to tell you about Sj.  As for overlap, that is all too true and you may not find out what everything is.  Good luck!  I hope it's good news for the holidays.

[poodlegirl75]

Do you have problems with your teeth with Sjorgrens? My mouth is dry all night. I wake up during the night drinking water, but it does not really help. As a result my teeth are breaking.  I just broke my fourth tooth in two years and could not figure out why.  My dentist recommended Biotene, but I can not find it.

[poodlegirl75]

I am not sure Buffy if I have FM or not.  This all started all of a sudden for me and I was recently diagnosed.  She stated, "You have a connective tissue inflammatory disease, like Lupus".  On my last visit she told me that when you have one autoimmune disease, you can have several.  It is just a matter of diagnosing them because they can "overlap".  So I am not sure of what is going on.  I know they did tests to rule out Lymphoma, HIV, Syphillis (the last two I had no possible exposure to, but was willing for her to check for anything), Luekemia, RA.  She scheduled me for a mammogram to rule out breast cancer.  I read the symptoms of inflammatory breast cancer and I really do not experience any of the symptoms for that (the orange peel appearance of your skin, dimpling of the skin, heat or discoloration of the skin) just the swollen lymph nodes under my arm and tenderness in my breast.  But others have told me that with Lupus they do have breast tenderness and inflammation in their breasts with a flare.  I will know after 12/05.  I just pray for the best.

[poodlegirl75]

I know that my Dr's first response was "You have positive ANA and your numbers are very high".  I had no idea what she was talking about.  But when I went online to find out what it mean, I found alot of articles about Lupus, Firbomyalga, etc.  Then a little further reading and all I saw was cancer.  My Dad died of Melanoma and I am terrified of cancer.  I can deal with autoimmune, I hope lol, but I do not want to deal with cancer.  But almost everything I read is autoimmune so I am hoping she is right.

[Buffy1970]

Be careful about scaring yourself with the internet.  (This I say from personal exp.)

I had a slight positive ANA - speckled.  It doesn't always mean something from what I was told.  You may have a false positive... don't ask me what that means or how it happens.  I do know that chest pain/ache is not always lethal but it does need to be checked out.  If you are naturally lumpy ask doctor before scheduled apt (if possible) about MRI of breast(s) instead.

Do you have FM?  I have extreme pain between my breasts, slightly to the left (my trouble side).  It is the FM.

Good luck!

[Phtartist]

I just wrote you this long thing and lost it due to having to sign in after  
Short explanation- ANA does not mean cancer. It is autoimmune.
I have the swollen lymph, eyes burn a lot, glands swell under my jaw.
My autoimmune is Sjogrens Syndrome.

[Caryopteris]

The mammogram is more important than checking for an autoimmune disease.  I hope you don't have inflammatory breast cancer, but it is possible for anybody to get it.  I hope they can allay your fears about breast cancer.  Then you can find out if you have autoimmune things going on.  If you do, make sure they also check for Celiac disease because getting gluten out of your diet would protect your health if you have Celiac.