Lump on neck 2012 follow up

[neil74]

I posted around a year ago around a lump I had discovered on my neck, over the course of the last year I have had an ultrasound and blood work all of which came back ok and whilst I understand that neither are 100% conclusive these coupled with the fact that it has not grown at all over the last year has given me a degree of comfort and my doctor explained that it is not unusual for nodes to be asymmetrical to their counterpart on the other side of the neck which I cannot feel.

About 6 weeks ago I had a painful lymph node under my chin (centre) it was accompanied by a cold-sore on my lip so I was not overly concerned and it went down shortly after the sore disappeared.  About 2-3 weeks ago however I discovered a very small lump under my left arm pit, it was painless and moveable.  I went to my doctor however he was off and was seen by a stand-in who said it was a cyst not a node but agreed to me having more blood work done.  A week later(last Friday) I went to see my proper GP who said that it was a node and not a cyst (face palms) but that it was small and he was not worried about it, he also said that my blood work was normal from the week before.  His feeling was that my blood work and the node were consistent with my body fighting off a virus rather than anything more sinister, although other than the cold sore from a few weeks before I have felt 100% fine.  We agreed that to put my mind at rest I would have more blood work done in a few weeks and I would see him again in a month.

Almost a week on from that the node under the arm has definitely gone down although I can still feel it so hopefully in a few more days that will be completely down, today however I have noticed something else which is a lump (again very small) in the middle of my thigh, pretty much half way between my knee and hip on my quad muscle just under the skin, it’s not red or sore and as far as I can tell is nowhere near where I would expect to find a node.  Could they however be connected in anyway? Or  am I putting 2 and 2 together and coming up with 5 here and being un-necessarily paranoid? ordinarily I would not even bat an eyelid at it.

[neil74]

Thanks.

I did lose some weight at the start of 2012 which was totally planned and it was only after that when I noticed the node on my neck, it may well have been there for years and it has not changed at all in the last 12-14 months since I noticed it.  It could be a throwback to glandular fever I had in my teens or pneumonia (mild) that I had in December 2011.  Whilst it has not changed I think that the fact that it never went down and that I could not feel anything on the other side kept it at the back of mind.

Hopefully the recent flair ups are unconnected and just me worrying un-necessarily, the one under my chin is hopefully explained by the cold sore and the one under my arm by another infection, it looks like both have shrunk back down pretty quickly.  Because the original one was never 100% given a clean bill of health I guess the subject has always been on my mind to a degree.

Fingers crossed and at least I am on the case with my GP.  Having said that if the one under my arm goes down completely and my blood work comes back normal again he will be probably do nothing further, that is good news of course but does mean I still won't be 100% sure.

Thanks again

[Mochadelicious]

Hi Neil,
Thanks for posting an update on how you are doing.  It sounds like you've been through a lot over the last year.  Kudos to you for being so vigilant about your health.  

Yes, some nodes may never go completely away as they can sometimes form scar tissue.  I can't remember, but did you ever have night sweats, fevers or weight loss?  These lymphoma/leukemia like symptoms are known as "B" symptoms and will often accompany swollen lymph nodes.  If you don't have any of the "B" symptoms, it's more difficult to convince a doctor to biopsy the lymph node.  I'm also assuming your LDH levels are okay?  This is also something doctors look at when diagnosing Lymphoma or Leukemia.

Lymph nodes are found all throughout the body, but with Lymphoma and Leukemia it is more often seen in the lymph nodes found in the neck, collar bone, armpits, and groin areas...usually.  My lymphoma was found in my breast, which is quite unusual.  

Blood tests and scans are helpful when trying to diagnose blood diseases, but they are only a small piece of the puzzle.  Biopsy is the only way to truly diagnose, so you might suggest it to your doctor if these nodes don't start behaving themselves soon.  Good luck and take care.