Might be Lymphoma

[jody4417]

I have had both my knees and hips replaced from 2010 to 2013, at some point I noticed swelling not going down and came to realize I had edema in both legs, but the right leg is about an inch larger than left. My right leg is also about an inch longer from an accident I was in , in 1981.  My ortho Dr wanted me to see a vascular Dr., I did, he did ultra sound and said my lymph glands in my right groin area were swollen and wanted me to have a biopsy right away. Also I'm HIV positive so I get labs done about every 3 months and I talked to my HIV Dr first and she thought it strange because she had never seen a problem in labs. I've had so much done, this last April I tore my rotor- cuff and just got over surgery for that, so I'm waiting til after the holidays to get a biopsy. Wouldn't my labs show there was a problem?

[Ken_PA]

Hi, everything hinges at this point on what the ultrasound report said. E.g., what is the size of the node, and what is the status of the "hilum"? Can you post that report? The report might explain the doc's rush to have a biopsy, or it might not.

As to your specific question: most people with *beginning* lymphoma don't have anything unusual in a CBC blood test. That's because the proliferation of the bad cells occurs in the nodes or other solid tissue, not in the blood.

I understand very well your wanting to put off the biopsy. But the ultrasound is the key here. Maybe it will even show that you can wait without too much worry.