Lymph node shrinks still new one pops up

[Koga23]

Hello i asked a question about a hard lymph node i had almost two months ago and i would like to ask some additional questions.

I went to my doctor who perscribed me a 10 day course of augmentin and ibuporfen almost a month ago and the hard-calcified node i had shrunk a lot. Now its very thin and its size is 1.5 cm to 2 cm also the hard node that was above it became completely soft. But about three weeks ago i had a pain in the mastoid with no ear infection i guess and after that i noticed a small hard node below and near him a big soft node. I would like to mention that this isthe side i still have an upper wisdom tooth but its not re or something it just descends.

So my questions are can a lymphoma node shrink after antibiotics and stay that way (pretty big from 1.5 to 2 cm)
And secondly can that 3 day pain in the mastoid caused those nodes that are still here 3 weeks after without ear pain or tooth pain-redness? Thanks in advance

[Koga23]

Nope after a travel of mine in uk i started developing weird symptoms such us red throat without much pain for over a month, for 3 days in my phlegm there was blood, fatigue etc. At the start i thought it might be an std but it wasnt. I took antibiotics 4 times the 2 of them was for other reasons. So now im thinking either for tb or lymphoma but as you mentioned after 2 wisdom teeth extraction and only 3 days antibiotics and no ibbuporfen (idiot dentist) and then a 10 day full course that made the first lymph bode shrink to 1.5 cm-2cm without re-expansion i might order new blood tests adding the tb ones.

[Ken_PA]

"weird symptoms such us red throat without much pain for over a month, for 3 days in my phlegm there was blood, fatigue, chest pain, palpitations etc...."

Best guess is this: you got that infection, the dental work allowed the infection to get deeper into your system, then the lymphatic system responded in defense -- then your weak system can't kill it, so it walls off the microbes with granulomas hence producing very large nodes that do nevertheless go down somewhat with antibiotics.

No TB, no lymphoma.

"chest pain"
If that recurs, watch out for myocarditis or endocarditis, which can be fatal from VFib especially during exertion. Get an EKG if more chest pain occurs...  unless it was lung pain.

[Ken_PA]

--palpitations could be heart infection
-- blood in mucous can mean bacterial lung infection, while green mucous means residue from immune system fighting bacterial infection

[Koga23]

Hello a serious update

I went to the doctor again and we found after an ultrasound multiple swollen nodes in neck and two in groin. He says they seem reactive but the blood tests are good normal pcr etc. Im gonna have an ct scan in tuesday and probably an excisional biopsy (the largest node is 3cm in neck and in groin). My question is can i have these nodes from tb or toxoplasmosis or brucellosis with normal blood tests or it seems more like lymphoma?

[Ken_PA]

Well, first of all, it's difficult for a person to know size accurately without a scan.

Are you saying that the length is 1.5 cm to 2 cm? 1.5 cm might still be possible from being "reactive", that'd be at the upper limit. Over that size, the only way I know of for a node to be longer while still being non-malignant is from granuloma.

So next we'd want to know: is that node long and thin or rounded? You'd said it is "thin". That tends to being non-malignant. But on the other hand, being rounded tends to being malignant because cancer tends to grow in all directions equally.

------

Next we'd look at the overall behavior. Nodes popping up while other nodes reduce in size is not how cancer would typically behave. But that is how immune reactions can behave.

------

"can they be swollen for 3 weeks just because my wisdom tooth descends without infection"

All of your experience is unusual but doesn't seem like cancer. Overall it seems to me that there is some unusual bacteria involved --- or that you have an unusual immune system and so I'd wonder if you have a family history of that.

Since teeth are involved, look here:
http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Leukemia--Lymphoma-/Lymphoma-or-false-alarm/show/2926406

------

"if no what can cause them to be like that for so long?"

Besides existing infection or fibrosis, we can look to more rare and mysterious processes of immune signalling. This becomes very complicated. The body uses many interacting biochemicals. Or even dead bacteria can set off a strong reaction. Or sometimes signalling cells such as macrophages can be overactive and cause problems.

So its all guesswork, but it seems that something was already present and that the descending tooth intensified things.

------

The length of time (3 weeks) should not be overly alarming and not lead to an automatic conclusion of cancer.

[Koga23]

Thank you again, the shape of the first calcified node that shrunk and now is something between 1.5 to 2 cm is a perfect oval. So a calcification can be benign only if it is up to 2 cm despite the antibiotic reduction (it hasnt grew bigger after the reduction in size)? And lastly the tonsillar node on the other side is very small comparing to the first  but also kinda calcified and the node near him is hard and more wide but definetely not calcified also they are a little tender sometimes when pressed. What you suggest as next moves to get to the bottom of this?

Fyi my immune system is kinda weak after months of stress and malnutrition and i lost a couple of kilos from not eating well.

[Ken_PA]

"So a calcification can be benign only if it is up to 2 cm"
Nope, please reread above. Also, calcification is a side issue. The main issue is the size, while calcification has to do with a) intensity of benign inflammation, or b) in cancer it is much more with metastasis than lymphoma anyway

"(it hasnt grew bigger after the reduction in size)?"
that tends toward scarring as the cause

generally tenderness in a node means not-cancer, btw

"What you suggest as next moves to get to the bottom of this? "
Please read that other thread that I suggested. A doc will likely only say "watch and wait".

I'd be on alert to see if another round of Rx might be in order. Personally, I'd also want to take them separately to see which one has the better effect - since that can be a big clue. You can of course try more ibuprofen in your own (after studying the side effect risks well). The best asset you have now is your own inquiries, since unusual cases like yours can take long to diagnose.

Stress? Did you have a "bad cold" that started these symptoms off?

[Koga23]

Nope after a travel of mine in uk i started developing weird symptoms such us red throat without much pain for over a month, for 3 days in my phlegm there was blood, fatigue, chest pain, palpitations etc. At the start i thought it might be an std but it wasnt. I took antibiotics 4 times the 2 of them was for other reasons. So now im thinking either for tb or lymphoma but as you mentioned after 2 wisdom teeth extraction and only 3 days antibiotics and no ibbuporfen (idiot dentist) and then a 10 day full course that made the first lymph bode shrink to 1.5 cm-2cm without re-expansion i might order new blood tests adding the tb ones

[Ken_PA]

"can a lymphoma node shrink after antibiotics"
short answer: no

"caused those nodes that are still here 3 weeks"
changes can take place inside a node that take a long time to go down, such as scarring (fibrosis)

"the hard-calcified node i had shrunk a lot"
that's interesting because I would have expected that process to take a much longer time

P.S. Please let me know if you'd read this.

[Koga23]

Thank you very much for your answer so you think that the reduction of my calcified lymh node from antibiotics and antiflammatories is a non cancer sign despite its size (1.5 to 2) and what about my other side lymph nodes, can they be swollen for 3 weeks just because my wisdom tooth descends without infection (fyi i had pain in the mastoid before the swelling), if no what can cause them to be like that for so long?