Sternum lump

[alwaysworrying68]

I am so glad I found this website.  I too noticed a lump on my lower sternum.  Of course, I always think the worst of everything.  Yes, I have been diagnosed with anxiety disorder as well.  It's something that I cannot get over on my own, even with the mild meds that my RNP put me on i July.  I've always been this way but got worse when I was diagnosed with Stage 3 melanoma.  Since then, which has been almost 7 years ago, every single little thing that goes wrong with me I think I am dieing.  It is a horrible feeling.  And, I also have the feeling that I can't breath and my chest is real tight, like I'm having a heart attach or something.  Anyone else out there with these symptoms?  It's nice to know I am not alone.  I never had any type of counseling when I went thru my surgery for my melanoma, maybe I should consider finding a group that has gone through it and what they are feeling now??


This discussion is related to lump under sternum.

[alwaysworrying68]

Thank you so much for the post.  I am going for my physical Thursday so will have her examine the lump.  My husband says he has one too and it's part of the sternum, I never noticed it before so am not really certain.  The melanoma surgery was on my lower right leg.   A nightmare to say the least.  Still a bit confused by the whole thing as they labeled it a Stage III, but they did the SNB and none were active, they were labeled benign nodes and also the margins were clear after quite a bit of tissue taken.  To clear my mind of some horrible thing that may not be, I was told to possibly get a full body PET scan.  I myself think it would put a bit of my mind at ease.   It's horrible living with anxiety.  Not many people understand and it's frustrating.  Unless something horrible has happened in their life, they don't think of the things I do.  I will let you know what the Dr. says.  Thank you again.

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Welcome to the MedHelp forum!
The best way to get out of this anxiety is to get the lump examined. A lump on the sternum could be a swollen lymph node, a lipoma (localized collection of fat), a neurofibroma (localized collection of nerve and fibrous tissue) or a scar tissue from a surgery (may be the melanoma surgery if it happened there).
A lump in the lower sternum that comes and goes is often due to acidity. It is normal to be scared after you had melanoma. So the wisest thing to do would be to get this lump examined.
Hope this helps. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!