What's wrong with my elboow???

[joanabanana321]

for a long time, probably a year or more, on my left elbow i've had a long, hard, but very palpable thing right on top of my funny bone and recently i noticed some things. maybe these have been going on longer but i'd never thought of it until now. basically if I put my hand in a fist and open it up again, my ring finger and pinky are stiff. like they do that motion but it like goes through two positions; it's not a fluid movement like with all my other fingers. also those same two fingers get numb when my elbow's bent or i'm leaning on it or something. sometimes they also get numb on my right hand but my right hand doesn't have this weird long palpable thing. i tried googling it and got "entrapped ulnar nerve" but i don't know if that is what i have. what could this long palpable thing on my funny bone be? i feel it and touch it when my elbow is bent but not when it's straight. It doesn't feel like a lymph node, but could it be one? it's like 2 inches long, and it's scary. should i be concerned? THANKS!

[joanabanana321]

Hi, thanks again for your response! Another thing is that I've had a swollen lymph node for two years now under my armpit which came around when I was at camp. I was really sick when it swelled up; coughing, trouble breathing, no voice...the node didn't go away and after three weeks I went to the doctor and she said it was small and palpable so it was nothing to worry about. Now two years later it's still here but has not grown. It has definitely shrunk but I can still feel it. It's very palpable but it's not soft to touch, it's more firm. I'm wondering if it could just be a lymph node that swelled because of a lung or chest infection I had that year it came? And then a few months later I got the flu and there are still some palpable lymph nodes I can feel in my throat. And then this elbow thing has been here for a long time. And lastly right at the beginning of my anus on the tailbone/spine I have a small rubbery palpale thing which hasn't grown or shrunk (although it may have shrunk a little). I'm just wondering since it has been two years and I have not had any other symptoms if I can stop being so paranoid about cancer? I will see a doctor soon about it all but is it possible it is cancer or what? I'm a 16 year old girl and no one that I know of in my family has had lymphoma I'm just really anxious......thanks in advance!

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Symptomatically it does not look like cancer. Yes it can be a lymph node. Please discuss this with your doctor. It is difficult to comment beyond this at this stage without examining the swelling.  Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!

[joanabanana321]

Thanks! Is there a chance it could be a lymph node? Like I'm 16 years old an have this terrible fear of cancer and I Am going to see a doc about this but is it possible at all, or not? Just trying to put my mind at ease... :-/

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Welcome to the forum!
The lump could be a lipoma (localized collection of fat) or a neurofibroma (collection of nerve and fibrous tissue). This could be causing pressure on ulnar nerve. Since you have stiffness and numbness you must consult your PCP to start with. The origin of the lump has to be found out.
Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!