Swollen lymph glands in neck and chest

Hi I’m new here, I’m really out of my depth and looking for reassurance I think. I’ve had a pain in my left side since February just under my breast, x ray came back clear and I had an abdominal ultrasound which didn’t show anything. In may I was referred for a CT scan as the pain was getting worse, CT scan showed a ‘few bulky lymph glands’ on both sides of my chest. I now have swollen glands in my neck and noticed a small (size of a pea) hard lump in my neck on the right side. I also now have pain in my right side under breast similar place to existing pain on the left. I’m waiting on a blood test booked for 12 July but every day seems like it’s dragging and I’m worried as my GP wants to check for lymphoma. I’m exhausted all the time and don’t know what to do with myself, single mum of 3 and feeling so stressed. 

  • Hi Charlie81 and a warm welcome to our forum, 

    You did well to get these issues investigated after you noticed this pain in your left side. It's reassuring that the X-Ray came back clear and the abdominal ultrasound didn't flag anything. I am sorry to hear though that the pain then got worse and it's good that they were thorough and did that CT scan. Only a few days to go now until your blood test on the 12th and I hope that it will provide some answers as to what is going on. I can imagine this is such a stressful time for you when the wait feels so long and knowing that your GP wants to check for lymphoma can be a scary thought but it's important also to bear in mind that there can be other conditions too that could trigger these symptoms. Try if you can to stay away from the temptation to look things up online as this will only make you feel worse and bring up the worst case but least likely possibilities. Being a single mum of 3 feeling exhausted and having all these symptoms must be so hard and I hope that you can find a bit of support around you to help you get through this anxious time. 

    Unfortunately there isn't much more you can do at the moment than wait for the medical experts to do the testing and provide definite answers but there are coping strategies that can help as you are waiting for a diagnosis so I thought I would share our helpful tips on how to cope while waiting for news.

    I will now let others come along and say hello and share their similar experiences with you. 

    Best wishes, 

    Lucie, Cancer Chat Moderator