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enlarged lymph nodes - worried!

SunshineEm
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Hi all! Sorry if this is slightly long to read.

I'm 21, and female. In november, I noticed one of my lymph nodes in my neck was enlarged, without any other signs of illness. Shortly after my groin swelled up, and then I noticed another in my neck was enlarged too. The groin 'swelling' seemed to go down, I occasionally worried about the ones in my neck, but didn't do anything about it. Since november, I have been getting increasingly tired, however this comes and goes. Some days I am fine, other days I am exhausted, and it is completely unrelated to how much sleep i've got! One in particular on my neck seemed to be growing larger, and I then noticed I could actually still feel the one in my groin. I've also seemed to have slightly tender side of my breast, on one particular side, which comes and goes too. I don't know if this is related.

I finally went to my GP on monday, and she examined me and found some more  - another in my neck, one above my collar bone, and another in the other side of my groin. So in total I have 6, that I know of. I'm also convinced another one has swelled up in my armpit since I saw her, but I don't know if this is stress related? The day it felt swollen, the side of my breast on that side was also tender to touch (the opposite to where it has previously been sore). I've also seemed to have developed a 'tight chest' feeling and a chesty cough when I breathe in deeply since seeing her, after she pressed down on my stomach and told me to inhale/exhale, but then again, maybe its always been there/ is stress related? I'm just noticing it now?
I had a chest x-ray this morning, have a CT scan on my neck in just under 2 weeks, and blood tests in about 3 weeks. I feel a bit confused to be honest, I know they're testing 'to rule out' cancer, but what does this actually mean? a specific type of cancer? any cancer? I don't really understand the stages of diagnosis, and how likely really is this to be cancer? I don't think I've had any significant weight loss, and I definitely have not had night sweats to the point I've drenched the sheets, i've woken up hotter than usual some nights but that could be a whole range of things.

 I know lymphoma can cause enlarged lymph nodes - does anyone know if 6 palpable nodes is a bad sign? The one in my neck that I had originally noticed seems to feel quite hard and doesn't move, but my GP did say the ones in my groin area are movable and so that is more 'promising'. I'm trying to stay positive but the worry is really eating away at me, at a time where i'm trying to write my university dissertation too!

Any kind of insight/opinion would be really helpful/appreciated, its driving me crazy!

 

EDIT: I also had glandular fever 2 years ago, so we know it isn't this. 

 

  • Offline in reply to mellisa

    Hi,

     

    Hope so! Thank you so much for listening! Yeah stress absolutely does that to periods and that could be the reason in my case as well as yours. 

    I agree! I'll be kind to myself and wait for results,

     

    Thank you again! Speak soon when I know my results xx

  • Offline in reply to Tigerbilly1

    Hiii

     

    i will be waiting. If you need to talk you can post here as I have the notifications on xx 

     

    good luck my love 

  • Offline in reply to Tigerbilly1


    Hi Tigerbilly,

    I am glad to hear that you are seeing your GP in person tomorrow, so that your rash can be seen. Between this and your blood tests on Monday, you should soon have some answers. You mention that you have had this for a year - this seems a long time, but skin irritations can be difficult to heal. 

    If your GP is still no wiser, you might be better asking for a referral to a dermatologist instead of a biopsy. The dermatologist could do a biopsy if they deem it necessary, but they can also test for simpler causes.

    Here's hoping that you get some answers soon. Please let us know how you get on.

    Kind regards,

    Jolamine xx

  • Offline in reply to Jolamine

    Hi, 

     

    Hope you're well. X

    I'm having a few extra blood tests on Monday alongside the ones I aas going to have anyway as the doctor could see something isn't right, he wants to investigate my rash after he has investigated what may be causing my swollen lymph nodes - I have more swollen than I initially thought and a tender liver, not feeling hugely hopeful as I know if it were to be Lymphoma, liver involvement isn't a good sign.

     

    Fingers crossed my bloods won't indicate any sort of advanced cancer! Xx

  • Offline in reply to mellisa

    Hey Mellisa,

     

    Thank you so much! Not long till bloods now. Hope you're all good 

     

    XX

  • Offline in reply to Tigerbilly1

    Hiii,

     

    I saw your post explaining that you need more blood tests done. You've talked about a tender a liver. Do you mean it as in you can feel your liver is tender. I sound so dumb because I don't even know where my live is. But I've just researched that a tender liver could be a sign of a bacterial fungal or other sorts of infections. So you still need to have hope. I remember you telling us you had a blood test done on Monday maybe I'm mistaken but did you get the results for them. 
     

    Look if it is lymphoma you will get treatment and be cured as it's one of the most highly curable cancers. I am not saying it's something nice to have because I'm sure it isn't but it's still not 100% and live tenderness and these lymph nodes can be caused by other things too. btw lymphoma is generally not detected in bloods. I've researched that some people that have had lymphoma have said it was never detected in bloods but from a lymph node biopsy whereas others say they had a specific level that was high which lead to other tests. 
     

    With me well I'm not doing great mentally because now I have this obsession that I think I might have breast cancer. Like I know I'm 18 it's rare but like it's not impossible and my aunt had breast cancer which scares me even more. I have an appointment on Wednesday and I'm gonna ask for an ultrasound referral and I'll take it from there but I know that the ultrasound people are going to say the lymph node is really big and will send me for a biopsy. I'm legit dead worried and I'll be good one day and the next day I'll be in breakdown mode crying and just staying in bed which is not like me. 
     

    But I'm wishing you luck with the blood tests and I pray to good that it's not any form of cancer ️
     

     

  • Offline in reply to Tigerbilly1

     

    HI Tigerbilly,

    I am glad to hear that your GP has requested more blood tests for Monday. We all worry at this stage and most of us tend to think the worst. Fortunately, it is seldom any type of advanced cancer. In fact, only 1 person in every 8 referred to the breast clinic turns out to have breast caner.

    I hope that all goes well on Monday and it should only be a few days after that before you get your results.

    Kind regards,

    Jolamine xx

  • Offline in reply to mellisa

    Hey,

    I just thought I would jump on here and try help ease your mind with the biopsy fear you have. Massive disclaimer: im no doctor, this is just based on what I've spoken to other medical professionals about and what I've researched about diagnostic pathways! Biopsies are not usually ordered from an ultrasound on the basis of lump size. Ultrasounds are actually pretty good scans and so just because your lump is larger than normal it doesn't mean they'll want a biopsy without scanning it first. If your lymph node looks reactive on the scan (which they have some tricks to spot) you'll be fine regardless of the size so don't stress yourself out thinking that a biopsy is a guaranteed part of your future. If size was a prime indicator of malignancy, an ultrasound wouldn't even be ordered for many lumps and would totally be skipped but they're used because they're good indicators of who needs a biopsy and therefore save tons of people the hassle of getting one. Also, if you are sent for a biopsy it doesn't mean cancer is necessarily suspected. They may be checking for other conditions such as autoimmune conditions which could've looked more likely on the ultrasound. I hope that clarifies things a bit more about what kind of tests you could expect and helps make things seem a bit less scary. The thought of needing a biopsy is terrifying to a lot of people but be assured that there are steps before being referred for one, the scan will tell them plenty and they'll go from there. 

  • Offline in reply to poppy602

    Hi 

    you've put my mind to some rest so I'm forever grateful for that. It's just I still can't stop worrying because I just hate that it's just really big. Hopefully it's nothing serious. 
     

    from your own experience when you got your ultrasound done do they give you the results then and thete or do you wait for a bit and would they request a same day biopsy when you also had your ultrasound done too?

     

    i don't know if I've worded it properly my heads not doing that great xx

  • Offline in reply to mellisa

    Hey,

    I'm glad to hear you feel a bit calmer. I have not had my ultrasound yet and so I'm not entirely sure. I think it varies between hospitals, if the scan is abnormal you could have one on the spot or be referred for one but I think by that point you'll have a good idea of what's going on as ultrasounds can usually rule things in or out including reactive lymph nodes and cancer. I think some nurses or doctors will be able to tell you during the scan what they're seeing and what it suggests to them and if it just looks like a reactive lymph node they may tell you on the spot that the scan looks normal and they won't send you for more tests although some don't say anything and you find out through your GP what they think. But I don't think it's common for ultrasounds to progress to biopsies and usually it's found out at the ultrasound stage that it's nothing or at least not cancer. 

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