Hey everyone, I've had painful swollen lymph nodes under my armpits for 4 months, they come and go and so does the pain but for the most part I usually always have one or two lumps under both armpits, lately it's been concentrated to my right armpit and currently I have a really painful one about 3cm big. My blood results came back fine but I'm still in loads of pain with these lymph nodes, they've ruled out infection, and they're still growing/changing, has anyone had a similar experience?

Hi Tigerbilly,

Just wondering whether or not you are any further forward?

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hey,

I just had my ultrasound and I saw your post before I went in and I asked if a lymph node comes and goes and pain is involved and the radiologist said to me it could be your body fighting of a viral or bacterial infection. I don't know if this is any help to you as you said there is no infection due to the blood tests. 
 

you should have an ultrasound as they can see what lymph nodes are swollen and they can measure it too. And from the shape of a lymph node a lot of things can be ruled out accordingly. 
 

I suggest you go to your GP and get a referral for an ultrasound and take it from there. 
 

have a good day 

Hi guys, reading a lot of these posts has been nice to know I'm not alone in my worry! I had a chest X-ray to make sure a cough I had wasn't a chest infection. Had a call from the doctor a week later (last Wednesday) to say they found a shadow near my heart that needs investigating and was told it could be enlarged lymph nodes and couldn't confidently rule out cancer at this stage. Have been referred for a chest CT scan which is tomorrow and had bloods last Thursday which came back normal, just a slightly raised inflammation marker but nothing worrying. This last week has been absolute torture! I'm so up and down with my emotions and have never felt so scared and anxious. Definitely shouldn't have googled but I couldn't find much else for enlarged lymph nodes in chest that isn't cancer. I feel completely well and have no typical lymphoma symptoms, aside from a slightly swollen left armpit that's only gotten bigger since I had the call from the doctor and a persistent and slightly productive cough. I have been acutely aware now of constant random pains popping up all over my body especially my chest and mid section, which only fuels my anxiety further! Not sure if it's anxiety or something more sinister but my glands on my left side are starting to flare more each day!

Sorry for the long post... just wanted to know if anyone has experienced anything similar with a chest X-ray and what it turned out to be? 

Hi Wooze,

A very warm welcome to our forum.

I am so sorry to hear about your worries, but just want to reassure you that we all go to pieces when faced with the possibility of a cancer diagnosis. We always advise people to steer clear of Google, because, as you've discovered for yourself, this raises some very dark thoughts. It is not uncommon for us to also imagine aditional aches and pains throughout the body whilst waiting on a diagnosis. Fortunately, most of these disappear after diagnosis and are just a figment of our imagination going into overdrive.

There is honestly no way of taking any solace from chest x-rays being either clear or showing up a problem. We are all individuals and our bodies all manifest these symptoms in different ways. Instead of worrying that your lymph nodes may indicate something sinister, please rest assured that they can swell due to any inflammation in the body, even something mild, like a sore throat.

I sincerely hope that all goes well withyour CT tomorrow and that you don't have to wait too long for the results.

Please keep in touch and let us know how you get on.

We are always here for you.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Thanks for your comforting words Jolamine :)

Had my CT scan now and wasn't bad at all, just felt a little nerve wracking given what the potential outcome it could be is!

I have been put on a 2 week cancer referral pathway just so they can speed up the process in hopefully ruling it out but could take up to a week to hear any further news. I'm pessimisticly suspecting I still won't know much more from the scan and that they'll possibly want to do further tests or a biopsy maybe. 
 

The wait as everyone here will know is just absolutely agonising! I'm already an anxious person so when my family and friends tell me to try not to worry until I hear more... it seems it's near impossible haha 

I've seen some people tend to fall off this forum before they update with how they get on, which fingers crossed for them just meant that it was because everything was okay! However, I'll try to keep you guys posted on my updates just in case it might help someone else experiencing a similar situation. 
 

All the best x

Hi Wooze,

I'm glad to hear that your CT is behind you now. The 1-2 week wait for your results is always a scary time, partly because our minds tend to go into overdrive and, for some reason, we nearly hone in on the worst case scenario. Dealing with the unknown is always a worry and, regardless of the outcome, you will feel better once you get a diagnosis.

You are right that a lot of people tend to fall off the radar once they get their results. There are 2 main reasons for this. If someone gets a cancer diagnosis, it can take them some time to accept this and their emotions are all over the place. Many also go straight into treatment or surgery, which can leave them too fatigued to be bothered to let us know. Then there are the lucky people, who get the all clear and, are so relieved that we never hear from them again. It can be a worry, when people don't update us and we are left wondering. Fortunately, many come back to update us when they are further down the line.

It would be very helpful if you could continue with your updates, as this is always a great help for others who are undergoing all this palaver for the first time.

I sincerely hope that it will be good news for you, and that they will be able to give you a diagnosis. Please remember that we are always here for you.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Hi Guys

Just looking for any advice really. I'm a male, 31 years old and have had swollen glands on my neck for around 5 weeks now. Have tried all the usual stuff, warm compress, ibuprofen etc. Spoke to a doctor last week who prescribed antibiotics however after using them for the full course they are still swollen. 
 

I called doctors again today and they have booked me in for bloods as I literally have NO other symptoms at all other than the glands. One side is pea shaped and tender to touch, and the other side feels like a group of 2

I panic a fair bit and waiting round for bloods etc only adds to worry, as I feel if I had an infection I would have some sort of other symptoms. I have looked on google (wrong thing to do I know!) and it's filled me with all sorts of fear.

I appreciate they can sometimes swell for no reason and are usually nothing serious, but would love to hear from anyone who has had similar issues. 
 

Thanks guys 

Hey

i just wanted to come on here and say that you could have an infection but not be aware if it and the only symptom may be swollen glands. 
in my case I had a really really big lymph node in my armpit which got bigger and was red tender and painful which fortunately antibiotcis have helped me so what. 
even though the antibiotics haven't helped the root cause of it could be many many things and I'm assuming you are worried it could be cancer as you have posted your story on here. I'm no doctor so Whatever I say is in my own experience.                From my doctors visits I've learnt that swollen lymph nodes can be a viral infection which antibiotics do not help and it could be related to an autoimmune problem or it could just come up just because however yes there is a chance of cancer. But the odds are in your favour. 
but I know how it feels to wait around and everything and I honestly feel like it's the most mentally destructive thing ever. As hard as it is you have to keep positive and try to engrave it to your mind that it could be anything and not only cancer as google suggests. Which I hate it it for. 
 

are your lymph nodes painful tender or warm?

have a nice day xx

Hey Melissa

Thanks for your reply that's really helpful! Yeah unfortunately I went on google etc which I now regret! 
 

Despite being given antibiotics and having 3 doctors appointments I still haven't been seen in person, so haven't been examined. I am now wondering whether they are in fact swollen or whether I can just feel them naturally? Some people say you should be able to see swollen nodes and others say you can feel the neck ones whether they are swollen or not, so I am getting extremely confused

I would say one side is a lump a pea size, it's fairly warm to touch and tender but may be because I keep prodding it. The other side of my neck appears to be 2 tiny lumps. I have bloods in a week but everything is taking so long these days due to lack of appointments 

Jon xx