Hi Honey

I am so sorry to hear of the torment you and your husband are going through. I have recently dealt with a neck lump and had a relieving outcome. I'd love to help as much as I can here. Please feel free to message me privately, there's a private messaging service at the top of this page x 

Hi Emily_B,

thanks for you post and I'm happy for you that it turned out to be nothing! Unfortunately my husband has enlarged lymph nodes in his chest, not just the neck.

I couldn't find the private messaging service sorry! I'm new to this...I just wanted to ask you more questions about what the lumps felt like. I read that lymphoma lumps are quite well defined under the skin and round, whereas benign lumps are oval and under a layer of swollen tissue (they called it soft tissue edema) so they don't 'stick out' as much.

The doc said that there are a few things that don't fit in to the puzzle which is confusing and stressful. I don't understand how he can say that it could be lymphoma but at the same time say that a number of things suggest that it isn't!

Hi Honey M, sorry to butt in on your chat. You were very kind to me last week when I posted and if I can help you at all I will. If you remember, I have large supraclavicular lymph nodes giving me lots of pain as they press on the nerves. I had a ct scan a mammogram, several biopsies and then last week was told I have cancer but they don't know where! Tomorrow is my PET scan and hopefully that will answer the question once and for all. I'm so sorry that you are having such anxieties. The waiting for results is terrible but in a strange way the time allows you to digest and come to terms with what's happening. I hope things work out well for you. Best wishes Rose B xx

Hi Honey

Can you recall how long he might have had swollen lymph nodes in the chest for, and if this might have coincided with any type of infection/inflammation?

My benign neck lump felt rubbery and painless (so slightly firm but not rock rock solid). When I felt it myself, it felt slightly oval/rounded, and pea-sized. The ultrasound showed it was actually very oval-like, and was most likely a cyst or a small enlarged lymph node but that was not cancerous. 

Is your husbands neck lump similar to my description at all? Furthermore, one set of blood results is not usually deemed conclusive. My doctor said it would require.l a coupe of retests to actually determine if one is deficient/high in a certain type of blood cell as various factor can cause them to fluctuate. Averages need to be taken for a blood result to be conclusive. 

Hi Emily_B,

Yeah that sounds exactly like what he's got, not rock solid but quite rubbery, painless, movable and definitely oval. The one in his neck is maybe 1,5cm long. It has gone down since he first discovered it 2 weeks ago (it appeared overnight) but still hasn't disappeared completely. Unfortunately apparently it can happen that it goes up and down in size so I can't even find any comfort in this.

Not sure about the ones in his chest, he had an x ray last week and that's when they spotted it. It worries me that there are more swollen lymph nodes, not just the one in his neck. He's not been ill, he never gets properly ill. He was feeling under the weather in April but had a couple of shotts of home made ginger syrup and it went away the next day. 

He had his blood checked twice, once in October and then in November. Both came back very good apart from his white blood cells and lymphocites leves slightly decreased (also not a good sign apparently).

Last weekend and this weekend he felt a pulsing pain in his neck (probably the lymph node) and after that he spat out a little bit of blood. We rang NHS24 the next day but they weren't too concerned (but then he didn't explain the situation or the potential diagnosis very well).

Hi Rose B,

No worries, all welcome here we're all in the same boat!

I'm so sorry you got bad news :( I agree, the waiting is the worst part, once you get the diagnosis you can sort of focus on the treatment and the future. I think it's about finding something that works for you to help you get through it. I record videos (for myself) to talk through things. Maybe I'll share them with the hubby once it's all over. I'm also seeing a counsellor. But day to day I use helpful self-talk that I know is powerful enough for me. I just keep repeating it whenever dark thoughts come in to my head ('I'm strong, I'm resillient'). I also use imagery - I imagine myself as a fighter, a warrior or wearing an armour. It's about finding something that's powerful enough for you. I know it's silly  but my granny always says that positive mindset is everything and she's 80 so she knows what she's talking about :) Another thing that helps me is thinking that it can always be worse. Not everyone gets another chance, some people go to work and never get to come home (Friday's attack in London for example). Also - don't forget to breathe! Taking a deep breath is also surprisingly helfpul. I hope you find at least one of those strategies helpful. My husband doesn't listen to me;)

My husband's lump is also in the neck but he has more in his chest too. It's not a lump I should say, it's 'enlarged lymph nodes' as the x ray suggested.

Would you be able to share what did your lump feel like? Round or oval? Soft or hard? Did it stick out quite obviously or was it more under the skin? Did it change in size?

We have a CT scan this Friday...do they say anything after the scan or do you have to wait?

Hi Honeym I can only tell you about my experience so here goes. It started with a tenderness on my shoulder, doc said I'd pulled a trapezius muscle. When it got worse he sent me for physio which hurt a lot. I then paid to see an osteopath who said the swelling at the front was a lymph node and get it checked. Over about 6 weeks the swelling became large (about ping pong ball size) it feels oval, in fluid, doesn't move, isn't painful and is swollen through to the back of the shoulder/neck where it's irregular but like hard muscle. It's v painful as it's trapped a nerve. I also have one on the left which is like a hard kidney bean in jelly but doesn't move. They only biopsied the right side. They did a ct scan because the throat camera showed one of my vocal chords has palsy but may have been caused by the hemithyroidectomy I had in 2018. The showed raised lymph nodes under the arms too. These are like squishy pads. Initially I was sent to breast clinic by ent but now am back with ent until we know where the cancer is. I understand your anxiety, I've shed enough tears to float boaty mc boat face. Every appointment is a nightmare waiting to happen but its also a means to an end. Try to take things as they come, you're in the system and a wonderful support to your husband. I'm here if either of you need to offload or ask any more questions. They didn't say anything at the ct scan but it takes about a week to get results. Ps After 35 years my husband is finally learning to cook! Xx

Oh dear what a palava...Our GP did check, double-check and triple-check everything and sent my husband for further tests straight away. Sometimes you see people getting fobbed off for months, luckily that didn’t happen to us.

Can I just ask did they find a lump or do you have swollen lymph nodes? I thought swollen lymph nodes that were malignant were round in shape but looks like they can be oval as well…:/

I was hoping we would have a better idea after the scan. We've got the biopsy on the 13th and due to go away for Christmas on the 19th! If we get bad news or it looks like it'll be bad news then we won't go. We won't get the biopsy results by then but hopefully we'll get the CT scan results at least...just not sure it would actually give us any information?

That's good your husband is learning to cook! I'm currently doing everything for my husband I literally don't let him do anything. I know it's not helpful, I don't want him to feel like he's incapable but it's just my overprotective mode kicking in, a way of getting some control over the situation... 

The lymph nodes above my clavicles are swollen so where you would normally have a dent above the bone mine look like the space is filled with a ping pong ball sized mass on the right and smaller on the left. I've also found a pea sized lump in my neck. They are clearly visible. Unless your husband is feeling unwell I wouldn't cancel your trip away. It may help you to take your mind off things and he might relax and open up to you about his feelings. I'd say if he wants to go then you go. The results may not be back by then and you mustn't let the waiting stop you enjoying xmas. Best wishes Rose B xx