My husband found a lump in his neck too and the gp was very worried about it. His bloods were perfectly normal which unfortunately I now know doesn't really mean anything. He had no other symptoms, totally healthy. Yet they still suspect lymphoma. They found more enlarged lymph nodes in his chest. I believe lipoma would feel softer and a swollen lymph node would be harder to touch. We've got a ct scan next Friday and a biopsy the following Friday. The wait is agonising...it's good though that you're getting it checked hopefully it's nothing sinister!

We have 1 week to wait for a ct scan and another week after that for a biopsy. I wanted to go privately but my husband preferred to stick with the nhs...

Hiya [@helen_c]‍ 

Sorry to hear about the things you've been going through regarding lumps and blood tests.

It would be interesting to know what the abnormalities were although I feel that would  be Google search canon fodder if you did know!

You are probably right that you're putting symptoms into the mix now that you've got this playing on your mind. It's only normal to start overthinking things when everything you know has been turned upside down.

As for your question, I don't believe a lipoma alters blood results as it is just a fatty mass. My mum had a lipoma on her boob and as far as I'm aware that didn't alter her blood work. I don't say that to scare you, I'm just being frank and honest. I think just talking about these things as they are can help alleviate some anxiety in the long term even if it's not what you want to hear at the moment.

You're still in the very early stages so try to take each appointment as it comes. 

Write down any questions you have whilst you can think of them - the surgery/hospital has a funny way of making you forget everything when you're in there in the moment!

Questions I might ask would be ; what was the abnormalities in the blood, what is the next steps, how long will these steps take to action and how long will resulta take to come, what does the consultant believe it is at this stage. Scary questions but as I say, going in with an open mind and knowing all the facts can really help. Also asking about timeframes can really manage your expectations. I know when I was initially told I was having a scan I didn't have a clue it would be 6 weeks for the results and not knowing did me more harm than good!

It's good you're getting this investigated and please try and keep positive. If it is the outcome of lymphoma please be assured it is a slow growing disease with very well integrated treatment plans that are designed mostly to get people into remission and cured. 

If you need anything feel free to ask

Wishing you all the best

Try and think of something nice to plan in the short to medium term to take your mind off things

Rose