I have the same as what everyone mentions. Has anyone checked out the back of the neck with MRI's? Someone mentioned to me my spine or disc's could be out of whack. I know I have osteo arthritis going from my neck to my spine that showed up in an xray from my chiropractor. I went through physical therapy (shows my right side is not quite half an inch shorter than my left) due to carrying briefcases and heavy purses for many years. Did the lymph nod look at and massages. My doctor seems to forget or pass me by of not knowing what to do with me. I am setting up an appointment with a fellow who is in rheumatology and will normally tell one who to go to next. He found lupus in a friend where all other doctors swore he did not have lupus. I have had the swelling and feel sick to my stomach - it swells more under stress for five years. I have been passed around or forgotten. I am now bound to find out what is causing so much pain. I believe it is disc or muscle related. I fell 18 years ago and I believe this could have brought it on along with lifting things too heavy for a 5 ft woman and brief cases/purses.
I had shoulder surgery on right shoulder three years ago, two tendons were torn completely torn off and retracted, and the rotator cuff had damage. I had the surgery , went to therapy for quite a while, and then 4 months later they put me to sleep and do manipulation, thinking that I had frozen shoulder.The surgery did not take, after returning to work, I noticed swelling above the collar bone on the same side as my surgery. Well three years now, and my left shoulder is giving me trouble. I was given steroid injections in both shoulders and told to take two weeks off.I had an mri done,and was told that my left shoulder has bone spurs, arthritis and a possible tear, will need surgery on it. After taking two weeks off, when I returned to work , I noticed swelling about the collar bone on both sides. The swelling goes away but comes back when I use my shoulders very much.
Thoracic Outlet Syndrome is a possibility for the swelling. There is a different type of MRI that is done in San Francisco (Wrydone?) or UCLA. Basic idea is that if you are hunched over a computer, and doing a normal core workout routine, you are bringing your chest more forward than in a neutral position. Body pain is going to happen. The good news is that it can be unraveled. I've had shoulder surgery, multiple nerve ablations and the root cause is as simple as undoing what you have done over the years. Computer work is bad for the human body. If you do an x-ray to determine if a woman is pregnant, you are not going to get the right answer. The right test, by the right clinician is the answer. Not all doctors can do it. And some pretend they can. Consumer beware.
FAscinating that you say this! I have been dealing with abdominal pain and gas and they found 2 ulcers with a braium test. Now going to have an endoscopy tomorrow. And this weekend all of a suddent this swelling appeared. Also I am diabetic and will be seeing my endocrinologist jsut by co-incidence on Thrusday so will show him this growth. Have had thyroid removed. Aside form this, stomach urts, gas, abdominal pain and now running a fever.
I am still reading about this but 'By Joves - I think you might be on to something!!' One article mentions thyroid and auto immune denominators too. I will keep researching but what I have read so far is starting to look like this may well be the answer!
My physical therapist recognized the gel packs around my neck right away as LYMPHEDEMA & works on me 2x week & has given me special exercizes to do & said more water more exercise as the lymph node at each collarbone is not clearing & filtering as it should & fluid builds up.. So depending on how much steroids,medical drugs, IVP,, pollution, chemicals, etc. that the lymph system is supposed to work on & filter is what makes the swelling change size or cause it in the 1st place. The lymph system isn't working properly. That's what I figured anyway but most doctors will look at the pads around the neck & say they don't know. so here is a real answer. I'll try to( maybe next week) post the exercises & directions as how to care for this ongoing chronic problem.
THE GEL PACKS AROUND THE NECK IS LYMPHEDEMA.
Just had a bit of a read and it seems they might be connected - the TOS could be the cause of the lymphedema. At least it is something to follow. Now off to find someone here who does lymphatic drainage (which sounds NASTY). Worth a crack eh! Thank you for some real answers/recommendations and not trying to sell me Snake Oil! Gratitude from the Land of the Long White Cloud!
What does TOS stand for in your reply .
Thoracic Outlet Syndrome. It is raised in a post above. Some of the articles I have been reading talk about it being very uncommon (hence not many of us strange-lumpy people out here) and having connections to thyroid issues and auto-immune issues - which so many people on here do have. I'm still reading about it but one particular section in an article talked about a muscle going into spasm following shoulder surgery and the swelling (and the dr did say these are swellings, NOT fat) reacting by enlarging - and that is exactly what happened to my left 'lump'. It is still twice the size of the right - five months later! Now if that was 'fat', as one Dr told me...well, how many lopsided fat people have you seen?Like most people here, I not only want to know WHAT this is (say lymphedema), but WHY it is.You and the writer Amber have given me something to hunt (I was a health journo once) so I will go...er..hunting!
For 3 years I have had swelling on both sides of my neck, above my collarbone, too. My doctors said it was just a fatty benign thing, and I shouldn't worry about it. I also have hypothyroidism. It has grown in size. It really doesn't bother me, but is very noticeable, especially on the left side. Last May, I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer in my left breast, and lymph nodes under my left arm pit were involved. I wonder if there is any connection between the cancer and the lumps. I had a CT Scan of my head six months ago, and it was normal. I'm in my early 50's.
It would be impossible to know the answer to that question I think. Do they do regular mammograms in your country? In New Zealand we have free public health (it is far from perfect, but parts of it are excellent) and women get free mammograms every two years from the age of 45. If you were here, you would have had at least three in the last six years, which would have included the time those weird swellings have popped up. I chased down a therapist today who does lymphatic drainage and she knows a lot about this thoracic outlet syndrome. She mentioned pins and needles in the fingers, which I get a lot, and said there is usually more swelling in the arms - I have it around my elbows. Just because it hasn't been mentioned doesn't mean others - including you - might not have it, you might simply just not connect the dots. I didn't. I'm off tomorrow for my first session. So, did these lumps cause your cancer - or signal something was wrong? Who knows - but we all know that these are not normal, because so few of us have them. They signal SOMETHING. Good luck in your journey with breast cancer - I have had a wee tussle with melanoma, so I know how scary it all is. Blessings from Godzone xx
Thanks for your input Kiwi1. I appreciate it. ~ sickfor30
Here is my story:
2011
April – 9 weeks pregnant and gel like swelling in left neck/collarbone area. Cat scan preformed. Blood work showed 18k WBC count so treated with antibiotics. Swelling went down.
April onward = swollen lymph nodes popping up left and right and not going away. Pregnancy continued to show high WBC count until the end which showed that high WBC was just pregnancy related.
August(ish) – found hard lump in right armpit.
2012
June – hard lump in armpit surgically removed and shown as a benign lymph node
Continued lymph node findings. Nodes did not go away.
2013
January – severe pressure in ears and swollen nodes in neck (front and back). Given pressure test which showed high pressure in ears. Prescribed antibiotics for nodes (as a wait and see) and given steroid spray for ears.
February 25 – gel like swelling in left neck and collar bone returned. Cat scan had similar findings as in 2011 and blood work was normal this time (no high WBC count).
February 26 – swelling went down on its own (no antibiotics). Visited a head and neck cancer doc and discovered two nodules on thyroid. Also, abnormal swollen node in left cheek.
This is so frustrating!!
I have been doing a bit of research into this TOS and lymphedema and this week saw a local osteopath who seems to know a lot about it. She explained we have three times as much lymph liquid as blood and each area cleared by our lymph glands, but the ones in the clavicle area are the ones that filter everything. The right one filters the top half of your chest and your right arm, while the left ones filter the entire body. I googled this too and saw a diagram showing it. With thoracic outlet syndrome, if the lymph glands can't filter and drain properly, there can be swelling (I suppose it backs up and everything gets upset) and she said people often get unwell. My swelling is much more noticeable on the left (three times the size) which she said would be expected as it does much more work. I have swelling around my elbows and I get pins and needles in my fingers. Does anyone else have this? The swelling now extends around the back of my neck and down into the chest wall too. Anyway, she did a sort of rocking type procedure on different areas of the chest wall, top of my back, one where she held each arm raised a bit and then one down the back of the neck. There are tender spots for sure and she said every lymph node in my neck is swollen. She also said these are swellings - she says there is a completely different feel between swelling and fat. The day after this I felt awful. No fantastic for me - I felt like garbage. I will go again next week and keep going for awhile to see what happens. It sort of makes sense that if the body can't filter the bugs out, it will get sick, doesn't it. Our lymph glands get enlarged because they can't clear the rubbish, so we get sick, not the other way around. Its the same theory as rubbish in, rubbish out, but in this case if you can't get the rubbish out, everything will turn to rubbish. (I'm watching my language lol!) Will keep anyone who is interested posted anyway. Its a lot easier than strapping a fried egg to my forehead! Cheers from Aotearoa New Zealand.