I'm 28, female & I recently checked my lymph nodes after a friend was diagnosed with cancer. I found a lymph node in my neck on the right about 1/2 an inch down. It was noticeably bigger than on the one on the left (I can only just find the one on the left) so I went to see my doctor & he said it was an infection & gave me antibiotics (Flucloxacilin). I told him I'm allergic to amoxicillin but I have since learnt that this is almost the same. He asked me to do a blood test which I did the next day.
I started taking the antibiotics & it made the node worse, it got even bigger. My mouth started itching & my tongue & throat swelled up. I decided it was an allergic reaction & stopped taking the antibiotics & went to A&E. I was now very tired and my body was aching where my lymph nodes are (groin & particularly under my arms) and my neck, back of head & upper back hurt. Dr at A&E said it was glandular fever but when I went back to my usual doctor the next day he said the blood test had come back clear. He said it was just a general viral infection. I don't believe him because I haven't got any symptoms like fever or cough or cold, it's just aching & tiredness.
I'm really worried now because the node has been swollen for 3 weeks in total & I am aching, particularly in my back and my neck always feels stiff & the node hurts off & on throughout the day. I don't know what to do, I feel like I'm just annoying everyone with it & don't feel like I can go back to the doctor again with this same problem. I touch the node every day, could this be why it's big? I touch the one on the left though too & that hasn't grown. There is just the one swollen node.
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Hi. It is reasonable for you to be worried after your friend has been diagnosed with cancer. It is a normal reaction of everyone in his surrounding, they all feel like something is also wrong with them so friends go and do tests. As for the lymph node, i understand it could be painful and annoying, however you must consider that your blood test is clear. If your lymh node was containing some cancer cells you blood would react to it and that would be shown after analasis. I actually have swollen lymh nodes under my jaw and when i took the ultra sound test it turned out that they are a bit bigger because of some infection in my childhood or rescent one. So your swollen lymph node could mean that your body has defended itself against some viral infections sometime in your life.
Other thing i would suggest to you is please not to touch your lymh node. Your lymh node is there to help circulate the lymph throughout your system that protects you. If you want to be sure go do an ultra sound and see what the doctor says.
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Is it normal to have just the one swollen node? None of the others are swollen. I tried resting a hit water bottle on it to drain it but it hasn't worked. It's just as big, if not bigger. It used to go if I tilted my head back but now it sits right at the front and never goes away no matter what I do.
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Hi again, i think it should be "normal" if you have only one swollen lymph node. I have swollen lymph nodes under my armpit and under my jaw. I would not worry much if i was you. Trying to warm it up a little was not a bad idea but i would refrain from touching it. Try not touching it for a while and see what it does. Is the swollen lymph node actually visible or you have to touch it to see where its at? On the one hand, you can go and do a test to make sure it does not contain any malignity inside itself. Just go look for the other opinion with some other doctor if you are frightened. Schedule an ultra sound and see what the doctor says.
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Its probably only about 1cm in size and I can move it around quite freely. I can't see it on the outside, I do have to touch my skin to feel where it is. I will stop touching it and see what happens over the next coupe of days. Thanks for your help :)
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My doctor is referring me for an ultrasound on my neck. I'm convinced that this is cancer, what cancers spread to the neck lymph nodes? Also I have found that my neck is painful the day after drinking alcohol (not while I'm drinking it) and I get pains in my back as well. I'm really worried :(
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Try not to concern yourself that much. It can be frustrating. Cancers
that spread to neck lymph nodes are, i think, mostly skin cancers like
Melanoma or Squarcum Cell Carcinoma. Since you say it started to hurt
after drinking alcohol you might also check if its a Hodgkin Lymphoma. I
hope everything turns out fine for you. Let me know what are the
results of your ultra sound test. Good Luck
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After keep touching it, the one on the left became swollen but that has gone back down again. If the right one is swollen because I'm touching it, how long will it take for it to go back down if I stop touching it? I didn't go near it all day yesterday but I can tell its still there today. The left one went down after a day.
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Did you do ultra sound test yet? I dont know, try not touching it for at least 3 days and that might help, nodes are sensitive and you should not irritate them.
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My ultra sound is in three weeks. Today I have ear pain on the right, really bad neck pain, pain in the floor of my mouth under my tongue, headache, chest pain and dizziness. Earlier today I could taste/smell blood. I have pain in my throat too but not like a sore throat, more like a dull pain coming from deep in my throat. I'm even more worried now and three weeks is a long time to wait :(
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I have a swollen lymph node on my left side of my neck under my jaw line towards my ear. I am on vacation for two weeks and already called to make my doc appt the day after I get back. I am very nervous about this. I do feel pressure in my ear after I keep touching it. you can not see it on the outside. I can feel it on the inside. I am scared because I had hodgkins disease when I was 16 years old. I had blood work done about 7 months ago and saw my oncologist 3 months ago and it was ok. sometimes I think I just make myself feel like I have symptom. I hate this feeling. I cant wait to get to my doc.
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I have had 2 chest x rays since April (for chest pain, not for this) and they have come back clear. I have also had 3-4 blood tests, again not for this but they have all come back ok too. It is bad today and I'm getting pressure under my ear. Im wondering if this could just be stress because I also have chest pain but then I google the symptoms and think the worst. The right side of my neck feels harder than the left side when I touch it.
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I know how you feel :( I keep feeling my neck all of the time. I can't wait till the 16th to go to the doctor. That is good news that the blood work and x-rays came back fine. We need to try and stop looking on the internet. some of the information is old or wrong. IT sounds like stress due to the fact the test came back ok. You need to go back to the doc or see another one so that you can ease your mind. I know I will not feel better until I go back to the doctor.
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I think I'm going to go back to the doctors tomorrow to ask for a full blood test just to make sure. I'm also going to ask what to do for the neck pains while I wait. I'm worried that I have skin cancer and that it's spread to my lymph nodes. I can't see any odd looking moles on my head or neck but I have a couple on my back. The doctor saw them a few weeks ago and said they were fine, but it's the only thing I can think of.
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Saw the doctor again yesterday & he said he's not worried & I've to wait for my scan which is over a week away. He wouldn't do blood tests.
I've now got a very dry throat & feel really thirsty all the time. My throat doesn't hurt though but I do feel like I need to clear it a lot. I've also started to get tingling in my feet, legs, arms & hands and I get head rush quite a lot, I'm worried that this is anaemia and I must be bleeding from somewhere. I feel very weak & most of the time, especially at night when I get in from work, I am so weak I can't move.
I guess I'm going to have to wait for the scan but I really feel like this is getting so much worse & I can't wait that long.
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