lymph node swelling

[gotgame83]

Mods, feel free to move this to the appropriate forum, i tried posting it in another one but it wouldnt work.




hey guys, need a little advice here
December of 2002 i came down with mono(im only 20) yea it sucked my liver was a lil screwed up i was down till march. During that time my tonsils were really huge and my lymph nodes were bulging out of the side of my neck. But by march all was better. But then in June i had my mono symptoms all over again, went to the doc he thought it was strep but it came back negative and he just told me not to worry about it and to stop complaining. Well i was pretty sick until the end of August but then the fatigue went away but my tonsils are still swollen as is the lymph nodes in my neck. Its october 12th now and im going to my doc again on thursday. My question to you guys is have you ever had your glands swollen for monthes at a time without any symptoms, I feel pretty damn good now but these damn glands wont go down. Ofcourse since im going premed i have all these books laying around and im just scaring myself with things like Hodgkins. I was also told that just by touching your lymph nodes that can keep them swollen. Do you guys know of any truth to that?

 

[pharmguy]

touching your lymph nodes should not make them swollen.

My questions for you are:
are they mobile or immobile, tender or nontender, hard or soft?

 

[gotgame83]

they are mobile, and a little bit hard(damnit i touched my lymph nodes on my neck again i told myself just incase touching them kept them larger i wouldnt do that ehh oh well) its only the two lymph nodes on my right side of my neck along with the tonsil on that side. Since july the swelling went down a little bit but hasnt decreased since the end of august. Damnit sometimes i wish i was just ignorant and didnt know anything about lymphoma or Hodgkins or NHL. I had a low grade fever 99.3 from june-august. now my temp is fine, im lifting a lot again and feel well, but i can still see the glands from the side of my neck grrr. thanks for ur quick response and help.

 

[pharmguy]

unilateral inflamation and hardness can be a sign of cancer. I would have them checked out by a physician.

 

[gotgame83]

thanks... do u know if having blood work down for lymphocyte levels would detect anything or is a biopsy the only way.

 

[pharmguy]

Im not sure. I just happen to be studying for a health assement test tommorrow, lymph nodes are on the test. Hodgkin's enlargement are usually painless, rubberry and discrete. But I wouldn't sit and try to speculate. That won't help. It could just be latent inflamation. just have a doc look at it.

 

[gotgame83]

Thanks a lot man. Good luck with your test, i have to go study for my immunology midterm.(in between football games that is)

 

[gotgame83]

yea i got myself a little bugged out now so i talked to a few people and was able to get my apt with my doc bumped to 2day at 2pm...

 

[Tuck]

Dude, good luck with the doctor. I hope it's nothing.

 

[geoboy]

haven't read tru rest of posts, AND IT ISN'T NECCESSARILY THIS, but low grade fever and generalized lymphadenopathy can be signs of advancing HIV infection as well. It can also be Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, or a kick ass case of Chronic Overtraining (no joke).

 

[abc 1]

i've had swollen nodes for years, numerous docs checked them out, nothing. they could be reacting to certain infections within the body or could be permanently swollen due to poor filtration during infection. one in my armpit is BIG because of a major bone infection i had. 3 seperate docs all wanted to cut me open till they saw the report about the infection. could and usually is nothing, get it checked to ease your mind so you stop touching them.

 

[gotgame83]

well im leaving for the doc now , i already had HIV test and im fine with that, i had a really bad case of mono and i think i had a relapse this summer even though my doc said it wasnt possible...

 

[NorthNPrincess]

To put your mind at ease...Lots of things cause swollen Lymph nodes...of course you have mentioned cancer, mono, but viral infections such as herpes, and bacterial infections such as strept...The one thing you can be sure...you do have some type of infection! Good Luck

 

[Moderate_THIS]

I've also had swollen lymph nodes for going on about 8 years now. They are hard pea sized lumps under my chin, and the ones around the tonsils are slightly enlarged. They are painless. But believe me, I was scared to death when I first noticed them, since my father was dying from lymphoma at the time, go figure. Hope everything turns out OK.

 

[zziggzzigg]

One time that I got 'test flu' from high ba prop, my nodes at the pelvis (right between the top of the front right thigh and groin) became very sore and tender and this went away completely the next day as did the 'flu'... it was wierd as it never happened before or since, and I have had the 'test flu' a few times since then.

 

[gotgame83]

well went to the docs, he said if it was hodgkins my nodes would be harder, but no other glands are swollen at all.. At the end i go "well doc whats ur best guess" and he goes "mmmmm well i have no idea" well he ordered a Complete blood count and a metabolic profile, he also ordered a chest x-ray, im gonna call him 2morrow and ask why he ordered the x-ray. The blood results should be in by wednsday. He did mention possible chronic fatigue but he was only guessing and the fact that im not fatigued at all right now kinda of leads me away from that.

thanks for all the responses, nothing beats the personal experiences of other bros

 

[Moderate_THIS]

Oh, I also forgot to mention that my doctor guessed that my lymph nodes were the result of ance and drainage.. basically any infection, low grade or not, can cause it. In all honesty, I think mine was caused by depression and fear.

 

[kiloamp]

gotgame83,

I had Hodgkins twice so I'm familiar with the subject. You probably don't have it but here's a few things I noticed. Ichy skin (I mean really ichy), night sweats (when more advanced), dizziness, fatigue, nausea, coughing etc. The one thing that really is a dead giveaway is how your lymph nodes feel to you. If they feel rubbery and numb to the touch, might be Hodgkins. I wouldn't worry about it though, probably nothing. There is a blood value which I can't remember right now that is elevated L*. And the chest x-ray will show if there are any swollen nodes there. Good luck, keep us updated.

 

[liftsiron]

I really don't believe that you have anything to worry about, your doctor should have told you that mono can leave certain lymph nodes permentaly swollen for the rest of your life it is a herpes virus and these type of infections leave a lasting impact on your lymph glands. The swelling will subside some what only to flare up when you get a head cold etc.

The slight swelling is harmless and you will become acustomed to it. Don't play with the nodes as this can inflame them.

 

[gotgame83]

thanks a lot guys, i had no idea that mono could keep them swollen almost permanently. just waiting on the blood results to make sure, i prolly wont even go and get the xray if the blood work comes back fine. you were right about the swelling subsiding then flaring up again. I think ive learned more off this board then i have from any of my bio or chem class in college...