25 year old male, 8 year tobacco/marijuanna smoker, for the past couple months ive been having upper right back pain, behind my shoulder. The pain is very dull and achy almost like a muscle strain, not severe or sharp at all. im not using any pain medications and my pain tolorance isnt that high and i still sleep well. i rarely feel a faint tingle going down my right arm, it comes and goes but the upper back/scapula discomfort is always there in the spot that feels like my thorasic outlet. never severe but noticeable. the discomfort gets more noticebale when i shrug myshoulders a certain way or if i tilt my head back and forth.sometimes feels like a stiff neck when i wake up? my natural range of motion isnt hindered although i can feel it a little bit in the scapula when i point my elbow up towards the ceiling. can these signs be a pancoast growing? im getting anxiety and fear about this situation and i need a little reassurance. ruling out pancoast: no muscle wasting in right arm, no horners syndrome, my age is young, no severe sharp pains, no visible lumps..
worried i may have pancoast tumor
Dwtheflash
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Reply # - February 3, 2020, 08:32 AM
Hi DW, Welcome to Grace. I
Hi DW,
Welcome to Grace. I can't imagine any doctor is going to think of pancoast tumor if you described those symptoms. Speaking only on the authority of someone who's had this type of issue all my life, it's likely you have an injury in the area of your scapula or spine that is pinching a nerve that runs down your arm. I'd look into it with an orthopedist, one who doesn't like to use surgery as a first, second or third option. I would say they are easy to find but that might be because my primary doc is just upstairs from an excellent ortho group that now houses several ortho docs with this specific philosophy.
I'm sorry you're dealing with this pain issue but it doesn't sound like a pancoast tumor. And, it sounds like it's not advanced far or long so a non-invasive solution likely exists.
Good luck in finding that solution, :)
Janine
I joined GRACE as a caregiver for my husband who had a Pancoast tumor, NSCLC stage III in 2009. He had curative chemo/rads then it was believed he had a recurrence in the spine/oligometastasis that was radiated. He's 10 years out from treatment.
In reply to Hi DW, Welcome to Grace. I by JanineT GRACE …
Reply # - February 5, 2020, 12:46 AM
Hello thanks for your
Hello thanks for your response, would you mind sharing with me how this tumor feels?
Reply # - February 5, 2020, 03:43 PM
Here is a link to Moffit's
Here is a link to Moffit's page that describes symptoms of pancoast tumor. I can't say this enough, the symptoms you describe are many, many, many times more likely due to an orthopedic issue which is where a workup would look to first. The pain from a pancoast tumor becomes constant and strong and it keeps you awake at night. Usually, they are squamous nsclc from a person with a significant smoking history, more in the 30, 40 year range and at an age more like 65 years old.
All best,
Janine
I joined GRACE as a caregiver for my husband who had a Pancoast tumor, NSCLC stage III in 2009. He had curative chemo/rads then it was believed he had a recurrence in the spine/oligometastasis that was radiated. He's 10 years out from treatment.