Neck lymph nodes - 1288363

aussieguy
Posts:26

It seems I'm always checking lymph nodes nowadays .. Quick back ground , 18 months ago I had a left pnuemonectomy because of suspected squamous T2N2 ... Turned out to be T4N2 because if slight laryngeal nerve invasion ( which was resected ) so even though I've had a few scares , I am coming up for my 18 month scan , about 4 weeks ago I had some slight pain in my neck on the left and had a feel and I could feel a lymph node about the size of a pea , at the time I had a slight cold so could have been from that but I decided to check in with my onc , he had a feel around and it took him a while , and a few directions from me and he finally found it , he said it wasn't very hard and there's nothing that would concern him there , but if it was still there when my scan came up , then he would order an ultra sound which he thinks will show nothing ... So here I am about a week away from my scan ( and with another respiratory cold ) and it sort of feels like it's a little bigger , I've been trying to do some research about what lung cancer feels like in the lymph ( mine sort of feels like a pimple , a bit sort of rubbery ) and also what the chances and treatment would be ... I've had a bit of a hard time he last couple of years and things are finally getting back on track , and my career is about to take off as well so I've got my fingers doubly crossed for this scan

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JimC
Posts: 2753

Hi aussieguy,

One of the troubling aspects of a cancer diagnosis is that one has a very understandable tendency to attribute anything that comes up afterward to that cancer. But cancer patients get colds and respiratory infections and diarrhea and a host of other maladies that are not related to their cancer or its treatment. Lymph nodes swell for a variety of reasons, including infections.

So although I know it's easier for me to say than for you to do, please try not to assume that this is related to your cancer. I will keep my fingers crossed as well for a clean scan.

JimC
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aussieguy
Posts: 26

Thanks Jim

My scan came back clear , not sure if a chest , abdo pelvis scan shows much of the neck so I might have to get an ultra sound or something if the node doesn't go away ... The good news of course is that I am now 18 post surgery for what my surgeon described as " quite locally advanced " so maybe , just maybe ...