Advice and Help PLEASE!!

Momto2
Momto2 Member Posts: 4
in Lymphoma (Hodgkin and Non-Hodgkin) #1

I am a 40 year old who in the past has never been sick, never even had a primary care doctor until last fall.  In the fall of 2017, I noticed that something wasn't right with me.  I have always been very energetic, have two children who keep me going all the time (very active in sports and after school activities).  In September of 2017 I felt very run down, suffering terrible brain fog, and overall just not myself.  I felt that a visit to the OB GYN might be needed because of my age and possibility of hormone levels dropping.  That appointment turned out with very few results.  I was told that my progesterone levels were low but everything else looked great.  By October I could not shake the fatigue and scheduled an appointment with a primary care doctor in my area.  He did a lot of blood work and determined that my B12 level was critically low and put me on B12 injections twice a month.  Christmas rolled around and even with the B12 I did not feel good.  I have been dealing with this for almost a year.  Last week I went back to my primary care physician and he did more blood work.  I should add that over the last few months I have found three swollen lymph nodes, one on the right side of my neck, one on the back of my neck in my spinal region and one at the bottom of my skull on the right side of my neck behind my ear.  I have also lost 19% of my body weight since last October, have little to no appetitie because my stomach hurts so bad and the front of my chest at my breast area and the back side of my rib cages under my shoulder blades feel like they could cave in.  I wake up in the middle of the night scratching and itching my arms, torso and neck like I am laying in a bed of fire ants.  I go in two days to have a biopsy of one of the swollen lymph nodes and I am scared of getting the results even though I have prayed for answers for over a year now.  My family doesn't understand and is beginning to think I am a hypocondriac.  I guess I am here just to see if anyone else has had symptoms and has experienced anything similar to what I am going through.  Thanks for any help and comments.

Comments

  • Sten
    Sten Member Posts: 162 Member
    #2
    There is hope

    Hi Momto2,

    It is good that you let the doctors examine you thoroughly to find out what your problem is. Most often such symptoms indicate something other than cancer.

    Even if you have lymphoma, there is good hope. I had lymphoma in my brain in 2012 at the age of 68. I got tough treatment and was weak afterwards, but now I am cancer free, quite fit for my age, and active.

    Good luck to you!

    Sten

  • po18guy
    po18guy Member Posts: 1,508 Member
    #3
    Sorry to hear of this. Sadly,

    Sorry to hear of this. Sadly, all that you can do is wait. None of this sounds like lymphoma, not necessariliy even the enlarged nodes, as nodes must enlarge in order to fight infection. As well, lymph nodes are not cancer detectors. Some lymphomas produce tumors outside of the nodes, in the mediastinum, the organs, the central nervous system or anywhere else in the body. It also seems that any lymphoma that had been producing such profound symptoms, and so many of them - could not hide from doctors and diagnostics. Lymphoma makes itself both known and obvious.

    You have been under a very high level of stress. Stress can produce anxiety. Anxiety can produce over 100 actual symptoms, and our bodies are only capable of about 150. Those 100 symptoms are capable of indicating 45,000 or more different diseases and conditions. Cancer types are only about 100 of those.

    So, what we do while we are in the diagnostic process is wait. No way around it.

  • Momto2
    Momto2 Member Posts: 4
    edited September 2018 #4
    Sten said:

    There is hope

    Hi Momto2,

    It is good that you let the doctors examine you thoroughly to find out what your problem is. Most often such symptoms indicate something other than cancer.

    Even if you have lymphoma, there is good hope. I had lymphoma in my brain in 2012 at the age of 68. I got tough treatment and was weak afterwards, but now I am cancer free, quite fit for my age, and active.

    Good luck to you!

    Sten

    Thanks for the information

    Thanks for the information and I’m am so glad to hear you‘re doing well!  I pray continued good health for you! 

  • Momto2
    Momto2 Member Posts: 4
    edited September 2018 #5
    po18guy said:

    Sorry to hear of this. Sadly,

    Sorry to hear of this. Sadly, all that you can do is wait. None of this sounds like lymphoma, not necessariliy even the enlarged nodes, as nodes must enlarge in order to fight infection. As well, lymph nodes are not cancer detectors. Some lymphomas produce tumors outside of the nodes, in the mediastinum, the organs, the central nervous system or anywhere else in the body. It also seems that any lymphoma that had been producing such profound symptoms, and so many of them - could not hide from doctors and diagnostics. Lymphoma makes itself both known and obvious.

    You have been under a very high level of stress. Stress can produce anxiety. Anxiety can produce over 100 actual symptoms, and our bodies are only capable of about 150. Those 100 symptoms are capable of indicating 45,000 or more different diseases and conditions. Cancer types are only about 100 of those.

    So, what we do while we are in the diagnostic process is wait. No way around it.

    Thanks for your kind words

    Thanks for your kind words and compassion. Stress is definitely playing a profound role in my life right now!  I hope that it turns out to be nothing but you are right when you say all I can do is wait. Thanks again! 

  • po18guy
    po18guy Member Posts: 1,508 Member
    #6
    Momto2 said:

    Thanks for your kind words

    Thanks for your kind words and compassion. Stress is definitely playing a profound role in my life right now!  I hope that it turns out to be nothing but you are right when you say all I can do is wait. Thanks again! 

    Deal first with the stress and anxiety...

    And you might just find that most of those symptoms magically vanish. Nothing to lose and everything to gain. 1:5 Americans suffer from some form of aniety - 64 million! This means that 1 in 5 whom you know has anxiety, but also that 1 in 5 whom they know has anxiety. It's not always someone else, and anxiety is an insidious, invisible condition to the sufferer. It is epidemic in our culture.

    Scroll down this page and marvel at the amazing variety of symptoms which anxiety can and does produce.

  • Momto2
    Momto2 Member Posts: 4
    edited September 2018 #7
    I went to the surgeon who

    I went to the surgeon who needed/wanted an ultrasound done first.  It was scheduled for 8am yesterday morning.  I had it done and late yestereday afternoon I received a call from a very large medical group located 2.5 hours from where I live needing to schedule an appointment with a neurosurgeon.  I attempted to contact the doctor who sent me to have the ultrasound done and the office was closed and will not open again until Monday.  So at this point I am not sure what is going on and why I am now being refered to a neurosurgeon.  Any ideas from anyone?

  • po18guy
    po18guy Member Posts: 1,508 Member
    #8
    They are being careful.

    I guess the decision has been made to remove an entire node? If so, then the affected node may be close to a nerve bundle or other structure and neurosurgeons may be best for that type of biopsy.

  • Evarista
    Evarista Member Posts: 336 Member
    #9
    Momto2 said:

    I went to the surgeon who

    I went to the surgeon who needed/wanted an ultrasound done first.  It was scheduled for 8am yesterday morning.  I had it done and late yestereday afternoon I received a call from a very large medical group located 2.5 hours from where I live needing to schedule an appointment with a neurosurgeon.  I attempted to contact the doctor who sent me to have the ultrasound done and the office was closed and will not open again until Monday.  So at this point I am not sure what is going on and why I am now being refered to a neurosurgeon.  Any ideas from anyone?

    That would be what I would want...

    if I had lymph nodes near to my spinal cord that needed biopsying or removal.  They may repeat the ultrasound first, they may do a biopsy, they may refer you to radiology for a needle-guided biopsy, they may take something out ("excisional biopsy").  

    But did you get the first ultrasound report?  You should definitely be able to get that, either through your electronic medical record or a print-out.  They may not have it yet for you (weekend), but you should make an effort to get it.  You need to keep yourself informed on what is going on and why the referral.  Proximity to nerves sounds like the issue.  Best of luck going forward.

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