Recently, I’ve had something of a cancer “scare” and I’m wondering what everyone’s input and/or advice is; so here it goes:
In late December, I noticed what I can only describe as a tiny “bump” on my left testicle, about the size of a ballpoint pen head. The bump feels like it’s located on the upper portion (toward the top) of the testicle when I’m standing and examining, but when I try to examine it sitting, it feels like it’s in a totally different place, toward the bottom or off to the side (as if it moves when I’m in different positions).
Being proactive prone to health anxiety, I went in to see my GP for a physical several days later. She gave me a very thorough testicular exam and said that she felt nothing suspicious, no lumps or anything.
I breathed a sigh of relief. Still, I kept feeling this same small bump. I asked my partner if he could feel it. He could not. The problem kept nagging at me, and I started to fear that maybe my doctor had somehow missed something or that perhaps I was in the early stages of TC and the bump just wasn’t big enough to notice.
After worrying and stewing over it for a while, I scheduled an appointment with a urologist. The doctor came pretty highly recommended as one of the best specialists in my area with a great deal of experience (almost 20 years). By this time, it had been about six weeks since my appointment with my GP, so I reasoned, if anything was developing or worrisome, it was long enough for the urologist to notice.
I explained my predicament to the urologist and he also gave me a testicular exam. He concluded that while I had a small epididymal cyst above my testicle, other than that, there was nothing else suspicious or irregular.
This didn't seem to be what I was feeling, so, not wanting to regret getting the most of my appointment, I reiterated that what I was feeling was a tiny bump on my testicle itself. He said that he did not feel the any small bump, just as my GP hadn't, and that it was likely, in his professional opinion, that I had a very tiny cyst of the testicular tunica albuginea, and that was what I was feeling all this time.
Just to be safe, I asked him if he thought that I needed an ultrasound and he said I definitely did not. He explained that if I had TC, it would be very obvious to him as a doctor that there was something wrong or suspicious. In all his nearly twenty years of practicing urology, there was only one case he ever had that did not present with any obvious testicular symptoms, but even that patient had a secondary tumor located elsewhere, on his neck.
So my question is, should I still be worried? After six weeks, would a small testicular tumor have grown to the point where it could be noticed on palpitation by a doctor? I imagine it still wouldn't be the same size and would have undergone at least some growth, unlike the bump I've been feeling?
Or am I pretty much in the clear, after visiting no less than two doctors in six weeks and neither finding anything suspicious or wrong with me upon exam?
Could they both have missed something vital? Or am I just being a hypochondriac?
Full Disclosure: I am someone who is often prone to health anxiety, especially when it comes to cancer.
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Originally Posted by Benek
