Still very concerned

[JohnBoy23]

Hello everyone, I am new on this forum and as you might expect I suffer from much anxiety about the condition of my health.


I am a 21 year old male who has started to really take notice to certain "bumps or lumps" on my body. Firstly, is the lymph node located on my jaw law, which seems to be in a constant state of swelling and subsequent shrinking. I will admit I play around/examine it quite a bit. Secondly is the feeling of texture in my breasts. For example, If I take a pinch of my breast tissue it is very "ropey" or grainy. It feels as if there's a bunch of gravel in my breast and sometimes this tissue can be sore or tender, and it extends to underneath my armpit. To be clear, there is not one single bump, but just an over all "lumpiness". Also, it is worth noting that my right nipple seems to have a mass or thickness behind it, that my left does not. I have been very concerned about both of these issues.

I've brought up the lymph node to my dentist, an ENT, an on-campus doctor, and my regular GP who all felt it and told me it was probably a lymph node that has swelled due to an infection, and it just never went down completely. Also, I received some blood tests, which all came back normal. However, its tendency to continuously swell and shrink concerns me.


As for the breast tissue, I just recently saw my on-campus doctor again and she advised to get a mammogram and an ultra-sound. I did this, with the mammogram coming back inconclusive and the ultra-sound coming back "normal". My concern with that is the likelihood for an ultra-sound to appear normal, especially with a male patient, or so I've read.

So, am I being over-cautious? Completely out of line? I've read many stories online about how difficult it is to diagnose something like cancer, or anything serious and generally people are turned away from their health-care providers initally under the assumption it is nothing serious.

Thank you for your time.

[Fishmanpa]

Cancer, and that's your obvious concern, in an uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells. It does not come and go nor does it stop once it starts. That rules out your node fears. Poking and prodding will just aggravate it and may cause it to become shoddy and stay permanently swollen.

Your test results concerning your chest, age as well as gender, rule out anything sinister there as well.

I'm a Head and Neck cancer survivor. There was no doubt I assure you.

I have a daughter your age and she suffers from depression and anxiety. She had a rough time recently. She's getting help and on meds and doing great. Best to look into some therapy and/or meds to help you with your anxiety.

Positive thoughts

[JohnBoy23]

Thank you very much for your time, I appreciate someone with your experiences answering my concerns very thoughtfully. I also appreciate the advice on the anxiety, which is something that I've thought about for sometime. I hope everything works out for yourself and your daughter. Thanks again.