Lymph nodes in neck - what is going on?

[AmyJane1508]

Hi, I've had swollen lymph nodes in my neck for a month now. They first popped up when I had an ear infection and laryngitis. There were lots of them and they were painful and made my neck tight. After a few weeks they all shrunk down and dissapeared apart from 2. So I've been left with one on each side of my neck in the exact same place. The left one is tiny and moveable. It's like a small pea. The one on the right is oval shaped. Sometimes it feels sausage shaped then oval again depending on how you move your neck. It feels around the size of a kidney bean maybe a bit bigger. All afternoon yesterday I put a heat pack on it as it was slightly tender. I kept repeating the process. By 11pm is had shrunk down by about 50% and I thought great it's going. I went to bed and when I got up this morning its rock hard again and back to its original size. I've also had a low grade fever for 2 nights. It starts in the afternoon and lasts all night. When I went to bed at 11pm it had finally returned to normal and it is normal again this morning. If it comes again this afternoon I'm going to be worried. I must also state that over the past 6 weeks I've had 3 separate occurrences of fevers, but one was when I had laryngitis and ear infection and the other was when I had Norovirus and now this one. Logic tells me they are all accountable. I've also got a dry non productice cough that started up again out of nowhere a few days ago. I've had a clear chest x-ray mid November and a clear full blood count last week. Why would a node shrink down with heat and then pop back up while I'm sleeping? Could this be a lingering infection even though my crp wasn't raised or could it be some sort of allergy? Lymphoma is always in the back of my mind, especially how hard the right node feels at time and isn't moveable as It's attached to a muscle, but logic tells me that a heat pad wouldn't shrink a cancerous node. I've also been having tingly lips and tingling in my collar bone and up to my ear. Any thoughts?

[Missy1981]

If it was a cancerous lump it wouldn't shrink down in size. It would just get bigger. Given the fact you have had various infections and a clear blood count I would definitely say your lymph nodes are just reacting to your infection and doing their job.

I have a swollen node on the back of my neck too at the moment and just waiting for my bloods to come back. It's made me feel better to hear that it made your neck hurt and collarbone feel tingly as this is exactly how mine is making me feel. I've heard cancerous lumps are painless too so that can only be a good thing if ours are making our necks hurt.

[GlassPinata]

Same issue that recently brought me to this board... but in my case, the lump is only on one side of my neck (no corresponding lump on the other side), and I haven't been sick recently, and the lump is firm and painless, and I'm in my mid-forties.... all of which seems a little more ominous than what you're describing.
However, after freaking out for several days, I finally began to suspect yesterday- and became convinced today- that my lump is not a lymph node at all, but some sort of small, bb-sized cyst in the skin of my neck. Probably had a pimple there at one time, and it left this little lump in the skin. I discovered this because when I move the skin on my neck, the lump moves with it. There is no lump in the underlying structure; it's part of the skin.
So that was a huge relief to discover (and it took me awhile to process; I had been SO SURE that this was lymphoma), and I am determined not to ever touch my neck again, so I don't feel any other lumps and freak out. That is such a horrible feeling.

Anyway, back to your issue: the fact that there are two, one on either side- even though you say they don't feel the same- should be very reassuring. The fact that it shrinks and swells back up should be reassuring. Cancer doesn't do this, as you mentioned.
It sounds like you've got a reactive node from your recent bout of illness, and your attentions are probably keeping it reactive.
The pain and tingling- all I can say is, when I thought my neck lump was a lymph node, I developed ear pain on that side, and pain and tingling from my chin to my collarbone, all along the left side where the lump was.
My seatbelt strap was driving me crazy. I couldn't stand my shirt collar rubbing against my collarbone. My friend came up behind me while I was on my computer (reading about lymph nodes, of course) and put his hand on my shoulder and squeezed my collarbone slightly with his thumb, and I screamed, scaring the hell out of him.
As soon as I figured out that this thing wasn't a lymph node after all, the pain entirely disappeared. I think it was caused by a hyperawareness of the area where I thought something was wrong, combined with (of course) a bunch of poking and prodding that left that side of my neck sore.
Our minds really are capable of making us feel and perceive things that are not real.
Not saying these sensations you are having aren't real, I'm just saying they might be the result of your intense focus on that area of your body.
The only other reassurance I have to give is that when I'm sick (and for weeks after) some of my lymph nodes become rock hard. They eventually go away (or become undetectable, at least; I'm sure they don't actually go anywhere). This has never worried me because it's happened multiple times since childhood, so I suppose it can be normal for some people to get very hard lymph nodes. I know Dr Google says hard nodes = cancer, but clearly that is not necessarily so, and I am living proof. I've also seen other people on this board mention having "rock hard lymph nodes", and I don't think any of them turned out to have cancer either.
So in short, I think you will be fine and it will go away soon if you leave it alone.
But if you truly feel something is wrong, go to the doctor.
Best wishes.

[emnemz]

I have had lymph nodes in my neck for YEARS! funnily enough, i only noticed them after my HA started (nearly 5 yrs ago) when i brought to the doctors attention, she made a good point, I may always of had them, but only found them due to checking my pulse . mine dont change in size, occasionally are painful, but i have had an ultrasound going back 2 yrs ago and this has satisfied me.

I have lumps and bumps all over! ive got one on my Jaw joint, some on the floor of my mouth, but all have a plausible explination

[Fishmanpa]

This was discussed at length in your previous thread. Stop poking and prodding and they'll eventually resolve. Keep poking and prodding and you'll make them shotty.

Positive thoughts