Hi,

I went through surgery on 5/6/11. 29 lymph nodes were removed at the time. Just today I noticed feeling a small pea like object in my neck about 1 cm under the incision. Could it be that the surgeon did not take out all the infected nodes? Or could it be something else. Anyone out there experience anything similar post surgery?

Thanks in advance for any perspective(s).

Best Regards,
Chetan

You're not being paranoid - this cancer can be agressive so dilligence is must - it could be anything - some good, some not so good.
I'm finding, given my life-time membership to the cancer club, that every lump and bump deserves attention! Get it checked out and get peace of mind!

If it's nothing - you'll sleep better - if it's something - you'll still sleep better knowing that you and your Docs are on top of it!
Don't view it as paranoia - that's too negative and can minimize concerns that are legitimate. Stay cool - odds are it's nothing more than a little swelling from your surgery earlier this month but anything out of the ordinary warrants a check-up!

Take care!

I was told when a pea-sized lump was found during the time I was undergoing radiation therapy itself that it could be from surgery. In less than a week that pea-sized lump was gone, but they did an ultra sound also to see if they could find anything. They could not, but this was after I could not find it anymore, nor could the doctor.

Anyway, I checked it out and you should too. Now's the time to fix anything that should be fixed!

Best,
Anne

Hi - okay I actually have the same thing it's directly under my incision at the mid point - I will tell the dr about it but I am pretty certain it's a stitch as I had abdominal surgery last year and had a similar bump at the conner of my incision there as well. Pus your surgery is very recent it can take months for your stitches to dissolve. Do have it checked out but I am pretty certain that mine is not a node as there are none there. My dr.removed 40. I should add mine is not pea sized - maybe 2- 3 mm. And I have finished radiation and chemo - so it's unlikely - this is not the same one at prompted me to have rads on my right side either - this is directly under my incision.

Good luck and try not to worry too much but do have them look at it.

Hey. I felt a lump doing treatment on the opposite side to my neck dissection surgery. It was unexpected, and I had a biopsy. It was cancer but I found it very early so we treated it with extra radiation. It's now disappeared & I'm currently cancer free. The advice given so far is correct. Hopefully you're worrying about nothing. I've certainly done the same when I feel anything unusual. It's natural, but It's an awful feeling. Hopefully yours is nothing to worry about. Good luck!

Hi Jennifer, Dave, Anne, Cheryl,

So I got my node checked out via FNA (fine needle aspiration) and immediately confirmed that it is a tumor. My oncologist has now scheduled a PET scan to see if there is any distant metastatis. My PET scan on 4/22 showed no metastatis, and I remain hopeful that this is still the case.

Just thought I would update you all. Thanks for your ongoing support and input(s).

Best Regards,
Chetan

Hey Chetan. Sorry to hear of the poor news. I remember when it happened to me, it really got me down. Looking back now in hindsight though, I'm glad I found it when I did rather than after I'd completed my treatment. Finding it early will hopefully prove a positive for you in time. All the best

Chetan,
I echo Dave's thoughts. Get all the cards on the table before treatment.
Anne

This is true - I think I said before I had a left neck dissection - a left hemi glossectomy - I got out of he hospital - went away to recover for a week - came back had a head and chest CT - and a week later started radiation therapy - I asked my RO how my scans looked -after scaring me - with the chest CT (it was nothing ) - he called me in day 3 of my radiation to tell me a 3 mm node had highlighted on the right side - they weren't sure if it was cancer or an infection - we never biopsied it - he rewrote my radiation plan to include my right side and made sure it got the same dose as my left. He and everyone else believed the radiation would take care of it.

So yes it's bad news - but in a way it's good - they caught it now. They can include it in your radiotherapy plan. Hopefully everything will go okay. Hugs!

Not the news you wanted - I am sorry Chetan.

It's very similar to my situation - I had my original tongue resection and ND in March '10, with (seemingly) great results. My f/u PET in Sept'10 was negative and then a lump showed up in October and it was positive. So the course from there was a neck resection, with chemo-rads to follow. I feel comforted now to know that we threw everything we could at it and really try to live my life like I'm over that hurdle!
The treatment is difficult but it is possible to get your life back once you're through it! Hang in there - gather your resources and get ready for a fight. I know I found I was tougher than I ever imagined and am proud of my "survivor status" - I earned it and you will too!

Hi Dave, Anne, Cheryl, Jennifer,

Thanks for the words of encouragement. I go for my PET scan tomorrow and hope that there is nothing else. Appreciate all your positive vibes.

Best Regards,
Chetan

Hi,

Just a quick update. I got the results of the PET scan and there are two additional LN in the areas of radiation that light up. It does not show any metastatis. Phew. Radiation scheduled for next week, but still trying to schedule an appointment with MO for chemo. RO said that first chemo can be a few days after rads starts.

Thanks for all your positive thoughts.

Best Regards,
Chetan

Awesome - not on the extra nodes - but that there's no distant spread!!! You will get through this!!! and yes chemo can start after rads. I started my rads on a Friday and had my chemo the following Tuesday. Not a big deal. Good luck!

Lots and lots of good advice and info in this thread! You've done the right thing, and unfortunately have had a not great finding, but as has been said, you've caught it early and that's really the best you can hope for sometimes.

It's a fight. My RO described "two months of hell for a good return" and I would say that in my case that was optimistic, but everyone is different. I had bad mental reactions to something, one or more of the multitude of drugs/chemo? overall physical trauma? just how I'm wired? all of it? may never know, but it took some incredibly brave people around me to get me through it. Not meaning to scare anybody, and many people sail through with just the basic physical challenges.

It took me most of a year to truly feel good again, but now, 13 months from end of primary treatment, I can say I really do feel good! I can also say I feel more "normal" than I ever thought I would. No, I'm not the same as before, but I'm closer than I though I would get, and they say it can take two years to really know what the new normal will be, so I may improve yet more.

It was really hard, but I'm very glad I did it, and very grateful for all the help, professional and personal, I had along the way. Marshal your crew! And if you don't have a crew, ask for professional support. Get this lined up, 'cause if you need it, you may not have the capacity or energy to find it. My darkest days were shortly *after* my treatment ended, for what that's worth.

Good luck.

-Seth