Christine,
I'm 44, and I appreciate your response. The lymph node is in the supraclavicular area and is actually larger than a golf ball. To my understanding this is never good at least at my age. The lymph node is on the same side as my tongue and throat pain which would is definitely a concern. Until this point, I had no confirmed lymph node swelling by any test. This is quite worrisome and trying not to think about it, haven't googled but did talk to my GP who is very concerned. I sent a pic to him and his first response was "wow." It is what it is but we all know this is one of the worst areas for lymph node swelling especially that large.
Thanks for your comment and keep me in your thoughts

"P"

Try to relax and not get overly stressed! You have a right to be concerned. That is really big for a lymph node to be. I would be concerned about that if it were me too.

I actually had thought you were much younger, probably in your 20s/early 30s. Maybe its just me being a mother, thinking you were around my son's age (24).

I really hope this enlarged node is nothing serious. Wish I had a magic wand to make all this just disappear.

"P",

I'm glad you will be seeing a doctor tomorrow. Best wishes for you to get to the bottom of this and hoping it is nothing to be concerned about.

Is the level 5 lymph nodes normally would tongue cancer would show it's ugly head? I just haven't seen that in any of my reading. Just curious.

Yes. Cancer can go anywhere. I even had metatastic cancer in the neck muscle, and dermal layer of the skin in level III, which could have come from anywhere, and had it in level V. First was level II, then III, V, and It usually works down the chain. Mine is out of the Lymph chain now, and had cancer, not in the nodes, roaming about in level III, V, and those area lymph nodes were removed in my radical neck dissection, levels II-V.

What kind of oral cancer did you have? I can't understand your signature.

I couldn't fit Tonsil or oropharyngeal cancer, and exceeded my space allotment for my signature, thats why it's condensed, and left out stuff. My PET/CT originally showed base of tongue, Valleculla, addition to the left tonsil, but the direct biopsy was negative in those two areas, but it still makes you wonder, but I was treated as if it was all mentioned, plus the right lymph node that showed activity.

Tongue cancer generally has a path it takes but it doesn't always follow that route. Hopefully you just have an infection of some sort... Best to have it checked though... Hugs.

PaulB, what where your symptoms when you had your first PET/CT? Yea. It certainly makes you wonder. I'm not real happy with the medical world right now.

It was a swollen lymph node in the left neck, which I was monitoring lol, for three or four months. Then I had an abscess on my face, probably from shaving, breakdown of the immune system, and required surgery removal, and pointed out the swollen node at that time to the hospital, which was attributed to the infection, but it evidentially was not when checked a month later by FNAB, CT by the ENT. I guess sometimes they should look outside the box, and there can be co-infections, diseases, illnesses, not just the obvious one.