May 25, 2012
Topics A-Z Children's Health Worrying about Swollen Lymph Nodes, Could it be Cancer?
Worrying about Swollen Lymph Nodes, Could it be Cancer? |
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Dear Ask The Doctor: Hi im 14 years old. so ive had 4 lymph nodes in the back of my head that have been i guess "swollen" for 3 months, they are painless, they don't move and they dont really change size or texture. also i think i hav a scalp infection becuase ive had dandruff adn terrible itching for almost a year now. im a huge hypochondriac and its been freaking me out. i havent lost any weight, ive been checking my temperature everyday and i dont have a fever and i dont have night sweats. Also, ive seen my pediatrician and she said to stop worrying. and wen i was still worrying i asked my cousin(who is a pediatric oncologist) to look at them and she said its fine and they are swollen probably from the scalp infection. but now im freaking out because i keep researching online and its just making my hypochondria worse. thanks for responding Dear Gu: I do understand that the swollen lymph nodes at the back of your head is disconcerting for you. You have to understand that there may be many causes of swollen lymph nodes and many times you may not have any symptoms. Swelling of lymph nodes is not always a bad sign, in most of the cases it means your body is fighting off an infection. If the lymph nodes are associated with fever, night sweats, weight loss or grow in size, you may need to evaluate it further, maybe even biopsy it to get a definite diagnosis. In your case, I would take care of the hair infection first (which seems to be causing the swollen lymph nodes). If your lymph nodes are still swollen after treatment, then maybe you'll need further evaluation but otherwise there is little risk of cancer. Hope the information helps you to feel better |
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| Last Updated ( Friday, 28 October 2011 ) |
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