Hi there,

I'm 24 y/o male, and right now I have a painful swollen lymph node in my groin area. It's not huge (smaller than a golf ball, probably about the same diameter as a quarter), but it's very painful. It's soft, and can be moved around, but I'm still concerned about what it is.

My father had non-hodgkins lymphoma (can't spell), which is why this really set off a warning bell for me. I've had swollen lymphs in my armpits before, but they were never larger than a pea and never painful. They always went away with time.

The one in my groin that is causing my problems right now is different though, it is very tender to touch and my pants/underware hurt it if they get pinched too tightly when I sit down. At first I thought it was a pimple in a weird place (never had one there, but the pain is similar to that occasional sore pimple that I would get on my chest/butt/whatever)... I know it's the lymph node due to the location and the way it looks (very red, swollen and sore) but, as I said, I can still move it around and it feels 'puffy' under my skin.

I'm very concerned about this, and I would like to know if I should go see my doctor. I usually try to self-diagnose as much as I can before seeing my GP so that I know what questions to ask, etc before I even get to his office.

Any insight would be greatly appriceated. Thank you.

SP