I am new to this forum and I am hoping that someone out there can give me advice. I am afraid I have a tumor in my middle back. My back has been out before but this is different. It doesn't hurt during any activity but is excruciating when I lay dowm. (In any position on any surface. I can't sleep for more than a couple of hours before I have to stand or sit for an hour to take the pressure off it. I have had it adjusted twice but it hasn't helped at all. 800 mg motrin doesn't help either. As long as I am standing or sitting, I am OK. The symptoms seem opposite from any that I read. Could this be a tumor?

Please give me some advice if you know anything about this. thank you

you really should be getting an MRI to see if anything is there

I would go the dr and get an MRI asap if you think it could be a tumor. Other signs of a tumor are a fever and trouble sleeping as well. You never know, it could be something minor, but it's best to get it checked out to be on the safe side. Good luck http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/smile.gif

Thank yoo for the advice. I am hoping that someone out there has had the same symptoms and knows what this could be. I don;t think my insurance will cover the MRI. I'd like ot get more information first if I can.

I am now on day 10 of sleeping on the floor in pain all night. This was the 1st night I didn't have to get up for a couple of hours to take the pressure off. I found that laying on my left side is best. My back muscles are starting to stiffen up and it is starting to feel more like it used to when my back would go out. Maybe the chiropractor didn't quite get it last week. Today, I am going to play golf with some company VP's. It's probably crazy but we have been trying to schedule a time for more than a year so I don't want to miss it. I will let you know how it comes out. I'm going to try to get an MRI now. I have to find out what is causing this.
I don't want people to think I am a whimp, so I will be discreet about it.
This feels like bone on bone in my middle back..maybe I should start doing situps??

I have had a tumor removed twice from the l-5 vertebrae. It is a bone tumor, not spinal cord, called a osteoblastoma. One of the main symptoms is a aching pain , more pronounced at night, not relieved by aspirin. it can be excruciating at night. There are other symptoms as well, and you can feel like you are loosing it! but, please don't try and come up with this conclusion on your own! You need to see a doctor who you feel confident in..so they can refer you to a nurosurgeon. The tumor I am talking about is a rare conditon, spinal cord tumors are not that common either, so odds are it is something else, put your mind to ease and see a specialist, thats the first step.

Maybe situps are the worst thing you could do. Get the MRI.

[This message has been edited by flyonthewall (edited 09-02-2003).]

Thanks for the info, Trip. So sorry to hear what you had to go through. How did they find the tumor? Did it show up in an xray? How bad was it? What did you feel during the day? How long did it bother you before you got it removed? Was the operation dangerous? why did it come back? Was it cancer? Did you smoke?

I played golf today and felt no pain at all. Same problem when I lay down, though.

Can anyone else relate to this?

Bone tunors are found by a bone scan, or a Mri can pick up tumors as well, 'specially on the spinal cord. I had this for a very long time as it is a slow grower, I just lived with a "bad back" though I am a very active person and no, I do not smoke. These type of tumors dissolve bone, which of course can leave a unstable back, and nurological problems. The 2nd time it harder and quicker and with my history it was found quick. The best thing you can do is not be 2nd guessing your conditon! See your doctor, so he can send you to a specialist, like I said tumors are rare along the spinal column, or spinal cord, so you may be sweating out something you probably do not have, so go see your Doc!

Thanks for the reply, Trip. I'm glad they were able to fix your back. I went to my family doctor yesterday. I described my symptoms and he said he thought it was muscular but my symptoms were backwards so he thought I had it confused. He took X-Rays in his office and said they showed nothing, as expected. I asked to look at them but he said it was against their policy to let patients look at Xrays. I told him I wanted an MRI to be sure so I have one scheduled for tomorrow night. I asked him if the results would be looked at by a neurologist or some other specialist. He said that wouldn't be necessary, he could read them.
I would like him to refer me to a specialist but I am afraid he only refers to other DO's. I want an MD at this point. I am hoping that if I just make an appointment with an othopedic spine specialist that they will be able to get the Xrays and MRI results from my DO. I will let you know what happens. The pain has mysteriously left so unfortunately there may be nothing to see now. I just find it hard to believe that this was just all in my head.

Hey great! and never think the pain is just in your head. it may have dissappeared, but it's always better to be safe than sorry..Good Luck!