I am a 26 year-old male. I have had a small movable lump on my left collarbone for perhaps ten years, which I believed to be benign and thus never had examined. In the last six months, several new lumps of the same nature have appeared in the area around my neck and jaw, mostly on the right side. Of ten lumps, three have disappeared and seven have remained--they are remaining at a constant size. The only thing that makes me wonder whether these are enlarged lymph nodes is the fact that two of the lumps are on my back, near the spine.

I would have had them examined sooner, but I have no health insurance and no regular physician. I'm in the process of finding such now, because the most recent lump, on my jawline, is larger and more irritating than the others. The lumps are not sore to the touch except for this most recent one, and I suspect that's because it's in a location where it doesn't have much room and is therefore stretching the skin.

I have no other symptoms associated with lymphoma, so I was wondering what the chances are this could be something else. I have not been sexually active and have had no recent diseases. I read about lymph nodes being enlarged for a number of reasons, but most of them imply that they will go away again within a few weeks or that they will be sore. What could this be, if not lymphoma?

The only way to define lymphoma is by biopsy or other systemic symptoms and only by the doctor. These are some other causes but should be investigated as well. Subcutaneous cysts: contain oil, can contain a cheesy type of material and is the immune system's way of trapping infections to protect the body. In men, there may be ingrown facial hair follicles that enlarge due to not being able to break through the top layer of skin for whatever reason The same holds true for the back. If you have an autoimmune disease, you may have all the symptoms of a lymph cancer but the symptoms never produce the malignancy. Lipomas are just fat and tissue lumps that are indiscriminate and appear in bodies, just because. They can cushion the body against impact on the nerves, such as the carpal nerves etc. If they become cancerous they are called Liposarcomas. Rheumatoid arthritis produces little nodules sometimes. Also systemic yeast infections can produce outbreaks of enlarged lymph nodes. It is troublesome, and can make you feel very sick without being cancer. Lymphoma is a cancer of the lymph nodes and again is necessary for biopsy or other invasive testing in order to be definitively diagnosed so the information here is just that, information.