About 3 years ago, I blacked out (due to vassa vagal) & fell off a picnic table onto my side... they took me to the hospital for observation overnight (I am a 50 yr old male so they were lookin for heart issues) & I told the doc that my sternum hurt... she said I may have injured the cartilidge & it should heal in a few weeks... anyway, about 6 months later, I noticed a very slight bulge & I thought maybe I had moved the rib a bit since it did not really hurt... fast forward to now & I have a lump about the size of a med. sized marble & quite hard & connected to the sternum... this may just be me but it seems like every few months it will hurt/ache for a week or so & then when I check it, it has grown slightly larger... I also have lost a lot of muscle mass/weight (7 lbs in less then a year), shoulder pain at night & constant low grade pain between my shoulder blades... I have scheduled an appt with my PCP but just wondered if anyone had any thoughts/experiences they could share as I have totally freaked myself out by goin online & readin all the cancer stuff (HELP!)... thanks in advance!
I'm very interested in finding out whether or not you ever discovered the cause of this lump. I have a lump that perfectly fits your description and has grown in size from a dime's surface area (with a 1/16" thickness) into three larger lumps, the biggest of which is about 1" in diameter and 1/4" thick. In fact, all three lumps have become much larger than the original dime-sized mass. They can be painful when pressure is applied or something hard lands directly upon them but they also ache moderately (and annoyingly) at seemingly random intervals. I believe the lumps are made up of a material softer than bone but harder than cartilage which resides above the sternum and below (several layers of) skin. Whatever the material may be, it doesn't seem to be firmly attached to the bone(s) below it. Also, two of the lumps have developed small indentations or craters in their centers. There isn't much discoloration but they do turn white when pressure is applied or over-irritation occurs.
Please let me know if you have any new information and to anyone else reading: please feel free to ask any additional questions and/or share knowledge you deem helpful.
Hi Matt... I had CT scan & at this point it is not bone cancer... my pcp thinks it may be scar tissue related to the previous fall & has developed into arthritus(sp?)... I still need to see a thoracic surgeon to get his opinion as well and to see if it can be removed if it continues to grow (cancer or not) as I don't want a tennis ball on chest!
Unfortunately, althougth my pcp says it is very common in 50 + yr olds, they found 3 small (3-4 mm) noncalcified pulmonary nodules in my lungs so I have to go back in 3 months to get another ct scan to see if they grow... other wise I'm strong like bull!
Any other questions/thoughts lemme know...
PS: The wife said it looks like it's time for some life insurance... nice...
Hey! Thanks for the quick response. Wow, the wife busting out the life insurance joke... classic, haha. She sounds like a keeper.
I'm going to see a doctor but it's good to know that yours sounds benign. I'll let you know what happens with mine and please keep me updated if you find out exactly what yours is.
no problem Matt... will keep you posted... I think ur gonna be fine... specially if they're not attached... those are typically cysts which are no big deal... I have a couple of those on the back of my head (jeez I sound like a rotting melon!) mine is actually attached, right to the sternum between the ribs & bone hard... my huge downfall was going on the internet (which I always do with any ailment) prior to seeing the doc as I was convinced I had cancer!!! Have a great weekend!
Re: Growing bony Lump between Rib & Sternum 
