Lump on my neck - Open to All Other Health Topics Message Board

Mad Max · 09-25-2003, 01:04 AM

I have had a lump on the back of my neck for about 3 years, that will not go away. It is about 2 finger widths lateral to my spinal collumn on the right side, just below the hairline. I went to a doctor when I first noticed it and, and he sent me to a specialist. She checked it out and assured me that it wasnt a tumor, which relieved me. She told me it was a swolen gland, and that it would go away on its own. well its been three years and its still there. It doesnt hurt, but it is a little sensitive to palpation, feels like maybe its compressing a nerve root. I am starting to think that it may be a muscular issue instead of a gland, becuase at times I can feel it pull the back of my neck when i get really tense, and I occasionally get headaches that origniate in the back of my head. I have also had pain in my scapula when I get really tired and stressed for several years, the pain is achy and then turns to numbness, leading me to believe that these two problems might be related. I have recently been to my doctor again, and he told me that he thought that I needed an evaluation from a physical therapist. The only problem is that my insurance company will not cover physical therapy, unless a debilitation occurs. Mere discomfort is not enough. My doctor told me to try some hot packs and then some neck extension exercises and some sidebending exercises. These have not really helped me, and at times I feel like that the area is more swolen after I do the exercises. So does anyone have any helpful tips to help me deal with the problem.

noelwr · 09-25-2003, 04:29 AM

With doctors, I've learned that you should always make it sound worse than it is - otherwise they will pass it off as nothing. Because of it's location, I think it is in a very critical place and if not helped, it sounds like it could get worse.

I can't tell you if it's a swollen gland or not... did the doctor explain why it remained swollen? Have you done research on lipomas? They are fat tumors (benign - don't worry) and can cause problems if they press against nerves or other vital parts of the body. I'm not saying that this is what you have, but perhaps it may be worth some research.

Mad Max · 09-25-2003, 06:25 PM

Well when I firt when to the Specialist she told me that it was probably a result of lymphatic drainage, from a bad sinus infection that I had, but she told me that it would go away within a couple of months. The second time I went to my regular doctor, he told me it was possible for it to remain swolen. He explained to me that the lymphatic system is what helps to remove among other things infection, so he said it was possible. The reason he wanted me to see a therapist was because I told him about my scapular numbness, and the pulling sensation in my neck, he told me that if I had a nerve root compression that it would cause numbness in the specific Dermatome that it corresponded to. I believe he said it could be a C-4 Nerve root compression as he called it, so thats all i know.