Hodgkin's Disease

[notsureyet]

I think I might have Hodgkins disease,my first cousin died of it.I didn't know all the signs and symptoms until tonight.I had a breast scan done a couple of months ago...it went well,good results,no problems there but the lady who did it noticed a protrusion on my sternum bone,I never even noticed it until she pointed it out and she asked me 'what's that?"She asked me to get it checked out by my doctor.It hasn't always been there but I just did not notice it growing,I guess I should look at myself more often (ha ha)Anyway I looked up on the net tonight trying to find reasons of why it could be enlarging...after all,it is bone.I found that in one site it was mentioned that Hodgkins disease was mentioned too so I looked up other symptoms of hodgkins D and guess what? I have had one of the symptoms for years...itchy legs...I have in past scratched till my legs have bled,and the site said that people with this symptom of it do scratch till the skin almost comes off as the itch (when it comes) is so bad...well I do remember in past complaining to a doctor about that and he dismissed me and just said don't scratch so hard.
That itch comes and goes and when it goes it goes for months.Night sweats....once or twice...pain?yep,in left hip/high and low back/bones,aorta area,also little lumps in the inside of my right leg that hurt and come and go,plus, extreme fatigue that goes as quickly as it comes and weakens me more than I can believe...do I have it or not?I don't know,I guess I am going to have to go and see the doctor and hopefully he will not dismiss my enlarged sternum bone...I am quite terrified now...not much I can do about it...why am here writing this...because my sternum bone hurts tonight and I don't know if it is all in my head,would I have even noticed the dull pain if she had not told me?Probably not.I am wondering am I going to end up like my cousin...oh well...just thought I would share this.Thanks.

[cblastock]

You need to get an appointment ASAP and you might think about making it with an oncologist. Make sure he knows your family history and tell them what sypmtoms you are experiencing. The sooner the better. Sounds just like my case when I was diagnosed in 1991 at the age of 31. I had been itching for months and scratched until I bled. The dermatologist started by saying that I was allergic to the bath soap I was using then it went to the laundy soap, followed by Glueten (wheat allergies). It went so far that he treated me and my entire family for scabies. It wasn't until I started coughing up bloody mucus that I finally called my Internist and he told me to go to the emergency room on a Saturday and have a chest x-ray. He thought I might have bronchitis. When the Dr. showed up to the emergency room and took one look at the x-ray he said I need to have a CT Scan done immediately. It was a large mediastinal mass (in my chest the size of a grapefruit) my heart had shadowed it until it became so large. Hodgkins IIB Nodular Sclerosing. Never had a single node enlarge and protruded so anyone could see it! The tumor was buried in my chest. Don't take no for an answer! Make sure that they check everything. Regular Dr's. don't have the expertise that an oncologist (cancer Dr.) would have. With your history hopefully they will take you seriously and get you right it!!! Early detection is the key! I have been out of treatment for 16 years and am now 48 and doing well. Please let me know how things turn out! Worried that you would have to go as long as I did before they figure it out. Take care.
Cindy from Idaho

[briecurt]

Hi, take the bull by the horns and get yourself checked if you haven't already. There's nothing worse than letting our imaginations run away with itself. More often than not, our thoughts are worse than the reality. Do take care, Brie