Swollen Lymph node in 9 year olds neck

[MummyKSA]

Hi all,

I’m absolutely going out of my mind and hoping to get some reassurance..

So basically, my 9 year old brother has a swollen gland in his neck, it’s about 1/2cm in diameter. We first noticed it around 3/4 weeks ago. It hasn’t changed since then. He went to the doctors yesterday and she said she isn’t concerned about it but to give it 3 weeks and see if it goes, if it doesn’t then to go back and get it scanned. It does move around but only so far, she said it is attached somewhere but that’s “normal”

She asked if he bruises easily which he doesn’t but obviously we googled and found that these are symptoms of Leukaemia. Now, his dad died of Leukaemia but a few of years ago, my brother has a blood test to check for it and then xrayed him for bone cancer and he was having problems with his joints etc. They came back clear, but we’ve never been certain on whether leukaemia is hereditary or not.. and if it is, just because his dad had it, would it mean my brother is likely to get it too?

Has anyone had this swollen gland and it’s taken some time to go? Or hasn’t gone but the scan was fine? We are just complete losing our minds.

Thanks in advance and I’m sorry for the long winded post!

Crikey calm down!!!

Swollen lymph glands are just another way for the body to deal with a bit of an infection and sometimes they don’t ever really go right down. Mine on the right of my neck has been up for years off and on!

If your GP isn’t worried, and there is no reason why she should be, then neither should you be. As for “come back in 3 weeks” she’s said that because she knows it will be gone by then.

This was me 2 years ago, i was so stressed out my DP found a small lump on the side of DS (5) neck, I took him to the doctors and they said the same they said if they've been a bit under the weather it will swell glands and can take up to 8 weeks to go,
So i waited and it didn't go so i went back and they referred us to a pediatrician,
We went and he felt it and said he's positive that its nothing to worry about he has no other symptoms and he had a name for it i've forgot now but basically said its fine and normal, this was 2 years ago now and its still there, but he's fit and healthy.
i drove myself crazy for months googling!

It's natural to worry when you know what lumps in the neck can also be, things can easily be mistaken for swollen glands but be something else, when i told my GP the worries they understood and said it can't be ruled out so he may need a biopsy if it doesn't go.

He does have other symptoms though. He's a very pale kid, he did have joint pain, he's always warm, and he does have a lot of nose bleeds. But like I said, he was tested for leukaemia a few years ago when he had all of the same symptoms then too, but I still can't help thinking it's the worst case scenario :(

Some children have lots of nose bleeds. Aching joints aren't uncommon when children are growing. Swollen lymph nodes are normal even for a slight infection.

If you've already had these concerns in the past is there some kind of anxiety at play here?

The GP will know the family history and the symptoms to look out for. They are REALLY hot on childhood cancers. You are worrying which natural but try not to because your child will pick up on it. I speak as a parent of a child who had cancer

My DS also had joint pain, if he moves his neck to fast he gets a shooting pain down his neck, he also wakes up in the night with his feet and legs aching, but as i said the pediatrician said he's fine but you can always g ahead with the scan or biopsy to put your mind at rest

I’ve had swollen glands in my neck, armpits and groin that flare up regularly. The Dr always says that it’s a physical sign your body is fighting something off but you may not always know what.

I had glandular fever aged 7 which started with swollen glands, lethargy, lost weight etc. Over the years it developed into Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

My glands still flare up in cold weather, times of stress or if I’ve physically overdone it. I had a baby last year and my first symptom was swollen gland in my groin. I had a scan on the lymph node and it was normal but they saw I had a cyst on the ovary on the same side which went away on its own.

If he’s showing or had any of the glandular fever symptoms then the Dr can do a blood test to find out for sure.
I hope he’s on the mend soon.