Frequent infections in toddler - normal or to worry?

[Flowerpetal6785]

My son is nearly 2, he was unwell for about 10 days in July with a fever that lasted a week. A short lived sickness bug at the start of August, a cold/cough mid August and now another virus - snotty, pulling at ears/sore throat and fever again.

He has had a swollen lymph node behind his ear since July. I’ve seen GP about this recently and they aren’t concerned as say it’s small and mobile and it’s just reactive.

I have health anxiety with him and can’t help but worry it could be leukaemia. He bruises a lot but is also a crazy boy that climbs and jumps and runs.

Any advice/reassurance? Is this amount of infections normal? He’s had a few viruses at the start of the year and again a virus in April. My GP is aware of my health anxiety so I almost feel eye rolls if I go in. I totally doubt myself with what is normal and when I actually need to be concerned. He had blood tests in July (for something unrelated to this concern - during an operation) which showed iron deficiency anaemia but no other concerns.

Thank you 😭

This NHS page says 5 to 8 colds per year is normal. There are lots of studies showing that for under 3s, 12 colds per year is normal. Kids under 5 have a virus in their nose literally half the year, they just get snotty less often at their immune system gets more experienced.

www.nhs.uk/baby/health/colds-coughs-and-ear-infections-in-children/

I feel like my eldest was sick for about 5 years with one thing or another, it was constant from age 2 at nursery to around age 7. She doesn't et sick at all now at 10.

This is the same as my 2yo DS, we spent most of the 6 weeks holidays stuck inside with one illness after another which got passed around the DC like pass the bloody parcel!
Sounds like a normal level of illnesses to me. I would be more concerned if he was becoming increasingly poorly with every virus, which would indicate his body isn't fighting it off/his immune system is struggling. My youngest DC has medical issues, he caught his brothers virus and ended up being admitted, his body just couldn't fight it on its own.