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Avatar universal

Swollen lymph nodes, fatigue, low temp, and body soreness, no recent illnesses?

So I’ve had some issues cropping up noticeably since around this time last year. I ended up procrastinating due to insurance, and finally went to a new GP about three weeks ago. Before I visited the new doctor for the first time, I’d had worsening exhaustion and some pretty sudden weight loss without dietary or activity changes (13lbs now since around late November/early December, but I was only 112lbs to begin with) and had noticed a chain of enlarged hard nodes on the left side of my neck. I’d noticed them about two months before I saw the doctor, but I’m not sure how long they’d been there.

Because I hadn’t had a regular check up in so long and due to symptoms, my doctor ordered a pretty extensive battery of blood tests, and the CBC, metabolic panel, disease, and immune disorder testing so far has come back normal. Thyroid too, I believe.  

Eventually, the doctor also ordered an ultrasound on my neck, which was completed last Tuesday, along with an abdominal/pelvic CT scan. My doctor has been out of town, so we’re scheduled to go over results this upcoming Thursday.
No CT results have uploaded to my patient portal, but the neck ultrasound results have, and I’m confused about it.
The report is very brief, and says there are bilateral nodes with fatty helium and a small axis. Impression is benign.

I’m willing to accept that they’re benign, but there is no mention at all of the larger node I can feel and see jutting out on the left side, which is decidedly larger than any on the right, or any mention of the cluster of (smaller) enlarged nodes in my left clavicle.
The ultrasound lady was very quick and somewhat dismissive, could she have actually missed the larger left node? It is literally the size of a large grape and is not mentioned in the report.

Whatever is going on with the clusters of nodes on the left side is also causing a tingling nervy twinging feeling whenever I brush against them, which extends to right below my left ear. It isn’t painful and the nodes themselves aren’t tender, but it’s a very awkward feeling.

To compound all of this, the biggest node seems to slowly be growing and I’m starting to have pretty severe body aches in addition to the fatigue. Sometimes it feels like chills, but so far I’ve actually been registering at a lower than average temperature.

No sign of infection, no wounds, no recent illnesses. My insurance isn’t great, so I doubt they’d clear new imaging on my neck considering the recent ultrasound report.

I’m just struggling to deal with this because it is not getting better.

Has anyone had a similar situation? How should I approach my doctor? Do I just accept this is the new normal.
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Avatar universal
Not a Dr here, so appreciate CHIN_C’s input. Just a thought - I could be off-base, but maybe this other lump described is not actually a swollen lymph node - maybe it’s smthg else which could still be related to the overall condition & maybe that’s why it was not mentioned in the report...
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Avatar universal
Please also bear in mind that an ultrasound of the neck is only a survey of the superficial regions. If you are concerned about underlying infection, inflammation, and/or cancer in the deeper regions, consider CT and/or MRI neck with contrast.
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Avatar universal
During the ultrasound study, you can point to the area(s) of palpable abnormality so the sonographer can pay extra special attention to those areas of clinical concern. If you are convinced the sonographer skipped over those areas, you and/or your doctor can call the radiology office to recall you to repeat those images. If you treat the situation more as a recall, you will be able to get those images for free because it will be treated as a continuation of the study rather than a separate study.
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Avatar universal
First, almost no GPs do a proper thyroid test.  So you may not have had one.  See if they tested you for T3 and T4, not just Tsh.  They do appear to have tested both sides, as you refer to bilateral results.  But your GP isn't a specialist, and I assume you will be sent to one or two if something shows up.  Ultrasounds are pretty easy to do, and you'd know, as they would have moved the device over all the areas they were looking at.  I can't say what's up with you, but your GP might not be able to do that either.  You may have to see specialists for that.  Some things are hard to find.  Thyroid problems are hard to find.  Blood sugar problems are hard to find.  This is because the tests might show you in a normal range for the general population but not for you.  I would try to be patient, as there are a ton of things this might be, but it might also have to do with your diet or other things.  There are infections that are very hard to find.  Just keep pursuing it until you find a doctor who can help you, if this one doesn't.  
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