Is Lymphoma diagnosed with a blood test?

Question

I've had a swollen lymph node under my right ear for some time now. I've been to dr. twice. One dr. in December said it was because I had a bad cold, the other one, last month, gave me a round of antibiotics and wanted me back in a week. Well, I called and they said my blood work was fine but I thought since blood work was fine then no need to go back, I would save my money. Well, i'm still feeling horrible and it's still swollen, it's actually hard now, and saw that a biopsy is what diagnoses it. So if I have lymphoma wouldn't my wbc be an odd number? Not normal? The main reason i'm concerned is that when I was a baby I had same kind of thing but my blood was weird and I was in hospital for a while and very sick. I got that lymph node removed but was told to keep close eye on them rest of my life because of my history and both my grandparents having it. What do you guys think?

Answer 1

You can have a perfectly normal blood count with lymphoma.  In fact, usually the numbers on a blood count only start to show effects when lymphoma is advanced.

Lymphoma is diagnosed definitively by a biopsy.  I would urge you to go back to the doctor; lymphoma is one of the most treatable and curable kinds of cancer, but your odds are much better if it is found early and treated early.

Answer 2

A blood count does not diagnose lymphoma.  it might be abnormal, but it might not.

If this node is continuing to give you problems like this, a biopsy is reasonable.  Go back to your doctor and see what he/she thinks about now that its been a few months and is changing.

Answer 3

Definitely go back to the Dr. just to be safe. My blood counts didn't fall out of normal range until a full month AFTER being diagnosed with late stage Lymphoma. If the node is hard and increasing in size you definitely should push for further testing.