Sentinel lymph node biopsy: What cancer patients should know
Doctor Watching TV Show Spotted Cancer On Show's Guest That She Didn't Know About
Say what you will about social media and daytime TV, but sometimes, they can help work wonders.
In fact, the power of Facebook and the popularity of HGTV's Beachfront Bargain Hunt played a big part in helping Nicole McGuiness get ahead of her serious cancer diagnosis - but it was an eagle-eyed doctor who really saved her bacon.
The then-32-year-old appeared on the property series alongside her father while in search of a holiday home in North Carolina to celebrate her recent recovery from brain cancer in May 2018.
She explained that she had set her sights on 'something near the water', specifically a beachfront property in Morehead City, to start afresh in this new phase of her life.
Dr. Erich Voigt was one of the viewers who tuned into the Beachfront Bargain Hunt episode, which Nicole featured in, and she has been counting her blessings that he was watching ever since.
That's because although the ear, nose and throat surgeon from New York City was off the clock, his mind was not - so when he spotted something sinister on his TV screen, he made it his mission to alert the young woman.
Take a look at this:
Dr. Voigt had noticed that there appeared to be a strange lump on the house hunter's neck, which he suspected may be thyroid cancer, and said he 'felt obliged' to let Nicole know.
Speaking to the New York Post, the medic explained: "I was relaxing after a day of work, watching beautiful beach houses and daydreaming. But then I noticed the lump.
"It stood out - and I went from being relaxed to [thinking], 'Gosh, she may have a medical problem'.
"I thought, 'I don't think she knows she has this'. I felt obliged and sort of guilty, like I should let her know. I paused my TV and rewound it. I had to make a choice whether to ignore it or actively try to contact her."
Dr Voight spotted a sinister looking lump in Nicole McGuiness' neck (HGTV)Dr. Voigt said he was alarmed as the lump had a specific asymmetrical look and a 'way of moving under the skin' when she spoke, and after examining thousands of patients in his time, it all seemed to point to one thing.
Although he was ready and willing to perform the good deed, the doctor hit a wall when he realised that Nicole's full name wasn't mentioned in Beachfront Bargain Hunt...So he decided to put his trust in the internet instead.
The otolaryngologist shared a clip from the show on Facebook alongside the caption: "I am watching a TV show and notice this woman has a left thyroid mass. She needs a sonogram and fine needle biopsy.
"I wonder if she knows and hope it's benign."
With the help of a hashtag and some supportive social media users, Dr. Voigt soon got his message to go viral.
The medic made it his mission to track the US woman down (YouTube/Inside Edition)Two weeks later, he was put in touch with Nicole via a family member and was thankfully able to advise her.
Dr Voigt urged her to get a sonogram and a biopsy to confirm his suspicions, before a local doctor then diagnosed her with thyroid cancer after tests.
Despite having recently finished treatment brain cancer, Nicole's doctors didn't notice the lump.
Speaking of her reaction to Dr Voigt's life-saving observation, Nicole told Inside Edition: "Somehow or another, by the grace of God, it got back to my family and we were shocked.
"We were shocked that a doctor witnessed this on television and reached out," she added.
The pair were brought together by the power of social media (ABC)Dr Voigt went on to praise the 'awesome power of Facebook and good people', before the pair were finally united in person by Good Morning America in June 2018.
Nicole told the medic: "I have gone through a lot the last couple of years and never expected to have to be a two-time cancer survivor.
"But without you keeping a vigilant eye and and watching that television show, who knows how long I would have gone on without that being checked. So from the bottom on heart, thank you so much."
Dr Voigt humbly responded: "I'm really happy to help. You know, doctors and nurses do this every day, it's what we do."
The latest update from Nicole, which was shared in 2021, explained that she was now living life to the fullest.
She said: "I'm very grateful for still being here. I read a statistic recently that less than 1 in 10 glioblastoma patients are alive after five years. I'm taking advantage of every day."
Featured Image Credit: YouTube/Inside EditionTopics: Health, Cancer, TV, US News
Man, 57, Dismissed A Growing Lump On His Neck. It Was A Sign Of Stage 4 Cancer
After having chronic sinus problems, Glenn Moog noticed a little bump on his neck. He thought his lymph nodes had become swollen. About five months after noticing it, he visited his doctor.
"She felt it and said, 'Now, I don't like the way this feels. You need to get a scan right away,'" Moog, 57, of Columbus, Ohio tells TODAY.Com. "Within 24 hours, they told me I had stage 4 cancer."
HPV, the human papilloma virus, caused the cancer on base of Moog's tongue. A lump in the neck due to a swollen lymph node that slowly gets bigger is a common symptom of cancers in the mouth, according to Cancer Research U.K.
Doctors have been seeing an increase in head and neck cancers from HPV, and that's why Moog is sharing his story.
Gleen Moog and his wife. (Courtesy Glenn Moog)
"I'd never heard of HPV to be quite honest," he says. "I was a little surprised."Sinus troubles and a growing lumpIn the middle of 2017, Moog noticed the lump on his neck but thought it was simply his lymph node working to help him with his chronic sinus troubles.
"I just figured ... It was a swollen lymph node, not a big deal, and then over time it kept getting bigger and bigger," he says. "I kept thinking, 'Oh well, it's just a lymph node fighting off the infection.'"
After about five months, though, the lump remained. That's when he visited the doctor and underwent a scan to learn more about it. Hearing he had stage 4 cancer felt overwhelming.
"I (felt) scared, helpless. I don't really remember exactly. I felt unprepared," he says. "I didn't really know what to do next."
He shuffled from doctor to doctor to understand the treatment plan. Early on, doctors knew that HPV caused Moog's cancer, and that influenced his treatment plan, which included 35 rounds of radiation and five rounds of chemotherapy over seven weeks.
"I probably responded worse than most," Moog says. "I thought I would be able to continue to eat and function, and I was literally put on the couch for six to eight months."
Even though Moog's cancer was found at stage 4, his doctors believed it was treatable.
"(My cancer doctors) were saying, 'We caught this fairly early. It's a slow-growing cancer. If you get this treatment, we have a high success rate,'" he recalls. "I was very optimistic. … I had to go through the pain to get to the end."
After treatment, Moog was cancer free. But the side effects from head and neck radiation lingered, and he still struggled to eat and swallow.
"As I kept getting more radiation, I just kept burning my throat more and I kept eating less. And then finally they were like, 'You're losing too much weight too quickly,'" he says. "I had to get a stomach tube to eat because I couldn't swallow any longer."
HPV-related head and neck cancersDoctors have been seeing an increase of head and neck cancers caused by HPV, which can also cause cervical cancer, Dr. Matthew Old, director of the department of otolaryngology, head and neck surgery, at the Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, tells TODAY.Com. Most people are infected with HPV when they start sexual activity, and there's a "significant lag time" from then until a head or neck cancer due to HPV develops, Old explains.
HPV infects the tonsils or the back of the tongue, and that's where HPV-related cancers are found. The increase in cases is due to the cancer developing in people between 40 and 65, who were too old to be vaccinated against HPV, he adds.
"We're going to continue to see an increase incidence in this cancer for about 20 years before we see the benefits of vaccination," Old says.
People with HPV often never know they have it because they don't have any symptoms, Old says. HPV-related head and neck cancers also do not have a lot of signs associated with them.
"The most common symptom people have is a neck mass or a lump on the side of the neck," he says.
Other signs can include:
"Symptoms that are persistent for more than two weeks, that's when people really need to get checked out by their primary care doctor or an ear, nose and throat provider," Old says.
HPV-related head and neck cancers are more treatable than cancers in these parts of the body not caused by HPV. But because HPV-cancer patients tend to live longer, they may end up dealing with the unpleasant side effects of treatment for longer, too.
Treatment may include surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Doctors try to avoid radiation if possible because radiation causes lasting impacts, such as difficulty swallowing or loss of taste.
Old encourages people to vaccinate their children against HPV and get the shots themselves if they still qualify. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say that some adults up to age 45 can still be vaccinated if they had not been in the past.
"Most people think, 'Oh no, there's no way that (an HPV infection) could have happened to me,'" he says. But HPV-infections are incredibly common, and few people remain aware they have been exposed, he adds.
"One, there's a lack of education and in turn, awareness, and two, it's been taboo to talk about it, and three, the infections happen at much younger ages in life, particularly when you're not thinking about, 'What am I going to be like when I'm 40, 50, 60?'" Old says.
Advocating for vaccinesMoog hadn't heard about the vaccine for HPV until he was diagnosed with cancer. He encourages children and young adults to get vaccinated to avoid getting cancer like he did.
Glenn Moog and his family. (Courtesy Glenn Moog)
"I don't think people really understand what chemo and radiation do to the body and the mind," he says. "You're almost a shell of a person."
But, despite the difficulties he's face, "I'm happy to be alive," he says.
This article was originally published on TODAY.Com
My 'morning Sickness' Ended Up Being Cancer: Mother-to-be, 24, Is Diagnosed At Five Months Pregnant After Glossing Over 'weird' Nausea And Golf Ball-sized Lump In Neck
A mother-to-be diagnosed with cancer while pregnant has told how she glossed over her 'weird' symptoms.
Caitlin McAlinden, from the Wirral, suffered heavy morning sickness in her 'rocky' first trimester, vomiting at least once a day.
The 24-year-old, who found out she was expecting in September 2023, would fall asleep intermittently due to her extreme tiredness.
Tiredness and nausea are common among pregnant women, especially during the first 12 weeks.
Ms McAlinden, whose due date is in May, then noticed a pea-sized lump in her neck on Christmas Day. She also realised she had lost 2st.
Caitlin McAlinden, 24, put her cancer symptoms - including a golf ball-sized lump on her neck, nausea and fatigue - down to morning sickness
Yet she didn't seek help immediately, instead believing the lump and sore neck was another 'weird' effect of pregnancy.
When Ms McAlinden's tiredness got worse at the start of 2024 and her lump tripled in size to that of a 'golf ball', she saw her GP.
Tests then revealed the primary school teacher had stage one Hodgkin lymphoma.
Unintentional weight loss and swelling in the neck can both be tell-tale signs of the illness, Cancer Research UK says.
However, Ms McAlinden, who was diagnosed in March, is not starting chemotherapy until after her son is born.
She said: 'This isn't the pregnancy I was hoping for.
'I haven't felt well this entire time.
'Everything I want to do after my baby is born has to be put on pause due to chemo.'
Ms McAlinden added: 'My odds are really good – but having my baby will be a good distraction for everything I'm going through.'
Ms McAlinden found out she was pregnant on September 16, 2023 - after feeling nauseous at her birthday dinner the week before
Her partner, Connor, 27, (pictured) a procurement manager, urged her to get the lump checked out by a doctor
She is expected to make a full recovery, although has to take a steroid injection and a blood-thinning pill every morning as part of her treatment.
Cancer Research UK says chemo can 'usually be given' to women who are 14 weeks pregnant, but not before because it can harm the baby or cause a miscarriage.
Its advice states: 'You can sometimes delay having chemotherapy until your baby is born, although this isn't always possible.'
Ms McAlinden found out she was pregnant on September 16, after feeling nauseous at her birthday dinner the week before.
Because morning sickness usually settles by 16 to 20 weeks and can last even longer, according to the NHS, Ms McAlinden didn't think her vomiting was strange.
It wasn't until Christmas Day that she first noticed a pain in her neck that led to her finding the lump.
Ms McAlinden, who is originally from Northern Ireland, said: 'I went back to County Armagh to visit my family for Christmas.
'I remember Christmas Day, falling asleep on the sofa and waking up with a really sore neck.
'I thought I'd just slept funny, but I started massaging my neck. That's when I found a lump, about the size of a pea.'
Ms McAlinden described her first trimester as 'rocky', she was vomiting at least once a day and would fall asleep intermittently throughout the day. It wasn't until Christmas Day that she first noticed the pain in her neck and after weighing herself, noticed she'd lost two stone, which can be a sign of cancer
Speaking of how her symptoms worsened, Ms McAlinden added: 'I was so, so tired.
'Walking up the stairs alone would make me need to go for a lie down.
'I felt my neck again one day and the lump had become golf ball-sized.'
Her partner, Connor, 27, a procurement manager, urged her to get the lump checked out by a doctor.
On January 2, she visited her GP and was referred for an ultrasound on her neck.
She had a biopsy on January 16 and the clinician asked Ms McAlinden if she had any family history of Hodgkin lymphoma.
She told them one of her second cousins had gone through it years before and they urgently sent her for more blood tests.
'My doctor's whole demeanour changed when I said I had a family history of it,' she said.
'I went for a blood test on the same day.'
Two months later she was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma.
The mum-to-be says her partner Connor has been her 'rock' throughout the ordeal - and the pair have since found out they're going to have a baby boy, but will be keeping his name a secret
Hodgkin lymphoma is a type of cancer that starts in the white blood cells.
A painless swelling in a lymph node is the most common symptoms. This swelling can happen in the neck, armpit or groin, according to Cancer Research UK.
If you have an infection lymph nodes commonly swell, but usually go back to their normal size after a short time.
However, with lymphoma they often grow slowly and may be there for months or years before they're noticed. But sometimes they grow very quickly.
Around 2,000 Brits are diagnosed with the cancer each year.
It can also cause shortness of breath and tiredness due to anemia from a low red blood cell count, increased risk of infections because of a low white cell count and bleeding problems such as nosebleeds and heavy periods.
Like Ms McAlinden, many people with Hodgkin lymphoma also suffer from unintentional weight loss.
When she was diagnosed in March she instantly started steroid treatment to shrink the mass on her neck.
She was told she won't need surgery and doctors are confident she'll be able to start chemotherapy after her due date on May 8.
Cancer Research UK explains that the placenta acts like the barrier between mums-to-be and the baby, and only some drugs can pass through this barrier.
Chemo will stop Ms McAlinden from holding a Christening or breastfeeding, which isn't advised due to the powerful drugs being able to pass through the milk.
She said: 'In Catholic culture, we're expected to christen our baby within the first few days of birth.
'But that coincides with chemotherapy, so I can't.
'I really wanted to breastfeed, but chemo is stopping me from doing that, too.'
What is lymphoma?Lymphoma is a cancer of the lymph nodes, which is the body's disease-fighting network.
That network consists of the spleen, bone marrow, lymph nodes and thymus gland.
There are various types of lymphoma, but two main ones: non-Hodgkin and Hodgkin.
Both have much better prognoses than many types of cancer.
WHAT IS HODGKIN LYMPHOMA?
Hodgkin lymphoma is a type of cancer that starts in the white blood cells. It is named after Thomas Hodgkin, an English doctor who first identified the disease in 1832.
It affects around 2,000 people each year in the UK, and 8,500 a year in the US.
Hodgkin lymphoma is most common between the ages of 20 and 24, and 75 and 79.
Five-year survival rates:
The survival rates are much more favourable than most other cancers.
Symptoms include:
Risk factors:
Treatment:
WHAT IS NON-HODGKIN LYMPHOMA?
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma can occur anywhere in the body but is usually first noticed in the lymph nodes around sufferers' necks.
Non-Hodgkin lymphoma affects around 14,000 new people every year in the UK. In the US, more than 80,000 people are diagnosed annually.
It is more common in males than females, and it is commonly diagnosed either in a patient's early 20s or after the age of 55.
Five-year survival rates:
Survival can vary widely with NHL.
The general survival rate for five years is 70 percent, and the chance of living 10 years is approximately 60 percent.
Symptoms include:
Risk factors:
Treatment:
It depends on the number and locations of the body affected by Non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
Therapy typically includes chemotherapy.
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