Diagnosis

The doctor will first ask questions about the patient's medical history and perform a physical examination to detect any node enlargements. If these steps point to lymphoma, additional tests will be done to rule out other diseases or to confirm the diagnosis and extent of the lymphoma. 

It is sometimes reasonable to wait a little while for the swelling and symptoms to go away before deciding that additional testing is necessary. In some cases, lymph node swelling may be due to a temporary infection. However, it should be noted that some lymphomas cause off and on lymph node swelling. This is particularly true with small cleaved cell lymphoma (the most common NHL). Lymph nodes should still be checked periodically to be sure there swelling doesn't return.

Ruling Out Other Conditions

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Many patients seek medical help for abnormally swollen lymph nodes (commonly referred to as "swollen glands"). Swollen glands can be caused by many conditions, most often infections, and are rarely serious.

Infections. In the great majority of cases, swollen glands are caused by an infection:

• Enlarged lymph nodes in the neck are much more likely to be a sign of strep or other throat infection than NHL.
• Infectious mononucleosis (caused by the Epstein Barr virus) is a common cause of swollen lymph nodes in young people.
• Travel, particularly to countries with a high incidence of tropical diseases, can trigger similar symptoms.
• Other infections that cause swollen glands include cat scratch fever, Lyme or other tick-borne disease, HIV, tularemia, tuberculosis, syphilis, herpes simplex virus, cytomegalovirus, and hepatitis.

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