"unidentified" mass in left testicle......no elevated markers....please give advice

[fuse929]

Hello friends. I should mention that I have had an untreated varocelli (i'm not sure how to spell it.....it is varicose veins of the testicle) in my left testicle for years now, and the testicle has always been significantly smaller than the right one. About a month ago, I found a distinct lump INSIDE of the left testicle, towards the back near the epidedamal cord. The lump seems to be distinctly round near the bottom-back of the testicle, with attached, smaller masses that seem to to fluctuate towards the head of the epididymus. I went to a urologist who upon first inspection noted nothing wrong with the testicle. I got an ultrasound done which clearly showed a small mass, but the doctor said he couldn't identify it.....my first worry. My bloodwork came back negative for tumor markers. I should mention that the doctor noted puss in my urine.

The doctor put me on cipro (antibiotics) and told me to return in 3 weeks for another ultrasound/blood work. It is now two weeks into those three weeks and i'm worried that the waiting around will allow the cancer to spread if it is, in fact, cancer. I should note that it is hard to feel the lump when standing or sitting, but it becomes very pronounced to touch when laying down.....possibly due to blood flow?

Anyway, what are feelings on my particular situation? I am a healthy 23 year old, and am willing to fight if it comes down to it. I'm not scared of diagnosis, as much as worried about the waiting.......it forces me to keep checking and messing with the lump........possibly resulting in a quicker metastasis from playing with it. Any insight to my situation would be greatly appreciated.

[Scott]

It sounds as though you have an infection that the antibiotics should clear up. About that "small mass," did you hear anything more about it? A solid mass in the testicle is almost always cancer, but there are other things that can show up in an ultrasound.

[fuse929]

Hello Scott. The urologist told me there was definitely somthing in there after looking at the ultrasound, but he couldn't tell what it was. When i feel the lump it is definitely very hard.......like a 1/2 cm round pebble inside the testicle........and like I said it definitely inside the testicle. The waiting around for the second ultrasound is making me pretty nervous that i caught it early and now i might have to pay because doc though it was in infection, as i have ready online this commonly happens.

[dadmo]

You're going to have to speak with your urologist again. It's not acceptable for him to leave the mass as undefined. He should certainly know if it appears to be soild or fluid filled. Don't be thrown by the fact that no markers are present some forms of tc don't exhibit any.

[fuse929]

Thanks for the advice guys. I'm going to try to give him a call today and see if I can get any more information out of him.......i called monday of this week and he said it was still too early to tell if it was anything.

Is it common for a testicular lump to be more pronounced when laying down as opposed to standing? If i didn't know exactely where it was, I wouldn't be able to feel it while standing up (as in a post-shower TSE). But when laying down, it is very easy to feel the lumps inside of the testicle. Did anyone else have this type of situation?

[lockupcity]

been there

My story started about the same way, took the pills, had a ultrasound once a month for four months. Dr told me that it was an old injury but I still see him every couple of months for the next year just to keep it in check. There has been on change in size and no pain since. write back

[fuse929]

My story started about the same way, took the pills, had a ultrasound once a month for four months. Dr told me that it was an old injury but I still see him every couple of months for the next year just to keep it in check. There has been on change in size and no pain since. write back

Lockup - thanks for the reassuring reply. Could you feel an actual hard mass inside of your testicle, or was it simply a swelling or something else? I can definitely feel something inside there. Also, this is a general question for anyone: where does testicular cancer typically form? Does it form inside of the testicle, on the surface of the testicle, both, or does it migrate from inside and puncture through the outer surface? I assume it could be any of the above, but i'm curious what the general trends are. My particular situation is that the mass seems confined to the inside of the testicle......running a finger over the entire testicle gives no hint of a lump........a firm press or squeeze, though, reveals the hard, nodular mass inside. Thank you in advance for any and all replies........this is a great comfort.

[lockupcity]

fuse929; I could feel a pea sized lump. My ultra sound showed a mixed mass with some blood flow. Did you have any swelling or pain? The other info might be on the TC Caner web site. write back

[fuse929]

lockup - I too showed blood flow. Is blood flow a good sign? There isn't much pain, except for days when i'm messing with it a lot trying to figure out what it is. If I leave it alone there is usually not pain.

[Fed]

lockup - I too showed blood flow. Is blood flow a good sign?

I hate to be the bearer of potentially bad news, but blood flow is unlikely to be a good thing. If the doppler shows blood flow to a solid mass, it probably is a tumor. Tumors have the uncanny ability of inducing the formation of blood vessels so they can feed (a process called angiogenesis). Now that you bring this information to light, I would recommend that you get a second opinion ASAP. With the likelihood of a potential TC diagnosis, you have to act swiftly.

[fuse929]

Fed - Thanks for the reply......they didn't mention blood flow to the mass specifically, just that the testicle had normal blood flow.

[fuse929]

Rover - I don't have a copy of the report. All I know from what the uro told me is that I had pus in my urine, normal/negative blood work, a slight fever, and no noticeable lump through his manual inspection. The ultrasound revealed something, but it was too small to tell what it was. He also said that I had unexplainable, non cancerous calcium deposits on my testicle........I assume because I drink a ton of milk haha.....but he couldn't give me a reason for why they are there.

If it helps, the lump i feel is in the testicle along the back surface, right underneath the epidydimus. It seems as though it extends up the interior of the testicle and stops right around where the epidydimus connects to the testicle. From the research I've been doing, I've yet to find a case where a tumor was located in that part of the testicle.....usually they seem to be on the front or sides of the testicle, but I'm still going back to the uro Thursday for my 3 week check-up from the last visit/antibiotic recommendation.

[Matt_24]

I had two masses in my right testicle - and when the ultrasound was performed I remember them checking for blood flow. From the "sound" the bloodflow was much stronger in the "bad" testicle than in the good.