Swollen Lymph Nodes After COVID Vaccine May Mimic Breast Cancer During Mammogram
As people across the globe get vaccinated for COVID-19, medical professionals are noticing its impacts on the body. For some, the vaccine causes pain and discomfort at the injection site. People have reported passing headaches, body aches, and general fatigue.
Thankfully, most people receiving the vaccine have not experienced any serious side effects. Whether that changes, only time will tell. Still, many folks are resistant to getting the vaccine, opting to wait until more data is available about its efficacy and outcomes.
What You Need to Know About the COVID Vaccine & Your Mammogram
One thing particularly important to women choosing to get the vaccine is some newly released information on its impact to axillary lymph nodes (the lymph nodes in your armpit).
Your lymph nodes are part of the immune system, so when you get a vaccine, your lymph nodes can start to swell.
The COVID vaccine is injected in the arm, so the most likely site of lymph node swelling is in the cluster of nodes in your underarm . This swelling isn’t necessarily a bad thing because it means that your immune system is waking up and reacting to the vaccine as intended.
COVID Vaccine can Mimic Breast Cancer
The Society of Breast Imaging is warning women who have been recently vaccinated that they could experience this swelling, and that swelling could mimic breast cancer on their mammogram. The SBI’s data said that 11.6% of those who received the vaccine had these symptoms.
According to the Mayo Clinic, those receiving their last dose of the vaccine should wait 4 to 6 weeks before getting their mammogram done.
This will significantly decrease the likelihood that nodes will still be swollen as a result of the vaccine. Failure to wait the recommended amount of time between vaccine and mammogram may lead to a false positive, unnecessary stress, additional & invasive testing (like biopsies). As always, mention to your doctor when and where you got the vaccine to help them understand your mammogram images and to avoid the unnecessary(s) as mentioned before .
Also, if you do experience noticeable swelling as a result of getting the vaccine, try to put ice packs on the area which can help reduce the inflammation! If the issue persists or you notice any unexplained changes, be sure to contact your physician.
For more information on breast cancer during the times of COVID-19, visit our blog Covid & Cancer Patients.
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