Feeling Heaviness In Chest, Uncomfortable And Pain In Collarbone Area. Are They Related?

Posted on Mon, 17 Dec 2012

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Sun, 16 Dec 2012 Answered on

Mon, 7 Jan 2013 Last reviewed on

Question : Hi
I am 34 and I smoke socially about once or twice a month. I would have 4-5 cigarettes. I am generally quite healthy and workout 4-5 times a week with weights. I also do quite a bit of cardio and eat healthily. For the past few week in the region of the left side of my collarbone near my shoulder there has been an uncomfortable feeling which I would jot call pain, more of an ache. It seems to be there when I raise myself up from sitting using my arms. My concern is that my chest feels a little heavy in the past few days and I am wondering of the two are connected. The collarbone pain could be an injury from weight training but I am slightly concerned all the same

Thanks
XXXXXXX

Answered by Dr. Ganesh Sanap (2 hours later)

Dear XXXXXXX

Thanks for the query.

I went through the details submitted with diligence and you are right; the pain in collar bone near shoulder associated with difficulty in raising arm suggests some kind of injury. I think the muscle group known as rotator cuff is injured. It is not a severe trauma. But needs rest for healing.

Lung cancer don't cause such pain. There are few symptoms of lung cancer as weight loss, haemoptysis, weakness, chest pain, etc. You don't have any of these. So don't worry.

Hope I have answered your query. Any follow-ups are welcome.

Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Prasad

Follow up: Dr. Ganesh Sanap (6 hours later)

Thanks XXXXXXX I have injured the rotator cuff before and had suspected this may be the issue but the symptoms are slightly different. In the past I had used aspirin to calm the inflamation to good effect plus the application of the RICE principle and alternating between hot and cold - for example go straight from the pool to the steam room and back to the pool. Any other recommendations would be welcome

Best regards
XXXXXXX

Answered by Dr. Ganesh Sanap (4 hours later)

Hi,
Thanks for writing back.
I think this is the same issue. If you think the symptoms are new and you want a confirmative diagnosis, then there are few tests that can be done.
Firstly, ask your physician for a Chest Xray followed by CT scan of the thorax. It will rule out all the possible pathologies. Given your history of weight lifting and smoking, these should be helpful. Collar bone i.e clavicle is well appreciated on CT scan.
I hope I have addressed your concerns. Let me know if you have any more questions.
Regards.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Aparna Kohli