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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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What Causes Painful Abscesses In The Arm Pits?

I keep getting abscesses in both arm pits. The first I ever had was back in May when one became so painful I went into urgent care, and they called it a golf ball size abscess which they needed to drain. They put me on antibiotics, which I finished, but then the abscess filled back up and opened up on its own draining so much blood and puss it was absolutely gross! Now I find that I am getting different abscesses in both armpits, and they become large and painful with puss. I am worried because I know of the lympf nodes there, and does this lead to cancer?
posted on Sat, 23 Jul 2016
Twitter Thu, 11 Aug 2016 Answered on
Twitter Thu, 11 Aug 2016 Last reviewed on
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Pulmonologist,  's  Response
Thanks for your question on Healthcare Magic.
I can understand your concern.
Possibility of cancer is less. Possibility of infective cause is more likely.
This kind of abscesses are commonly seen in diabetic and immunocompromised patients.
So first get done sugar levels and hiv testing.
Another possibility is lymphnode tuberculosis.
Your abscesses are recurrent in nature despite of antibiotic. Tubercular abscess need anti tubercular drugs and you are not taking them so you are not fully relieved.
So get done fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) to confirm tuberculosis.
So consult doctor and discuss all these.
Hope I have solved your query. I will be happy to help you further. Wish you good health. Thanks.
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What Causes Painful Abscesses In The Arm Pits?

Thanks for your question on Healthcare Magic. I can understand your concern. Possibility of cancer is less. Possibility of infective cause is more likely. This kind of abscesses are commonly seen in diabetic and immunocompromised patients. So first get done sugar levels and hiv testing. Another possibility is lymphnode tuberculosis. Your abscesses are recurrent in nature despite of antibiotic. Tubercular abscess need anti tubercular drugs and you are not taking them so you are not fully relieved. So get done fine needle aspiration cytology (FNAC) to confirm tuberculosis. So consult doctor and discuss all these. Hope I have solved your query. I will be happy to help you further. Wish you good health. Thanks.