Mass in my left lung?!? Anyone else have this?

So my doctor, not his office, HIM . . . calls my house and starts the call by saying, "I don't want you to freak out but . . ."  I laugh telling it because how could I NOT freak out when my doc starts a sentence that way? 

My chest X-Ray got lost and wasn't at my appointment so he had to call and tell me I have a mass in my left lung and need to get a CT scan. I have been reading that RA can affect the lungs in a lot of different ways.  Some seem like almost nothing and some seem scary and terminal-like. 

Has anyone else been through this and had this "complication?"  If so, is it messing up your quality of life? Are you on more drugs just for that? Is this common? 

In other news, I think the Relafen has made me feel better, which has me more active, which has made me feel worse.  Does that make sense?    Sigh.  The morning of my appointment my "good" knee suddenly swelled up to twice the size of the now-drained knee.  So the doc stopped using the "mild" label and started talking about starting MTX with my Plaquenil next visit.  Sigh.

This is all sinking in now.  I'm just trying my best to stay positive.

Thanks for listening

Thanks Yalinda.  I bet I'll be in a similar boat.  I too have never smoked and have no symptoms.  It seems like "wait, watch and see" is so often the protocol for all this long term condition stuff.  I didn't even think about the dye!  Like I'm peeing?  What if I do?

Thanks again!  Hopefully I'll know by next week.

Rocky

I am very sorry to hear about the mass in your lung. I am new to this board, but have already received so much help here, concerning my worries.

I am assuming that you have been diagnosed with RA. Do you have any pain or discomfort in your chest? I am 53 and a long time smoker. I have heart disease and have had 4 stents placed in my coronary arteries. The reason that I mention this is because about 2 months ago, I started to have fairly severe pain in my chest. The pain would even shift from my left chest to the right. I was sure it was another blockage. I had a cardiac cath performed and nothin new at all. I still have a blockage they cannot repair. Anyway, the knuckles on my hands swelled up to where it was very noticeable. My PCP had me on a 13 day steroid treatment, and referred me to a good rheumotologist. He knows I have arthritis, but is not sure if it is RA or A.

I have mentioned this strange chest pain to doctors, but have never told them how bad it gets, sometimes. Your post has helped me make up my mind to start trying to figure out what the source of this pain is. I see my PCP tomorrow and am going to ask for an MRI of my chest and abdomen.

I have not dwelled on this pain. I have been trying to ignore it. It's like I do not want to know what it is.

I would have totally freaked out if I had received a call from my doc about having a mass in one of my lungs. You must be very "tough".

I can relate with the medicine making you feel better; then you become much more active and suffer from the over activity. It is kind of a viscous circle. I had a heeart attack and stroke 3 years ago. I bought a treadmill and started to try to rehabilitate myself. I found out that the exercise hurt me more than it was helping me. I have been in and out of hospitals for 3 years due to heart disease, and have not been able to exercise. My goal is to start out very slowly, real soon. Baby steps you know.

I really hope that this turns out good for you, however possible. You will be in my prayers. I also wanted to thank you for helping me make up my mind to seek answers as to what is causing my chest pain.

Here's to good health and happiness for you and all here :)

Rj