Aaaargh! I have a ganglion cyst on the palm of my hand!

Well, I'm like your mother in that I love going barefoot, too. It's kind of hard to do in the winter, though. I don't know if I'd rather have this thing on my hand or my foot. They both seem to be very uncomfortable and inconvenient! From what I've read, the likelihood of this coming back is greater if I just opt to have it aspirated so I'm going to go for the surgery. Chances are greater that it won't come back. My problem is that I've just started a new business and my primary function is sculpting bas relief wall art of different dog breeds out of clay, then making molds so that I can make others out of plaster. That's a lot of hands-on work! I guess I'll just get the clay rolled out for a few dog breeds before I have this surgery. I can always work on them with one hand, although it will go much slower. At least this thing is on my right hand and I'm left-handed!

Good luck with the surgury! Best wishes for a speedy recovery and a permanent solution to the problem . . . and congrats on the new gig!

Yeah, I was born with a defective body, that's for sure! Every female in my family has had to have a hysterectomy, so I can say with some adequacy that 'female' problems run in my family but it seems that I got all the other 'stuff' going wrong! Not fair!!!!! I'll definitely soak up all the sympathy I can squeeze out of my family! I have two terrific sons and a husband who CAN be somewhat ignorant of my needs on a normal basis but, whenever something like this happens, he will wait on me hand and foot! I'll most likely learn to do a lot of things one-handed while I recouperate. I've never been one to just sit around doing nothing. I can't even watch TV without having something in my hands to work on. Luckily, I'm left-handed and this thing is on my right hand, so that should make it easier to deal with. I'll be myLotting, for sure! Typing with one hand is not impossible, but it might be a little weird for awhile. Hmmm, I guess I won't be able to wash the dishes, huh? Laundry might be out of the question, too! I hope hubby is up to the challenge! I'll keep you informed. Thank you for caring.

ha ha ha ha ha... full body transplant indeed! With the way technology is going, I am not surprise if that is possible in the near future! Well, at least your ailment is not causing you a lot of inconvenience. So, when are you going for the surgery? Hmm... with this surgery, that would mean you will be spending less time here. And lesser time during the recovery period as typing would be a pain! I am gonna be wishing you a speedy recovery then! AND not forgetting a HAPPY NEW YEAR lest we do not meet again on mylot!

Well, let's see... I'd say it's about twice as large as a large pea. It also has a kind of "tail", a swollen area that trails down towards my wrist about an inch, along the tendon. I've heard from some that these things can continue to grow while others say they stay the same size. I can only assume they go either way. It is not painful at all, as long as I don't use that hand. But, with any movement of the finger involved (my middle finger), it begins to ache. If I put any kind of pressure on it for any length of time, such as when I go grocery shopping with a cart or drive my car, it hurts for the rest of the day. From what I've been reading, these things sometimes disappear on their own but generally reappear somewhere down the road. If I choose to have it aspirated, the chances of it coming back are far greater than if I elected to have the surgery. My doctor recommended the surgery as soon as he saw it. I like my doctor and trust him implicitly. He's been right on-target so far regarding my health issues. He's given me a referral to a hand surgeon so I'll have to see what the surgeon says. But, based on my own past experience, I've learned that it is better to have a permanent solution done right away rather than wait around and trying a less invasive method first. Because my past surgical history is so extensive, I honestly have no problems adding one more surgery to the list... I would just rather not have any more problems that would require surgery! I really haven't liked my body for the majority of my life. It has failed me when I needed it most. It has held me back from certain things and prevented me from attaining certain goals. You know what erks me the most? I eat healthier than anyone else I know of!!! Maybe I should start eating more fat, sugar and starch? I want a full-body transplant!!!

I have an appointment with the hand surgeon on January 12. I suppose surgery will be scheduled at that time. Don't worry, I'll be in myLot! I'll have to learn to type all over again, though, with only one hand! That should be interesting! I have a hard time typing even if only one finger is out of commission for awhile! All my best wishes for a wonderful New Year to you!

Good grief Marti! That's a bit high for health insurance!! Especially when it's coverage isn't all that great. Have you checked around to see if you can get it any cheaper elsewhere? I mean, you'll have to keep this one for a little while longer till your hand is fixed but after that, it might be feasable to change insurance companies.

Yep, Cats, we're looking around now. Oh, I don't know if you've seen commercials for 'Assurant Health' or not, but if you have, don't believe them! Oh, they 'tailor' the policies to fit your needs, all right... you can include maternity benefits or leave them out, and the deductibles are as low as $500 or as much as $3,500. Aside from that, the cost of this insurance is the same as everyone else, so far. EXPENSIVE!!! All I can hope for is that our new president, who's coming into office on Jan. 20th, will keep his promise to do something right away about universal health care! Geesh! I just looked out the window and it's snowing up a storm! I don't know if you'd call this a blizzard or not, but we're having wind gusts up to 50 mph and it's snowing pretty darned hard right now! WOW! Sorry, that just caught my eye and I had to say something! LOL

My appointment with the hand surgeon is on Jan. 12. That was the earliest I could see him, so I'll have to wait almost 2 weeks. The ugliest part about all of this is that, because my husband lost his job, our health insurance also ends as of the 1st, at least as far as the employer paying it goes. We're keeping the insurance through the COBRA plan but I honestly don't see what's so special about that plan, since it's going to cost us nearly $600.00 a month just to keep the same crappy insurance plan we've had. (This is that plan where the co-pay of most of my medications is $50.00 a month. I've been paying $263.00 each month for my prescriptions WITH this insurance!)

If your bad experience with anaesthesia was nausea, they can give you something before you wake up to eliminate the nausea if you alert them of it before surgery. I have that same problem. I'm going to have the surgery. Mine seems to be growing, or spreading, or something. There's the cyst on the palm of my hand, then it looks like the tendon it's on is swollen about an inch towards my wrist. Yep, I just felt it and it's definitely swollen. I don't want this thing getting any bigger or more spread out than it already is! Besides, I read that this surgery can usually be performed under a local anaesthesia, not a general one. You'd be awake but not feel a thing the surgeon is doing except maybe some gentle 'tugging'. If that idea makes you uneasy, they can put up a screen so you can't see what they're doing. Good luck with yours! I hope it doesn't spread.

I think that I am going to have it checked out soon. But my my bad experience with anesthesia was they gave me too much and had to call a medical emergency to my procedure room. When I finally woke up, there were nurses and doctors all over the room because my oxygen level went waaayyyy down. It was more of a scary experience than anything.

Mindym, I'd get that checked out. The longer you leave it, the more damage it may do to your hand, and then when you do get it removed, the harder the surgery will be and the more risk to your tendons and nerves. When I had my cyst removed from my foot, it had gotten big enough that they had to cut a nerve and now part of my foot is numb. You really don't want to have that happen to your hand. Having a numb foot isnt' that bad but having a numb hand you can't move well is very bad. And of course it may turn out to be something harmless that will go away on its own, but I hope you get it checked, especially if other fingers seem to be getting affected. You really don't want to become disabled over putting it off. I hope you are ok soon.

Thanks so much for letting me know of your experience! I'm fully aware of what can happen during surgery when they cut a nerve! I'm completely numb between my belly button and, well, lower. I've had 4 abdominal surgeries and, somewhere along the line, they cut the nerve that affects that section of skin. I'm also numb between the middle of the top of my right foot to the end of my big toe. I had surgery on my heels when I was 16 and developed a horrible blister from the adhesive tape used for the bandage. That got so bad, it killed the nerve going down to my big toe! Slowly but surely my body is going numb! I hope it won't happen with my hand!!! At least I'm left-handed so if anything happens, it won't affect my dominant hand. Thanks also for advising me to have the surgery as soon as possible. I don't want this thing getting any larger, either! Ewwwww! It's bad enough as it is! Well, okie dokie, then. I guess I know what I've got to do. It doesn't sound so bad, at least not compared to some of the other surgeries I've had. This seems like a veritable piece of cake! I might even get extra help with the housework from my husband right after the surgery.

Note: I would disagree with what other people said about surgery being the last resort- I wouldn't wait. Make sure you talk with your doctor and make sure that it won't damage a nerve or tendon if it gets bigger and THEN has to be removed. You don't want to risk having numbness or complications because you put the surgery off too long- talk to your doctor.

Oh, one last thing. My ankle is weak now. Sometimes when I run it buckles and I fall. I have to wear shoes with a high back and if I wear heels I really have a hard time. Another possible consequence of putting it off too long? I don't know, but be careful.

I'll have to ask him tonight what his was. He's had at least 2 different doctors look at it because he asks them all the time. His grandfather had the same thing but never had surgery. It might be something different...

Thanks, reinydawn. I'm not sure if what your husband has and what I have are the same thing. They sound the same but not what the doctor said. My doctor didn't mention anything about the hand "cramping" shut, nor did I read that anywhere online. What I have is simply fluid that built up inside the tendon shaft and ballooned out. This fluid can be gel-like or also feel quite hard, like your husband's. It simply makes movement difficult and painful. Mine is affecting my middle finger and it hurts to move that finger. Typing doesn't seem to affect it much, thank goodness! But, if my finger is bent backwards, it does hurt... a lot. My doctor also referred me to a surgeon right after seeing it. He recommended surgery right away. Maybe your husband should get a second opinion? Also, from what I've read, these things generally do not come back after surgery. They can come back if they are simply aspirated with a needle which is why I'm not even going to consider that as an option. For me, it's going to be surgery or nothing. Keep me posted on your husband's condition, okay?

Rupture? I had a tubal pregnancy once and my tube ruptured. At least, that's the way they referred to it in the hospital. But your appendix bursts, doesn't it? It went kablooey? Aw, heck, you can say exploded if you want! Ovarian cysts are different than ganglion cysts. I've had ovarian cysts, too, but they disappeared as suddenly as they appeared! Ganglion cysts are attached to tendons. They're actually formed by fluid getting underneath the tendon shaft and ballooning out. I've only heard of them happening on or near the hands or feet. I think my recovery will be as quick as it possibly can be, at my age, anyway. I've never been one to lie around. I was sitting at my computer, working, the day after I came home from the hospital after major surgery before! I won't 'push' it, though. If I get stitches, which I assume I will, I won't do anything that might pull them out or get them infected. I'll do what the doctor tells me, for the most part, anyway. Now, if the surgeon said he'd pay my bills while I recouperated, I'd do exactly what he tells me! But we already know that ain't gonna happen. Nope. I'll be careful but I'll also be up and around as soon as I feel up to it which might just be right away. Someone would have to literally sit on me to keep me down. Thanks for your concern, Pam.

You know...I really understand why my great-grandmother, who btw, was a nurse thought all docs were idiots...she was into natural herbal remedies for everything...never took anything but aspirin, uh, well and a few shots of whiskey..LOL...but lived to be 98. Some docs are very prone to racing a person into surgery on a whim...it's a wonder they don't have a person have "surgery" for a pimple. Yes with only aspiration, like my cyst thing I had on my ankle...I had to get it aspirated about six times before it completely went away...thing is many docs race a person into surgery due to getting more money...surgery costs more to do than simple aspiration..so it's the doctor that comes out the winner by getting more money rather than you who has to go through the "trauma" of surgery to begin with

My doctor didn't want to touch it, I believe, because he is all for the surgery. He told me that aspirating it didn't mean it would go away forever but that, in most cases, surgery would eliminate it permanently. He gave me a referral to a hand surgeon. I looked that site over and saw that diet isn't the answer since there seemed to be a doctor in that forum who was against the diet plan to eliminate the cyst. Some others said something about it being caused, or irritated, from repetitive use. I don't see how this could be caused by that because it's on my right hand and I'm left-handed, plus it's in the middle of the palm of my hand, not at a joint that would always be moving. The castor oil method does sound interesting, though. The thing is, I'm about to launch my new business which involves a lot of working with my hands and I would like for this thing to be gone ASAP and not come back. I'll make the appointment with the surgeon, but try the castor oil treatment before I see him. Who knows? It just may work! Thanks for posting that link. It was most educational!

Mental....I have had one at the base of my ring finger for about 7-8 years now....It only flares up occasionally....like right now. It really had been awhile since I'd noticed it then about a week ago it flared up quickly and is very sore. I think it began years ago when I was driving bus, I would use the palm of my hand to turn the steering wheel. I no longer drive bus but work as a teller at a bank. I still use my fingers ALOT, but not the palms of my hands. Today as I was coming back from my grandson's ballgame my middle finger felt funny...upon feeling it I discovered another bump at the base of my finger but ON the finger instead of on the palm....again a very tender bump just like on the ring finger (same hand). And of course putting a name to these cysts is how I came across your site. Before I would consider surgery, I would give it some time and see if it does subside and not be a problem for you. Like I said, mine just rarely flares up....just suggesting!

Thanks, Barb. I'm going to go for it. I was just out shopping with my husband and I was pushing the cart. (It helps to keep my back from hurting something fierce from the fibromyalgia when shopping to have something to lean on.) Just holding on to the handle bar of the cart has this thing yelling at me right now. I'm also a firm believer in getting things like this fixed once and for all the first time. I don't want to have to go through any kind of treatment over and over again! Nope, I'm going for the surgery. I want a full-body transplant!!!

You are so funny! Going for a full body transplant!! Now, if we could do that, I'd have a new hip - no metal in there! But I guess I'll have to live with the one I have and deal with any problems I have from it. But I do understand about yours with the fibromyalgia. I know you really have pain with that.

Well, I just recently learned that I do not have a ganglion cyst. What I have is called Dupuytren's Contracture of Dupuytren's Disease. From WebMD: "Dupuytren's disease is an abnormal thickening of tissue beneath the skin in the palm of the hand or hands and occasionally the soles of the feet. The thickened skin and tendons (palmar fascia) may eventually limit movement or cause the fingers to bend so that they cannot be straightened." This can affect any finger and it can also occur on the feet. Does this look like what you have? That lump just below the ring finger in the picture below is what mine looks like, only it's below my middle finger and a little closer to the center of my palm. There are treatments for this but the surgeon I saw said that surgery is the best way to deal with it. For me, he suggested that I wait until my finger is beginning to contract before considering surgery. Fun, huh? If you do have a ganglion cyst, I was told that the best treatment for that is surgery, also. Aspirating it is sometimes effective but not usually permanent. My opinion is, having the surgery now is better than putting it off because it will more than likely keep coming back and/or get worse. A little pain now is way better than a lot of pain over the long haul. Good luck to you!

They still are not too sure, but they think it is. I am scheduled for a surgery to have it removed in a couple of weeks. I know it is not anyhting major, but I am still nervous as I have never had any sort of procedure like that done on me, I don't like the idea of agreeing to a surgery for nearly a cosmetic purpose, but I am assured that if it is not done, it will get hard and be more painful. I hope your treatments help you, and you become pain free!

Hello Professor! I am happy to say that this problem has not gotten much worse than it was when I first made this discussion. But, it turned out to be something called Dupuytrene's Disease or Dupuytrene's Contracture, not a ganglion cyst. The hand specialist I went to see told me that this will most likely get worse as time goes by and I will need treatment at that time. So far, I have not needed treatment. This problem is a thickening of a tendon or ligament that connects the finger to the palm of the hand that helps to control movement. The cause is unknown. Treatment may end up being surgery to remove the thickened portion of the tendon but this will only be done if the thickening gets so bad that I am unable to extend the finger directly above it. So, as of this writing, I am still able to move that finger, just not as much as the rest. Still, it has not affected the way I use my hand so I'm very happy about that. I hope that you are doing well.

Glad to hear this, if you are able to move the fingers, better not to go for surgery, let me tell you the yogic breathing exercises taught by Ramdev baba of india-for free works wonder, if you give me your email id in private message i will give you details hugs, take care

That's encouraging! Thank you for sharing! I can handle a couple of weeks of recouperative time... any more than that and I'll start to go stir-crazy! I've had a few surgeries while being wide awake and they don't bother me other than I wouldn't want to see the surgeon actually cut me open! I can watch surgeries on TV all the time without flinching but have no desire to see what's on the inside of ME!

After going to a specialist, I learned that I do not have a ganglion cyst. What I have is called Dupuytren's Contracture of Dupuytren's Disease. It is a thickening of a ligament connecting the finger to the palm, causing the finger that it is directly under to contract, or an inability to pull the finger back as far as the other fingers will go. Eventually, it will most likely cause me to not be able to extend my finger at all and that is when treatment will begin. The doctor explained to me that the most successful treatment for this is to inject the enlarged ligament on my palm with dozens of needle punctures, thereby breaking up the thickening and making it more able to stretch like it should. If that doesn't work, surgery would be the next choice to physically remove the thickened portion of the ligament. So far, it hasn't gotten much worse. I'm able to extend that finger enough for normal use although it will not pull back as far as the other fingers. It has only gotten a little worse than it was when I first saw the surgeon about it. What causes it I have absolutely no idea. According to the surgeon, it's just "one of those things".

Thanks so much, freedom! I've generally been a fast healer (thank goodness, huh?) so I doubt I'll have any problems with this. It's just a matter of getting it behind me instead of ahead of me! My appt. with the surgeon is on the 12th. What a way to bring in the new year, huh? LOL

A negative rating!?!? Don't worry about it. I'm not big on the rating thing, although I usually give most people a plus. That thing on your daughter's neck sounds like something my son had in his upper chest, kind of under his arm, but deep in a muscle. They had to cut a hole in it and stick that same drainage thing into it. It was an ulcer, kind of like an abcessed tooth. Yuck! Mine isn't an infection but I've heard that these things can be aspirated (drained) with a needle sometimes. Sometimes, they can't, and surgery will be the only answer then. I'm seeing the surgeon on Jan. 12 so I'll know more then.

I just look at it as something I have to do. Write it into my agenda, as I have my whole life. Sigh! But, like you said, once the surgery is behind me, it's over. I had a hysterectomy myself. The doctor and I argued over leaving one ovary... I wanted it out but he didn't want me going through menopause at such a young age. (I was already 40 years old! It didn't matter to me.) I told him, "You either take EVERYTHING out of there that I absolutely do not need to survive, or put a zipper on me!" This was going to be the fourth time I've been cut open from hip to hip. I was pretty tired of it! Needless to say, he won and not only did he leave the one ovary, but he did NOT put a zipper on me! Hmmph!!! (At least he did take my appendix out.) But, I can honestly say that having that hysterectomy was one of the best things I've had done! I was in a lot of pain before the surgery. I had cysts, adhesions, scar tissue and endometriosis... horrible pain each month! Once I recovered from the surgery, oh!!!! I felt sooooooooooo much better! My entire demeanor changed for the better! So, I'm one to recommend a hysterectomy when there is pain involved beforehand. But, of course, that is your decision. Me? I've had so many surgeries that one more means very little... at least a minor one such as this. I actually feel rather blessed in one respect... I met a man who was born with severe spinabifida and also had hydrocephaly. He was 34 years old and had already had over 60 surgeries! So, I guess it's a relative thing. Meeting him really helped me to put my own life in perspective. Good luck to you!