Cancer: Woman thought swollen armpit, fatigue were due to pregnancy; she had lymphoma

In 2019, Erin Basinger, a communications professor for the University of North Carolina Charlotte's health psychology graduate program, went wedding dress shopping.

She shared with Insider that she struggled to find bras that would accommodate the growing mass under her armpit, and a wedding dress that wouldn't highlight it further.

She tried to push her concerns about the lump aside. She had recently undergone surgery for carpal tunnel syndrome (a numbness and tingling in the hand and arm caused by a pinched nerve in the wrist) and thought it could have prompted some fat redistribution or swelling. She also always had some fatty tissue in the armpit area.

The lump continued to grow during and even after her first pregnancy in 2020. Basinger thought it could be an impact of her hormones. She had been attending the standard prenatal and postpartum visits. The doctor did not raise any concerns about the lump.

Then another symptom manifested – extreme tiredness and fatigue. Basinger thought it was caused by her recent pregnancy and the responsibilities of new parenthood.

The mass had grown to the size of a grapefruit, more than six months after her delivery. In December 2021, she visited a new doctor to specifically ask about the lump.

A few tests and referrals later, she was diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. According to the Mayo clinic, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is a type of cancer that begins in your lymphatic system – which is a part of the body's germ-fighting immune system. In this disease, white blood cells called lymphocytes grow abnormally and can form tumors throughout the body.

Basinger had an aggressive subtype that had spread to her head, neck, chest, abdomen, pelvis, and parts of her bones.

Basinger, now 36, shared her story with Insider to encourage women to advocate for themselves, especially if their genuine health concerns are dismissed simply because they have extra weight. She also wants to validate pregnant patients who have been overlooked for their weight.

She said, "I suspect there was also probably some fatphobia there, like, 'She's fat, so this is probably just fat.'"

This was not new for Basinger. Doctors had previously chalked up her rheumatoid arthritis to fatness. Her doctors also said that her request to be tested for PCOS was just an "excuse" for her size.

Evidence suggests that generally, health behaviors like how you eat, move, sleep, and manage stress, are better indicators of your health, compared to other factors like your size, pregnancy or not etc.

However, research shows that healthcare providers often emphasize a pregnant person's weight above all else, leading to shame and diminishing other major health factors.

After her cancer diagnosis, Basinger went through six rounds of chemotherapy, which, she said, was "horrific." She also had to juggle taking care of her infant. Basinger is now in remission, signs and symptoms of her cancer are reduced. She also expressed her gratitude for her hematologist who focused on treating her cancer, and not her weight, like most others she previously encountered.