They're located throughout the body in the armpits (called axillary lymph nodes), the groin, neck and chest. The nodes can become swollen and painful, usually when the body is fighting off infections.

There are around 600 lymph nodes located throughout the body, many of which are clustered in the armpit, groin, and neck. They vary in size from a few millimeters to up to 1.5 centimeters in diameter.

The lumps may be the result of breast cancer spreading to armpit lymph nodes. It is important to note, though, that changes related to the breast are more often not associated with cancer.

The initial physical exam was significant for fever of 101.5[degree]F and multiple, discrete, palpable lymph nodes approximately 2cm x 2cm in the cervical, axillary, and inguinal regions bilaterally.