Are persistently swollen lymph nodes a sign of cancer?

Hi doctor,

I have had swollen lymph nodes just under my ears on both sides for 12+ years. I first noticed them after having a skin infection (folliculitis) that took three months to get rid of. They both were hard, fixed, but slightly movable. Once I noticed them, I was always messing with them, poking them, trying to see if they moved. I became obsessed. I went to the doctor, and he said, " You just got over an infection; they will come down eventually." I eventually left them alone and forgot about them. Fast forward two years, out of the blue, I felt them, and they still felt hard and enlarged. I then started to mess with them constantly. I made an appointment, and the doctor sent me for an ultrasound, they were 1.3 cm, but nothing suspicious was found. My doctor agreed, said to recheck them in the future, and advised me to stop manipulating them. Two years later, I saw an ENT specialist because they still felt the same. She prescribed antibiotics for ten days and also an antifungal shampoo for my scalp after sending me for a CT scan of my brain and neck. The scan said my lymph nodes were 8 mm in size and borderline suspicious based on size. My ENT said that cancerous nodes would not shrink, especially with an antibiotic, going from 1.3 cm to 8 mm. Fast forward eight years, and they are still here and still hard. I have had a chronic scalp condition, seborrheic dermatitis since I was a teenager that continues on my ears, eyebrows, forehead, and along my hairline. I also have acne and deal with an ear infection a few times a year. I have always had normal CBC or CMP throughout the years. I have once had an elevated RF factor at one point but negative ANA. My sister has rheumatoid arthritis and alopecia. My half-sister has lupus, and my daughter has type 1 diabetes. Should I be concerned? Could chronic skin conditions cause permanent hard or enlarged nodes? Could constant manipulation of the nodes cause them to become permanently hard or enlarged?

Hi doctor,

Thank you for the reply, They do not feel bigger than they were before but are still hard, fixed, and somewhat moveable. My ENT specialist did say that cancerous nodes do not decrease in size with antibiotics. They decreased from 1.3 cm two years before to 8 mm but still felt hard. I have felt my children's nodes and some family members' nodes in the same area, and they feel similar.