Conversation: The conversation between human and AI assistant.
[|Human|] when I cough it sometimes feels like something is coming up from under my left rib and getting pinched between it and the fleshy part under the skin. Sometimes I have pressure under my left rib cage. Sometimes I can feel and even see pulcating right under where my breast bone comes to gether. I itch all over. I thought I had scabbies but no I don t. My father just died of follicular lymphoma and am really worried about what ever is going on with me. When I seen a doctor in town he just told me to stop smoking. He didn t even run any test on me!!!! Am I correct to be alarmed or should I just keep trying to quit smoking and ignore my discomfort?
[|AI|]  Thanks for your question on Chat Doctor. I can understand your situation and problem. In my opinion you should consult pulmonologist and get done1. Chest x ray2. PUT (pulmonary function test)Since you are a active smoker, we need to rule out lung infection and bronchitis in your case. Because both these can cause similar symptoms like you have. So chest x-ray is needed to rule out lung infection.PFT is needed to rule out bronchitis. You should quit smoking as soon as possible. Because it is not a good habit. It can damage your lungs and also cause lymphoma. So better to quit as soon as possible and consult pulmonologist and discuss all these.