I have 2 sisters and 2 brothers and they all have DC on one hand and now I have just started in my left hand. One of my sisters had surgery a few years ago and doing fine. I also noticed small pads on knuckles. I started with LD on my feet a couple of months ago. Thought I only had one but when went to foot doctor he said I have a few along the bottom. They are small but getting painful. Think I will have to do something soon. We are in RI and MA.

Thanks Wolfgang

Hi Australia Calling- Adelaide. Welcome to the forum. DO NOT in your wildest dreams consider Surgery on your feet. I would look at the option of radiotherapy treatment . I have had treatment on both feet in Essen Germany. Age is a risk factor but the risk is very low as this is a low dose treatment not like the treatment of cancer.Whilst in Germany they were treating a 12 old girl for Ledderhose with RT. This treatment is now available in Australia. You made mention of Orthodics in another post . I used to have to wear them (High arches are just as bad a flat feet) . For the moment whilst you inform yourself about Radiotherapy try when you rise in the morning place a tennis ball under the arch and massage for a couple of minutes. I there is not much discomfort try standing and increase the pressure. Dont over do it . Lace up shoes are important .I have found ecco brand shoes have good thick inner soles which helps absorb the shock.(end of high heels ) Have you had an Ultra sound or Mri. About 40% of patients with Ledderhose will develope Dupuytrens. Check your family as this disease is more probable to be passed on to future generations. Finally I found the German made Birkenstock or Rohde Sandles are great. Keep us posted.

Edited 12/03/09 08:01

Barb, if you find a doctor in the Northeast US who will do radiation therapy, I hope you will come back here and post the information. I live near New York City. With all the medical centers here it is amazing that won't do this treatment. It's not that they oppose it, it's just not the style of treatment favored here. I've spoken at some length to Memorial Sloan Kettering who finally told me that they don't treat benign tumors, only cancerous ones. It's mystifying. There are outstanding clinics and doctors that use radiation on the west coast, including Scripps and one near Stanford University, and there are others in the US that are listed on this site.

I've had the plantar fibromas for about a year and a half now. I would probably be more aggressive about seeking treatment if the lumps hurt, but they usually do not. After an initial spurt of growth they stopped growing. I understand that radiation therapy is most effective when the lumps are actually growing. I would like to have a plan in place in case they begin growing again.

I didn't think I had a family history, but when I went to visit my parents last year my father told me he has one Dupytren's nodule, and my brother has Ledderhose on both feet. In neither case is there pain, and they regarded the lumps as curiosities.

also had knuckle pads removed 4 from each hand