Hi,
Has anyone had experience of cancer spread spilling outside of lymph node and positive outcome? Before lumpectomy I was grade one, stage one, IDC hormone+ HER-. tumour 1.4mm. Out of 2 nodes taken during surgery, one came back positive with spread outside. Auxiliary clearance is scheduled for tomorrow. I am also waiting for Oncotype result to gauge whether chemo beneficial. What was originally presented as positive, straightforward treatment, is morphing into something very different. Any reassurance creating appreciated xx
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Hi morion24
Really sorry that you find yourself in this situation, it really is a scary time
I was similar to you, before lumpectomy and SNB grade 1 ER + HER2- 15.5mm lump with no ovious lymph node involvement
My results came back as 42mm grade 2 with lymphovascular invasion, high grade dcis and the 2 sentinel nodes taken both positive with macro deposits of 5mm which had spread outside the lymph node capsule.
I had an auxilluary node clearance and honestly thought i was going to be disgnosed with stage 3 or even stage 4.
As it turned out there were no other positive lymph nodes so it was just the 2/14 so i stayed as a stage 2.
I am also waiting on my oncotype results to determine treatment plan.
I know its hard but try to stay positive as until you know exactly what you are facing its so easy to drive yourself mad with worry.
Sending lots of hugs, everyone is here to support you xx
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Thank you for your reply. So is stage determined according to number of nodes involved?
It’s the node spillage in particular that’s freaking me out…if I don’t have chemo, is it possible to have radio in arm pit after clearance to mop up these strays??
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@morion24 my understanding is that you can still be stage 2 if you have between 1-3 positive lymph nodes (check Cancer Research UK staging guide)
I have been told that i will have radiotherapy not only to my breast but also upto my collar bone. I think this is due to size of tumour 42mm and the positive lymph nodes so not sure if they do it for spread outside of lymph node capsule. I will also be having letrozole (i am post menapausal) for 10 instead of 5 years now as well
It might be worth asking your breast care nurse or surgeon about your proposed treatment plan although this wont be decided for definite until they have the results of your node clearance and oncotype score. I remember asking my surgeon after having node clearance what the significance of the lymph node spread was and he said they wouldn’t know until they had the results of that surgery
Good luck for your surgery tomorrow, remember to take it easy and although easier said than done try not to worry until you know exactly what you are facing xx
Thank you for replying xx
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