Low Grade DCIS - LE?

NSJ2

Hi All

Can one get LE after radiation even if they haven't had lymphnode dissection/surgery? 

I had low grade DCIS, had a lumpectomy and no lymphnode surgery/dissection, so that is why I'm wondering.

Thank you in advance for any responses.

NSJ2

carol57

NSJ2, yes it is possible.

Shah and Vicini did an extensive study-of-studies to look at LE incidence risks, and they found that the reported LE incidence ranged from 9% to 65% after lumpectomy with regional nodal radiation therapy.  9-65% is a huge range, and that's because all LE studies are all over the ballpark when it comes to defining criteria for LE diagnosis, defining measurement methods, and the length of time that patients are followed up after their cancer treatments.  So we cannot say for sure just how high the risk is, but we can say that there is definitely some risk, and it's likely significant.  They determined that the risk of lumpectomy alone is 0-3%. Also, the study I am referring to looked only at arm LE, but I think most experts agree that with lumpectomy, there is a risk of truncal/breast LE.

(The Shah/Vicini study was reported in:  Int. J. Radiation Oncology Biol. Phys., Vol. 81, No. 4, pp. 907–914, 2011)

Are you having symptoms that are worrying you?  Lots of women here will chime in to help you figure out what's going on, if that's the case.

Carol