question - axill lymph node

mira845

I went and had an initial visit with my 1st of 3 possible BS.

My lump is 3-4cm and she thinks i could have a lumpectomy without it looking bad. She didn't feel anything in my nodes but the ultrasound said one of my axill nodes is suspicious. I do have to go for an MRI but I want to meet with my other BS choices before I schedule that. All my appointments are within the next week.

Of course, I'm now thinking the worse cause all along I was hoping no nodes would be involved.

But I notice in reading through the posts that even women who had negative nodes still have to do chemo.

Why is that?

And my hormone reseptors are positive. So where does hormone therapy come in? If it does?

All questions I neglected to ask at the time.

flannelette

I had all clear nodes but a huge tumor so "for extra insurance" I had chemo - because there is still a chance one weensy little bc cancer cell drifted elsewhere anyway - I was stage 2B

If your Estrogen receptors are positive you take hormone therapy such as tamoxifen or arimidex to disrupt hormone production as those bc positive cells are just waiting for some estrogen to come along & feed them, in a nutshell.

mira845

thank you for responding to my question, flannelette!! I apprciate it so much.

I see you had a very large tumor. I have one they think 3 to 4 cm. I think its Hugh! I really hope my nodes are clear as yours for some extra piece of mind but I'm trying to prepare myself for the worse.

I saw you said a yearly mammo never detected your tumor? Is that unusual? I did not have a mammo before discovering the lump....I was neglectful not having one and of course now feel bad about it. I was gonna get around to it someday but always figured I was low risk since there's no history in my family, I never smoked, always been very healthy, etc.

I hope you're doing well and thanks again!!

LizM

Hi Mira,

So sorry you are going through this. Thought you might want to hear from a 10 year survivor who did have a positive node. I wanted so bad for my nodes to be negative but after surgery one of my nodes was positive. The positive node was my ticket to chemo; however, with a large tumor and negative nodes, your oncologist may still recommend chemo. Hormone therapy starts after you complete your treatment. Some may only have a mastectomy and then hormone therapy, some may have mastectomy, chemo, and hormone therapy. Some may even have a mastectomy, chemo, radiation and then hormone therapy. If you have a lumpectomy, you will have radiation also. Hormone therapy is long term. If you are hormone receptive positive, your oncologist will recommend hormone therapy. It is probably your most important weapon against a recurrence. I am taking hormone therapy (Femara) for 10 years (1 more year to go). I hope that you have negative nodes, but remember if you do have positive nodes, its not the end of the world. You may have more aggressive treatment but your chances for long term survival are very good. Hang in there.

ElaineTherese

Hi Mira!

I initially had a positive node, but it was cleared during chemo. I ended up doing neoadjuvant chemo (chemo before surgery) to shrink my tumor, which would then allow me to have a lumpectomy. I was a good candidate for neoadjuvant chemo because my tumor was big (5 cm.), it was growing quickly (Grade 3), and it was HER2+. BC patients with HER2+ cancer can get targeted therapies like Herceptin and Perjeta prior to surgery, and they often produce a good outcome. In my case, neoadjuvant chemo and treatment melted away my lump and cleared out my node. The PET scan and MRI showed no active cancer prior to my surgery. But, such scans cannot detect every microscopic cancer cell, so I ended up having six weeks of radiation as well. Finally, like you, my cancer was ER/PR+, so I've started ten years of hormonal therapy (Aromasin), which just means taking a small white pill every day.

Best wishes with your treatment! Hope your nodes are clear, but if they aren't, that's not necessarily predictive of a poor outcome.

girlonfire

I just want to say Thank you. I am newly diagnosed IDC. I had lumpectomy surgery on June 2. My pathology report came back. To my dismay, my margins weren't clear AND I had a 1 node out of 7 that was not clear. I am having a 2nd surgery this Tuesday to remove "the microscopic disease". I was very upset after I received my results. Hearing that you had a positive node and have had success leaves me very hopeful. I know this post was not for me initially, but your words have helped. Thank you.