in situ carcinoma or malignancy ???

cfprincess16

I'm not sure where I should post a question so I'm going out on a limb and putting it right here. I am 42 years old and last year was my first mammogram. I had a breast augmentation at 40 years old and there was never an exam done prior. That having been said, I had a mammogram, then US, then scheduled for a core biopsy. The surgeon was unsuccessful and sent me to a breast surgeon. I found out that evening that I'd lost my health insurance. It was 6 months later and the surgeon ordered another mammogram. That turned into another US, more mammography, core biopsy scheduled (I was told that there are 7 "clusters" of calcification and their planning to biopsy two). This time they were successful. The surgeon calls me in and tells me that during the biopsy, they saw a new suspicious area and did a biopsy of it also. This turned out to be a 4mm papilloma and an excision is scheduled. The surgeon tells me that if you're going to be told you have cancer, this is the type to have. It has a tendency to not spread.

I have a network of dr's in my family and one has recently asked to see the biopsy report. I was shown the verbiage "in situ carcinoma or malignancy, high risk lesion". Then I was given the impression that this is much more serious than I was told. So I'm very curious to hear if anyone has experienced this and can help me understand?

jmjlori84

I looked this up for you, as I only am now getting familiar with the terminology. I knew that "in situ" meant "in place--not spreading/not invasive". Here's what it says at Wikipedia (I know--not the end-all in definitions, but it sounds about right. ;-) :

Carcinoma in situ (CIS), also known as in situ neoplasm, is a group of abnormal cells.^[1][2] While they are a form of neoplasm^[3] there is disagreement over whether CIS should be classified as cancer. This controversy also depends on the exact CIS in question (i.e. cervical, skin, breast). Some authors do not classify them as cancer, however, recognizing that they can potentially become cancer.^[1] Others classify certain types as a non-invasive form of cancer.^[4][5] The term "pre-cancer" has also been used.

These abnormal cells grow in their normal place, thus "in situ" (from Latin for "in its place"). For example, carcinoma in situ of the skin, also called Bowen's disease, is the accumulation of dysplastic epidermal cells within the epidermis only, that has failed to penetrate into the deeper dermis. For this reason, CIS will usually not form a tumor. Rather, the lesion is flat (in the skin, cervix, etc.) or follows the existing architecture of the organ (in the breast, lung, etc.). Exceptions include CIS of the colon (polyps), the bladder (preinvasive papillary cancer), or the breast (ductal carcinoma ''in situ'' or lobular carcinoma in situ).

Many forms of CIS have a high probability of progression into cancer,^[6] and therefore removal may be recommended; however, progression of CIS is known to be highly variable and not all CIS becomes invasive cancer.

In the TNM classification, carcinoma in situ is reported as TisN0M0 (stage 0).^[7]

cfprincess16

Thank you. I am now 2 days post-op.

NancyD

I had what was termed carcinoma in situ on one of my ovaries. As mentioned above, my doctor said if I was going to get any kind of carcinoma, this was the good kind to get. Still, they removed the ovary and got clean margins. No further treatment.

I asked if I would have to declare I had had cancer on any future health forms (like for employers), and my doctor kind of hedged that one by saying only if I wanted to. I always list it on medical forms with doctors, though.

This was over twenty years ago and so far, nothing else has developed down there. BC happened about 15 years later.

614

Dear Princess: The terminology on your report does not make sense. Since you just had your surgery, please obtain a copy of your pathology report from your lumpectomy surgery when it becomes availabe. This pathology report will be your accurate diagnosis.

In situ means that the carcinoma has not broken out of the cell and therefore it is considered stage 0 and it is not an invasive cancer. There is a distinction between types of in situ carcinoma's. DCIS tends to be treated more aggressively than LCIS.

Good luck.

MelissaDallas

I agree with Kayb. A papilloma would not be referred to as in situ cancer. They are trying to rule out cancer associated with the area in which you have a papilloma