Sentinel Node Biopsy

pmez, i had a sentinal node biopsy last month with my lumpectomy.  the BS took two nodes and it was really not that bad at all.  a little pain moving my arm up and down at first, but nothing i couldn't handle with a tylenol the first day or two.  it healed quickly.  no problems.  i was terrified of the procedure, but felt silly afterwards because it was so easy.  

 i know how hard it is to hear those words "cancer."  i was diagnosed in may and am still waiting on the oncotype to return and the waiting is hard.  i still don't know about whether i will have chemo, but my onco said it was highly probable.

you're in a wonderful, kind and caring place here.  please keep us posted on your progress and good luck on the 13th.   

pam53, yes, I can understand the reeling. My biospy showed IDC, so I had my SNB when I had my lumpectomy. Yes, some places use a blue dye to determine which nodes to remove. In my case, my BS sent me to nuclear medicine (yes) where they made 4 injections around my nipple. (these injections do sting, but they are over quickly). These injections drained into my lymph nodes and my BS used a Geiger counter to determine which lymph nodes. Sounds bizarre, I know. Anyway, the surgery was quick. In my case, they did the SNB first, then the lumpectomy. The pathologist was standing by and did a review of the nodes while the surgeon was doing the lumpectomy.  In my case, the nodes looked good, so they stitched me up. The pathologist then spent the next week studying the nodes in detail under the microscope. In my case, they were clean. In some cases, they find things while you're in surgery and remove more nodes while you're there. In some cases (5%?) the pathologist finds tiny microscopic things that following week and they may go back and do another surgery to remove more nodes. Since your tumor is so small, I think it's unlikely they are going to find anything in the nodes, so these other scenarios won't play out. But I think it definitely makes sense to do the surgery to know.  

I've had no problems with lymphedema. If you're only getting a few nodes removed, most women don't have problems. (my surgeon said only 3-6% of women with SNB have lymphdema symptoms) I did take their advice on taking it easy (no lifting anything with that arm for 2-3 weeks.) I got a little pillow and that helped a lot. The first week I put it under my arm to help me sleep; when my arm started feeling better, I put the pillow under my arm during the day to remind me not to use it! (I started feeling better so quickly, I'd forget to avoid using that arm!) I'm sure it seems scary now and there's so much info to learn (I felt like I was getting a crash course in cancer 101). But for me, the surgery was a snap; much easier than dealing with the emotional stuff, to be honest. Good luck. You're going to do great!