At least 1 positive node found during lumpectomy

HersheyKiss
HersheyKiss Member Posts: 550
edited May 2017 in ILC (Invasive Lobular Carcinoma)

Hello, this is my first post in the ILC Forum. I've been reading many of the ILC topic questions and answers, and I value your supportive, thoughtful responses.

A little bit about my situation ... I received my diagnosis and US/core biopsy results on March 30th. The tumor was slightly more than 1 cm / grade 1, and my surgeon told me these were positive findings. Two weeks later, I had my breast MRI which estimated the tumor size as 1.4 cm and didn't show any lymph node involvement. Based on my test results and conversations with my surgeon, I elected to have a lumpectomy. Following the surgery, my surgeon informed me that at least one lymph node was enlarged and tested positive for cancer. Axillary nodes had to be removed for further evaluation.

My pathology report should be available early next week. Now I'm fearful if I made the right choice with having a lumpectomy. I'm also full of worry about the lymph node situation. The path report will answer some of my questions, but my head is reeling with this latest development. This entire process has been overwhelming and exhausting.

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  • wallycat
    wallycat Member Posts: 3,227
    edited May 2017

    I'm so sorry you are joining us.

    Before you freak out, wait for the pathology report.

    If I am reading this correctly, you have already had a sentinel node biopsy and the lumpectomy. The lumpectomy showed 1cm vs the MRI guestimate of 1.4?? Staging and grading from a biopsy is not always accurate. My biopsy said grade 1 but my path said grade 2. My MRI said 7mm but my lumpectomy was 1.8....

    I had an initial lumpectomy because they wanted to know what they were dealing with. I then went ahead and had a bilateral mastectomy. You can always elect to do this or wait or whatever you and your team decide.

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  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited May 2017

    And I would echo Wallycat.

    I waited until July 2013, 13 full months after ending my treatment, before I had my BMX and reconstruction. My RO wanted to wait until my skin had fully healed from rads, and since at the time of dx (Sept 11) I had no idea what I wanted to do, since theoretically all research you read claims the same percentage of protection from rads and lumpectomy vs. BMX--I needed to find out more and do more research before I committed to losing my breasts and the sensation that comes with them.

    I was glad I waited. I found out in that time more about this subtype of bc: I discovered that ILC has a tendency to be multi-focal, meaning can appear-reappear in both breasts, and since it's harder to detect with scans than other subtypes of bc, I felt that, with my + nodes, I had to go through with the surgery. The pathology report after surgery revealed hyperplasia in the "good" breast, meaning there was some activity going on in there that could very well have caused me trouble down the road.

    I also have very dense breasts, making it even harder to detect ILC because of ILC's different growth pattern and difficulty of detection. I had five "clear" mammos five years in a row before my dx. I did not want to worry about missing what was missed during those mammos ever again.

    I also did a bunch of research on keeping my nipples, and my PS tested them for c using a "nipple-lifting" biopsy procedure 2 weeks before my surgery. Since there was no evidence of c, I got to keep them.

    Hope some of this info helps you find your way to your own decision. I am perfectly happy with my decision; decisions always bring trade-offs, and the loss of breast sensation was a hard one to swallow, but ultimately I wanted the added protection because of my particular physiology and high-risk status.

    Claire in AZ


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