MRI and lymph nodes

needtotalk
needtotalk Member Posts: 59
edited June 2014 in ILC (Invasive Lobular Carcinoma)
MRI and lymph nodes
· Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Comments

  • needtotalk
    needtotalk Member Posts: 59
    edited February 2008

    Hi there.  I just got back from having my MRI. (what a great way to spend my Saturday) I was diagnosed 2weeks ago.  The tech said they look at lymph nodes on the MRI.  Are they looking to see if they are enlarged?  Also, can your surgeon feel some of the lymph nodes if they are enlarged?  My surgeon could not feel any lymph nodes and I took this as a good sign.  Not sure, though ... could use some feedback.  Thanks!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • twink
    twink Member Posts: 1,574
    edited February 2008

    They may look at lymph nodes on the MRI but they can't tell if their cancerous.  Some cancerous nodes may be palpable (touch) but nodes can be enlarged for reasons other than cancer.  Nodes can be cancerous and not be noticeably enlarged or palpable.  Usually a PET/CT scan determines if there's cancerous nodes but even then that test doesn't detect small amount.  The definitive test is to surgically remove the nodes and test them for cancer, either by a sentinel node biopsy (SNB) or an axillary node dissection (ALND).

    My surgeon also could not 'feel' any nodes.  Nothing 'lit' up on the PET/CT scan either.  I did have three nodes with very small amounts of cancer cells (called micro-metastases) though.

    Good luck with your results needtotalk. 

    t

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
  • Elizabeth06
    Elizabeth06 Member Posts: 31
    edited February 2008

    Hi,

    An ILC lady here as well, heading into 5 yrs past diagnosis! 

    My first MRI (before surgery, since my Dr. wanted to know what to expect, lobular can be sneaky) stated "there is no definite axillary andenopathy", in other words my nodes appeared not to be swollen and possibly free of cancer.

    Prior to surgery my Dr. stated there was a 30% chance of the nodes being affected even though she couldn't feel them, since my tumor was located on the outer left quadrant of my breast a more likely place to spread to the lymph nodes, according to research at that time.

    Ultimately I was node negative, so in my case the MRI was accurate.

    Five years in the BC world of diagnosis & treatments is a long, long time in this fast moving world of ours......there are tons of advances (Oncotype testing, digital mamms, targeted therapies, extended AI's etc., etc.) that were not available in the past, and many of us are doing fine today.

    I now alternate yearly between mammograms and MRIs, and all is okay.

    Best wishes!

    · Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Categories