Partial response

Hi Youhavegothis. My situation is very different from yours, so I can’t comment about chemotherapy and the effect on the size of the tumour. All I can say is that there can be a difference between what the size of the tumour appears to be on imaging (whatever form that takes) and the size of what is removed during surgery. My invasive lobular carcinoma was 51mm on MRI but when removed (mastectomy) was shown to be slightly smaller. 

My own tumour reportedly shrunk on chemo, then, again reportedly, started growing again, still on chemo. When they finally took it out it was about the same size of my first ever scan measurement. I was later told that since the tumour was not shaped like a ball, it was possible that it had been measured from different angles, giving different results. I was not all that happy with that explanation because it threw doubt on any number they had produced or would give later on, so I resolved to ask, from then on, for all three dimensions to be reported -- length, width, depth, in as much as possible. I never had to do that because surgery happened soon after, but if there is ever trouble in future, I will.

As for chemo after surgery, that is a standard. I had a mastectomy 7 weeks ago and now going through the more chemo, same as many others here.