Scans

Hi

Sorry to hear that you were diagnosed with breast cancer. I had a couple of scans, the first time after I was diagnosed and the second because there was cancer left in one of my lymph nodes.

Wishing you the best of luck with your radiotherapy when you have it.

Best wishes

Daisy53

Hello Sofedup, sorry to hear that you have been having so many problems whilst on chemo. I was diagnosed with stage 2 Grade 3 er+ cancer in May. I had a lumpectomy and sentinel node biopsy which identified cancer in one lymph node. They didn't get clear margins so I'm having a further op in January to hopefully get clear margins, plus have a full lymph node clearance. I've been having 8 sessions of chemo in the meantime but I've been told that this is just to mop up any stray cancer cells and help prevent a recurrence. My oncologist said that any stray cells would be so small they would not be picked up on any scans so there was no way of knowing whether the chemo had worked or not. They may find signs that it has worked on the lymph nodes when they remove them but they can't tell in advance - they won't know until the post-op biopsy.  As the cancer was in a lymph node I did have some scans after the lumpectomy/node biopsy and before starting chemo to see if it had spread (it hadn't), but they are not giving me scans to check that the chemo has worked.

I'm not sure what scan you discussed with your oncologist, and why they replied that 'it would only give bad news quicker', but it doesn't seem to me to be the best thing to say to a patient. Was your surgery successful with all of the cancer removed? If so, I'm not sure whether having a private scan would help to show that the chemo had worked or not. What type of scan is it that you want?

Sorry you had such a bad time. And the worlds most tactless doctor too it seems! My radiologist, when I had my last MRI (which failed to spot my cancer, by the way) said that all scans are only successful if you know what you’re looking for, otherwise there is so much “noise” you wouldn’t know where to start. The sort of tiny cancer cells mopped up by chemo generally wouldn’t show up anyway. Mine didn’t. My right breast cancer was discovered during a failed lumpectomy to remove a small DCIS, which they found under ultrasound. I had to have further surgery to fix it.

Thank you for replying,  I have not had any scans since my diagnosis just wondered if this is the normal

Xx

I have just finished chemo and am having surgery in January, a mastectomy. I have just had an MRI to see the lay of the land now. It showed that I had extensive scarring but no signs of active cancer. They did say it was hard to see active cancer within the scarring and that I may be updated further after surgery but yes I had a scan before and after chemo, I’m at Wycombe hospital. Best of luck to you x

Thank you and good luck with your surgery xx