Does cancer travel from lymph nodes to the body, if the cancer has been fully removed from the breast?

Hi Daizy03 don't panic, having positive nodes for cancer does not automatically mean it has metastisised beyond those lymph nodes.  I have read bios of ladies on here who had positive nodes with no evidence of spread anywhere else.

There is some useful information on MacMillan re lymph node involvement click HERE 

As I said, I have read several stories of lymph involvement on here with no spread elsewhere.

Wishing you all the best with your journey x

Thank you so so much! Was looking for these experiences. Not going to lie I have been panicking ever since we had the results appointment. Unfortunately waiting for more results so treatment won’t start till then…so was panicking as the cancer is just laying around within the lymph nodes! (Hopefully not spread). 

When I asked the surgeon he said it would have spread by now, waiting a few weeks won’t make any difference! So not sure what that mean, but it’s scary. 

Daizy03 I think it means that if it was going to spread out of the lymph nodes it would have done by now and waiting a few extra weeks isn't going to change anything.

Some of the ladies on here had spread to lots of nodes and therefore removal of 20 something lymph nodes and still no spread anywhere else outside of the lymph node system.  Another lady knew something wasn't right and waited a year to get it checked and although a lot of lymph nodes were involved she still had no spread anywhere else.

Depending on your specific cancer (with or without node involvement) you might be given treatment that helps kill off any stray cancer cells.  I am on hormone therapy to make sure any stray cancer cells (even though I had no positive lymph nodes) are killed off.

The reality is there are no guarantees for any of us, not even for those who have never had cancer before as apparently 1 in 2 of us will get cancer.  So don't overthink it and take it one day at a time.

Waiting for results though is excruciatingly stressful but it does gets better once you get your treatment plan.

Keep reaching out and posting on here as often as you need to. xx

Hi. They found the large lump in my breast was cancerous and the lymp node test was inconclusive as there was too much blood. I also need a few more tests before they will start treatment. They don’t know if the cancer is in the lymph nodes yet but think it is. I don’t know whether to wait for all of the results together in a few weeks or to find out about the lymph nodes first when the results come in.

Hi Rach23 and welcome to the forum although I'm sorry you find yourself here.  

I guess the answer to that depends on what you think will be easiest for you to cope with.  We're all different and different things work for different people.  If you are just going to worry about the lymph nodes result while you wait the few weeks then I would say it's probably best to find out sooner rather than later incase they are clear that way you save yourself a lot of unnecessary worry.  If they are not clear then you would have been imagining the worst anyway so no difference.

If you're not going to worry while you wait they few weeks for everything then I'd say best to wait.

It all depends what's going to cause you the least stress so only you can know the answer to that.

Wishing you all the best with your results x

Thank you. At the moment I am trying to manage the guilt of not realising sooner as I have 2 young children and think I should have noticed something was wrong.

Don't feel guilty Rach23, you are not alone in this, so many of us either don't check our breasts, don't go for our mammogram when invited to and don't realise something is wrong - I was guilty of all 3.  

Some even bury their heads in the ground and ignore it even when they suspect there is something wrong, hoping it will go away or that it's nothing.  Ignoring it can be easier than getting it checked and being told it's cancer.

It's just human nature.

Feeling guilty won't change anything and will cause you necessary added stress.

Oh don't feel bad we just never think it will be us but you now have the support of the group and  your family I'm sure you will find out soon what is going on and the treatment plan in place believe me I thought I was the only one who worried and panic but when I read other people's journeys on here it makes me feel I am not alone and all the thoughts and fears are normal hugs 

My surgeon told me that I wouldn't have felt it even though one lump was 15mm as she couldn't feel anything either. I was so lucky to be picked for random mammogram testing for over 70's and it showed up.

Don't feel guilty as you may not have felt it anyway.so good luck in the future.

Thank you for your kind and reassuring words. I’m 40 and I was just getting used to what normal was for my breasts and the lump was already there. I made the mistake of thinking it was normal but lumpy tissue, I have never really known what to check for. Luckily it grew and I could see the difference at least and could finally panic. I’m working on it, but the guilt is still very much there. I was only diagnosed on Wednesday so hopefully it will come with time.