Need Help Understanding Diagnosis

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Hi there.

I really need some help understanding the information we have been given about my mums lung cancer diagnosis.

4 weeks ago she was told that she has lung cancer which has spread to her lymph nodes in her chest, neck and clavicle. We were also told that because of this chemo is the only option to help extend her life and that she would see an oncologist ASAP to talk about treatment options and life expectancy.

Since then, she has received a letter confirming the above and advising that it is T2b N3 M0 which I don't really understand. 

There is no sign of an oncologist appointment yet and I am concerned that she is bottom of the list due to her prognosis? 

Her symptoms seem to be increasing at a rapid pace and given that the cancer has developed in only 4 months it would seem (had scans in Feb for something unrelated and no cancer present then, shadow found at the start of June, lymph nodes early july) so I am worried that the time we might have left is being further reduced by delays.

Sorry for such a long post, just hoping someone can shed some light. 

Thank you 

  • Hi Bec,

    Fear of the unknown can be worse than knowing the facts. No doubt a proper Macmillan bod will be along shortly with a better-informed response, but in the meantime...

    Cancer Research UK explains the medical techno babble nicely (just as well for those of us who are bad at foreign languages!)
    www.cancerresearchuk.org/.../tnm-staging

    If I copy and paste correctly:
    T2b means the cancer is between 4cm and 5cm.
    N3 means there is cancer in lymph nodes
    M0 means the cancer hasn’t spread to another lobe of the lung or any other part of the body

    That's not great, of course, but take heart - there are many of us here with a worse diagnosis who have lived for years (like I was stage 4 with a brain tumour but that was over 4 years ago.) That "M0" is really good, but it says to me that you need your treatment to start ASAP before the spread starts so give the hospital a hard time and press for that appointment.

    Kind regards
    Steve