Hi..
I know this is so minor compared to the stories I am reading but I am still scared and confused.
In 2013 I had a nodule approx 7-8 mm and was told to follow up. In 2014 it was approx the same size but it changed from a round nodule to a S shaped nodule. In 2016 I had an unrelated CT scan and it show the same nodule at 10.4 cm I was told by my pulmonary dr to follow up with a surgeon.
My first thought was Sloan Kettering . First I went to NYU and met with a thoracic surgeon. I liked him very much but he said he was 95% sure it was cancer and he would do a wedge, frozen biopsy and if cancer, then take the whole lobe out, lymph nodes etc. The nodule is on my URL outer edge.
I then got my appt with Sloan and the Dr I wanted to see. She said it could be cancer but not sure as it was small and hasn't grown much She said that if I needed the operation she would only do a wedge. I questioned her on this considering what I heard from NYU and she said there is less than a 1% chance that it would spread at that size.. She suggested another CAT in 3 months. There was no change in 3 months and they also did a PET and there was no uptake anywhere. I am now waiting until Dec to have a further 4 month CAT and if it grows it comes out.
My confusion is ......is a wedge enough? I have been reading for months on CancerSurvivorNetwork and it seems everyone has the whole lobe out.
I realize everyone here has had much worse scenarios then I have but I really don't know what to do or think. It is wearing me down waiting and then.........don't know If I made/make the right decision.
Anyone with a similar story to share that may help me.
God bless all of you - you are all heroes in my mind
Maria scared in NJ
Reply # - September 23, 2016, 04:41 PM
Hi Maria,
Hi Maria,
Welcome to GRACE. I am sorry to hear of these scan findings which have quite understandably caused you so much worry. The good news is that in 3 years there has been very minimal growth, which is not characteristic of lung cancer.
As Dr. West describes in this post, the standard of care for small nodules remains lobectomy, although research continues to explore the feasibility of sublobar surgery for very small nodules. Dr. Eric Vallieres also discussed that issue here. As you can see, a nodule which has been proven to be indolent in its growth pattern may be a very good candidate for a wedge resection.
The other good news is that the prognosis after surgical removal of such small nodules is quite good. I know it is difficult to do so, but please try to focus on the positives in your situation - the small size and slow growth of this nodule. Also, please be reassured that these factors indicate that waiting three months for another scan is not at all likely to significantly change your chance of cure should surgery be deemed necessary.
Please let us know if you have further questions. I hope that you have good scan results in December.
JimC
Forum moderator
Reply # - September 23, 2016, 07:46 PM
Hi Jim
Hi Jim
Thank you so much for your very thorough reply. The links were very helpful. I am new to the site and was having trouble looking for that exact info.
I realize I should consider myself very fortunate with the slow growth but the waiting tends to drive me a bit crazy.
Keep up the fabulous work on this forum. There is so much to learn.
Sincerely
Maria (a little less scared)
Reply # - September 25, 2016, 05:55 AM
It's also very possible that
It's also very possible that if this is LC that it could be adeno in situ previously called BAC. Dr. West is considered a BAC specialist. This type of LC does not spread outside the lungs but can spread to both lungs. As he has said, people can live with this type of LC without treatment for years including surgery. Some with BAC never have any treatment and go on to die from some other cause unrelated to cancer. It can be a very indolent cancer. Until you have a biopsy that proves it's cancer, there's no other way to know what it could be.
Take care, Judy
Reply # - September 28, 2016, 07:25 PM
Thankk you Judy. None of the
Thankk you Judy. None of the doctors mentioned anything like BAC but they all agree that it would
Be difficult to biopsy due to the small size and shape.
I will keep reading and learning.
Maria
Reply # - September 29, 2016, 04:27 AM
BAC is now called
BAC is now called adenocarcinoma in situ. And I think you meant maybe 10mm not 10cm. 10cm wouldn't be hard to biopsy at all. It's also not lighting up on a PET, which means that whatever it is, it's indolent. Give it time, it could be absolutely nothing but scar tissue. Good luck!
Take care, Judy
Reply # - September 29, 2016, 05:56 AM
Hi Maria,
Hi Maria,
Thanks to Judy for pointing out the size issue; I agree with her that we're probably talking about 10.4 mm, which might be difficult to biopsy, rather than 10.4 cm, which your doctor would not have described as "small" and would not prompt a recommendation to wait 3 months for another scan.
Best,
JimC
Forum moderator
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