HER2 Support Group Forums - View Single Post - laser ablation of liver mets (when few) may extend survival a median of five years!

Joan M · 12-11-2007, 08:33 AM

Janet,

I'm sorry that your friend is having to go through this after having been diagnosed twice with BC.

I too had a solitary pulmonary nodule (SPN). I had a wedge resection to remove it. Recently, I answered someone on this board with a lot of detail about SPNs and biopsies, and CT scan and PET scan results. She had an SPN which showed up on a CT scan. Here is the link:

http://her2support.org/vbulletin/sho...highlight=Erin

It's disheartening that your other friend who had part of his lung removed ended up not having cancer.

I did not have a lot of post-surgical pain because I was able to have minimally invasive surgery, or video-assisted thorasic surgery (VATS). Some surgeons are able to remove a lobe as well with VATS, if they are specialists in this type of surgery. This is something to find out about from the surgeon. I had one surgeon tell me that he could do a wedge resection with VATS, but if he started the surgery and found he needed to do a lobectomy, he'd switch to a thoracotomy in mid-stream. So, obviously, I didn't choose him as my surgeon.

I'm imaging that your friend had a thoracotomy to remove a lobe (or at least to remove more than a wedge). The thoracotomy is known to be the most painful surgical cut of all surgical cuts, resulting in a lot of pain that takes a long time to go away.

The surgeon cuts down from the area of the nipple to almost the end of the ribs in a circular motion that comes back up the back under the shoulder blade (the patient is on their side). The skin is flapped back and a lot of muscle is cut. The muscle is flapped back. The ribs are separated, and in come cases a rib may be removed.

With VATS, I had three cuts of which none was more than 2 1/2 inches long. One cut was made an inch or two below my arm pit, one was down near my lowest rib on my side, and a third was just under my shoulder blade. Two openings were used for the surgical instruments, and a third was used for a videocamera. I may have had a small piece of one of my ribs removed, but I'm not sure.

And even with this minimally invasive procedure, I still had pain and was out of work for a month recuperating.

Someone on this board posted an educational video of a lobectomy via VATS. Here is the link: http://her2support.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=31422

Please give your friend my best wishes, and hopefully the nodule is something benign.

Joan

12-11-2007, 08:33 AM	#10
Joan M Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 1,851	Surgery for lung nodule Janet, I'm sorry that your friend is having to go through this after having been diagnosed twice with BC. I too had a solitary pulmonary nodule (SPN). I had a wedge resection to remove it. Recently, I answered someone on this board with a lot of detail about SPNs and biopsies, and CT scan and PET scan results. She had an SPN which showed up on a CT scan. Here is the link: http://her2support.org/vbulletin/sho...highlight=Erin It's disheartening that your other friend who had part of his lung removed ended up not having cancer. I did not have a lot of post-surgical pain because I was able to have minimally invasive surgery, or video-assisted thorasic surgery (VATS). Some surgeons are able to remove a lobe as well with VATS, if they are specialists in this type of surgery. This is something to find out about from the surgeon. I had one surgeon tell me that he could do a wedge resection with VATS, but if he started the surgery and found he needed to do a lobectomy, he'd switch to a thoracotomy in mid-stream. So, obviously, I didn't choose him as my surgeon. I'm imaging that your friend had a thoracotomy to remove a lobe (or at least to remove more than a wedge). The thoracotomy is known to be the most painful surgical cut of all surgical cuts, resulting in a lot of pain that takes a long time to go away. The surgeon cuts down from the area of the nipple to almost the end of the ribs in a circular motion that comes back up the back under the shoulder blade (the patient is on their side). The skin is flapped back and a lot of muscle is cut. The muscle is flapped back. The ribs are separated, and in come cases a rib may be removed. With VATS, I had three cuts of which none was more than 2 1/2 inches long. One cut was made an inch or two below my arm pit, one was down near my lowest rib on my side, and a third was just under my shoulder blade. Two openings were used for the surgical instruments, and a third was used for a videocamera. I may have had a small piece of one of my ribs removed, but I'm not sure. And even with this minimally invasive procedure, I still had pain and was out of work for a month recuperating. Someone on this board posted an educational video of a lobectomy via VATS. Here is the link: http://her2support.org/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=31422 Please give your friend my best wishes, and hopefully the nodule is something benign. Joan __________________ Diagnosed stage 2b in July 2003 (2.3 cm, HER2+, ER-/PR-, 7+ nodes). Treated with mastectomy (with immediate DIEP flap reconstruction), AC + T/Herceptin (off label). Cancer advanced to lung in Jan. 2007 (1 cm nodule). Started Herceptin every 3 weeks. Lung wedge resection April 2007. Cancer recurred in lung April 2008. RFA of lung in August 2008. 2nd annual brain MRI in Oct. 2008 discovered 2.6 cm cystic tumor in left frontal lobe. Craniotomy Oct. 2008 (ER-/PR-/HER2-) followed by targeted radiation (IMRT). Coughing up blood Feb. 2009. Thoractomy July 2009 to cut out fungal ball of common soil fungus (aspergillus) that grew in the RFA cavity (most likely inhaled while gardening). No cancer, only fungus. Removal of tiny melanoma from upper left arm, plus sentinel lymph node biopsy in Feb. 2016. Guardant Health liquid biopsy in Feb. 2016 showed mutations in 4 subtypes of TP53. Repeat of Guardant Health biopsy in Jana. 2021 showed 3 TP53 mutations, BRCA1 mutation and CHEK2 mutation. Invitae genetic testing showed negative for all of these. Living with MBC since 2007. Stopped Herceptin Hylecta (injection) treatment in March 2020. Recent 2023 annual CT of chest, abdomen and pelvis and annual brain MRI showed NED. Praying for NED forever!!