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Lymph node question
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Lymph node question

› Forums › Cutaneous Melanoma Community › Lymph node question

  • Post
    • September 17, 2012 at 3:04 pm
    Mandi0280
    Participant

      Husband was diagnosed with stage 3b last October. Had wide excision on his chest and 20 something lymph nodes removed with 1 positive under his right arm. This was followed with a PET scan that showed nothing according to my husband oncologist. Fast forward and he has had several different scan since then that according to the dr hasn't shown anything.

      Husband was diagnosed with stage 3b last October. Had wide excision on his chest and 20 something lymph nodes removed with 1 positive under his right arm. This was followed with a PET scan that showed nothing according to my husband oncologist. Fast forward and he has had several different scan since then that according to the dr hasn't shown anything. 3 months ago we go in to get routine CAT scan results from dr and he says everythig looks good & that there are 2 lymph nodes in the neck showing up as "larger than normal" but they have been there ever since the very first PET scan that my husband had but do not "light up" on the scan as being cancer.  (we were never told until this last visit that those lymph nodes were "larger than normal") So he says that any person can have "larger than normal" lymph nodes that mean nothing …referring to anyone that has never even been diagnosed with melanoma. So he says that we will just keep a check on them to make sure they do not grow. I looked at the report and the nodes show "stable" .Has anyone ever herd of this before? Should I be asking for something more than just keeping a check on them? I like to think they are nothing since they don't light up on a PET but it makes me nervous. We go back for 3 months scans this Friday.

      Thanks,

      Mandi

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    • Replies
        • September 17, 2012 at 3:46 pm
        Janner
        Participant

          Enlarged nodes that don't light up (not cancer) are called "reactive nodes".  They happen quite commonly and the neck is probably a prime location.  Often times, they get enlarged because of some infection/trauma, and then they just don't shrink back to normal size when the infection goes away.  Since neck nodes get infected probably more than any other nodes, it's probably a result of some past infection.  Stable is a good thing, and reactive nodes are common/benign.  I think watching and making sure they don't light up on the PET is probably the standard way to proceed.

            • September 17, 2012 at 4:12 pm
            Mandi0280
            Participant

              Thanks so much for the reply. I always like to trust my doctor but can never be too safe especially with melanoma. For some reason he has ordered CAT scans ever since that very first PET but i'm guessing if anything changed in the future a CAT scan would catch any kind of growth.

              • September 17, 2012 at 4:12 pm
              Mandi0280
              Participant

                Thanks so much for the reply. I always like to trust my doctor but can never be too safe especially with melanoma. For some reason he has ordered CAT scans ever since that very first PET but i'm guessing if anything changed in the future a CAT scan would catch any kind of growth.

                • September 17, 2012 at 4:12 pm
                Mandi0280
                Participant

                  Thanks so much for the reply. I always like to trust my doctor but can never be too safe especially with melanoma. For some reason he has ordered CAT scans ever since that very first PET but i'm guessing if anything changed in the future a CAT scan would catch any kind of growth.

                • September 17, 2012 at 3:46 pm
                Janner
                Participant

                  Enlarged nodes that don't light up (not cancer) are called "reactive nodes".  They happen quite commonly and the neck is probably a prime location.  Often times, they get enlarged because of some infection/trauma, and then they just don't shrink back to normal size when the infection goes away.  Since neck nodes get infected probably more than any other nodes, it's probably a result of some past infection.  Stable is a good thing, and reactive nodes are common/benign.  I think watching and making sure they don't light up on the PET is probably the standard way to proceed.

                  • September 17, 2012 at 3:46 pm
                  Janner
                  Participant

                    Enlarged nodes that don't light up (not cancer) are called "reactive nodes".  They happen quite commonly and the neck is probably a prime location.  Often times, they get enlarged because of some infection/trauma, and then they just don't shrink back to normal size when the infection goes away.  Since neck nodes get infected probably more than any other nodes, it's probably a result of some past infection.  Stable is a good thing, and reactive nodes are common/benign.  I think watching and making sure they don't light up on the PET is probably the standard way to proceed.

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