What are the symptoms of lymph node involvement? | Lymph node involvement in breast cancer

What are the symptoms of lymph node involvement?

The infestation of lymph nodes by malignant cancer cells need not initially cause any symptoms and can remain undetected for a long time. For this reason, an ultrasound examination of the axillary lymph nodes is performed even if breast cancer is merely suspected. However, final confirmation can only be obtained by microscopic examination of a lymph node biopsy.

In some cases, however, lymph node involvement is already noticed by the patient herself. In breast cancer, the lymph nodes most frequently affected are the lymph nodes in the armpit (axillary lymph nodes) or the lymph nodes above and below the clavicles (supra- and infraclavicular lymph nodes). Lymph node involvement is manifested as a visible or palpable, coarse swelling of variable size under the armpits.

The lymph nodes here are usually so small that they cannot be palpated from outside. Due to the infestation and proliferation of cancer cells, they increase in volume and bake with the environment, so that they appear fixed and immovable when palpated. The size can be limited to the circumference of a marble or the size of a golf ball. Enlarged lymph nodes in breast cancer are usually not painful; painfulness would rather indicate an inflammatory cause.

What does lymph node infection mean?

The axillary lymph node status, i.e. whether the lymph nodes in the armpit are already affected by cancer cells, is the most important prognostic factor in breast cancer. Unfortunately, the prognosis and survival usually deteriorate if one or more lymph nodes are affected. The reason for this is that the tumor, which was once restricted to the breast, has become a systemic disease because the cancer cells have already spread via the lymphatic pathways to the axillary lymph nodes.

A purely surgical removal of the breast tumor is therefore not sufficient to fight the cancer. In case of lymph node involvement, the axillary lymph nodes and, if necessary, other lymph nodes must also be removed.In addition, the infestation of the lymph nodes usually requires chemotherapy to kill cancer cells throughout the body. However, in the case of pure lymph node infestation without organ metastases (e.g.

in the liver or bones), the therapeutic approach is curative in most cases, i.e. it aims at complete healing. By combining chemotherapy, radiation, hormone therapy and antibody therapy, the prognosis can be significantly improved. The chances of cure depend on the type of tumor, its size and the number and location of the affected lymph nodes.

Breast cancer with lymph node involvement is therefore curable, but an extended therapy regime is necessary to achieve this cure. In the case of pure lymph node involvement without organ metastases (e.g. in the liver or bones), however, the therapeutic approach is curative in most cases, i.e. it aims at complete recovery.

By combining chemotherapy, radiation, hormone therapy and antibody therapy, the prognosis can be significantly improved. The chances of cure depend on the type of tumor, its size and the number and location of the affected lymph nodes. Breast cancer with lymph node involvement is therefore curable, but an extended therapy regime is necessary to achieve this cure.