What is the treatment if the lymph node is affected?
If a lymph node is already affected by tumor cells, local (local) tumor removal is not sufficient. In addition to the actual tumor in the breast, the affected lymph nodes must also be cut out. The extent of lymph node removal depends on the type of tumor and must be decided individually in each case.
In addition, the tumor bed, i.e. the affected breast, should be irradiated if it can be preserved by the tumor removal. Since the outflux of cancer cells into other tissues and organs with already existing lymph node infestation cannot be excluded, systemic (mostly intravenous) chemotherapy must be performed. Chemotherapy aims to kill off cancer cells that have settled and can hide anywhere in the body.
This is to prevent further metastasis. In addition to chemotherapy, there are a number of other drugs that can be used depending on the type of tumor.One of these is hormone therapy, which withdraws the female sex hormones that are vital for the tumor. In addition, a specific antibody therapy (trastuzumab) has been available for not too long, which deprives the cancer cells of a further growth stimulus.
However, before this can be done, it must first be investigated which of the drugs can be used sensibly in the present cancer disease and which ones only cause further side effects for the patient. Since the outflux of cancer cells into other tissues and organs with already existing lymph node involvement cannot be ruled out, systemic (mostly intravenous) chemotherapy must be administered. Chemotherapy aims to kill off cancer cells that have settled and can hide anywhere in the body.
This is to prevent further metastasis. In addition to chemotherapy, there are a number of other drugs that can be used depending on the type of tumor. One of these is hormone therapy, which removes the vital female sex hormones from the tumor. In addition, a specific antibody therapy (trastuzumab) has been available for not too long, which deprives the cancer cells of an additional growth stimulus. However, before this can be done, it must first be investigated which of the drugs can be used sensibly in the present cancer disease and which ones only cause further side effects for the patient.
