new staging?

Question

I need your help and support again. I'm classified as 2b. With the new staging standards coming out, I read that Infraclavicular nodal disease is classified as N3. At MD Anderson they used an ultrasound and found that one of my infraclavicular nodes is cancerous (it is not palpable), am I then stage 3b? I'm getting neoadjuvant chemo (4 taxol, followed by FEC) and the tumor is shrunking. I will get a mastectomy in Nov. What can I expect with stage 3b? Thanks again.

CCF-RN,MSN-rf · Answer

Dear sltennis:  Based on the "old" staging system, I'm not certain that you would have been stage 2b if this information was known, as infraclavicular nodes are neither axillary or mammary.  In any case, without knowing any more than what you have written, it appears that, according to the American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) 6th edition, this node would classify your stage as 3c.  Having said that, all this MUST be discussed with your physician.  If you have begun treatments according to the original staging standards, then the treatment and prognosis would correlate with that information.  Your cancer would likely NOT be restaged mid-stream.  As I have mentioned in your previous posts, it will ultimately be more helpful to focus on the process of treatment and getting well.  All this focus on prognosis may only serve to make you more anxious.

seven7 · Answer

What is infraclavicular node disease?  Please list the 3 groups of nodes, and where they are located. I had 15 nodes removed but do not know from where. How many are usually found and removed from each place (with breast  mastectomy)

new staging?

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