Mastectomy while on Plavix

[Sommer4]

My very healthy grandmother (81 years old) was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. She will be having a partial mastecomy. She has 10 stents in her arteries and is on Plavix and aspirin. Her heart specialist will not remove her from any meds due to the high risk of clotting and stroke. The surgeon was originally going to go into her lymph nodes to determine if the cancer had spread, which they believe is highly unlikely due to the type and stage of breast cancer. They are now indicating second thoughts on entering the lymph node area due to risk of bleeding in two seperate areas. They are recommending that they only do the partial mastectomy and not enter through a seperate incision into the lymph node area. They have indicated they believe it is about a 2% chance that it has spread. My question is, is it worth the risk of bleeding (to what extent is unknown) or worth the risk of not knowing if the cancer has spread? Any opinions would be greatly appreciated. They are anticipating 6 1/2 weeks of radiation after surgery along with meds.

[Cleveland Clinic]

Dear Sommer4:  Without reviewing your grandmother’s situation including the pathology slides, her records and doing a physical examination, we cannot speculate on how we might approach the situation.  Clearly, in any situation that is complicated risks must be weighed against benefits.  There is no absolute right or wrong.  If you are concerned, you might obtain a second opinion.