Question about a change in lymph nodes 3 months post RC

Hi Mike,

I can relate too well with facing possible metastatis...my rc was 3/07 and we found a bone met in 12/07. While bone mets are considered distant mets, I do believe local lymph nodes are consider local recurrance, which they consider to still be curable.
Personally, I would want the nodes out...there is info leading me to believe the more nodes out at rc helps significantly reduce micromets. And somewhere I have read where 2nd and even a 3rd lymphanectomy was valuable. I would have to have a good reason myself to accept letting them stay in me.BTW, they took 35 of mine I think at rc, and all were negative.
How is the dr so sure those nodes would likely be benign? If I am not mistaken, I think Wendy R had a clavicle node turn up positive shortly afte her rc. I will ask her to be sure. Again, I don't feel this disease is predictable enough for me to be confident in how it behaves in regaurds to metastatic levels.
God Bless, Holly
PS I didn't wake up at a Holiday Inn this morning lol

Hi, As some of you may know, I had a RC at Hopkins on 11/5 and the new cat scan shows 2 enlarged nodes in my pelvis. My oncologist says it most likely is nothing because the nodes that are involved are in an uncommon area for metastatic disease from bladder cancer, but there is a chance that it could be a spread of the cancer. He wants to do a scan in 6 weeks to look at any changes to see if it is just overactive lymph nodes or if it grows and is a cause for concern. The other alternative is to have a biopsy or removal of the nodes sooner... this is minor surgery so he wants to wait. If it is cancer, this could lead to radiation/chemotherapy, but radiation may injure the neobladder.

Naturally I'm upset, though I knew that anything was possible, even though the original pathology found nothing in 30 nodes.

Part of me wants to have them removed now to find out for certain if this is cause for concern and to have any cancer removed from my body, but the doctor recomends a more conservative approach.

Does anybody have info on lymph node involvment in the groin/pelvis? How concerned should I be?

Otherwise I'm doing well and have gained pretty good control of my new bladder and have returned to my "normal" life of work and sports.

Mike Greenberg