Nodules in the Lung

DAC677
DAC677 Member Posts: 59
edited February 2018 in Kidney Cancer #1

My main question has anyone here had a resection of the lung and what was the surgery and recovery like?

 

My backstory is that i had an 11-12 CM stage 3C tumor remover in October 2016. I had one year of NED CT scans and life returned to normal.

Januarys scan revealed to very small nodules in the left lower lobe. 4mm and 6mm. When they reviewed the 6MM on the previous scan they saw a pinpoint near a blood vessel and the location of the 4mm was clean in the previous scan.

Of course i wanted to attack it right away with drugs or whataver and not let it spread. My very good local oncologist said they are too small to biopsy and they dont recommend drugs until a growth pattern gives strong proof its cancer for sure.

I use the expert research doctors at IUPUI whom i think are some of the best in the world for consults and i went to see them Thursday 2/22. They put a good spin on all this. They said with the size, stage and length of time my tumor had been growing and the way they had to "squeeze" it away from the heart during surgery it was likely that millions of cancer cells had gone through my body. The fact that it took 15 months for two (if its cancer) to settle in my lung is a testimant to how my immune system is killing cancer cells. He explained that cancer cells are much more fragile than people know and so many people have them in their system its just that our immune systsm kills most of them.

All that being said they also explained that almost all the drugs even immunotheraphy drugs compromise our immune system to some degree. Because mine is doing so well he doesnt want to compromise it and prefer surgery as a first options ofr someone who is strong and healthy with no evidence of a spread to other areas of the body. The only porblem is they have to wait and see if / when they grow large enough for me to have surgery. I then asked how we keep them from spreading during the "waiting" and was told its extremely rare for them to slough off cells or spread during this young small newly formed stage.

so its looks like we wait and if they grow as i expect they will then ill have a lung resection. Maybe VATS will be an option but i dont know. Im sure someone else here has been through it and im curious what the surgery and recovery is like compared to the radical nephrectomy? Even though its a smaller surgery ive heard the lung can be very sore and tendor and potentially more painfull or with a longer recovery? I dont know.

Comments

  • Hd67xlch
    Hd67xlch Member Posts: 151 Member
    Ive had it done

    Right lung lower lobe removal, left lung 2 wedge resections. I had open surgeries, my 2nd one was similar to yours 2 nodules 2-3 mm next scan they were 5-6 mm I elected to get them out, both tested positive for rcc after the surgery. Its about 5-7 days in the hospital,  its not that bad, I was back at work after two weeks after each surgery, and i do manual work, not a desk jockey. The only issue Ive had is pain along the incision almost 2 years after the right side surgery, the left side has been pretty much pain free.

    I elected for the open surgery simply because my surgeon said if there are nodules that are two small to show up on the ct scans he can feel them and get them while he has my lung in his hand , he found two smaller nodules by feeling that didnt show up on the cts and removed them from the left lung, something to think about. Granted VATS is easier to recover from but whats the point if they miss other nodules. Good luck

  • DAC677
    DAC677 Member Posts: 59
    Hd67xlch said:

    Ive had it done

    Right lung lower lobe removal, left lung 2 wedge resections. I had open surgeries, my 2nd one was similar to yours 2 nodules 2-3 mm next scan they were 5-6 mm I elected to get them out, both tested positive for rcc after the surgery. Its about 5-7 days in the hospital,  its not that bad, I was back at work after two weeks after each surgery, and i do manual work, not a desk jockey. The only issue Ive had is pain along the incision almost 2 years after the right side surgery, the left side has been pretty much pain free.

    I elected for the open surgery simply because my surgeon said if there are nodules that are two small to show up on the ct scans he can feel them and get them while he has my lung in his hand , he found two smaller nodules by feeling that didnt show up on the cts and removed them from the left lung, something to think about. Granted VATS is easier to recover from but whats the point if they miss other nodules. Good luck

    Great information

    Thank you.I wonder if your pain along the incision is common?

    After my nephrectomy it was hard for a few weeks but by the end of 5 weeks i clmbed a deer stand and made the shot and dressed it.

  • Hd67xlch
    Hd67xlch Member Posts: 151 Member
    Its called PTPS

    Post Thoroctomy Pain Syndrome is very common with anyone who has had their chest opened up, even though both of my surgeries they went through my back/side to get to the chest cavity. Ive learned to live with it, there is nothing I cant do post surgery that I could do pre surgery, I just pay the price that night for physical activity. Id do it all over again if need be, anything to keep off the cancer drugs,JMO. Good luck.

  • ImNotDeadYet
    ImNotDeadYet Member Posts: 244
    It's taken over a month

    I had my wedge resection in early January, and I'm only now, in the last week or so, feeling the post-surgical pain fading. I wsd taking Oxy, Gabapentin, and Tylenol. Now it's just Gabapentin and Tylenol. Pain is still there, but slowly getting better. Mine wad done with VATS. They respected some lung tissue and two nodules. And yes, out feels like the pain is unrelated to where the incisions are, but that's due to cutting nerves, or muscle, or something once they were inside. I wad beginning to think the pain would never end, but it is dissipating a little each day. Hang in there; out will get better.

  • DAC677
    DAC677 Member Posts: 59
    Thanks

    Thanks for the replies and information. I havent had the surgery yet. Its not scheduled becaudse the nodules are not big enough. They told me thats the next step and acted like its no big deal. i just was trying to compare it to having the kidney removed.