The Colon Club

Hello everyone,

I am sincerely trying to calm my anxiety and not freak out.

My husband has been diagnosed with rectosigmoid-sigmoid cancer. The CT report for “staging” says T3-4a, N2, M0.

However, I’m concerned about a part of the report that mentions, “multiple, prominent para-aortic lymph nodes.”

Is that what makes him N2? Or wouldn’t that make him M1?

So far they told us this is Stage 3 but isn’t this a metastasis?

I’ve done the search engine on Colon Club for PALN and I’m scaring myself.

What does “multiple PROMINENT nodes” really mean?

Hi! Sorry for this new diagnosis. I think M refers to long distance metastasis like lungs or liver. Prominent means that they are enlarged, but they need a histologic test to see if they are cancerous.

Claudia

Atoq wrote:Hi! Sorry for this new diagnosis. I think M refers to long distance metastasis like lungs or liver. Prominent means that they are enlarged, but they need a histologic test to see if they are cancerous.

Claudia

Thanks for replying, Claudia.

I’m thinking there’s only one reason they are enlarged...cancer!

So this feels like a death sentence, as the report mentions MULTIPLE prominent nodes.

Basically, the cancer is now traveling all over his body, right?

Hi, try not to panic. I was stage 3C but had a quick recurrence after 12 rounds of folfox. My tumor was on the right side so when it came back to the para aortic lymph nodes I was then stage IV. It does mean that it is now through out his blood stream but don’t give up hope that it can be treated! I had surgery in May and they removed 5 of them that were cancerous. My oncologist said that for a small % it doesn’t come back! He can do this!!

Daniellabella wrote:
Thanks for replying, Claudia.

I’m thinking there’s only one reason they are enlarged...cancer!

So this feels like a death sentence, as the report mentions MULTIPLE prominent nodes.

Basically, the cancer is now traveling all over his body, right?

It might sound like it, but now there are better chances to cure cancer even when it is stage 4. The primary tumor sheds metastasis but only a small percentage survive and the immune system takes care of most, for the rest there are chemo, radio, immunoterapy.

Claudia

I had very high lymph node involvement and feel great today(and hopefully have a lot longer to live). Please trust your doctors and believe in the system as life is better with a positive outlook. I find so much hope on this site and if you read other people’s stories you can too, good luck.

My DH has some nodes and nodules that have remained stable. My understanding is that they are benign reactive nodes but are not cancerous nodes. Just my 2 cents. Like everyone has been saying, even if it is stage4,it is still treatable.

All this means is that the nodes are likely reactive. While there is still good reason to think they may be benign my advice is to be vigilant. I had prominent nodes noted on my Stage 3 scan which were later revealed by follow-up PET scans to be cancer (only a biopsy would be certain but the PET numbers and subsequent CT's were good enough for me). I had to push for the PET scan which showed I was Stage 4 and while it was horrible news it was undoubtedly a good thing as it meant I received additional treatments and more frequent surveillance scans. This doesn't mean this will be the same for your husband. A good number of patients with enlarged PALN's on initial CT turn out to be nothing, but they will be under represented here by the nature of who is more likely to post.


AT