More surgery

lilabelle1

my margins weren’t clear so I have to have another lumpectomy. Anyone else experienced this. I have dcis with a small 4 mm invasive cancer. The invasive cancer had clear margins the dcis had one focal margin

maggie15

Hi @lilabelle1 , I’m sorry that you need to have a re-excision lumpectomy for the DCIS. While margins for invasive cancer can be very small (no ink on tumor) the margin for DCIS has to be at least 2mm to prevent recurrence. According to John’s Hopkins this happens in about 20% of surgeries. Hopefully the second surgery will get the required margins.

moderators

Hi @lilabelle1 , welcome to the community. We’re sorry you’re facing another surgery, but we’re glad you found us.

As @maggie15 says, needing a second lumpectomy to get clear margins for DCIS does happen, and many members here have gone through this. Your next surgery should complete this part of your treatment by removing the remaining margin.

You may find this page helpful for understanding margins and lumpectomy:
• https://www.breastcancer.org/treatment/surgery/lumpectomy

We’re sending you support and good wishes.

The Mods