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Has anyone had a mediastinoscopy??????


mama4zach

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Hello Everyone, Just an Update, I had the bronchoscopy and the needle biopsy and both were negative. When breathing got worse my doctor referred me Johns Hopkins. The dr. there is doing a mediastinoscopy to see what my problem is. I am scared because of all the researce I have done I have never seen anyone post this test. I had a ct scan that showed nodules with an enlarged lymph gland. So I don't know what I am dealing with, but I know I feel sick and I just feel hopeless. Please pray for me, I am 50 and am raising my 2 1/2 year old grandson.

Thanks for listening. Nancy

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Mediastinoscopies are done to check the lymph nodes in the center of the chest...between the lungs....if there are enlarged nodes. I had mine done at around 6:30 one evening and was home by about 10: if I remember right.

Had a bandage over the incision and it looked pretty red and raw...but I only took one of the pain pills they sent me home with, that first night...just to assure I'd sleep okay. It really wasn't bad at all.

Now...often people have benign nodules in the lungs. I've got one...and I know others here do too. And, there could be other reasons for why a lymph node in the mediastinum is enlarged, other than it being cancer.

So...try to relax until you get the biopsy results....and then take it from there. The prospect of lung cancer strikes terror in the heart....but take it from one who is 8 mos. out from diagnosis and thru treatment....it's not necessarily as scary as it seems up front! And it IS doable to get thru this and survive it!

I'm hoping the biopsy comes back clean or shows another reason for the swollen lymph node. Try not to worry until you know just what you're dealing with.

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Nancy,

An added thought--find out if they plan on removing the tumor if cancer is found at the time of the mediastonoscopy. This way you will know that you may be in the hospital and can make arrangements for your grandson.

For my mom they did a mediastonoscopy instead of a bronchosopy b/c while it is more invasive than a bronchsopy, the plan was that if the lymph nodes were negative, they would continue and remove the lobe of the lung since they were already inside her chest. In her case the lymph nodes were positive, so she was closed back up and sent for chemo before surgery.

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Hi Nancy----I had one about two years ago---

I had a lobectomy in June of 2000---however, my lymph nodes seem to get enlarged. They showed up very large in one of my check up scans---so my surgeon just wanted to be sure---

I was knocked out and went in one morning and was out the next. My throat was a little sore (they make a small incision on your throat ) for a day or two---but other than that, it was not really bad at all

I remember waking up from the surgery and the surgeon said it looked pretty good---Luckily he was right and there was no cancer in the nodes

best of luck to you and I hope all is negative ---

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