mammogram dint work

[belkis]

my mom find a lump on her  right breast, the doctor moved  fast and remove the lump., and send it to lab to see if was malignant or benign sadldy today she find out she have cancer.my question is .about five month  a go she went for her annual mammogram and it was normal.why the mammogram did not  show any anormality? her dr. said he need  remove more tissue of her breast, remove the limph nodes under axilla,they need to do scan  of the shest,lungs to make sure the the cancer hasen`t spread.but he said he cant told me if she going to need radiation or chemotherapy until he do the first step or stage. can any one explain  what is thats ?what are the chances the my mom  would survive this been 73 years old,whith heart problems  with 2 stents put on with in year, high blood pressure,diabetes and a lot more other problems.i hope some one helps me with this question.thanks

[belkis]

thanks for you comment.

[japdip]

I see no reason why your mother wouldn't survive. The things you describe are perfectly normal procedure when dealing with breast cancer. The reason the Dr. can't tell you now about what treatment will be required is that the lymph nodes will need to be tested to see if the cancer cells have invaded them and a certain amount of tissue must be removed that is free of cancer from the breast. The scans are to be sure that there is no cancer present in any other place in the body. Only when all these things are done can another Dr. (an Oncologist) set up a treatment plan that will be of benefit to your mother. Each case is different and often requires a special treatment plan. Best wishes to you and your Mother.