A POOLE mum-of-four has been chosen to take part in vital international research into breast cancer.
Susan Williams, who is 60, decided to volunteer for the POSNOC study2, which is looking at whether it is necessary for breast cancer patients to have an extra surgery to the armpit if the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes.
The study, which is funded and supported by the National Institute for Health Research will recruit 1,900 women from over 100 hospitals across the UK, including Poole Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. The study is also taking place in 21 hospitals in Australia and New Zealand.
Susan was told she had breast cancer following a routine mammogram in April. Further mammograms, ultrasound and biopsies were required to confirm the diagnosis which came just hours before she and her husband were due to go on a cruise to celebrate their 60th birthdays.
Following surgery to remove nine tumours which were discovered in her left breast, Mrs Williams was told that the cancer had spread to one of the lymph nodes.
A Poole hospital spokesman said: "When cancer has spread to the lymph nodes, patients are offered the choice of further surgery to remove all of the lymph nodes in the armpit and/or radiotherapy to the breast along with drug treatment.
"Undergoing surgery to remove all of the lymph nodes in the armpit can have long-term side effects such as swelling of the arm, shoulder stiffness or numbness of the hand. These problems can be upsetting and difficult to cope with.
"Women now have the opportunity to be part of the POSNOC study where they will receive routine radiotherapy to the breast and drug treatment, but will be randomly allocated to undergo further surgery to remove the remaining lymph nodes in the armpit or not."
Evidence suggests armpit surgery is unnecessary and researchers believe that drugs and radiotherapy to the breast alone can treat the cancer that has spread.
Susan decided to take part in the POSNOC study after speaking with her consultant and a research nurse at Poole Hospital.
She said: “Deciding what to do was the most difficult bit. I said to my husband, I think we ought to go for the trial. If I’m in the group that’s got to have the operation, then the decision is made for me. On the other hand, if I’m in the group that’s not having the operation, that’s even better.”
She was allocated to receive radiotherapy and the drug treatment alone: “My research nurse talked through everything with me. Within an hour, I found out I was in the group that wasn’t going to have the operation. I was really relieved. I didn’t really want to have another operation. I just wanted to end the chapter and move on.”
After three weeks off to recover from the surgery to remove the tumours in her breast, Mrs Williams returned to work on a phased basis. She will now be followed up at regular intervals for five years, seeing both her cancer nurse specialist and her research nurse.
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