Hello and thank you for posting.

I am sorry but I am unable to offer a medical opinion on what you can have done instead of a lymph node clearance, but do discuss this further with your specialist or breast care nurse (CNS). If a sentinel node biopsy has confirmed the presence of cancer cells, then the standard treatment would be to remove the rest of the nodes. If there are cancer cells left in the lymph nodes then they could travel to other parts of the body. 

Unfortunately, all treatments can come with side affects, but the benefits and risks have to be weighed up.

Here is some information about lymph node surgery on our website. Information about lymph node surgery removal from the UK charity Breast Cancer Now can be found on their website here also.

Take care, and if you want to talk things through with one of the nurses on our helpline.  The number to call is Freephone 0808 800 4040 and the lines are open from 9am till 5pm Monday to Friday.

Sarah.