Beside myself - diagnosed with vulval cancer in March and had a bilateral lymph node dissection. Expecting the worse

I am frightened I am going to die young. I was diagnosed with stage 1b vulval HPV independent cancer in March. I had clear scans. 1 day before the sentinel biopsy I found a lump. I escalated this to the dr but he said I was still node neg and proceeded with the SLNB. On the morning of surgery I was told I had a 2cm lymph node. I had a bilateral lymph node dissection. I am expecting the worst. 

  • Heya. 

    Try talking to the doctor. If that fails get a second opinion. 

  • Hello Georgina15

    I'm sorry to hear that you were recently diagnosed with stage 1b vulval cancer. It's understandable, after all that you've been through, that you're feeling scared and expecting the worst

    Have you been given any indication by the team how long you might have to wait to hear about the results of the surgery and what the next steps might be in your care? Hopefully, you won't have to wait too long for news, and the specialists will be able to give you some reassurance when you see them. 

    I've had a look through the forum, and I can see that another forum member, Mobile, shared their post about being diagnosed with vulvar cancer. You can read other posts by using the forum search function at the top of the page and looking for the term "vulvar" or "vulval".

    In the meantime, I wonder if you might find it useful to chat things through with one of our team of nurses. I know they will be happy to listen and offer any advice, information and support they can. They're available Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm on 0808 800 4040. 

    Keep in touch and let us know how you get on Georgina15. We're here for you. 

    Best wishes, 
    Jenn
    Cancer Chat moderator