Hi Dave,

As a Stage 3 melanoma patient who had a full node clearance from my groin & pelvis, I have shared your concern. It has taken some time to get an official response to this question - I suffer from lymphoedema & even the Lymphoedema Support Network couldn't answer this properly.

However, the research charity for melanoma, Melanoma Focus, released advice to melanoma patients a few days ago. One of the points was with regard to removal of lymph nodes and immunity. I have added the link & you can see the full answer at point 6 - the short answer is - for all cancer patients in this position, lymph node removal does not affect the ability of the immune system to fight infection. I hope this puts your mind at rest

melanomafocus.com/.../

Angie