Pathology Report

[newbe]

Hello All just got back from the Urologist who gave me a copy of the Report Here is the Whole Thing:
Microscopic Description: Section of spermatic cord shows no evidence of tumor. Thick walled blood vessels show no evidence of inflammation or thrombosis. Epidymis is unremarkable. Sections of the testis show some atypical proliferation of seminiferous tubules with a discrete central nodule of seminoma(0.6 cm in diameter) appreciated in block 3. Atypical tubules fuse with the seminomatous mass showing the characteristic monotnous fried-egg appearence in solid sheets with miniml intervening stroma and plump vasculature. Tumor is enterely confined to the testis.

Diagnosis:RIGHT TESTIS RESECTION WITH SPERMATIC CORD AND EPIDIDYMIS: -SMALL WELL DIFFERENTIATED SEMINOMA, 0.6CM ASSOCIATED WITH ADJACENT SEMINOMATOUS IN-SITU CHANGES, CONFINED TO THE TESTIS.

well thats it i will be making an appointment tommorow for a ct scan of chest and pelvic area...not entirely sure what everything means in this report with regards to this spreading to the rest of my body I am still really freaked out I was hoping to get some words from anyone who had similiar diagnosis and what their outcome was or anyone who has any info is much appreciated I guess its good i got it now as opposed to six months from now. I am just really worried about having to get x-rayd afraid they are going to find it spread

[Scott]

That's very good news so far. You'll know better after the CT scan, but it's sounding likely to be stage I seminoma. If so, there's an 80% chance you're already cured.

[Fed]

Newbe,

This is great news. The tumor is small, there is no lymphovascular invasion, and it is pure seminoma. All of these traits indicate that it likely has not spread (though CT scan will certainly confirm it), and seminoma grows very slowly compared to non-seminomatous tumors. Did you get your markers done? (you may have posted that elsewhere, I don't quite recall right now). As Scott said, pending your CTs, there's a good chance the I/O alone has cured you.

My diagnosis is almost exactly like yours, and your single, active tumor was smaller than mine. Assuming your CT comes out clean (which I think it's very likely it will), you will have three treatment options: surveillance, adjuvant radiation, or adjuvant chemo. Because of the characteristics of your tumor, you are an excellent candidate for surveillance as long as you are good about keeping all your lab and radiology appointments. Adjuvant radiation has a 98% cure rate, it carries an increased risk of a secondary cancer in the long term. The use of adjuvant chemo in the US is very recent (and more commonplace in Europe). A recent thread discusses this further.

In the end, you have three really good choices. This is going to be a personal choice. By all means keep the questions coming, and don't stress out. You will be fine.

[newbe]

Fed,
I did get the tumor markers back I think you mean the blood report they are as follows


IN RANGE:
ALPHA-FETO PROTIEN TUMOR MARKER
ALPHA-FETOPROTEIN 2.5
ENDOCRONOLOGY
HCG,TOTAL, QN
HCG-QUANTITATIVE <2

i have no idea what those numbers mean i was told they are ok or within range

[Fed]

i have no idea what those numbers mean i was told they are ok or within range

Indeed, they are within the normal range, which reinforces the argument that you are looking at stage I seminoma. All you need now is the radiology (CT and chest X-ray) to fill in the last blank. Let us know what happens.

[IowaBrian]

Those are great reports Good Luck with the rest
Brian

[Sans rt1]

newbe - -

Being freaked out is completely normal, but it looks like only very good news for you. Assuming the CT scan is clear, you could well be cured. Yes, you have to choose between surveillance or treatment, and as Fed stated that is a personal decision, but either way you are going to be fine.

You will probably get tired of your doctors telling you that if you are going to get cancer, this is the one to get - because it is very treatable - this is especially true for seminoma. Yes, some people do have a rough time of it - but you caught yours very, very early. Even if you choose to be treated, you will have a small chance of recurrence - which is why you will be on surviellence for life - frequently the first few years, then on to a yearly follow-up visit. The reason for this is that seminoma has a habit of occasionally popping up even many years later.

Living with this uncertainty can be difficult. I am just shy of 11 months after diagnosis. It took me a while, but I think I have come to terms with it and now honestly feel like I am cured. Part of that was accepting that it probably won't come back, but if it does I can deal with it. As with many on this Forum, it seems like that decision accompanied a need to get back into exercise and into better shape. I think that is kind of a fresh start - or moving on kind of thing, but I can attest to the change in attitude that goes with it.

Good luck and keep us informed.