My father has CLL/SLL from 2018 and had his first treatment at 2019 with Bendamustine and Rituximab because of very enlarged lymph nodes. After his treatment the lymph nodes decreaded to the original size. His blood values are in the normal range
Last week he had a CT scan for his yearly control of his lungs. In the results they write: enlarged lymph nodes of 10,5 mm and enlarged borderline.
Can somebody please explain what they mean by enlarged borderline and is 10,5 mm big to start this next treatment?
I am a bit worried.
Greetings.
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Nodes are generally under 10mm (1cm), which I suspect has prompted the enlarged borderline comment. The trigger for starting treatment is 100mm (10cm or 4 inches) in the longest dimension, so you can relax. (Some nodes don't shrink back below 10mm after treatment for that matter.)
Thank you very much Neil. Sorry for asking the next question, but what they mean by borderline. Do they mean borderline like it's bigger then normal or borderline like that it's not sure and it can be lungcancer?
Borderline in that some nodes are borderline bigger than normal. The radiologist may not know of your father's CLL history. I have one node that remained larger than 10mm after I finished treatment and a few close to 10mm. This is quite common. Some nodes develop internal scar tissue and don't shrink all the way back, for example.
Is there a reason that lung cancer came to mind? Is your father a smoker/past smoker for instance?
In 2018 when he was diagnosed with CLL they saw a lung node of 6 mm. They repeated the CT scan several times to follow the lung node to see if it grows. This was the last CT scan to follow the lung node (repeated after 2 years) and the lung node is not growing (good news). That is why we are a bit afraid for lung cancer.
I was wrong with the position of the lymph nodes. In the results they mention a growth of the axillary lymphs with sizes around the 10 mm. This is the area under the arms if i am right. He don't feel anything if he touch it. I asked for an appointment with the doctor.
Could this be a sign that he is relapsed of his BR treatment (2019)?
It's unlikely unless his relapse is only starting, in which case his remission could last years longer yet while his nodes grow much larger. You can't know unless you have scan results from after he finished treatment last time. (His axillary nodes may not have shrunk smaller than their current size.)
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New and a Bit Scared
CLL/Enlarged Lymph Nodes
Results of my first Scanner. Richter’s Transformation
CLL with Abdominal discomfort. 
