What were your first/main symptoms of IDC?

loneal131

I am new to this board...have been reading through the threads and was hoping I could get some feedback from you kind ladies on my situation.  I am 31 and have been having a weird achy pain in my left breast area for about 3-4 months now.  It is not exactly in my breast itselt, but rather seems to be sort of at the top of it where my breast meets my armpit area.  I wish I could describe it better.  It almost feels like it's an achy muscle, and like if I stretch and/or massage it, it will feel better.  Tonight I also noticed that it "ached" when I laughed several times.  I do not have any lumps that can be felt.  I brought it up to my ob-gyn at my annual appt in May, and she seemed totally unconcerned and said it could be because I recently had a baby/breastfed.  However, I had my baby in June 2009, and stopped breastfeeding in November, so it had been from November09-May2010 since I'd breastfed. She also said it could be related to caffeine intake.  So I have stopped drinking nearly all caffeine (I never drank THAT much to begin with).  However, I'm still having the aching sensation.  So I guess my question is - what were your first/main symptoms of IDC, and do you think there is cause for me to worry?  Please help!  I really appreciate any input you have to give.  thank you!

Susie123

I had absolutely no symptoms. It was found on a routine mammogram.

Summer38

I had the exact same feeling in my breast that you're having. I let it go for about a month and then I felt a lump while in the shower (I swear it appeared over night). I went to my gyn and her first response was "well, pain is good so there's nothing to be worried about". But she ordered a mammo (I'd never had one, not 40 yet) and ultrasound just to be safe. Before I left the office I had an appt. for a biopsy and 2 days later I was diagnosed.

So, maybe your Dr. is right and I hope that she is - but I would push for further testing. If she is not willing to do it then find someone who is!

I don't mean to frighten you, just wanted you to know that you should trust your instincts when it comes to your body and have it checked out. Good luck & let us know how you make out.

thegoodfight

I agree with Summer................trust your instincts!!  No one knows you better than you.  Is there any bc history in your family?  As far as symptoms I HAD NONE.   I had "normal" mammos for over 20 years.  I dutifully went each year accepted the "normal" results,  had no reason not to.  Had the last "normal" mammo 5 months before I felt lump in the shower.  Had a clinical breast exam from gyn just two months before.................but here it was a 3.5 centimeter mass that the surgeon said was growing 7 to 10 years.  I of course am that general population that sees the most bc, post menapausal and 63 at the time.  You are NOT the typical profile of women who get bc.  You are certainly too young.  Women your age have dense breasts that can feel lumpy.  That being said.................it does happen to women your age.  The bottom line is if your gut says this needs further checking, insist on some testing.  If nothing else it will give you peace of mind.  Maybe you can have an ultra sound..............non invasive and usually accurate results.  Let us know how you proceed............................our thoughts are with you.

rackie

i too was in the shower and felt a lump in my armpit by the breast.  it was very painful.  i did routine breast exams  and yearly physicals.  nothing was ever there.  mine was very painful and people told me not to worry that breast cancer didi not hurt.  this was march 5th.  i had a mammo on april 1 and it showed lots of calcification and swollen nodes.  i had a biopsy on may 13th and it siad that i had dcis.  i had the calcified area and nodes removed and it is notdcis, but invasive ductal carcinoma with lymphnode involvement.  i am going tuesday to see an oncologist. i am just so terrified that all this time has caused the disease to spread.  i just turned 45.  have a mammo!  my dr would not give routine mammos until age 50 if you had no breast cancer in the family. your will most likely be nothing, but you don't want to end up like me.

squidwitch42

I had shooting pains in my left breast for several years...I was cleared after a call back on mammo four years before I felt a lump.  I allowed myself to be lulled into a confidence and the belief that "cancer does not present as pain in the breast." The cancer was right where I had my shooting pains.

so, not to scare you either...just trust and push for follow up.  Continue to be vigilant....

CalypsoGirl

Hello loneal131, I have to agree with everyone here.  Get a mammogram & ask for an ultrasound too. If anything suspicious turns up (micro calcifications/cyst...) have a biopsy (the only way to know for sure).

In 2001 I felt some mild soreness on the far edge of my left breast "towards the armpit" - no mass/lump could be felt... But I felt "something", so I got my first mammo at 37 years old.  The mammo showed micro calcifications (calcium deposits), they didn't think it was a big deal... Told me to wait 6 months... Long story short, it turned out to be non-invasive bc (DCIS), almost 3 inches long & non-palpable!

It could be something benign... So don't let all this scare you!!  Just get to the bottom of it all!  Good luck & take care.  CalypsoGirl

loneal131

Wow, thank you all so much for responding. You have really given me a lot to think about.  I have been trying to dismiss it as nothing in my head since it started, but it's going on 4 months now and I feel like it's getting harder and harder to ignore.  I don't have a family history of breast cancer in particular, however I do have a STRONG family history of cancer itself.  I have 2 uncles and 1 aunt who all passed away from different types of cancer.  So it seems there are some genetics there that could at a minimum predispose me to being more vulnerable to environmental toxins and other various risk factors.  It's so frustrating that doctors are so quick to dismiss something like this. I mean, what is the harm in doing a few tests to at least rule it out? The overwhelming message you get as it relates to any cancer is that early detection is crucial.  Yet, when it comes down to getting the support you need for early detection, it becomes another story.  I am just sick with worry, so I know you are all right.  I am going to have to set another appt to investigate this further.  I guess I have just been too scared to up to this point. 

huntreiter3

I felt a lump in my right breast while in the shower. Mine too seemed to appear overnight. I had no pain but a lot of fear and called to make a breast exam appt. the next day. I told my family physician about it and she told me that I just had lumpy breast and due to my age, (37) and no family history that I had nothing to worry about. She stated it was probably hormonal and I would probably notice it come and go as my cycles changed. I was relieved and although not completely convinced allowed myself to think that my MD had to be correct. It was her job. Months later I had my yearly check up and mentioned it again to another physician at the same clinic. This physician made a statement to me that at my first, the physician I saw noted in my chart that I had an anxiety issue regarding cancer. The second MD also concluded that my lump was nothing to worry about. When my cousin moved back from AZ this spring I was talking to her about it and she pressured me to get another opinion with a new MD at a different clinic and demand a mammogram. This MD also felt it was nothing since I did not note any change in it's size but also felt a woman of my age should not have a lump like mine. She ordered a mammogram. When I got my first mammogram they would not let me leave without going straight to get an ultrasound because they labled it a suspicious lump. A week later I had a sentinol biopsy and the next day found out it was IDC. I think I kind of knew, but wanted to believe my MD and think I was fine. Trust your feelings and get a second or third or fourth opinion if you need to. I wish I had listened to mine.

CoolBreeze

I found a lump.  But, mine hurt - it was a burning pain.

Odds are with you but there is also no harm in requesting a mammogram.  My insurance does (or did) baselines at age 35.

amym159

I bent over one day and felt a pulling/burning sensation in my nipple. I felt my breast and there was an obvious lump about half way between my nipple and armpit that was found to be IDC. I had had a normal mammogram about 8 months earlier.

CTMOM1234

No symptoms, no lump, mine was found only after micro-calcifications were noticed on my routine annual mammogram. Biopsy determined it was DCIS, had a lumpectomy, and final pathology listed IDC along with the DCIS.

meg8000

If you are having trouble getting your doctors to take this seriously and investigate it, you might try looking for a breast specialist.  I think you might have better luck with them.

ToriGirl

I had no symptoms either...there was no palpable lump and it was found by yearly mammogram

Tori

ruthbru

Found a (rather large) lump 6 months after my clear mammogram.

mumito

I found a large lump sore to the touch in my lower armpit 5 months after a clear mamogram.

lisa-e

I had a routine mammogram that led to the diagnosis of DCIS.  My two IDC tumors did not show up on the mammogram.  My BS did an excisional biopsy of one tumor because he felt a dimple (I never felt it).  The other one and additional DCIS was discovered via an MRI.   I never had any physical symptoms, never felt that any thing was wrong.  

somanywomen

Palpable lump for me, exactly where my underwire ended under left arm...Also noticed small indentation above this area....

hopefulhealing

I was diagnosed with a mamogragm at my yearly exam.  But as I thought back after my mastectomies I realized that I had been having a achy or pain feeling in my left breast exactly where the tumor was.  I never felt a lump.  Diagnosed with IDC stage 1 grade 1.  If your doc won't listent to you find one who will. You need to not be afraid to advocate for yourself.  A good doctor will not be intimidated by that. Get it checked out. I hope it will be nothing but for your own peace of mind don't wait.

maggie5

I was diagnosed by an MRI biopsy.  Mammogram didn't see it and ultrasound couldnt' find it.  I had been seeing a breast surgeon because of microcalcifications two years previous to diagnosis and I told him that I felt something that wasn't quite right and asked for an MRI.  He agreed and that's how my small IDC was found.  Fortunately we got it early and I decided on double mastectomy with immediate tram flap reconstruction.  Now I take Femara once a day and trying to get back to 'normal'.

eileen1955

If you posted this ? in a forum for lactating moms, you would have rec'd answers allaying your fears.    I think there are ligaments that support the lactating breast that can hurt when you stop breast feeding.    Vitamin E always helped me with breast tenderness during PMS and with soreness associated with breastfeeding.   But I never had what you had.

But I'm glad you asked it here b/c you certainly will hear the other side of the coin.    So go ahead and push for more diagnostics , but don't be up at nite worried sick.      Doctors "hands are tied" when it comes to ordering tests, so you have to make yourself a real pain in the neck. I had to go to a second surgeon b/c surgeon #1 would not order MRI.               Good luck with all this!

BTW my first symptom of IDC was that when I wore  a push up bra, this once inch circular area popped out.  I put it off for 2 months b/c I thought it had to do with fluctuating hormones of menopause.           When I finally went to bs, he dismissed it b/c he would see nothing.  I held my breast up like it was in a push-up bra and there it was.

Another women I met in a support group had a story that stayed with me. she was breastfeeding at the time.While standing, her dog kept jumping (he was not a jumper) to one area of the breast and left a bruise on exactly that spot.  she reassured herself that perhaps dog was jealous of baby.       But it turned out that the dog was "smelling" cancer and it made the dog angry.       It was Her-positive and while I was in the support group with this woman, herceptin trials were put into practice.    so her dog saved her life.               

mymorganhorse

Hi,  Well,  I found a lump above my left breast.  There was no pain so I didn't know what to think.  I went to the OB/GYN and she sent me for a mammo and ultrasound and then I was sent to a surgeon who then told me after my lumpectomy that it was (IDC).  It was only 1.3 cm but I had the HER 2 receptor with it.  I was very shocked at 42 years old to have breast cancer.  Old myth but not always so is if there is no pain it's cancer.  Pain usually means a cyst.  My second diagnosis a year later hurt and I had 3 lumps this time.  But the lump that hurt was the same spot as the first one and it was spotted.  What the surgeon said.  I thought maybe I had a different cancer because it was so high.  Insist on an ultrasound and/or mammogram to lesson your worries.