Ultrasound Showing Nothing and Now Pregnant

laylamom

Hi All,

I am sorry for posting but I wanted to maybe reach out to other people who have been in a similar situation. I have a very strong family history of breast cancer, my mother was diagnosed at 29 and passed when she was 31. Her father also was diagnosed when he was 65. My maternal aunt had a preventative mastectomy for pre-cancerous cells (I am sure there is a more technical term for it) and my sister is being closely monitored by an oncologist for the same reason. Everyone in my family has been tested and is negative for the BRACA gene mutations.

About 8 months ago (before I was pregnant), I found a hard lump in my left breast. I took it to my doctor who also felt it and sent me for a mammogram. The hospital near us refuses to do a mammogram on anyone under the age of 30 (I am currently 29, the same age as my mother when she was diagnosed) and converted the order to an ultrasound. The ultrasound showed nothing (not even a cyst) and we let it go. I went a few weeks ago for my first prenatal appointment and my new doctor seemed very concerned while doing my breast exam although I told her that I already had an ultrasound. She sent me back for another ultrasound, which I am now waiting on.

My question is this, since I am now pregnant and the past few weeks my hormones have gone insane the lump is much harder to feel because my breasts are so lumpy and full. Does this mean that my ultrasound results could still possibly show something? If this was you, would you push for further testing or to go see a specialist instead of my OB if the ultrasound still shows nothing? I am not asking for medical advice at all but just wanted to know if anyone has had experiences with lumps and pregnancy. If it had appeared when I was first pregnant, I would just chalk it up to hormones but the fact that it was here several months before has me a little concerned and I keep reading horror stories about how so many things do not show on an ultrasound. I do have an appointment later this week with my OB and I will bring it up to her then as well.

Thank you for listening!

Peregrinelady

As someone whose lump wasn’t seen on ultrasound, I would push for further testing. When will some in the medical community start taking young women seriously? It infuriates me as the mother of 2 daughters in their 20’s with family history. Sorry for the rant. There are many women that were diagnosed during pregnancy who are doing fine along with their babies. Keep pushing until you get peace of mind and congratulations on your pregnancy. Keep us posted.

mustlovepoodles

i agree. A lump that can be felt, but not seen on ultrasound warrants further investigation no matter what your age. Breast cancer at age 29 is uncommon, but as you know it does happen. (I have an aunt who had it when she was only 24.)

I also recommend you see a breast specialist. OBs are great at what they do, but they are not experts in breast health.

Also, have you had genetic testing yourself? Was it recent? There is waaaaay more to hereditary breast cancer than the BRCA genes. They are simply the more common and better known variety. And they are discovering more about the lesser known ones all the time. I have a strong family history of breast and multiple other cancers. I turned out negative for the BRCAs, but positive for TWO more rare gene mutations, which puts my risk at about the level of BRCA 2. They also accounted for Every Single One of the 30 cancers in my family tree. Yowza!

WC3

My breast cancer was missed on the ultrasound the first time even though I had a palpable lump. I wish they would have done an MRI or biopsy or both. I went misdiagnosed for almost two years.

laylamom

Thank you all. I had my second ultrasound and it showed nothing, similar to the first. I do have an appointment with a breast specialist on Tuesday and my OB wrote her to discuss the possibility of an MRI. The lump is much harder to find but I am also noticing one breast changing more than the other with pregnancy. Hopefully its normal hormones but I am sure I will be feeling much better after my appointment.

gb2115

That's crazy that the hospital won't do a mammogram under a certain age. If the doctor feels the test is warranted, they should do it IMO. The hospital isn't your doctor, your doctor is your doctor. I just don't get it.