Waiting is the worse!

harper1234

I know about IBC because my aunt (dads twin sister) fought the battle. Unfortunately she lost her battle several years ago! But I believe it was because she didn’t know the signs and symptoms and thought she just had a rash or an infection and waited too long to get a diagnosis.

Fast forward... I am a 48 year old female and started having aching pain on my left side in my arm pit area. I couldn’t think of anything I had done. Then my left breast and surrounding area was noticeably larger than my right. The pain has since radiated all around the breast, into the arm pit, shoulder, and up the side of my neck. No lumps that I can detect. My skin on my shoulder is even sensitive to touch.

I saw my doctor last week and they do mammograms in his office but he opted not to do a mammogram there and to send me to an imaging center for more in-depth imaging and ultrasound. He also consulted with a surgeon and will send him results in case I need a biopsy. I had the diagnostic test done yesterday and of course now the waiting begins!

I have no redness and no rash. And had really not thought much about IBC till my doctor started asking about family history. And the light bulb went off!

My question is if IBC was present wouldn’t I have redness, rash, and fever in the affected breast. I’ve been researching and that’s what all the symptoms of IBC seem to say.

Any info would be greatly appreciated!!!

Moderators

Hi Harper1234, and welcome to Breastcancer.org,

Please remain positive while you wait for your test results. Thankfully, IBC is pretty rare, so the chances that is what you're experiencing are fairly low.

Keep us posted with what you find out, and we're sending you positive thoughts for benign results!

--The Mods

harper1234

Update: My OB/GYN called today and said I should hear from the surgeons office within 24 hours to set up an appointment. I asked if they had results from Friday’s testing and theysaid dr was waiting on all results and reviewing. Hopefully I’ll know more tomorrow.