going to breast specialist

texasgirl150 · February 2010

hi there. this is my first post here. My mother was a 2 time breast cancer survivor. I have a lump on my left breast. it is small, pea sized and very hard. I have been experiencing SEVERE pain in my right breast since the new year. mammo and sono of painful breast show an asymmetric density.

I have an appt. with a breast specialist on Wed. and was wondering what I should expect at this appt.

thanks!

somanywomen · February 2010

texasgirl, You are lucky to be seeing a breast specialist, start writing down any questions for the visit....Until you get more info, we can be very supportive but everyone's particular experiences were accumulated just as you are doing...Keep copies of all your proceedures so you will have the info you need to ask questions....Hopefully, you will come back and say that your results are benign....good luck.....

AnacortesGirl · February 2010

I would expect that he/she is going to talk to you about how to determine what the issues are that you have with this breast. So my advance is to read up on the mammo, us and mri scans so you are familiar with what they are good at and what they are not good at. The assymmetrical density could be just that - dense fibers in your breast and no problem. However an MRI shows lobular cancer which is not detected on a mammo and may or may not be seen on a US. Doing an MRI also has the advantage of scanning the other breast to confirm there is nothing going on with other side.

I would also expect that he/she is going to talk about a biopsy. Again, do some reading on the different methods of performing biopsies. There are pros and cons to the various methods. I was originally sent to do a stereotactic biopsy because of the microcalcifications but it was unsuccessful since the densities in my breast prevented them from getting views in both directions simultaneously. As a result I had an excisional biopsy which was a good thing for me - it found the lobular cancer.

By reading this beforehand, you won't be hit cold if the specialist starts talking about different options. And if options are brought up, it give you the chance to ask why they are not being considered.

Good luck!

texasgirl150 · February 2010

Thank you for the input. I was supposed to have an mri but i am allergic to contrast so my gyno did not think it would show enough and cancelled it. I am hoping that this new dr does some biopsies. i have been dealing with the pain since new years eve and was recently diagnosed with fibromyalgia. I have had enough of the drs and am ready to be done with all of this! I have read up on the different biopsy techniques. I am not really sure which one would be better over the other.

My appt. is tomorrow at 10:30. I will update after the appt.

thank you ladies!!!

mawhinney · February 2010

You might ask someone to go with you to take notes and jot down the answers to your questions. We all get anxious in a doctor's office and often forget some of the details. I take a pen with me and try to make notes.

texasgirl150 · February 2010

Yes- my aunt who is a retired ER dr is going with me. the appt is this morning and i'm getting VERY nervous. i will update later after the appt.

texasgirl150 · February 2010

ok so i went today. the lump is not showing up on my scans so that dr said that the only biopsy she can do is a surgical biopsy. she said that she felt comfortable waiting 3 months to see if the lump grows or changes. i am not certain that i am comfortable with this. what kind of recovery goes along with a surgical biopsy? every time i hear about someone watching and waiting, they end up having cancer. i realize that this is not the case for everyone, but i'm really not comfortable with this idea. she said to think about it and to let her know.

AnacortesGirl · February 2010

When they first found my calcifications on the mammo I was given the choice of biopsy or come back in 6 months. With my family history I immediately opted for the biopsy. I didn't want to wait and I'm so glad I didn't.

This was my first surgery since having my tonsils out as a kid so I just wasn't sure what to expect. Although my mom (80) had just had a lumpectomy in May (I had my biopsy in July) and I saw how she went in that morning and, by evening, it was obvious that she was doing great and didn't need my help. So I was kind of expecting something similiar.

It was day surgery so I was home that afternoon. But the difference between my mom and I was the amount of tissue taken. By the time I saw my surgeon the whole breast was swollen, hard and red. She ended up taking a specimen that was 4 cm. So I needed the hydrocodone for the pain. I pretty much stayed on the hydrocodone for a week and that worked really well (ate dried apricots to avoid the constipation). Could have easily gone back to work but two days after the biopsy I was given the path results. I opted to stay home and try to deal with the understanding that I had cancer.

Got to shower after a couple of days and had to wear my bras without underwires 24 hours for the first 3 or 4 days. Really needed the support at night.

I would gladly do a sugical biopsy again. Took away all the guessing with the scans and got a pathology report with the necessary information about the cancer.

texasgirl150 · February 2010

i called the dr and left a message that i wanted a sonogram on the side with the lump. i did not find the lump until after my scans. i was originally having the mammo because i was having severe pain on the other side. they did a sono on the painful breast but not on the breast that now has a lump. maybe they will be able to see it and can determine if it is a cyts. if they cannot determine after the sono then i want it out!

AnacortesGirl · February 2010

I had lots of cysts but they were in the bad breast. Had one aspirated in the doc's office a couple of times. It could start getting big & painful quickly. But it was a distinct lump that was easy for me to feel. If I didn't have all the cysts I probably would have been able to figure out something wasn't right before it got to be so extensive. Oh well.

texasgirl150 · February 2010

going for a sonogram tomorrow to see if they can see the lump this time. i hope they can!!!! then they can at least tell me if it is a cyst. i won't be worried then!

AnacortesGirl · February 2010

Definitely hoping it's a cyst for you. Let us know what they say. Are you scheduled for an excisional biopsy on the other breast?

kreativek · February 2010

I had a lumpectomy which is more tissue than biopsy. It was a 45 minute long outpatient surgery. I was in and out. I had practically no pain. I did it on a Friday and returned to work on Tuesday. I only took Monday off because the anethesia seemed to trigger an irritable bowel attack. It also could have been the stress that triggered it too!

It was easy as can be and no pain!

going to breast specialist

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