Strangely calm but looking for some support

Hi Madaleine. I have never seen "question of" in a mammogram report but of course I am not a doctor. In my own case I had a diagnostic mammogram, then an ultrasound, then an ultrasound-guided biopsy. I know all of the steps are annoying, but I believe the protocol is designed to test, and scare, us as little as possible. Let us know how it goes.

Hi Madalaine,

Hang in there. Callbacks and repeats are normal - esp if you're not doing the mammograms in the same facility or if they've upgraded their machines. The newer machines are increasingly good at showing very tiny areas. They need to compare to older scans but yes, since yours are so old, I would expect they'll want a fresh second scan to compare it. Whether they do biopsies the same day or not depends on the center but both of mine were not.

Most of these things do turn out completely benign so the odds are with you. The source of your pain might be as simple as nerve pain from your upper back- common esp if you're stressed.

Hang in there. & maybe decide right now, regardless of how this goes, to cut negative things out of your life and find joy. Fwiw, I don't think the stress thing is as big a cause as other things are, but stress sucks in many ways and affects all health - so it's a good idea to start living healthy no matter what & cut that stuff out.

Best wishes~

HI madalaine - sucks that they couldn't rule things out ...but 4b still has 64% odds it's benign; ~ 2 out of 3 turn out fine.
https://breast-cancer.ca/bi-rads/

If you want to have your biopsy earlier, at some places you can call & ask to be put on a cancellation list. If this is going to hang over you, you might want to try to move it up.

One thing we all find out on this board: we're stronger than we think. Lean on your friends and family and if necessary, go see a counsellor. You don't need to do this alone.

Hi, Madalaine. I’m sorry you’re going through this. You’re in the right place!

I don’t think there are any rules regarding sharing your testing. Tell who you feel comfortable telling, hopefully those who can support you. At the very least, you’re talking here and that’s good. I told my parents, my partner, and a few close friends. I, too, was going through a very difficult period and felt that I needed all the support I could get.

One of those friends is a BC survivor. She kept telling me, despite my feelings to the contrary, that I could handle whatever the outcome was. She came with me to my biopsy. I love that woman!

In the hope of putting your mind at ease regarding the biopsy, I’ll mention that I felt no pain during mine. Just a stick when the radiologist began numbing me. After that, just a bit of pressure. The nurse putting pressure on it after was more uncomfortable than the sampling. I was sore for a few days but ice and Tylenol helped a lot.

I had a Bi-Rad of 4a. My results were B9. I go back for my 6 month checkup in a few months and, I admit, I’m nervous about it. These things can be so scary but we move forward because we must.

Rooting for you!

Good to hear! Please keep us updated and feel free to pop in and talk if you need to.