Birads 4c- waiting on biopsy results.

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Glueck
Glueck Member Posts: 3
edited November 2018 in Waiting for Test Results

hello friends,

Just looking for community is this crazy time. My sweet husband is terrified and I don't want to fuel the fire further by unloading on him. Lucky you!!

I'm a 42 year old mama. I have 2 kids, 3 and 5 years old. On Tuesday morning, I was laying on the sofa and I had the dreaded side boob, and as I reached over to scratch before covering it back up, I felt lump. I sat up like a lightning bolt and screamed a few expletives. I immediately got on the phone and got in at the gyno. She didn't feel extremely concerned by its feel but she did indeed feel it. Because of my family history, she sent me straight over for a diagnostic mammogram. I pushed to get it done that day, and two short hours later I was in the breast Center. Another 3 1/2 hours after that, I was told that this mass had an 80% chance of being malignant. It's hard to believe that that's the 12 hours previous I was blissfully unaware. Life came at me fast.

Yesterday I went in for my biopsy on three spots. I must say that the process itself was less uncomfortable to me than going to the dentist.

The mass doesn't look good. 1.7 cm round and microlobulated. Lymph nodes are looking good and clear but this mass- it really looks like trouble.

My mother died at 39 of breast cancer shortly after her diagnosis at 37.5 years old. Right now, reliving the trauma of that loss (I was 18 at the time) is taking up a great deal of my emotional and typically level headed space.


We are bracing for bad news. The wait is dreadful. I desperately wanted the radiologist to throw me a bone and tell me it could be something else. Although she left the door open, I had the feeling she was lovingly preparing me.

I needed a community and I'm so glad I found you all. This is a crazy limbo.

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Comments

  • Georgia1
    Georgia1 Member Posts: 1,321
    edited November 2018

    Ugh, you poor thing. This early stage of waiting and anxiety really is the worst. Do you feel you're in the hands of a good team at an experienced breast cancer center? I am hoping for benign results for you of course, but if you do get a diagnosis please know that treatment options are much better today then they were 20 years ago. We are here for you; ask any and all questions and we will send you good thoughts.

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  • Sjacobs146
    Sjacobs146 Member Posts: 770
    edited November 2018

    This is the worst part of this whole process, waiting for results, not knowing exactly what you're dealing with. Georgia is correct, treatment options are much, much better than 20 years ago. Even if this turns out to be malignant, it is highly likely that treatment will be just a small bump in the road for you. I'm four years out from diagnosis and feeling fine. Life is 99% back to normal and no one would guess that Im a BC survivor

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  • Egads007
    Egads007 Member Posts: 1,603
    edited November 2018

    Bi-rads 4C and an 80% chance of being malignant? Was that based on your family history Someone correct me if I’m wrong, but the stats should be 75-80% chance of being benign with a 4C. Yes, the waiting is excruciating....worst part of the process....my heart goes out to you!! Hang in, it’s not over until the path is in! Vent here...it helps....hugs!!

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  • Salamandra
    Salamandra Member Posts: 1,444
    edited November 2018

    Hiya,

    My mother also died of cancer, and my own diagnosis and starting treatment processes has been full of... I don't know if they are technically flashbacks, but some sort of time travel anyway. It's definitely pushing many emotional buttons for me, and it's been really hard.

    I seem to have got lucky and caught it quite early, and it has favorable prognostic markers. The doctors have been as reassuring as I think they can. But I think this background makes it harder for me to believe them. And of course, now I am also facing all fo this without the help and support of my mother (and largely on my own - single no kids).

    I'm so impressed by how fast things have moved for you so far. I had almost 3 weeks between when the lump was found and the mammogram/ultrasounds, then another ten days before the biopsy, and then about 10 days after that to get the results. I didn't really start getting scared until before the biopsy but I think that's because I didn't see or understand the birads results from the mammogram. So, bonus?

    If you didn't already have genetic testing for mutations that are known to impact breast cancer, I guess that you will be getting them soon. Maybe worth asking if your gynecologist can prescribe them while you are waiting. One warning is that my insurance (after the fact) told me it wouldn't cover them without accompanied genetic counseling, so just to look into.

    This is so hard. A friend just shared this article with me that's about current cancer patients facing anxiety waiting for test results, but honestly I think it applies also to those of us with the trauma of it in our immediate family. Maybe it will be helpful a bit for you:

    NYT: Tackling Cancer Anxiety

    (if paywall is an issue, apparently an incognito/private window may help).

    Do what you need to do to take care of you. If this is cancer, it will be a marathon and not a sprint and you'll need all the rest nd mental/emotional bandwidth you can manage. If it's not, and hopefully it isn't - 4 isn't 5), then it'll be over pretty soon.

    Hang in there!

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  • Moderators
    Moderators Member Posts: 25,912
    edited November 2018

    The waiting is the worst. Everyone here understands very well what you're going through. Have you or other family members had any genetic testing done, due to your mom? This could possibly help you, regardless of the current results.

    We're glad you found us in this stressful period. We're all here for you!

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