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ErikaS
ErikaS Member Posts: 8
edited March 2019 in Not Diagnosed But Worried

Hi all,

I had a mammogram recently and was called back for an ultrasound because the radiologist saw something in the axilar region by my armpit on one side of my breast. When he compared my mammogram to my last four previous mammograms going back to 2015 he was able to see the extra tissue on all of those mammograms and there was stability, it had remained the same size. He decided to do an ultrasound on this tissue and the ultrasound came back inconclusive. He has recommended that I do a biopsy of the area. He mentioned that this tissue could be ectopic breast tissue but he’s not really sure. He did note that the tissue is not a lymph node and all of the lymph nodes that he was able to see have a benign appearance. At first he had said that I could wait 12 months for my next mammogram but then when he looked back on my history he saw that I had Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2007, in remission since then, and that is when he said that I should have a biopsy. I did not have radiation, just chemo for the lymphoma so I am confused about why he changed his tune so much after hearing about my history. I am going out of my mind with worry about what this tissue could be. The report also states that the tissue is somewhat oval and incompletely circumscribed, which has me reeling from everything I’ve read on the Internet pointing towards cancer. Has anyone experienced anything like this and can provide some insight for me? Thanks so much

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  • Moderators
    Moderators Member Posts: 25,912
    edited February 2019

    Hi Erika, and welcome to Breastcancer.org.

    We're so very sorry that you're here and worrying, but glad you've found us. We're sure others will be by shortly to weigh in with their thoughts and advice, but we wanted to stop by to let you know we're thinking of you and sending you our best thoughts!

    Please keep us posted on how the biopsy turns out. We're all here for you!

    --The Mods

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  • ErikaS
    ErikaS Member Posts: 8
    edited February 2019

    thank you

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  • blah333
    blah333 Member Posts: 270
    edited February 2019

    He changed his tune because of your medical history! It's just a precaution...... don't think your'e doomed or feel too much alarm yet, it's just worth having a look vs. continuing to monitor it.


    I have some enlarged lymph nodes that have been swollen since my mastectomy. I googled the terms in the report (thickened cortex etc) and read about the shape and things I read online pointed more towards cancer but then it turned out to be benign. I love to gorge myself on information when worried and it's awful..... try not to think about it. You can't do anything about it anyway until you find out what's going on.

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  • MexicoHeather
    MexicoHeather Member Posts: 365
    edited February 2019

    It's encouraging that the radiologist checked the other nodes. I think that they are being cautious about it because of your past. There are benign lumps and odd shapes in breast. For suspicious areas on my left breast, they did a stereostatic biopsy and it was benign. So, keep us posted on what it was.

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  • ErikaS
    ErikaS Member Posts: 8
    edited February 2019

    thanks so much for your reply. I am just so confused about how the radiologist first gave me the option to wait a year... I can’t gauge how concerned he is. He also stated that it’s been the same size for four years. I would think that cancer cells would expand over that period of time, but i don’t really know what I’m talking about. in the report he also states that the four years of stability is mostly reassuring for a benign process but then he gives it a rating of a Rad-4.... I feel like I’ve been blindsided before when I had my Hodgkinsdiagnosis in 2007. Everybody said it was going to be nothing and then when it turned out to be cancer I was debilitated. I am so afraid of this happening again. i’m kind of going out of my mind and the only thing that’s helping me is klonopin!

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  • AliceBastable
    AliceBastable Member Posts: 3,461
    edited February 2019

    I think once you've had any cancer history, doctors get really cautious. I've had three major-ish cancers and one minor, and although they've all been treatable without chemo, I'm going from one scan to another "just to be on the safe side" these days. I'd really prefer to be seen as someone who's finished treatment (except Tamoxifen) and getting on with my life, but I guess it will take a while.

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  • ErikaS
    ErikaS Member Posts: 8
    edited March 2019

    I had my biopsy on Thursday. During the biopsy the radiologist said that he “liked what he saw” in that the tissue was mobile and the needle went through easily. I’m still quite worried as nothing is definitive till the actual results! Anyone else heard this type of talk from their radiologist??

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  • Natasha007
    Natasha007 Member Posts: 44
    edited March 2019

    Erika, did you get your results yet? Praying all is benign

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  • ErikaS
    ErikaS Member Posts: 8
    edited March 2019

    I got the results yesterday- benign!

    Thank you all for your support. Much appreciated

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  • Salamandra
    Salamandra Member Posts: 1,444
    edited March 2019

    Yay!

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  • djmammo
    djmammo Member Posts: 2,939
    edited March 2019

    ErikaS

    Do you have the path report or did they tell you what exactly this benign thing was?

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  • ErikaS
    ErikaS Member Posts: 8
    edited March 2019

    I spoke to my gynecologist, who explained that the biopsy was benign and I can go back in 12 months for my next routine mammo/ultrasound. I picked up a copy of the report from my gynecologists office. It reads:

    The final pathology results are received. The diagnosis is benign. The description includes benign breast tissue with dense stromal fibrosis and focal fibroadenomatoid changes

    Radiologist also states that the tissue has been stable since May, 2015.


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