Indentation has gotten bigger
I joined the forum about 2 years ago when I found an indentation in my right breast. I went for ultrasound and mammogram and both were negative. I went back to the breast surgeon who said she had seen tethering and this was not it. I worried still and went back a year later to have another mammogram and ultrasound and it showed up with scattered benign calcifications. I was told to follow up with any changes. I’ve been worried about it because to be honest I’ve felt pretty crummy the past year or so and every time I get in the shower I see the dent.
All day yesterday I had itchiness in that same breast and this happens on and off a lot. It’s not red or dimpled like orange peel skin so I don’t think it’s IBC. I’ve had itchiness since I found the dent so I know IBC progresses fairly quick so after 2 years it would be no mistaking it if it were. So I went to get in the shower last night and decided to check the dent and normally I would have had to raise my arm high, but this time i barely hold my arm up and it’s there and looks tethered and bigger than normal.
I called the breast oncologist that I saw before and they have me scheduled to go in Friday at 8:45. I’m so worried because it’s been 2 years and the thought that it’s been there this long and probably has spread is enough to make me crazy. Has anyone had an indentation that they were told was nothing but turned out to be breast cancer? I’ve read stories on here before of women this has happened to but can’t seem to find them now.
Please don’t tell me to stop googling because I have, but I have been searching on here for something similar. I admittedly have health anxiety and posted the other night before I even found the indent to be larger and was told that I needed to stop googling because I was giving myself health anxiety. I respect that person saying that, because she’s right, but I can’t shake the feeling that I have something that’s being missed.
Comments
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I’m a TN cancer survivor and my mom has been going through the same issues as you have. Her nipple inverted and her breast became itchy. She went to the Dr and they didn’t seem to move forward. She had implants and they said that they really couldn’t see anything. However her breast is obviously not right. She is getting some results back next week from a biopsy. My fear is she is at stage iv, for some time now, unchecked.
We live in the Detroit Michigan area. Any advice on Dr’s and next steps -
I went to see the breast oncologist’s nurse practitioner the other day and she did another breast exam and told me how there is absolutely nothing to be worried about as far as cancer goes, but she will order another mammogram to put my mind at ease. I go tomorrow for that and I’m so scared that it’s going to show something. I’ve been itching on that breast for the last 4 days more than usual. She told me that they don’t associate breast cancer with itching, contrary to popular belief. She’s still convinced that the indention is caused from my weight fluctuation in recent months but I’m not. She said the itching is probably from my connective tissue disease, (like lupus) but I’m not convinced of that either. I do have anxiety but all of this happening is real and not my anxiety. I’m scared to tears and can’t stop thinking that I’m dying and nobody will find breast cancer until it’s too late for me.
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Mandy - Not seeing your specs, I'm guessing from your initial post on this thread that for at least two years you have been told you do NOT have breast cancer. Hopefully after this next mammo tomorrow you will be able to move on.
Itching is difficult to pin point. Did you ever go see a dermatologist? That's what they do - skin, hair & nails. If you are determined to chase this, the NP suggested connective tissue disease. Make an appointment with your PCP and see what tests or specialists you need to see next.
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You’re correct. I have not been diagnosed and feel terrible for posting on here because I know so many have. I think my anxiety has a lot to do with everything because I feel like I’m more hypersensitive to my symptoms, but I do have a mixed connective tissue disease and have mild psoriasis of the scalp and face but nowhere else. I go to my rheumatologist on December 17 but when I mentioned it to her at my appointment last week she said it wouldn’t have anything to do with it unless it was lupus mastitis. I had mastitis after I had both of my girls and I know what that looks and feels like and this is definitely not it.
I think the fact that I’ve read so many places that IDC doesn’t always show up on mammogram and ultrasound is what makes me keep coming back to it every time I have a symptom in that breast. I can’t ever just chock things up to coincidence so I automatically go to it being cancer that has been missed. Like the last 4 days I’ve mainly itched around the nipple area and that’s where the dent is, on my areola,under the nipple. I do take Wellbutrin for my anxiety so it is being treated. But this breast dent has really thrown me for a loop!
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Mandy - like I mentioned - you need to see a dermatologist. Particularly since you have mild psoriasis already.
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Yes, please see a dermatologist. IBC is determined by a punch biopsy, which would be done by a dermatologist.
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Fiercer,Dr. Jacqueline Jeruss at the university of Michigan in Ann Arbor. She is the sweetest most personable Doctor! Also the leading breast surgeon there!!
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Sharing in case anyone has a similar situation to mine. I went and had a mammogram today. I was worried anyways but when the tech did my right breast and did the first view, she had to come and reposition me and that made me paranoid that they had found something. So when all of that was done she told me to wait in the waiting area back in the back and not to get dressed, I was even more worried. Then 20 minutes later, in walks another lady and says she’s taking me to ultrasound. My heart was beating out of my chest. She did the first part with me laying on my back, then asked me to lean away from her and put a wedge behind my back. After I had all I could take I said, “so I guess they saw something on my mammogram?” And she said, “oh no, honey! Your mammogram was all clear, he just wants to be extra sure.” After all of that, thank God it was all clear. I’ve decided I’m staying away from these boards unless I ever need to come back for a new problem.
I wish you all the best, and pray for you all. Thank you to everyone who offered advice and made me not feel stupid. And if you have any breast changes, by all means, get them checked. But don’t waste time worrying after you get the all clear like I have. Sometimes a dent is just that. A dent. I’ve wasted two years ridden with anxiety because I couldn’t get past the thought of what if this is something else. And guess what, it wasn’t. Again, thanks to everyone for all of the advice and support when I felt so alone!
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Earlier this year I had a strange indented line on my breast that popped up out of nowhere. It lasted a few months. I saw 2 breast surgeons who ordered ultrasounds because I had my yearly mammogram about a month before it started and it did not show up. It ended up being Mondors disease, a superficial phlebitis of the breast. The dr told me it would resolve on its own in a few months, and that’s exactly what happened. It was treated conservatively with baby aspirin, topical arnica and heating pads. Good luck to you but maybe this is what you have
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I made another post but deleted it because someone said it would be easier to keep up if I stuck to one post. So I moved it here.
I just had a clear mammogram and ultrasound of my right breast. I'm elated! But for the past week and a half I've had a lot of itching in that breast. I've had itching on and off before but not to this extreme. I mentioned it the doctor last Friday and she said itching is not associated with breast cancer. My breast doctor called me yesterday to tell me everything was clear, which I already knew, so I mentioned it to her again. She said to take Benadryl which I have, and use some hydrocortisone cream which I've been doing three times a day since this all started, and to see a dermatologist which I already knew. I called my dermatologist yesterday to get an appointment and nobody returned my call. I called again today and they're out until Monday. The hydrocortisone isn't cutting it. I'm itching like crazy! I swear every time I turn around there's something new with this breast! Anyone else had this and have any remedies for the itching until I can get in to see my dermatologist? And any idea of what could be causing it since all of my mammograms and ultrasounds have come back normal. The only difference this time was Birads 2 instead of 1 from the previous mammograms but it didn't say what was found, just benign findings
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Mandy - so I'll move my answer over here. NOTHING TO TO WITH BREAST CANCER !!! HOORAY
As for the itching - there really aren't any definitive answers. My back has been itching for 10 years. I've tried lots of different prescriptions and only heavy duty steroids work - which you don't want to take for very long. Keep up with the Benedryl or try Zyrtec. It can take at least a week for an oral medication to saturate your system.
Sit in a tub with baking soda. Smear on CeraVe or Cetafil. Put gloves on your hands so you can't scratch yourself raw.
You need to google itching in general and drop the 'breast'. There are lots of interesting things out there - and not related to breast cancer at all.
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Thank you, MinusTwo! I think I mentioned before having mild psoriasis so I wanted to talk to the dermatologist about that being a possible cause of the itchiness. I took zyrtec instead of Benadryl today and I feel like it has helped more than the Benadryl. I’ll try the baking soda and ceraV tomorrow and see how that does. My breast hasn’t itched at all this evening until I came home and changed clothes and then put the hydrocortisone cream on if. Wondering if that couldn’t be causing some type of yeast since I started putting it on there when I first started itching. Thank you for your suggestions. I’ll definitely try them tomorrow! I’ll keep everyone posted.
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I vowed to stay away but I'm at my wit's end. I put in two calls last week and one the week before to my dermatologist and they never called me back. Called again today and still haven't received a call. I have itchiness in my right breast, the one I've always had a problem with. The first week I tried hydrocortisone cream twice a day and even did oatmeal baths. Then last week I tried a yeast infection medicine on it. Nothing is helping. I know my breast doctor said they don't associate itching with breast cancer but it's just worrisome to me that it's not going away and it's even going into my armpit as of last night. My collarbone is also sore but I can't feel a swollen lymph node or anything. I'm at a loss. I'm so tired of worrying about my breast. It's been two years and it keeps giving me problems. There's no warmth and no pitting like orange peel skin. I do have the indentation which my doctor assured me is from weight fluctuation. I have pain in my ribs on the right side only which my rheumatologist says is costochondritis but it’s just all a scary thing bc could it all just be coincidence that it’s happening on the right side? My anxiety may be getting the best of me again but why can’t I get peace? I’m on Wellbutrin so that helps my anxiety, so I’m not sure what to think. I’m really scared
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Mandy,
You sound just like me. Lol. I have extreme anxiety. I have a dent in my right breast that has gotten bigger. It’s been there for years and my mammogram and ultrasound are both clear. Recently in the last four months my right breast has felt itchy and my nipple has been very sensitive. The skin looks normal though and they keep telling me I’m fine. I also have weird shooting pains in that breast. The more anxious I get the more I check it. I think it’s just anxiety and fibrocystic tissue. Maybe hormonal issues too- I’m 32. I have health anxiety like you and whenever I worry about something it gets worse. I also have fibromyalgia which I think started with trauma. Each time I go to the dr and get tested and it turns out to be fineslowly over several months I’ll stop worrying and it seems to get better. This has not gotten better yet for me though but I am still worried about it. I do have fibrocystic tissue and it’s thicker in this breast than the other one. It always has been. Do you have fibrocystic tissue?
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I had lots of pain in my breasts in my 30's. Had dense breasts and fibercystic breasts.
Once I took coffee totally out of my diet, the pain & soreness went away. A pretty easy thing to try - although you should give it a month to totally flush your system.
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Hi Mandy,
How are you now? I too have anxiety problems. I also had pain in the rib muscle, same side of the breast where I have aches up to my armpit and shoulder. I was told by my doctor that I have Costochondritis. I think you've developed costo too maybe because you're being protective of your right breast and your muscles tensed. I think that's what happened to me.I've been suffering left breast pain for 2 months now. Had lots of small cysts though.
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Hey guys! I'm still here with my dent in the right breast. I go from not thinking about it to every month when I do my self breast exam worrying that the dent looks bigger. I too, have Fibrocystic breasts and the last two months, on the last day or two on my period and a couple of days after, my right breast hurts around my indention and the inside of my breast, closest to my cleavage. Not only that, but for the last few months I've had pain around my liver and pain around my lungs. I went to my rheumatologist because I have RA and she was sending me for a pulmonary function test but I haven't been able to have it yet due to the quarantine. I'm terrified because I've read so many scary stories in the past about how some women's mammos and ultrasounds came back normal and then she found out she had stage 4 breast cancer. I've had so many symptoms that I don't know if it's my health anxiety playing everything up or there really is something to it.
I really am a perfectly normal person as much as it sounds like I'm not. Lol! This has just turned my life upside down for the past few years.
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I am not posting this to worry you. I had itching from time to time in the exact spot my tumor was found. It was not constant. It was not until after my diagnosis that I realized the itching was absolutely from the tumor. Since being treated, I have not had any more itching in the area. That being said, it definitely does not mean what you have is breast cancer. As a matter of fact, the odds are overwhelmingly in favor of another diagnosis. I just wanted you to know that yes, in some people, itching is a symptom.
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Hi Valentine! I actually still have itching from time to time but I went to the dermatologist and they diagnosed me with eczema and prescribed a cream that I use and it’s taken care of it. I should have specified that in my last comment. What worries me now is that the indentation is looking bigger, but I don’t know if it’s all in my mind or if it really is growing. Im going to call the breast doctor tomorrow and see what they say. I haven’t really worried much about it in a couple of months, but the pain the last two days and the indentation constantly in the back of my mind has me worrying again.
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Pretty unlikely anything much is going on less than six months after your clear ultrasound and mammogram.other than your health anxiety.
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I don’t even know how to reply without making myself sound crazy. When I read all of this I don’t even understand how I still feel this way after all of my clear mammograms and ultrasounds other than the fact that I’ve read quite a few posts on here where some women had to have an MRI before they even found out they had breast cancer. All because some cancers don’t show up on mammogram and ultrasound. Most of you have been on here long enough and actually went through breast cancer yourselves. Haven’t you read posts about women who have had clear tests only to have an MRI come back saying they do in fact have cancer? I’m afraid I’m one of those women and when I told the breast doctor that and I wanted an MRI, I was told they (insurance) only pay for an MRI with a palpable lump. I’ve had so many symptoms and now I have lung and liver pain, along with my indention looking bigger. Would you not still worry? My last CT that I had showed a tiny fat attenuation on my liver, which scared me because when I asked my primary care doctor if that meant I had a fatty liver she said no, that she didn’t know what it meant. I also have a cyst on my spleen that was found coincidentally on that same CT, and when my family doctor didn’t think it was a big deal, I looked it up and it said most times when someone has a cyst on their spleen it is due to an internal malignancy somewhere in the body. I never followed up though because I feel like everyone sees health anxiety on my chart and doesn’t take me seriously. And rightfully so because I feel like I’m losing my mind because I actually feel all of these things and can’t get an answer. It took me a while to get a diagnosis of lupus and rheumatoid arthritis because I kept telling my doctor what I was feeling and she just thought it was normal wear and tear from getting older. I’m embarrassed anytime I go to a new doctor because I feel like I’m labeled because they see health anxiety on my chart. As hard as it is to believe, I was a medical assistant for over 7 years, so I know how people look at someone who has this on their chart. It’s a stigma that follows people around. I don’t know how to explain to anyone that I am not this person. I was happy and never worried before all of this. Now I can’t go more than a couple of months without worrying I’m dying.
I’m sorry to go on like this, but I have no one else to talk to because my family thinks it’s all just due to my lupus and rheumatoid arthritis and that I need to quit worrying. That’s easy to say to someone when you’re not the one dealing with it.
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Mandy - we are not doctors, but I would stop with the self breast exams for now. You are making yourself crazy.
In the middle of this virus, you're unlikely to get in to see a nephrologist or a hepatologist for your "liver pain" and even less likely to get into a pulmonologist for your "lung pain" - even if you already have those specialists on your list of current docs.
With your history, you must be on anti-anxiety meds. What are you taking? Who proscribes those? I think maybe that doc should review increasing the dose. Do you not have a doc to talk to about your anxiety - psychologist or psychiatrist? That also seems to be a critical need since your family doesn't want to hear it.
It isn't 6 months since your last mammo & ULS. It's unlikely that with clear reports your PCP or OB/Gyn will order re-testing this soon. Even if you can convince them, make sure your insurance will pay for those tests this soon.
If if makes you feel better, see if your PCP can get you a Covid test. That will rule out something at least. Or if you come back positive, you'll definitely get lung scans. Hell of a way to get scans.
Hang in there girl.
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And Mandy - I would try to stop reading about breast cancer. And certainly stop reading all the thread on this site too.
At the risk of sounding rude, you should probably stop giving opinions to other scared women on BCO. Telling someone that lots of breast cancers don't show up on mammos & ULS really doesn't help.
Edited to add I just read a great article about finding help for mental health issues. You may find some of this information useful. In a normal year, apparently 22% of Americans experience an anxiety disorder.
"With or without insurance, you can start by searching on line for a federally qualified health center (FQHC) near you. ...Health Resources (hrsa.gov) makes it easy to locate these community based centers, many of which provide telehealth counseling... If you have insurance, check your insurer's website to find a therapist... Many insurers are currently waiving co-pays on telehealth visits."
"Online therapy services can be a great resource. ...Amwell has hundreds of therapists... Also MD Live and Doctor on Demand. Talkspace is an app that can be cheaper than video therapy because your dialog is conducted by text and video messaging."
and last but not least..." try an app designed to relieve anxiety, such as Deep for breathing exercises; Headspace for meditation; and MoodKit for DIY cognitive behavioral therapy"
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So, she seems to have trashed her posts and flounced away in a huff. It's so strange that some people hate being told they DON'T have cancer.
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Actually I didn't trash my posts because I hate being told I don't have cancer. I trashed them because the last thing I want to do is scare someone else as much as I'm scared at times. I didn't delete all of my posts. Just the ones that I thought would make people question their diagnosis or lack there of.
And to answer the question about therapy and medication, yes to both. I’ve tried therapy, and I’m on medication. Once Covid is all over I’ll go back to my doctor and ask her to increase my medication
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Mandyhiero
Sorry that I made that assumption, but it's what is usually the case when an OP deletes all the posts in their topic without explanation. Hope you find answers to both the physical issues and your health anxiety.
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