Need to vent, 17 day countdown.

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Strawberrybirds
Strawberrybirds Member Posts: 5
edited October 2020 in Not Diagnosed But Worried

Hi everyone! Thank you for this forum! I'm waiting for my Ultrasound biopsy procedure on Oct 1st and in such the panic stage since last Thursday. Thursday I spoke to my NP about return of inflation and pain since the US/Mammogram one week earlier. She put in a referral for a breast surgen, “early, just in case it was needed".

This weekend I tried to distract myself with a few family outings. Family includes my husband and two daughters, ages 14 & 8. It was a really fun weekend. It's Monday, doing the distance learning w my kiddos, and I'm out of work. My husband and mom are very supportive. He's been treating me like a princess since this began. I haven't told my friends and don't think I will until I have the biopsy results. But at night, I just can't sleep. So I think I need to vent on how long this testing process is taking.

My backstory, So in July I found a funny lump on the front of my front breast. I let it pass thinking it would go away. Maybe just a pimple or something. Then, In early August I refitted my bras after washing them. I had a lot of pain and figured I tightened them too much, so after a few days I loosened them. I still had pain, a lump again a week later, and now redness. I saw my NP on Aug 20. She said a tight bra couldn't do what she was looking at. She gave me antibiotics. Had a mammogram and US on Sept 10.

The pain was gone and añito biotic seems done by sept 10. Afterward The procedure, the radiologist said she wanted to do a biopsy...the findings say: “asymmetric thickened of the skin and subareolar region of the right breast, asymmetric thickened right axillary lymph node. Recommend US-guided right subareolar region and right axillary lymph node biopsy". I was pretty strong up until then. I crumbled and cried in the office. I was a little better mentally by the next day.

Except, I had tons of pain in the lump area. More pain than before. More inflammation and redness than before. It lasted 7 days before it started going away. I spoke to my NP. she set me up with more antibiotics, in case it didn't get better. She also sent a STAT referral for a breast surgen,"just in case". Since the US I've placed a hot towel on my breast. I took ibuprofen 2x a day for almost the 7 days. The area was red, really lumpy, painful, almost bruised, just a little dimply. Everything is about the same. Just no sharp pain.

It is really very hard to wait. 10 more days for the biopsy. Then 7ish days for the results. I did the whole google search thing before I learned that wasn't the best thing for me. But hey, I'm just trying to figure out what is going on since these appointments seem like forever away. I think I have myself convinced I have inflammatory breast cancer and dread the time it's taking to get any answers. So that's where I am today. In my head, I know I can't change what is happening to my boob and it's at the top of my mind most all of the time.

Thanks for sharing your stories. I can relate to so many of you. Thanks for reading mine



Comments

  • Strawberrybirds
    Strawberrybirds Member Posts: 5
    edited October 2020

    wow, I guess I wrote too much. So on oct 1,the radiologist did just another mammogram. He said it looked like an infection that was treated and is going away. Nothing there to biopsy. Follow up mamo in 3 months. Tonight, the same area is swollen and tender again. I'm so scared. I have a phone appointment with my regular doctoron the 19th. why won't this go away...

  • LaVue
    LaVue Member Posts: 94
    edited October 2020

    It it could be because the infection wasn't properly treated the first time. From my understanding the fact that you feel pain is a good sign since breast cancer rarely hurts. And an infection hurts like a b****.

    I also had a breast infection. That is the reason I went to the doctor. If it wasn't for the breast infection the cancer would not have been found early enough.

    I'm not telling you this to scare you. I had two distinct lumps. One was the infection and the other was cancer.

    Your situation seems different.

    I only mention my situation to say that my radiologist said the breast surgeon would continue to give me antibiotics until the breast infection was completely gone. Your doctor didn't seem to do that in your case. Perhaps you need more antibiotics?

    To me it just seems likely that it's an infection that's returning because antibiotics wouldn't decrease the size of a cancerous lump.

  • AliceBastable
    AliceBastable Member Posts: 3,461
    edited October 2020

    Breast cancer symptoms do not come and go.

  • MinusTwo
    MinusTwo Member Posts: 16,634
    edited October 2020

    Strawberry - perhaps it needs a different antibiotic or a longer course of treatment. Alice is right. Why don't you try seeing your GYN instead of an NP.

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