clc - as I said - take a deep breath. We are not doctors on these threads, but we see a LOT of people who are panicked about IBC after reading forums. Saying the internet is "full of people" who were misdiagnosed is more than a bit of exaggeration.

Are you worried about the soreness or what you're seeing as redness? For the soreness - make an appointment with your OB/Gyn. If she/he doesn't also answer your questions about redness, make an appointment with your dermatologist.

clc - is this your 1st baby?

Hi clc0302,

I am so sorry you have increased anxiety about your health. I do know some small things about breast cancer and lots of things about drugs. First, you are 33 with 3 children, one of whom is a 5 month old. Your life is full & stressful most everyday, right? It sounds like you have a very supportive husband though. Are you able to share some things you spoke about with regard to your thyroid? Do you have your TSH, T3 & T4 values which precipitated you starting on levothyroxine? Was that medication started after your last child was born or during that pregnancy? Do you mind sharing your dose? It would help to know how long you've been on it - weeks, days.

One of the things about medications that treat hypothyroidism is they can suddenly give you 'internal' energy you might have not had in awhile. People will commonly describe nervousness, irritability, a rapid heart rate, rashes and .... excessive sweating in the axillary area. You did not mention where you live but here in Northern California, we just started putting on the heat & wearing wool clothes. Those can contribute to irritation & heat rashes.

Your symptoms might be completely related to your medication and, of course, your medical anxiety. You mentioned you are already under treatment for anxiety. Are you able to share the type of treatment you are receiving? It is not unreasonable for a 33 year old woman to request a mammogram. That would be an actual task you could schedule & look forward to for definitive information.

All the best,

Jane

I'm sorry you are dealing with health anxiety. That said, there is nothing that you describe that sounds like breast cancer.

"And then I get onto other forums in the internet full of people who were misdiagnosed and it was in fact IBC"

Don't believe everything you read. IBC represents only about 1% of all breast cancers. It usually presents in quite an obvious way. So there is simply no way that the internet is full of people who were misdiagnosed. But maybe there are a handful of stories that have been repeated over and over and over on different websites, because one person read it somewhere and posted about it and someone else read that post and wrote about it somewhere else.... If you are going to use the internet for health issues, stick with reliable medical websites.

You say that both your underarms have been sore and you have a little redness/purple on both breasts (which sounds perfectly normal, actually). You are concerned about IBC. Have you looked at a list of symptoms of IBC? There are 7 or 8 common symptoms. From what you've written / described, it doesn't sound as though you have even one of the classic symptoms. And if you were to develop bilateral IBC (i.e. IBC in both breasts) at the age of 33, you would be so rare that you would be written up in medical journals all round the world.

My advice? Get off this website and all websites that talk about breast cancer. Stop poking around trying to find something wrong with your breasts - the poking around is going to cause pain and that will lead you to think something is wrong. Talk to your doctor about your anxiety and whether it might be heightened by post-partum depression or your thyroid meds. Deal with the issue you know you have - the anxiety.

Good luck.

clc0302

You haven't offended anyone here. Beesie (and MinusTwo, and several others) are our resident talk-the-panicky-newbies-off-the-ledge brigade, by giving solid, actual statistics and a good dose of common sense. It sounds like you just started the thyroid meds, so of course your body is still adjusting. And your mind - a lot of meds can cause our mental wiring to need a period of afjustment. And as someone who has (well, HAD in one case 😁) pretty large boobs, let me tell you that size plus gravity plus multiple pregnancies DO NOT mix well with going braless for any length of time. It makes them hurt! It causes skin-on-skin heat rashes! It causes spider veins and blotches! Wear a bra with at least some support for at least part of the day if you can stand it.

Hello everyone!

I hope that it’s ok that I chime in, much of what has been written I resonate with completely. Since having my first child 4 years ago my heath anxiety has been something I have struggled with. In particular this fear that I will get cancer and not be here for them. It sort of comes in waves and it’s usually brought on by a physical “symptom” that I experience.

Three weeks ago I noticed like a red lump (maybe the size of a 5c coin or maybe smaller- Australian coin lol). I convinced my GP to send me to a breast surgeon. He did a thorough exam and an ultrasound. He said that it’s a sebaceous cyst. In colour it has changed to more of a purple now and some parts of it seem to have faded. It has also flattened out a bit. They got me back for another ultrasound because they knew I was anxious and told me that it is now smaller from the first ultrasound.

They said these cysts can resolve themselves but can often take a bit of time or he can surgically remove it for me but said it was not necessary.

I guess I am also nervous about the stories where people were told it was nothing to worry about and then it turns out being IBC. My husband is the type to completely trust the drs and take on board their diagnoses, I on the other hand have like a temporary sense of relief and then eventually start questioning it again.

Sorry if this isn’t an appropriate place to post about this. Hope it’s ok.

Hi again clc0302,

It sounds like your physician is doing all the appropriate tests, particularly for inflammation of your thyroid gland. That can happen for all sorts of reasons. One of them is pregnancy. Your breast symptoms along with others you mentioned might be more likely due to recently starting levothyroxine and being only 5 months postpartum. I'd recommend you contact your doctor with your symptoms & see if he/she might want new lab work. It's a bit early but might allay your fears.

We all get medical anxiety at times. If you read here, it is a common physiological symptom before our scans, lab work or oncologist visits. However, you might try re-framing your concerns in your mind from 'what is the worst that can happen' to 'what is the most likely thing to cause what I'm feeling'. I hope you will never join our ranks here and will live a long life with your three children.

Stay well & Happy Holidays,

Jane

Jenn, sorry you find yourself here. The time to response on this site depends on who happens to be be signed in on the board at that time and whether they feel that they can answer the questions asked... we are all just patients (or former patients) who are here for our own concerns or to offer support to others going through what we've been through ourselves.

You have had several responses on your own thread. And it would be helpful if you provided more information about your situation. To make it easier for those responding to provide relevant responses, it's always best to keep your questions and information in one place. So I'd suggest sticking with your own thread:

Topic: 4 Breast Biopsies! WTH?

clc0302, it sounds as though you are doing better now at controlling where your mind goes. As you said, we have muscle and tissue and all sorts of lumps and bumps under our skin, so if things are symmetrical (or relatively symmetrical - none of our bodies are exactly the same one side vs. the other), that's good.