Lumps, pain, family history - not sure what to think!

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pash16
pash16 Member Posts: 1
edited March 2021 in Not Diagnosed But Worried

I'm hopping on here to see if anyone else has had a similar experience to me and can offer advice or share their outcome.

I've been experiencing what I can explain as a "nagging" pain in the side of my right breast since the end of November/beginning of December. It isn't a constant continuous pain but I definitely feel it daily and sometimes for the majority of the day.

Fast forward to the beginning of February and the pain has gotten worse but is not debilitating. I'd been experiencing shooting pains in a different location on my breast and began to do research. I did a self exam and there is a lump/area of thickening where I'm feeling the shooting pain and a lump where I feel the "nagging" pain. Pain is not felt when pressing on the lumps and occurs on its own.

Saw a new GP who referred me to get a diagnostic mammogram and ultrasound at a local imaging center. Ultrasound was quick and the tech didn't ask where I was feeling the lumps and pain - when I offered up the information she didn't go over the spots. Instead she did the 4 quadrants and sent me on my way to mammo. Radiologist looked at ultrasound and mammo and said there's nothing for me to worry about and they didn't see anything that could be causing the pain.

Mammogram report says BIRADS 2, scattered areas of fibroglandular tissue and calcifications in both breasts. Keep in mind these images were not taken and looked at in a breast clinic and the techs/radiologist were not aware of my family history.

I made an appointment to see a breast surgeon due to my uncertainty after the brevity of the ultrasound. I have a strong family history of breast and ovarian cancer in both sides of my family. Both sides of my family have BRCA2 mutations at multiple different variants that I haven't been tested for yet.

Overall I feel that something just isn't right and would love to hear stories from other ladies who may have experienced a similar situation or can advise any questions I should ask when I meet with the breast surgeon on Tuesday. Thank you for taking the time to read my long post!

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  • Beesie
    Beesie Member Posts: 12,240
    edited March 2021

    pash, welcome to the site. Sorry that no one had responded sooner.

    Since you can feel the lump and it wasn't picked up on imaging, it's good that you are seeing the breast specialist. I can't think of anything specific to ask, but you should explain what happened with the ultrasound and mammogram. In my experience, usually a diagnostic mammogram is done first, and then the ultrasound focuses on any areas of concern from the mammogram, and/or any palpable lumps. It is certainly odd that the tech didn't spend more time on the area where you feel the lump.

    Since there are known BRCA2 mutations on both sides of your family, you might want to ask for a referral to a genetic counsellor. Genetic testing for you will be simpler than most because they only need to check for the specific mutations that have already been found in your family. If you are found to be BRCA2 positive, you will go into a high risk screening program, which would keep you from encountering the type of situation you are in now.

    Good luck on Tuesday - I hope the appointment goes well. Let us know how it goes!

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  • LivinLife
    LivinLife Member Posts: 1,332
    edited March 2021

    Good self-care on your part making an appointment with a breast surgeon and esp. with your family history! I'm glad that is right around the corner too. Sounds like it's been a frustrating experience thus far figuring out what's going on. I hope you get some answers soon!

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