I’m 47 years old and I had my mammogram and ultrasound after I found a lump last week. They did a biopsy today, so although I don’t have a definite diagnosis, the radiologist told me it very much looks like malignant lumps. They found 4. No spread to my lymph nodes, but I can’t believe there was 4!!
just in shock and devastated. Don’t know where or who to turn to. Thankfully my husband is my rock, but I also need more resources
Hi Jen
I’m so sorry you find yourself here but you’re in the right place. Every single one of us can empathise - and you can’t often say that. There’s a wealth of experience to draw from and a simple call to the nurses’ helpline (number top right) can lead you to a wealth of information and comfort. I can’t recommend it highly enough.
First of all, I would reiterate what Shi, one of the community champions, always says and that is that you do not know you have breast cancer until your consultant says so. It’s unusual for a radiologist to express an opinion but, I have to admit, they would not have said that unless they were pretty certain. So let’s assume you do have breast cancer:
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You have your husband’s support. It’s too early to ‘go public’ unless you have a very close sibling or friend so your husband is your most important resource for now. Use him.
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You say you need more resources but there are many different kinds of breast cancer (hence the biopsy) so I really would advise you not to jump the gun. Certainly, every one of us would say DO NOT USE GOOGLE. Right now, for you, Google is dangerous and frightening territory - it can only go by what you type in (eg the type of cancer), is unfiltered so may be from an unreliable source, might be irrelevant, might be outdated. It can also be unnecessarily frightening. Resist! I was looking up something about a new drug I’m interested in (I’m an old hand here) and found material about my bc dated 2014. Times have changed!!
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Your radiologist confirmed no spread to your lymph nodes. That’s an excellent sign. You might be horrified at the number of lumps but that may not be relevant to your treatment. My mother for instance had 2 different bcs, 20 years apart and unrelated. One, she had 2 small lumpectomies and nothing else, the other involved a lumpectomy, radiotherapy and hormone therapy. Me, with absolutely no genetic link to my mum’s bc, I went straight to full mastectomy and the full works!
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In the coming months, you are going to experience every emotion in the book, including boredom. You may feel very confused and frightened, you may feel numb. It’s all normal. I would strongly advise you to work on your resilience rather than clueing up too soon. Really practise meditation, mindfulness, yoga, go running, get gardening, do whatever makes you feel good for now and practise because you are going to need to be able to face things calmly. There’s nothing wrong with being a sobbing wreck but it’s more painful than, for instance, calmly doing diaphragmatic breathing. Headspace and Calm are both NHS-endorsed apps which can help. I daily use free videos on YouTube by Progressive Hypnosis and they have been with me and given me peace of mind and useable skills over the years.
I hope you find that your diagnosis is straightforward and your experience in cancer-word is manageable. I promise you, after a while, you get into the routine and then suddenly it’s all done with and most people can move on, wiser and relieved.
Remember, no Googling! Take care
Jan x
Update:
I got the pathology back. The 2 they biopsied came back as IDC , estrogen + receptor. Provisional Nottingham Grade 1-2
No lymph node involvement that they can see
And so many other words/ abbreviations.
I will have an MRI hopefully in the next week and then onto the oncologist and breast surgeon.
It is crazy how 2 weeks can change your life.
Trying to stay positive and I’m ready to get on with the next steps.
the radiologist went through the report with me, but my brain went a little foggy as he was talking. If anyone has more insight to these findings or questions I should ask at my next appointment send them my way
I’ve joined a club I would have rather not been in, but I am thankful for places like this and the support from all of you
Jen
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