I’m 41 and attended the breast clinic on Friday with bleeding from the nipple with a lump under it. Completely shocked they found calcifications and lump under my arm (enlarged lymph nodes in guessing?). They told me at that appointment before any biopsy results that its highly likely I have breast cancer. I’m still waiting on the biopsy results to understand what it is.
I’ve made the mistake of googling my symptoms and guessed I have inflammatory BC and now I’m beside myself thinking the worst .
I’ve still got a few days til my results are in any tips on keeping myself sane? Anyone been through anything similar?
Any help or advice appreciated x
Thanks to all hear who provide help and support its an amazing service x
I’m sorry to hear you have this diagnosis. My experience was the opposite: clear mammogram, two tiny new freckles on my nipple. Gp made a referral just in case and breast consultant said I had nothing to worry about. The biopsy on the freckles said otherwise. I had 4 diagnoses in 4 weeks!
It’s too late to advise you not to use Dr Google but DO NOT GOOGLE AGAIN. Google has no filters, can;t relate to your specific symptoms and we always latch on to the bad stuff. I, like you, learnt the hard way! You cannot self-diagnose with breast cancer. There are so many variables and each diagnosis is unique, which means each treatment regimen is unique.
You are going to experience a LOT of waiting. My advice is to focus on things to build up your resilience. Some people go running, some bake, some binge on chocolate and boxed sets. There’s yoga, meditation, mindfulness. The more you practise how to reduce your anxiety and stress levels, the better position you’ll be in to handle all the changes in diagnosis and the delays for treatment. I’m a great fan of Progrssive Hypnosis’s free videos on YouTube. I use one daily after my oral chemo and it really helps. Have a browse and try one out. Basically, it’s breathing technique, focus and sleep., nothing alarming.
I do hope you get a clear diagnosis soon. You’ve learnt a painful lesson. Personally, I’ve always wanted the minimum information because I know I’ll get anxious but some people need to know everything to feel in control. Ask yourself where you fit and stick to that. All the best,
I myself is on the waiting game. I am also 41 yo. Let me share to you what happened to me. I did my screening mammo last year, it was negative but my left nipple had bloody discharge after compression, so they advised me to have diagnostic mammo and ultrasound which I kept holding off because I was diagnosed with stage 1 cervical cancer. Thank God it was caught early, I had hysterectomy on my birthday before christmas and got the best christmas gift, pathology came back clear. A few months later, a friend was diagnosed with BC stage 2 and got me thinking my mammo that i held off so I decided to schedule it. They found nothing that could have caused my bloody nipple discharge but radiologist found a lump under my axilla and it is located deep almost to the chest wall. He even said that there is possible chest wall invasion. He scored it BIRADS 5 - highly suggestive of malignancy. On the same day we did the core needle biopsy and then the waiting. Waiting is the hardest part. I just kept myself busy with work, played with my kids, watched some tv and most importantly I prayed, I prayed a lot. I prayed for peace of mind, it didn’t matter what the outcome of the biopsy is as long as I have peace of mind and I did find that peace of mind. Few days later, result came, it was NEGATIVE. Yeyyyyyy… right? But then, after 2 days, my OBGYN called to tell me that the radiologist was in doubt of the result and wanted to do another biopsy. My heart sunked, my body was chilling, I was so devastated. I saw a surgeon the next day. I needed to do MRI and another biopsy. When she spoke to me, it sounded like she was sure it was cancer and she just wanted to check what kind by doing MRI and biopsy. I hope to prove them wrong but if it’s really meant to be, it is meant to be. Things happen for a reason, we may not know for what reason yet but for sure there is a reason. I am scheduled for another biopsy 2 weeks from now which seems like I will be waiting forever but I just kept myself distracted with work and still praying that I will get the same result as the first biopsy.
I understand - waiting for results is the worst. You dread and see yourself getting bad news, as well as googling the scariest outcomes. I have ended up really anxious. To help to deal with it keep talking to loved ones and support networks, look after yourself and make yourself limit time googling cancer, survival statistics etc. Try to slow things down and live in each moment. Say to yourself- Today is a good day. I haven’t had bad news yet. I am enjoying the sun, chocolate, a walk, good TV, a joke with workmates or my kids. I hope your next appointment goes well. You are stronger than you think.