So it started Thursday night, laying in bed watching TV and my husband had a feel of my boob and said he could feel a lump, I wasn’t to concerned has I can be quite lumpy sometimes in the breast. My husband is not a worrier but he was concerned so I rang the doctors Friday morning and got an appointment straightaway just to be on the safe side. The doctor gave me an examination on my left breast and could also feel the lump and asked if my breast on the left had always been bigger than the right I suppose it has but I’ve never noticed I started to panic a little as my areola looked a little more swollen than on the right side and my nipple pointing downwards, I noticed last year my areola had a long dent but put it down to a vein running through as it disappears when the get cold and scrunchy but to be safe she has got me booked for a mammogram and ultrasound within two weeks.
First thing I did after my appointment was Google and I really wish I hadn’t. I’ve gone from having suspected breast cancer to I’m now convinced I’m grade 4 spread throughout my whole Body and my times up. I know it’s crazy and stupid to think this way but I do get health anxiety (really bad) and do make it worse for myself.
Since my examination, I’ve had constant left boob pain in the area where the lump is and pain down my left arm and fingers.
For years I’ve suffered with back pain and take regular pain relief I’m only 39 yo this drives me crazy the last six months. I’ve had issues on my right hip and put it down to possible arthritis it runs heavily through my family , I’m absolutely petrified that I have breast cancer that it’s spread after Googling !! and the strong painkillers have masked my pain I know I’m being erratic and I can’t do anything until me tests but I’m sending my self crazy with worry. I Google to try and reassure myself but end up having all the symptoms to what I’m reading and I just keep repeating this process thinking I may get a different response.
I know I’ve babbled on and Google can be helpful at times but my point is if your like me and worry about everything DONT do it, it will suck you in and make your worry worse. I’m not asking to be diagnosed and I’m aware every case is different but just wanted to write down how I feel as this forum as really helped me the last few days, and reading people’s experiences good and bad and still have the time and patience to reply to worriers like me has been really heartwarming to read.
Many thanks
Laura the out of control erratic worrier
So sorry you are in this situation and it’s understandable you will worry.
First of all, I don’t know the stats like some of the lovely ladies on here, but most breast changes turn out to be something other that cancer, and most lumps that turn out to be cancer CAN be completely treated.
I did exactly the same as you when I found a lump - mine did turn out to be cancer (bilateral just to test me further and I had a double mastectomy no recon last July).
During the diagnosis process my consultant did warn me that Google would lead me down rabbit holes so not to presume anything until I heard it from him (oh, and not to believe the Daily Mail either ).
Often information is out of date and simply doesn’t relate to your individual diagnosis should you ever have one, fingers crossed you won’t.
I also had pain in my lump but I definitely think it was from me poking and prodding it!
Please call the Breast Cancer Now nurses and talk through your thoughts. They were immensely helpful for me when I called so devastated and upset.
Hi lynn thank you for your fast reply how kind of you, I’m sorry to hear about your diagnosis I had to get google out again as i was unsure what bilateral meant and wow you was tested! I hope you have good support around you. I have my husband who is my absolute rock, I don’t really want to talk to family about it until I know for sure as I don’t want to worry them, my sister in law was diagnosed last year with BC she as been through the mill and back it’s been an upsetting time. I’m really finding this forum comforting but if I start going off the rails I’ll give the breast cancer now nurse a call and thank you again Lynn for your reply it means a lot knowing people listen
ps I haven’t googled since bilateral meaning
Ahhh - yes I should have explained bilateral. Yes, I found one lump, they spotted some cells which turned out to be pre-cancerous on both sides and after mastectomies, there were two tiny tumours among the cells in the non-lump side.
So yes, diagnosis can change in the early days. My husband was also a gem throughout - I literally talked to no-one except him and the kids (22 and 12) for months and he told everyone to leave me alone until after all was done
BUT, I’m almost a year from diagnosis and I absolutely love where I am now. It’s hard to see an end when you are in the midst of appointments, but it does come to an end and, in many cases, certainly mine, life is just damn wonderful afterwards and I appreciate everything a bit more.
Hope you managed to get through to the nurses, and fingers crossed all is fine.
We’re all here for you xxx
Hi @lauzflows - are you me ?! I swear I had myself expired, buried and my family argueing over my will in the space of a week after my gp refered me !
That was last July -
My gp Terrified me saying she thought I had inflammatory breast cancer … I googled and literally didn’t sleep for the three weeks … thank fully I found BCN before I panicked myself into an early grave … in my case I did have breast cancer , but not the type my gp believed . I’ve had a single mastectomy , chemo and I’m currently receiving targeted therapy infusions as I have her2 positive cancer …
First off … step away from Dr Google ! Google has some wonderful resources but also has a lot of outdated and also inaccurate information … stick to trusted sites like this one or Macmillan …
It’s worth remembering that something like 8 out ten breast lumps are benign … most women who have a referal to the breast clinic will have a benign condition……
we are lucky to live in a time when breast cancer treatments have advanced so much that if you are one of the ones who receive a diagnosis of cancer , please don’t think it means the worst , we hear so many horror stories about public figures who have died of breast cancer but we never hear about the thousands and thousands of people who are still here , surviving and thriving x I have several friends who have had breast cancer , two were diagnosed twenty years ago and 15 years ago . Still here , still well and enjoying life x
However until you are told you definitely have BC , please don’t frighten yourself by googling away … I know it’s easier said than done and I know the waiting and not knowing is awful … but you’ve found the right place and we are here for you . Arty1
Couldn’t disagree more. Knowlege is power and just failing to research what may/may not be happening to our bodies will not in any sense make the worry go away. It is simply not reasonable to assume that if you hadn’t used Google you would be worry free and completely unaware of the words breast cancer.
The answer surely is that everybody must do what works best for their temperament. If you are given to flights of fantasy and can’t control your imagination then you are probably right and it is better to leave the research alone. But most of us take comfort in knowing what is going on and exploring the many options open to us if the diagnosis is cancer. After all, if you didn’t do research you wouldn’t have found this website.
I have always felt that when embarking on a cancer journey, we are working in partnership with our medical teams. The more we know the less they have to explain and the more we can understand and explore the different options. I also know of many patients who have picked up, through their research, on areas their doctor may have overlooked.
So, my view for myself and those of a similar pragmatic temperament is do your homework ladies and use knowlege to push yourself onwards to a good outcome. Remaining in the dark rarely helps and I always felt it beneficial to feel I was in control of the cancer journey and not just waiting for the latest edict from my medical team. But if you are like Laura who describes herself as ‘an out of control erratic worrier,’ do what is best for you.
@teddy271 - Being armed with information is very powerful and can help us advocate for ourselves , but … a lot of sources on Google are out of date , inaccurate or don’t apply to the U.K. . It can also be terrifying to see some of the outdated information on Google if you suffer from health anxiety .
I never advise anyone not to research but instead as per my post above , to use trusted and reliable sources where you are guaranteed to get up to date and accurate information without terrifying yourself x
Yes, I get what you are saying but you did seem to me to be advocating a ‘stay in the dark’ approach. I am strongly of the view that the days of ‘doctor knows best’ are done and we stand a much better chance of having a positive outcome if we arm ourselves with the best information available. Yes, it is true that there is always information online that is now out of date but the ladies on this forum are a savvy lot and well able to distinguish between the ‘old hat’ and current thinking. This idea (and I appreciate that its not what you are saying) that we remain in the dark about what is happening to our body until the doctor tells us what to think, is surely taking us back to the 1950’s! It is up to each of us to use our common sense and not imagine we have bubonic plague because we have a boil on our bum!
@teddy271 - no you misread my post , I said step away from Google , not … “stay in the dark” I’m an ex nurse and wanted to know as much about my diagnosis as possible … However I researched from trusted sources after discovering g Google to not always be reliable … Google is a great tool but it can also be very unhelpful . I tell anyone is suffering from anxiety to avoid Google … all it does is inflame the fear
I’m all for being informed, but there is a huge difference between stage 1 ER+ HER- and stage 4 triple negative, for example.
So until you have a diagnosis, looking at every possible scenario would send most people down a rabbit hole.
I hope this lady does not get a cancer diagnosis, but if she does, at least then she has a team she can work with and do research based on facts not suppositions.
The highly intelligent brave ladies who post in this forum are extremely unlikely to muddle up a Stage 1 and a Stage 4 diagnosis. They are savvy and determined - not daft as a brush!
First off … step away from Dr Google ! Google has some wonderful resources but also has a lot of outdated and also inaccurate information … stick to trusted sites like this one or Macmillan
It may surprise you, but many people, myself included, come to this forum having simply found a lump without any diagnosis and have no idea what any of the acronyms mean.
The lovely lady who posted actually said she needed to check out the meaning of bilateral when I explained my diagnosis, so it’s probably wise not to assume what anyone knows.
And this lady has not had a diagnosis yet. Anyway, I’m done arguing the point.
@teddy271 - You’ve literally quoted me saying stick to trusted sites … that’s not stay in the dark !
I don’t have the time or energy to keep responding to you as you are clearly being antagonistic .
To google effectively, you have to be able to know what you are googling. If at the ‘its a lump’ stage, the only info you could get is maybe what percentages of lumps are benign. Lauzflows knows already she has health anxiety, and it is clear that Teddy271 doesn’t. So while Teddy271, would likely go as far as chaces of a lump being cancer, Lauzflows has self-giagnosed to grade 4 terminal. You are 2 different people, so what is best for one is different for another. There are no blanket rules on how to proceed. @lauzflows, I hope knowing yourself, you are able to rationalise that it’s just your mind working overtime and can step away and find some peace amongst the termoil. The best approach through the journey is step by step with no jumping ahead. Nobody knows the future until the results are in, not even the Dr’s.
Err, not getting your point, I’m afraid. I was not talking about acronyms or anything similar. Only two days ago I posted asking about a particular drug that I had never heard of.
My posts have been debating the value/non-value of research including Google. The post you refer to is an example of research so I am not sure what point you are trying to make to me.
Hi again I’ve read through all the above replies, I understand that Google is great for some and even myself if I do end up having a diagnosis of BC and I can in fact research the type I may become more knowledgeable, but for now and the unknown it’s not healthy for me I do have rational moments sometimes didn’t mean to cause such a debate, I’ve now got an appointment next Wednesday afternoon for a ultrasound, I asked if a mammogram also and they said only if they think I need one is this normal? I thought they did both incase either of the exams miss something. Teddy I may well be daft as a brush just that when I google I’m presenting some of the same symptoms as a stage 4 diagnosis this is worrying me some folk cope well with these things I don’t.
They may do both depending on what they see , ultrasounds can be more accurate with younger women . Ask at your appointment if they don’t offer one to explain why .
and said he could feel a lump, I wasn’t to concerned has I can be quite lumpy sometimes in the breast. My husband is not a worrier but he was concerned so I rang the doctors Friday morning and got an appointment straightaway just to be on the safe side. The doctor gave me an examination on my left breast and could also feel the lump and asked if my breast on the left had always been bigger than the right I suppose it has but I’ve never noticed I started to panic a little as my areola looked a little more swollen than on the right side and my nipple pointing downwards, I noticed last year my areola had a long dent but put it down to a vein running through as it disappears when the get cold and scrunchy but to be safe she has got me booked for a mammogram and ultrasound within two weeks.
as i was unsure what bilateral meant and wow you was tested! I hope you have good support around you. I have my husband who is my absolute rock, I don’t really want to talk to family about it until I know for sure as I don’t want to worry them, my sister in law was diagnosed last year with BC she as been through the mill and back it’s been an upsetting time. I’m really finding this forum comforting but if I start going off the rails I’ll give the breast cancer now nurse a call and thank you again Lynn for your reply it means a lot knowing people listen 
Arty1 
didn’t mean to cause such a debate, I’ve now got an appointment next Wednesday afternoon for a ultrasound, I asked if a mammogram also and they said only if they think I need one is this normal? I thought they did both incase either of the exams miss something. Teddy I may well be daft as a brush just that when I google I’m presenting some of the same symptoms as a stage 4 diagnosis this is worrying me some folk cope well with these things I don’t.