I would like to know if anyone has experienced ovarian cysts since being diagnosed.
I was diagnosed with bc exactly one year ago. It was grade 2 er+ pr+ and her2 neg. I had a lumpectomy, radiotherapy. I have been on Tamoxifen since last Feb and am also on Zoladex because I am 43
( premenopausal) and had an intermediate oncotype.
Today I had an ultrasound scan and was told by the sonographer that I have three simple cysts. She said they are not big but didn’t give me exact measurements. She seemed to think that the gynaecologist might want to monitor with a follow up ultrasound in 4- 6 months.
I would really like to know if anyone has had any similar experiences in being. It would be good to know what follow up steps other people had
I was diagnosed with an ovarian cyst (a big one too) shortly after my first chemo cycle. I’m HR+ (everything else negative).
I’ve since had ultrasounds (including internal), CT scans and MRIs and spoken to gynaecology.
I’m waiting on some blood tests (I had a stomach infection when I had them back just after cycle 1, I had cycle 5 last week, which made them squiffed) so they want to be sure it’s benign, it’s borderline and they appear that way but they want to see if they were just off (my lovely surgeon decided to tell me about the cyst, at the time calling it a growth and making me think I had secondary cancer, while I was in a&e with suspected colitis, I was distraught).
I repeated them last week and have an appointment with gynaecology in late January (around the time I’ll be having my mastectomy) to discuss surgery for the cyst (hopefully meaning it’s not urgent and also I can have the surgery a bit further down the line, maybe after radiotherapy).
It sucks, but I’ve probably had it longer than the cancer and I have always had dreadful periods so kind of looking forward to getting it removed (will be getting my right ovary removed too).
Thanks for replying. I am sorry that you have had so much going on. What an awful way for your doctor to speak to you about the cyst - you must have been so panicked.
I am starting to feel stressed about it. The sonographer seemed to think that my cysts were nothing to worry about but because being on Zoladex makes me post menopausal she said that they might want to monitor them. I guess I need to wait back to hear from the gynaecologist about next steps. I just hate the idea of more waiting. I think it’s particularly unsettling because it is almost a year to the day since my diagnosis and I was also told then that there was probably nothing to worry about.
It has also made me feel like BC and health is going to keep on getting in the way of me being able to focus on the things that other people my age take for granted like work and my children. I am not always so negative but this has really got to me.
I was completely devastated when I heard (was literally on a gurney in an a&e cubicle where I’d been waiting hours, it was probably not even a five minute phone call, he just told me I had something else, and left me and my mother bawling in the cubicle. I’ve never forgiven him for that), it just felt like more was piling on top of me and I already feel like I’ve been ritually assaulted since diagnosis (I was only diagnosed in July, and by the sounds of it haven’t been through as much as you yet).
I’ve been on chemotherapy since August so am pretty battered and probably not up to surgery for the cyst at the moment but I’d have it out now if they offered. I’m so sick of the whole thing.
A lot of what has been explained to me has been so complicated and overwhelming it’s given me a mindset of “oh just cut it out/off already and leave me be!”
I’m a year old than you with historically dreadful periods (suspected endometriosis, though not clinically diagnosed with it) and I’m pretty sure the chemotherapy has destroyed whatever nonsense was going on downstairs as I’ve not had a period since before my first chemo (thank goodness, that was my worst fear to have to deal with chemo AND my dreadful periods simultaneously), to quote Blazing Saddles “everything below the waist is kaput”. I don’t know if you were planning on more children (as you say you already have them) so don’t obviously know if you’re grieving that or just all this overwhelming bc stuff. It’s so hard waiting.
I found the beginning of this process was so busy and rushed and now everything is going at the speed of moss, I totally appreciate how hard it is waiting. I would recommend talking to your bc/Macmillan nurse (mine is fabulous).
It’s reassuring the sonographer thinks all the cysts look simple and hopefully the gynae team will explain a bit better what comes next. I was hope for just monitoring of mine, but the bugger is just too big apparently and knowing it’s there psychologically freaks me out a bit. I still don’t know the results of the second blood tests but the fact they’re fine waiting to late January is reassuring it’s not urgent.
I hope gynae gets in contact with you soon, maybe ask your bc/Macmillan nurse or your oncologist to chase up what’s happening so you’re not in the dark? Mine will often do this, she’s fabulous.
I hope you speak to someone who can reassure you soon.