Hi I am 30, 2 weeks ago I noticed a green discharge coming from my right breast, I went to doctors after the weekend and she said she would refer me to the breast clinic but not as urgent as she couldn’t find any lumps and thought it may be duct ectasia, we could rule out most of the other things as I had been producing breast milk a few months earlier, so had a mri to check for a tumour in my brain and also hormone checks, these all came back normal, so I was put on tablets to dry up the milk. So anyway that night when I came home I was laying on my side, and when I ran my hand over my right breast I could feel a hard lump right at the top of the breast near the armpit, I checked the other side and although there was a similar thing the one on the right was about twice the size. I tried to put it out my mind as I thought I would be getting my appointment at breast clinic pretty soon. Then I got the letter a few days ago stating my appointment on the 20th of feb. So I decided it best to go back to doctor and have them erasure me about this lump I could feel. The doctor had a look and said it was probably just muscle I was feeling and that it was a bit thickened and he wasn’t concerned. I should have been relieved but after all I had read I didn’t think there was a muscle that u could feel there, so I went onto one of these ask a doctor sites, I explained my symptoms and about the what the doctor had said, and he advices me to get a second opinion as he thought it very unlikely I would be able to feel any muscle in my breast, which is kinda what I thought. Now I am back to being worried again, I don’t have really any pain, a little discomfort under my armpit around the thickening every now and again, but not bad enough to take any tablets or anything for it. I now have to wait 4 weeks on my appointment, and as much as I am trying to keep occupied at the back of my mind I can’t shift the fear, I am so so scared, have any of you had similar symptoms? Thanks in advance for any reply it’s just nice to know I am not the only one going through this horrible wait
Dear scottatan
Welcome to the BCC forum. I am sure other members will soon be along to offer you some support.
You might also find it helpful to talk things over with one of our Helpliners. They can offer practical information as well as emotional support. The opening times are 9-5 on weekdays and 10-2 on Saturdays. The number is 0808 800 6000
Very best wishes
Janet
BCC Moderator
Hi scottatan,
The waiting is undoubtedly the hardest part for people. It just gives you time to think too much!
Firstly, with the green discharge, although I haven’t had this myself, a good friend of mine did. She was seen by the breast clinic and it was nothing of concern.
As for the lump in your armpit, it’s definitely worth getting it checked. Your age is very much on your side though, so it would be very unlikely to be cancer. In addition, because you’ve had tablets to dry up your milk, I have a suspicion that this could be the cause?
Try not to worry until you know what you’re dealing with. But, to help, it might be worth going back to your GP and asking them for an urgent referral due to the lump? If you stress that it is worrying you, I would hope they’d be understanding and get a quicker referral.
Hope this helps a little. Chin up, and see what you can do to get an earlier appointment.
Take care, love Mel. xxx
Hi again,
If you want to try and get some reassurance, it might be worth calling the BCC Helpline. They’re very good (though it can take a while to get through sometimes!)
They should be able to offer some advice… as for the waiting, you’ll see hundreds of threads on here about the dreaded waiting! It can be very difficult, but my advice would be to try to keep yourself and your mind occupied with things that you enjoy, and engage your brain. Lots of people have different ways, but for me, my brain needs to be totally occupied, so I tend to do things that make me have to concentrate or think, such as puzzles (cryptic crosswords are good for me) or quizzes etc.
Each to their own of course, but I’d really encourage you to try and keep the grey matter busy!
Take care, love Mel. xx