Waiting for breast clinic appointment

Have I got breast cancer? Appointments and waiting for test results
1

Hi, been lurking on these forums for a few weeks now, and come to the point where I need to share my story with other to stop myself over thinking it.

Im 31, found a pea sized lump on right side of my right breast on 22nd November. Left it a couple of days to see if it stayed or went and it stayed so made a GP appointment. She examined me and couldn’t feel the lump herself but felt it when I showed her where it was. She said she wasn’t concerned and would see me in 2 weeks, if the lump was still there she’d refer me to breast clinic. 

2 weeks passed and I went back to the same GP, lump still there no change, she examined the lump again and said she thinks it feels cystic, and as per her plan referred me to breast clinic but said she would do it non-urgent as she wasn’t too concerned.

Its now 4 weeks since the 2nd appointment on 11th December and I haven’t heard anything. The lump in still there, it’s not the easiest the feel and I have to feel quite deep to palpate it but it’s definitely a change on my breast and it feels different to my left breast.

im trying not to think things through too much but everywhere I turn BC seems to pop into my life unexpectedly since I’ve been waiting. It’s like when you buy a new car and then see that type of car all the time. 

 

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Hiyer,

 

Yes, that ‘popping into your head’ thing is an interesting thing isn’t it. Once you have something that is of concern to you, you start to spot signs to it everywhere, all those things that were still there a few weeks before but become fully focused to your anxious mind. I’m not sure how long a non-urgent appointment would take, as it depends on your local clinic and how busy their service currently is. Its very encouraging that the referral is non-urgent, but I can understand why you are still feeling very concerned. You have absolutely done the right thing in raising the issue with your GP and you seem very breast aware. If its a change, its a change, chances are high that its a benign change but as you know any change should be checked and it sounds like this is needing a mammo or ultrasound as is seated very deep in tissue.

 

breastcancernow.org/about-breast-cancer/want-to-know-about-breast-cancer/being-referred-to-a-breast-clinic-by-your-gp

 

It might be worth just dropping a line to your GP and check that the referral has gone through? It wouldn’t be unheard of for communication to get ‘lost along the way’ between a GP and hopsital department.