Hi, I’ve been referred to breast clinic as a non-urgent case after having a lump since nov, it’s taken 3 trips to the doc’s about the lump before the last one thought it was time it got checked out.
Do I get to chat to a doctor first & then have a scan or could he check me over & say nothing else needs doing?
I’m worried they won’t scan me & then I’ll still feel like something isn’t right. On the plus side I’ve been having a lot of pain coming from my back round under my armpit & into my breast. the doctor didn’t really ask me about the pain once she had felt my breast so not sure if she felt the lump was enough on it’s own or that the pain is nothing to worry about.
sorry to ask loads of questions, I have till March 24th to wait to be seen x
Breast Cancer Care publish an informative booklet entitled ‘Referral to a Breast Clinic’ it includes information about the types of tests, etc you will have at the appointment.
I had a no lump referral last year (thought I had a swelling but it was nothing), so here’s what happened to me.
The nurse gets you and takes you into the examination room. The doctor will do an examination first, asking you why you’re there, although he/she will already have your GP notes. Explain the lump, even show her where it is, and tell her all about the pain. When I went in a year ago (no tumour then), I had pain in my general chest area kind of against the chest wall. The doc examined that as well as doing the manual lump checking and thought it might be a mild infection. Women can get what’s called “non specific breast pain” all their lives, so she was thinking about that because she couldn’t find lumps.
Then you should get the mammogram. You’ve got a lump so they should do a mammogram. They can’t tell if it’s a cyst if they don’t look. They might need to take several plates to get a good picture and they’ll probably do both boobs for comparison. If they see enough from that to be happy you might not need an ultrasound, but if you have dense breasts or there is something they can’t see properly because of where it is, you would then get an ultrasound. However, you might not get that the same day, you might be called back again. That’s what happened to me last year. I had another mammogram on the ultrasound day too. If, on mammogram or ultrasound day, they don’t see anything that bothers them, you probably won’t see the Doc again. They just send you off and send a letter to your GP saying they’re happy. If they see something and want to biopsy it, that would usually be the same day. The nurse would get you from the mammogram or ultrasound room and take you back to the Doc for a chat before they do the biopsy.
However it plays out, when you talk to the Doc at the start make sure he/she knows you are concerned and that you would really appreciate as much info before you leave as possible.
Carole, thank you for your reply.
I know i’m more than likely building myself up at bit over this appointment, & at the end of the day what will be will be, & if the doctor is happy then i should be happy!!!