Breast Cancer Now Forum

Thanks Claire and Janey.... unfortunately the bottle of wine has not been opened yet.... I have another hospital appointment tomorrow for results of tests, they think I might have Sjogrens sydrome, an autoimmune disease. So, the celebrating in full is on hold until after that appointment. I am absolutely over the moon about today but also it feels a bit of an anticlimax as I still dont have a answer as to what is causing my pain etc. Hey ho, one step at a time. It must have been a good afternoon for them at the clinic as all the women before me came out of the final consultation with beeming smiles so there were a lot of relieved women around. Thanks again. H x ... View more

Hi Sarah, Glad you managed to make it to the appointment and glad that you GP thinks it is "only" an infection. Take care and hope it sorts itself out soon. All the best. Hannah2 x ... View more

Hi everyone...... I am back and I survived the clinic (I was dreading it) The good news is that the mammogram and ultrasound were clear.....huge sigh of relief. However we now dont have an explanation as to why I am so lumpy/sore in one area. He just said to take painkillers and go back if the pain gets severe. Guess i have to do a bit of research on my own now. OMG I was not expecting to have to be a contorsionist (spelling?) for the mammogram.... lean here, bend there, reach here, twist there, bum out, chin up, hair back etc etc etc. If it hadnt been so painful, in my sore boob anyway, not in my normal one, I would have been in hysterics. OK, have to go and get something to eat, havent eaten all day! Thank you all for your support, will still be back in a bit as i need to find out some more info. Hugs H x ... View more

Hi Margaret Thank you for remembering! Thanks for your wishes, I am sure it will help whilst i am sat in the waiting room...the worst part i imagine. All positive thoughts wellcomed! Will let you know how i get on. H x ... View more

Hi Olliejoe I dont know if I have caught you before you leave....thinking of you and hope it goes ok. Be strong and dont forget to let us know how you get on. Thanks for your best wishes.....just want it over with now. Hannah2 x ... View more

Olliejoe, I am sorry that you are this worried but believe me it will be better to get the visit to the Doctors over sooner rather than later. As I have said I have my clinic appointment tomorrow and to say I am dreading it would be an understatement, not for the worries of the results but because i have a deep hatred/fear of being exposed/examined. Please believe me when i say that if i can do this anyone can. What time is your appointment? Mine is 13.45 so if it is anywhere near that time we will be going through things together. What i did when i went to my GP a few weeks ago and was being examined was to concentrate on not being there, if that makes sense, I focused on my "happy place" somewhere from my past where i was extremely happy and relaxed. I know i probably sound mental but it gave me a way of coping without freaking out. I understand what you mean about the pain, i normally have pain just before my period but just before christmas it started to be there all the time and it has gradually got worse....this needs looking at just in case. However, i did have to tell myself this over and over again in order to make the appointment in the first place. Please take care and let us know how you get on at the doctors. Thinking of you. Hannah2 x ... View more

Hi Liz I am so sorry that I havent replied properly. Thank you for your best wishes for tomorrow. I almost feel as if i have had all the stress earlier on in the week and in trying to get fast tracked so i am not doing too badly this evening. Like most people probably feel i just want to get tomorrow over and done with. i am probably dreading the undressing/being examined more than I am the possibility that I have something wrong. Mad i know but hey, our minds do play tricks. You sound like you have been through the mill yourself. Glad things were caught with the mammogram although you have given me serious cause for thought about what to do in the future. My mums cancer was caught on her mammogram and therefore caught early so this would give good peace of mind and i will deffinitely follow this up (depending on current results of course). Such peace of mind for less than £50 a year (I do know that they do not pick everything up). With regards to my GP, there is only one health centre that I can register at but there are about 5 GPs and 2 of them are female i think. It is really hard to get appointments anyway as they only work 9 to 17.15 and I work 17 miles away. Usually i dont get to see a gp, you have to book weeks in advance to see them. If you are lucky you get to see a nurse practitioner. Unfortunately I have been allocated this GP each time it has been necessary to see one, luck of the draw i guess. She was awkward over my referral to do with the possible Sjogrens and now i have "annoyed" her again over this fast track referral (not that i really care). I dont want to cause more problems at the moment so wont do anything right now but if it is a bad result tomorrow feathers will fly believe me. I am interested to see how she would behave in such a situation but actually i am hoping that i dont get a chance to find out !!!!! Anyway, thank you so much for your kind thoughts.... my appointment is at 13.45 so will have to hang around at home all morning. Might pop back here then depending how i am feeling. Thanks again Hannah2 x ... View more

Hi Olliejoe Please do go and see your GP as the others have said. I have a total aversion to going to the doctors if it is for anything more than listening to my chest/taking blood pressure. I hate anything physical/being examined (following a bad experience with a gynacologist at the age of 12 !!!!) but I forced myself to go to my GP although it did take a few weeks to do so. The reason I am saying this is that if I can do it, anyone can. I have my breast clinic appointment tomorrow and I am ok but I am more stressed about being undressed/examined than i am about what the results might be. You havent said if it is anxiety at going to the GP that is making you think twice about going , or whether you think it is something that doesnt need looking into. Either way please do go and set your mind at rest. Please let us know how you go on. Take care Hannah2 x ... View more

Hi Boots, sorry, Anne You may have seen from the discussion that i started and some of my other posts that i am in a similar position..... the waiting is awful. I was originally referred with an appointment on Feb 26th as my GP doesnt think i have an urgent case. I was happy with that until i found out it wasnt a one stop clinic and i would have to go back 2-3 weeks later for a scan and a further 1-2 weeks for results! I was not happy and had to badger my GP to fast track me.... it wasnt easy but as others have said you have to go with your instincts and push for what you need/want. My appointment is on Tuesday and the waiting is getting worse as i get closer to the appointment. The house has never been so clean, it looks like a showhouse. I am flitting between, "it will be ok, it will be fine, 9 out of 10 women are ok and my GP wasnt worried" to imagining what it will feel like if I am told the worst. Not something I want to think about but I cant get it out of my head! I am still relatively calm however. I wait to see what i am like on Tuesday! It sounds as if you have been booked for more that just a consultants appointment as you have a 2 hour appointment so hopefully that means you will have at least a scan etc done on the day. If you are unsure then why dont you give the clinic a ring. Thats how i found out that my first appointment was not for the one stop clinic (only available for those fast tracked at my hospital). I have found a lot of information on here, a lot is very daunting indeed but i have also found hope and confidence and support and tales of courage that i can only imagine having to go through. It has really really helped me to come on here and either just read what is going on with people, or to ask/answer posts. I hope it helps you as much. It also helps me to know that there are others out there who are either going through this at the moment with me or who have already been through it and moved on to cope with the next stage.(not that i want there to be women going through this i am sure you understand) Ooops, i tend to waffle too much when posting! Hope it helps you to know that we understand how you are feeling. fingers crossed that everything will be ok. Take care and stay in touch. Hannah2 x ... View more

Oh Liz, thank you for such a reply. I cant do a reply justice just now as I only checked in quickly before i dash out. I just wanted to let you know that i will reply later but thank you so much and you are in no way butting in! I will catch up with you later. Thanks Hx ... View more

Thank you Jane, I am so glad that your lump was benign and hope that all went ok with having it removed. I am so so sorry about your friend and it is so sad that she died so soon. I dont even have words to type for something so sad. It just shows what a number of people have told me, trust your instincts and insist on being seen. It is also good to hear that I am not being paranoid that just because she didnt feel a lump this pain, (which you describe really really well and the same as me..... I say like a burning ache although i do get stabbing pain every now and again), is something to be investigated and it is possible that there is something there that someone else might find, or that will show up on a scan. I know, I couldnt believe it when she said egg on their face. I was very restrained at the time, I needed her to refer me but i have got angrier and angrier since. I am now just trying to leave that behind me and focus on Tuesday. I guess it was because she felt blackmailed into doing it but if it turns out not to be good news, how will she feel then. Anyway, I am feeling positive about Tuesday and I cant tell you how much less stress i have knowing that i only have 4 days to wait. Thanks Jane and take care Hx ... View more

Ooooohhhh Mozzie, I wish I had lost weight 😉 Not due to the circumstances you understand but unfortunately it has had the opposite effect on me and i have reached for the wine and chocolate!!!! Oh dear. I will of course keep people posted. Just focusing on Tuesday now and getting the clinic over and done with. I am sure you are checking off the days on the calendar as well, 4 weeks is an eternity to wait (that was the time i was due to wait for my initial appointment). Hopefully it will pass quickly for you. Hugs and take care and hope you can sleep a little bit better now. H x ... View more

Hi Mozzie Hugs Sorry to hear that your clinic was not conclusive, but I suppose, as you said, it is good that nothing obvious was picked up on the scans. I am new to all this as well, and like you was told I didnt need an urgent referral but that turned out to mean a possible 9 week wait for results, something i wasnt willing to do, I have now fought for, and got a referral to the fasttrack clinic on Tuesday so I am grateful that I dont have to wait too much longer. I agree with you whole heartedly over your comments regarding the women on here that have supported me and each other in such an amazing way. I also understand completely about being able to "talk" and be "listened to" by people who understand totally and it can simply be that that helps us get through things. It is awful that your manager made you sit through the meeting, did she know what you had just been through? Especially as you work on an oncology ward, you would think she would understand. I am lucky in that my boss is lovely and she is so understanding, good job really as I havent been able to function properly for most of this week, mainly due to lack of sleep! Anyway, lots of hugs and positive thoughts from me and hope that things go ok in 4 weeks time. Take care of yourself Hannah2 xx ... View more

Hi Margaret I will keep my fingers crossed for you that you get a room of your own. I can understand how much you would want this, but I suppose everybody would be the same as well! I slept properly (without wine to induce it!) for the first time in ages last night. Feel so much better for it. looking on Tuesday as a positive thing. I fought for it so I am going to face it as a really positive thing to be lucky enough to have the appointment. Ooooh the trials that life throw up hey, mind you, mine is nothing (so far) compared with most of you on here. Hugs to all today and thanks so much for being here to support those of us that need it. Hannah2 x ... View more

Hi Margaret Now that I have the appointment sorted, at the moment anyway, I am ok and not too stressed about what might be. Whether I will feel the same on Tuesday or not i dont know! I think i am more stressed about being examined, proded poked, being undressed in front of people which is extremely traumatic for me (silly i know), than i am about what might or might not be found. I know what you mean, dealing with a smug GP will be a sinch compared to the stress that was taken off my shoulders today. Athough i probably wont feel like that when i have to see her again. I have the breast clinic appointment on Tuesday and then my MaxFax appointment on Wednesday so hoping for negative results for both appointments! The Max Fax clinic (maxillofacial) is due to salivary gland/ear problems, looks like i might have Sjogrens sydrome, an autoimmune disease. Not too bad to deal with at the moment but it depends how it develops. I am sorry to hear that you have to stay away during your radiotherapy....not sure what is worse, lots of travelling but you get to be at home, or staying away near the hospital. Where do you get to stay?? Do they have a special house where you get your own room or do you have to stay in hospital? or...do you have to sort your own accommodation out? Sorry for being clueless. Anyway, thanks again. Hannah2 ... View more

Hi Guys I tried to post earlier this afternoon but I think the site might have been down??? either that or my computer was having a blip. Anyway, went to the GP surgery this morning, spoke to a lovely receptionist who went off and came back to tell me that her notes were all still there from yesterday so she hadnt seen the message. ARGHHHHHH She made me an appointment for later in the morning and said she would make sure my note was passed on before the appointment. So, in I went to the appointment to an annoyed GP, i do hope she doesnt read these forums. Anyway, she said she didnt consider me high risk as no distinct lump and as I had pain. She said that the problem is if they are caught referring too many patients to the urgent clinic and it turns out not to be cancer then they end up with egg on their faces !!!!!!!?????? Personally I would rather they had egg on their faces and I have the knowledge that in fact my worrying was for nothing ....... than the opposite. However, she said she did not like being forced to refer people, in fact she fought against it but she did say she could see i was really stressed and understood about my appointments next week to my other clinic. Added to that my work problems (not having any after May at the moment) so she said that it was up to me !!!!!!!!??????? DERRRR what did she think i was going to say???? Of course i was going to ask her to change the referral, thats why i was there. So, she reluctantly has referred me. She said she is sure it will turn out to be nothing. Not sure how she is going to be with me if that is the case but i suppose that is something i will deal with for the sake of a bit of sanity now. My appointment is on Tuesday 12th.......... what a relief. Anne, you are so right, that was my next approach if she woudnt change my referral, in fact it was on the note left for her so i dont know if that affected her decision. It would not have been easy to pay for but as you say, peace of mind has no price. Margret, that sounds like such a whirlwind of diagnosis and treatment. Your head must have been all over the place. I hope that your chemo has not been too traumatic and wish you all the best for your radiotherapy. My Mum didnt have chemo but did have radiotherapy, it made her very tired but she coped amazingly well. I guess all the travelling everyday doesnt help with the tiredness. Anyway, all the best to everyone. I am sure i will be back before Tuesday ....... being able to post here has really really helped, it is hard to get others to understand. Thank you all for your support, Hannah2 x ... View more

Hi Louise, dont have much confidence in the other consultant......wrong tests ordered, most important blood tests missed off orders, cancelled my appointments 3 times to go on holiday etc etc etc. Usually seen by registrar not consultant and on one occasion students that scared me as they got things totally wrong and got told off in front of me.....not fun! Anyhoo, been to GP surgery....... she hadnt even picked up her messages from yesterday....not just mine!!!! Have an appointment with her at 11.30 so will see what happens then. Not sure if she will change appt though. Fingers crossed. H x ... View more

Thanks Margaret, knowing other people would do the same does help. I am just so stressed at the moment, what I havent added is that I have another consultants appointment next week for test results as they think that i have an autoimmune syndromme. This just adds to it all, one thing after another hey!? fingers crossed for tomorrow. Hannah2 x ... View more

Well, I am not a happy bunny at the moment. I telephoned my GP surgery today as I was told to do so and was told that i couldnt speak to my GP but they would leave a note on her peg (????) and she would phone me back. That was at 10am. At 2pm I hadnt heard anything so phoned again. Got a receptionist that obviously couldnt care less, she told me the notes were still on her peg but that she (GP) was around all day so would ring me before the end of the day. Guess what.............................. NO PHONECALL to say I am miffed is an understatement. I didnt sleep much last night and just couldnt function at work today. I am not going into work in the morning, i am going to go to the surgery and push to see the GP. If i cant i will ask to wait at the end of surgery to see her. ARGHHHHHHHH. I have a feeling she will not fasttrack me and i will be wasting my time but i cant function like this, the idea of a really long wait to get tests/results is just hanging over me...... its that not knowing feeling that is getting to me. I will let you know how i get on tomorrow. Hannah x ... View more

Oh, that is brilliant news. Must be such a relief. Glad it worked out ok for you. Take care Hannah2 x ... View more