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Discussion
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I haven’t told a ton of people in my life because I don’t know for sure that anything is really wrong, but boy howdy did my ultrasound on Monday look….complicated (and very different from the ultrasound I had in January!).
I’m only 29, I don’t have any significant family history of breast cancer, and I feel like I’m stuck in a dinghy in the middle of the ocean. How sore am I going to be tomorrow after the biopsy? How long do pathology results take to come back? If I do get bad news how do I tell people? If I don’t get bad news what the hell else could this be???
If any of you have stories of similar experiences to share I’d appreciate them. I feel like I’m the only person I know who’s been through this.
Edit: thank you all so much for your kind words. I’ve been so comforted <3 I’m gonna get through this, I promise.
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Friends, I have a breast biopsy tomorrow and I’m scared
updated 1 year, 9 months ago
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Not the same…but I had to wait four days for test results to find out if my baby I was pregnant with was going to live or die. I went to work and carried on as normal as possible. That’s what we are supposed to do. I had responsibilities after all.
I lost the pregnancy- I was shattered. To go on stoic was the worst possible thing I could have done for myself and my mental health.
I want you to do whatever you need to do – get high, get drunk, go for runs, binge watch movies for days on end….whatever the hell you have to do to numb your racing mind. Or do exactly what you are doing now, find women to talk to online, in person. What you need may change from day to day. Take any responsibility you can off your shoulders. And sleep, sleep, sleep. Ambien is good, medical grade pot is even better. Hibernate if you need. Go out shopping if you need. Ask for something from the doctor to help with anxiety tomorrow. If they are hesitant – tell them a 5 count is sufficient but you need it.
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Expect soreness at the site and probably the rib area. Check with the doc about doing tylenol and ibuprofen in 4 hour stints. Use cold packs, not frozen, where it hurts for like 20 minutes at a time.
Whatever happens, you’re going to be ok.
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One thing I always try to keep forefront in my brain when going through medical tests is
*Knowledge is Power*
I need the answers from the tests to determine my next step. The test will give me the answers.
By viewing it this way the test itself becomes a powerful tool to understand my body and what it currently needs.
It creates a choice for me to honor my body and gather the information I need. The test itself and any diagnosis that comes from that is the power I need to take care of myself.
I go on line… find out what to expect during the test… and that calms my need to know.
So I guess I approach a medical test like a ritual that will reveal the next steps I need to take.
Good luck!!!!
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Hey, mammographer here. There are a couple different kind of biopsies and I’m not sure which you’re having but I’ll answer what I know. The one my facility does the most is a needle biopsy where the breast is numbed and then a large needle is inserted. There’s a large popping sound as the needle removes core biopsy tissue samples. It’s an in and out procedure with most patients experiencing very little pain. The patient is told not to do any heavy lifting for a few days but can otherwise return to normal.
Excisional biopsies are different, that’s an actual surgery. An incision is made and the entire suspected mass is removed. This is a little more involved but tends to have a quick recovery period.
Some women have said they had pain for a long time after, most don’t. Many women completely forget which side the biopsy was and ask me if I can tell.
A small metal clip about the size of a grain of rice is placed inside the breast to mark where the biopsy was. These are usually fun shapes like breast cancer ribbons and bells.
Turn around time for pathology results is about a week for us but could differ by facility.
If you have more questions I’ll try to answer.
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Stay centered.
Cancer is a bugger (I have stage 4) but can be handled. Whatever comes of it.
Get to /r/cancer if you feel alone. Tell at least one person you know, as well.
If it is cancer, you are catching it early. 6 months is quick in the cancer world.
Breathe.
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I had to also get a breast biopsy at 29 due to a lump. They numbed the site and all I felt was some pressure. It freaked me out at the time too but it was just some fiberous tissue. The recovery wasn’t bad just a bit sore for a bit. I hope it is good news for you!
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So I just had a biopsy a couple weeks ago. It’s nerve-racking and I totally understand your unease. I took my favorite stuffie with me.
The actual procedure was much easier than I thought it would be. The nurse and radiologist sat with me first and walked me through the whole procedure. I was especially nervous about the local anesthetic because I tend to be immune. They calmed my fears and assured me they won’t let me be in pain. They injected lidocaine at increasing depths until they had numbed the whole area. They gave me extra and had more on hand in case it was needed due to my history. I was able to watch what they were doing on the ultrasound. We did have some trouble with the needles because my tissue is so dense-it bent the needle (tough tits 😂)and they had to work really hard to get the needles deep enough. The device they use to take the sample sounds like a piercing gun, or staple gun if that helps. It’s a bit jarring.. Most likely they will put a little tag in to mark where they did the biopsy in case there are questions in the future. It’s the size of a grain of rice. If they do, they will do a low-pressure mammogram to check the positioning before you leave. The soreness afterwards wasn’t as bad as I expected. Just be sure to follow the after care instructions.
I got my pathology two days later (I was able to read the actual lab report in the patient portal before my follow-up appointment) Unfortunately my biopsy didn’t give the answers we needed, so they are now going to scoop out the lemon-sized “suspicious mass” and thoroughly analyze its weirdness. I hope you get the answers you need! Just remember to be kind to yourself. It affects you mentally and emotionally as much as it does physically. Maybe more.
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I just went through this a few weeks ago. It was a time of high anxiety. The procedure itself didn’t hurt, and my mass is DEEP (it’s still in there, being removed in August). They numbed the area, I only felt a little something going in, but once the instrument was in, I didn’t feel anything. I could kind of feel them taking the samples, but it wasn’t pain, just a sensation. I had a very good team and my doctor called me with the results 4 days later. You will be OK whatever the outcome. ♡
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My sister had to go through this. Not gonna lie, it was painful. You will be sore after. I would demand pain relief, because they won’t always offer it without promoting. You know how the medical establishment is. Men get numbed for the teensiest little ouchie. Us? They ignore even severe pain if you aren’t a man.
But you will be okay. Hopefully, they will find that you just have some benign growths. Good luck!
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Hi, darling sister, I’m with you! I am 33 and I have to have a cervical biopsy. They keep calling me to schedule and I’m too afraid to call them back. 😕 My mom had cervical cancer when she was in her late 20s. She found out when she was pregnant with me. The first doctor told her she’d have to choose between my life and hers. Luckily she found a better doctor.
I’m sure you will be sore, but think of it this way: some physical discomfort is much better than the fear and anxiety leading up to it.
🐖 here is a cute pig emoji to make you smile
ETA: my mom is on my ass constantly about getting it scheduled. I have a genuine goal of calling tomorrow because I know she’s afraid for me and I want to give her peace of mind
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Last year I (31F at the time) had the kind of biopsy where they inserted a long flexible needle starting on the outside of my breast (near my armpit) and snaked it all the way across to the other side where the mass is (guided by ultrasound). There was the ultrasound tech, a doc, and the doc in training who actually performed the procedure. I felt no pain, just slight pressure as the needle entered. After taking the samples with a king of spring loaded gun thing, they told me they were going to tag it with a miniscule titanium tag that would not set off any metal detectors. I like to tell people I’m a cyborg now.
The doc in training worked as the other doc narrated. The entire thing. It actually cracked me up because she kept saying “give her nice big puffs of the med… yup lots of puffs here, we’re gonna take the sample this way and the patient will be very cranky if you don’t, lots more puffs, that’s it…” I was glad to hear they did not skimp on the numbing agent!
I was very nervous going in but honestly the fear was worse than the procedure. They gave me a cold pack to stick in my bra over the injection site after and it was a godsend. I reused it until I was no longer sore. There was also bruising on my breast but that faded with time. I went back to work the next day. The nurse told me up front a 24-36 hour timeframe for hearing back and got straight to the point when she did call with the results (benign!).
Looking back it’s so much better knowing it’s benign instead of doing watchful waiting with ultrasound every 6 months. The knowledge is worth it. Fingers crossed that yours goes as smoothly as mine, and please speak up if you feel pain – there is absolutely something they can do about it. More puffs!
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I had breast biopsies nearly 2 years back. It was already obvious I had breast cancer, but they needed samples from all around my breast to see how far it had spread and what type of chemo it would best respond to.
There were 3 nurses in the room with me and one stroked my shoulders and the others stroked my legs and feet, all being so sweet and kind I bawled my eyes out, which had them worried. I had to explain that I was just not used to people being kind and caring about me, and couldn’t stop the tears flow as something unblocked inside me.
Thanks to having stimulation to my extremities I barely felt any pain – (the brain can’t register every sensation at the one time,) – so was fine with no anaesthetic.
I had no significant pain later that day, and none at all on the following days. It took 3 days to get the results. It turned out I had stage 4 cancer but it was of the easiest type to treat. I only had one chemo before an urgently scheduled mastectomy because the chemo nearly killed me, (it’s very unusual for it to affect someone that badly,) had a different chemo and a hormone agonist treatment for the next year. Thorough tests a few weeks ago showed no trace of any cancer, so I consider myself completely cured.
I hope you are lucky with your results and also end up enjoying life to the full. I suggest, if you can, taking someone in with you while the biopsies are done to rub your feet. It helps.
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I haven’t gone through this, but wanted to give you some support. I can’t imagine what you are going through, these others have already given you some great advice.
Know that people care, know that there is a support system here to help you any way we can. You got this shit. -
Finger’s crossed all is okay ❤️ We are here to support you in any way we can.
I’ve not been through this myself, but I do know that statistically speaking every woman will have a breast cancer scare once throughout her life. More people get false positive results during initial tests than actual positives.
So for now focus on that: the odd of the news being “everything is okay” is higher than the odds of the news being scary. And even if the news should turn out to be scary, there are people here and in your life ready to guide you through that scary journey towards recovery.
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Ah, I had one. Mine was a needle test. I had local anaesthetic and wasn’t very sore at all. A tad. And it depends on the team they have. Mine told my right away it looked like a fatty lump. But the official results came back a fortnight later. That was in Britain. May be different where you are. And don’t worry if they won’t tell you the results, they are not technically allowed to do that.
