Breast cancer diagnosis

Hi, I'm new to this forum and not sure if I'm looking for answers or just somewhere to put down my feelings.

Around 3 weeks ago I found a lump in my left breast so my GP made an urgent appointment at the One Stop Breast Clinic. This was for Monday last week. The doctor did an examination - feeling and a mini ultrasound (?) and said he couldn't see any cancer and then something about fibrocystic and fatty tissue. I then had a mammogram, ultrasound and a biopsy on the lump. Today I received a letter from him outlining the results of the mammogram and the ultrasound. I know googling is the worst thing to do, but I did and it seems that these results show that it is cancer - the lump (U5) and an impression of architectural distortion (M5/T5). He then said that he'll review me at the breast clinic after discussing my case with the Breast Multi-disciplinary Team.

I think I'm reeling from the fact that I've been sent my results like this without any explanation; I assumed that they would call me back and explain everything to me then.

I suppose I'm just wondering whether anyone else has been given 'bad' results in this way.

  • Hi Debs10 and a warm welcome to our forum, 

    You have done the right thing in coming here and writing down your feelings. It's bound to be a bit of a confusing time for you at the moment and as you said, googling is often not recommended as it will make you worry unnecessarily and it's best for you not to try and interpret results but to ask your medical team instead what these mean as it can all be a bit complicated and jargony. I completely understand why you are unhappy that you have been sent results without any explanation and you definitely deserve to find out what is going on so I hope that you can talk to someone very soon. In the meantime, resist the urge if you can to try and figure things out yourself by looking things up online as this will not give you any satisfactory or reliable answers. Waiting for results is not easy and it can take a while for these to be reviewed and to have a definite diagnosis.

    I am keeping everything crossed for you that you get clarity soon - while you are waiting, have a look at our helpful tips to help you cope while waiting for important news. 

    Best wishes, 

    Lucie, Cancer Chat Moderator

  • Hi Lucie

    Thanks for your response. Of course you’re right, googling and worrying doesn’t solve anything. I had a call from the hospital on Friday and now have an appointment for Tuesday so hopefully I’ll have a better idea of how bad the situation is and how to deal with it. 

  • Hi Debs10.  Waiting for results is the worst possible thing isn't it.  It is good that you have an appointment for Tuesday.  If it is cancer, once you know what treatment plan you will be having it does get easier to deal with.  I have never heard of lump (U5) or the M5/T5 my biopsy results never said anything like that, maybe it is the new technology that they have now.  Anyway I will be thinking of you on Tuesday so please let me know how you get on.  Big hugs.

    Lee x

  • Hi Leelaloo

    Thanks for such a supportive response. I haven’t had the actual biopsy results yet. The U5 is the ultrasound and M5/T5 is from the mammogram. From what I can gather, they’re graded 1 to 5 with 1 being completely benign and 5 being cancer. I suppose the biopsy will show what stage it is. Anyway, I should know more on Tuesday and will report back x

  • Hi Leelaloo.

    Just a quick update. Things went well yesterday. The cancer was confirmed, which was expected, but it's stage two and treatable which is a massive relief. Apparently, there's only one lump but the ultrasound measured it at 2cm and the mammogram measured it at 4cm so I need to have a MRI to give a better idea of what size it actually is.The hope is that as long as it's no more than 4cm I might get away with a lumpectomy so fingers crossed for that!

    Thank you again for your support - it really does mean a lot x

  • Hi  Debs.  I am sorry that the lump is actually cancer but it is good news that it is treatable and curable.  I had stage 3, grade 2 invasive lobular breast cancer and tumor was 4cm.  I had a lumpectomy, then chemo then radiotherapy.  I can feel that you are actually relieved to hear and once you get your treatment plan to just get going and get rid of the horrible cancer.  Have you got a date for MRI yet, more waiting sucks.  Did they mention anything about chemo or are they waiting for MRI?  I am so glad that you updated me on here.  I find the support on here brilliant and it certainly helps me.  So I am here to support you.  Big hugs.

    Lee x

  • Hi Lee,

    Yes, I'm definitely relieved that it's treatable; I was fearing the worst before my appointment.

    I don't have a date yet for the MRI - I think it will either be next week or the week after - and I've a feeling that then they will decide whether it will be chemo and/or radiotherapy, How did you find the chemo? I've heard so many people say how awful they felt that I'm not looking forward to it, although if it gets rid of the cancer then it'll be worth it.

    D x