Waiting for what feels like an eternity for biopsy results

I had a lymph node biopsy 2 and a half weeks ago, and the tissue sample has since been sent to another lab to be examined by a lymphoma specialist. I've been advised that this could potentially take another 2-3 weeks. Everything I read online says that if the result is clear it's generally returned quite quickly, whereas that's not the case for samples that indicate cancer because they have to undergo a lot of further testing to determine stage etc. The more time that goes on, the more anxious I'm getting. I've tried to forget about it and just continue with life as normal but it's so hard :( 

Parents
  • Hello, just wanted to pop in and say that you can't read anything into the amount of time it takes to get the results back. There is a huge back log at the minute with tests, depending on where you are in the country, and I've heard of people waiting many weeks only to be told something is benign. So don't stress about this side of things. 

    Whether the results are good or bad, they take the same amount of time to come through. 

    There is also a school of thought that 'no news means good news', that if it's taking a while to get the results back - it's a positive sign. Unfortunately, this is likewise incorrect. It's just impossible to know.

    So please don't let this eat you up - you're under enough stress as things stand without letting things that aren't true pile on top of you as well.

    As a heads up, I was given a 6-8 week wait for my results, whereas pre-covid it was a 4 week wait in my area. If that gives any indication of how impacted results have become.

Reply
  • Hello, just wanted to pop in and say that you can't read anything into the amount of time it takes to get the results back. There is a huge back log at the minute with tests, depending on where you are in the country, and I've heard of people waiting many weeks only to be told something is benign. So don't stress about this side of things. 

    Whether the results are good or bad, they take the same amount of time to come through. 

    There is also a school of thought that 'no news means good news', that if it's taking a while to get the results back - it's a positive sign. Unfortunately, this is likewise incorrect. It's just impossible to know.

    So please don't let this eat you up - you're under enough stress as things stand without letting things that aren't true pile on top of you as well.

    As a heads up, I was given a 6-8 week wait for my results, whereas pre-covid it was a 4 week wait in my area. If that gives any indication of how impacted results have become.

Children
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