Very delayed breast referral in Scotland. What happens next?

Hi,

I'm looking for some experiences from people living in Scotland and next steps on my referral. I'm very anxious about the situation and not knowing what's next is making it worse.

I always had hormonal cysts. Where I'm from I've used to get checked every year with ultrasound. But when I moved to Scotland this stopped.

A few months ago I started noticing a new lump, very similar to my previous cysts, painful and swollen before my period, mobile and fluid like. But it didn't go away. Pain became worse and worse and since I have very tiny breasts and can see it popping out when I lay down.

Got assessed by my GP and she said she made an urgent referral and that I should be seen by the breast clinic in 2 weeks. Instead I've got a mammogram appointment after 6 weeks!!!

While I waited for 6 weeks, I got a large green bruise where my lump is.

Today I've got the mammogram and found out there are 2 types of urgent referrals: with and without suspect of cancer. Mine was done without suspect of cancer hence the waiting time!!!

The technician didn't say anything about how the scan worked, but she said I will be called to see the breast surgery (but not meaning I will have surgery she said), but this in the "next weeks".

I really don't understand why this is taking so long. And what does "next weeks" mean?

Any similar experiences from people in Scotland?

To make things more complicated, I'm planning to move soon to England, but I'd like to be done with this first.

 

Thank you all

xx 

  • Hello Natalia22

    I'm sorry to hear that you've recently needed to access the breast health services in Scotland. it's understandable that you may be feeling anxious about the wait that you've had. 

    We also know from many posts that we've had over the last year here on the forum that waiting times for breast clinic services in Scotland have been quite lengthy in some areas due to backlogs. Add to that the miscommunication about your referral, and I can understand your frustration. 

    It may be worth giving the breast clinic a call and asking when you are likely to hear about an appointment. They will be best placed to let you know how long it will take for your scan results to be reviewed and how long the clinic waiting list is. 

    I do hope that you don't have to wait too long for the results and that the team is able to give you some reassurance and help improve things for you soon. 

    Best wishes, 
    Jenn
    Cancer Chat moderator