Hi,

I honestly don't have much advice to give you, but I am in a similar place and it's really scary. I just got a 2ww referral on Monday for a lump and changing shape of my right breast, but the GP warned me that in our area (Northern Ireland) it could be 3 weeks til I get a letter and another 3 until I'm seen. The idea of waiting for 6 weeks is freaking me out! 

I also have 2 kids, but mine are a bit older and giving all the teenage joys life can throw at you! I remember how tiring little ones can be though, and trying to stay patient with them when you're stressed out can be really tough. Have you managed to talk to anyone? A call to a friend or one of the nurses on the helpline here? I honestly found reading some of the posts where people said they had a lump that just didn't show up on ultrasound or x-ray, or posts where people found out it was a benign tumour or cyst helped calm me loads. Waiting sucks, but knowing that at least I'm in the system now is better than the nightmare it was to get a GP appointment in the first place (apparently a lump isn't an emergency and they are only seeing emergency patients at the moment - otherwise it's a 2 week wait)!

Hope you are able to find a way to ease your worries and it doesn't take too long for an appointment to come through for you x

Thank you for the reply. I know from reading here there's alot more beingn conclusions than sinister snd a lot seem to be caught early when they do? I was ok till I read the referral notes by the nurse.  sure I can move this lump side to side slightly. It's also smooth/ smooth edges and 3mm so hanging onto these positives till I can go to the clinic!

I've got my sister to come along with me. Feel free to carry on chatting x

Absolutely! I keep trying to hang onto the positives too. Mine is mobile but irregular in shape. My biggest worry is that the breast tissue around it seems to be disappearing and my breast shrinking. I haven't seen anyone else post about a shrinking breast and the GP seemed to gloss over it - but also just seemed to be trying to keep a very neutral expression and told me to just wait and see what the scan shows. I'm hoping it's just a clogged milk duct or something since it's mobile!

I'm sure seeing the notes was really stressful, but maybe putting key words down can help get an appointment sooner? I don't know for certain, but if it works then hopefully you can find answers soon!

After 2 sleepless nights I'm really just trying to be ultra upbeat and think only positive thoughts. I'm 40, exercise several times a week, am otherwise healthy and if it turns out to be nothing I don't want to have spent up to 6 weeks stressing out if I can at all help it!! Definitely easier said than done though!!

I'm 39 and was just reading about peri menopause and the effect on fibroadenomas, you know the benign lumps that move. it could well be similar. surely they refer you earlier than 6 weeks if they thought you needed it? statistically we should be ok but I get what you mean exactly! 

I haven't read that much about peri-menopause, but fibroadenomas seem quite common and hopefully that's what this is. The doc said it was supposed to be 2 weeks but to call her if I didn't hear anything before Christmas since there have been issues. With Stormont not running the whole health service over here is shocking. I know one health trust was in the news at the start of the year because some patients were waiting 20weeks with a suspected cancer diagnosis! Thankfully that issue has been resolved, but wait times are still longer than they should be. Once I get my appointment date I will call and say I will take any cancellations. I'm off over Christmas and New year so easy to go in anytime.

Did they say kn the GP office what it is likely to be? like a cyst etc? 

No, she was pretty quiet. I had never met her before. She just felt it and then said that any new lumps in patients over 30 got a red flag referral. She did say that the referral doesn't mean it's cancer, just that it should be scanned. It was kinda weird actually!

Did your GP give much of an opinion?

Hiya does anyone else's lump seem to dissapear when they lay down x