Breast total duct excision ~I hope this helps someone

My first post  but not my first visit to this forum. It helped me a lot when I was going through my treatment and I want to return that support.

Xmas 2018 I noticed clear , almost blister water type fluid, coming from my right breast nipple when I took my bra off after a long day at work, more so when squeezed lightly. I’m 50 years old and wondered if it was ‘the change’ although I don’t think I’m in it or if I am I’m very lucky as zero symptoms! 

So off to the GP I go for reassurance that it’s ‘an age thing’ Unfortunately she couldn’t reassure me and referred me for a consultation with a breast specialist. 2 weeks later I see a lovely consultant and his junior training team, again expecting to be told ‘ it’s age’ so when he said there was blood in the sample he took and it was only one duct so I needed further tests. 2 weeks of worry again , mammogram and ultrasound both showed as clear however they wanted to do the full duct excision to exclude cancer and understand what was causing it. I think I’m a tough cookie but I was rocked I hadn’t told my family or friends ,just my partner and work colleagues,as they would be in spin. I decided to tell them and they were upset I didn’t share sooner but each to their own it was my way of dealing with the unknown. My 24 son was the worst affected and I hated to see him worry. 

So I had the operation on 14th March 2019. The medical and nursing team were amazing , they really do care. Post op I was suprised quite how swollen and bruised my breast was and to be honest the first week was pretty uncomfortable. I’m a DD cup and found wearing a none wired bra 24/7 for the first week helped a lot with holding the breast in a comfortable position whilst it healed. The sterile strips were easily removed on day 8 but my nipple was scabbed and very sore on one side so I put good old germaline on sterile lint squares taped it and wore Breast pads for a few days and it healed very well.

I had follow up results appointment yesterday (15 days after op) and was relieved to be assured it was nothing of concern, inflammation and debris which caused the bloody fluid, no follow up appointments and it’s healing super well just some bio oil recommended to help with the scarring. I sat in the car post appointment wondering if I had overreacted , been a drama queen but not knowing and wanting that reassurance is tough for anyone. I promised myself whatever the outcome I would post on here to hopefully help someone and to make a donation to cancer research which is my next task. Wishing anyone waiting for results or dealing with results much love I’m thinking of you

Parents
  • Hi pickles,

    Yes your post has just helped me thank you.

    I had bloody discharge and had total breast duct removal on July 7th. I get my results on the 4th july but presume no news is good news. 

    I was very surprised how bruised I was and I am still a little sore and tingly around the nipple area plus still bruised under my breast. Keeping a soft bra on 24 hours a day definitely helps.

    Will post again when I know any results. Good luck to anyone waiting with me x

Reply
  • Hi pickles,

    Yes your post has just helped me thank you.

    I had bloody discharge and had total breast duct removal on July 7th. I get my results on the 4th july but presume no news is good news. 

    I was very surprised how bruised I was and I am still a little sore and tingly around the nipple area plus still bruised under my breast. Keeping a soft bra on 24 hours a day definitely helps.

    Will post again when I know any results. Good luck to anyone waiting with me x

Children
  • Hello please can someone help me I am going nuts at this waiting game. I have had a bleeding discharge from nipple for 10 weeks now I saw breast specialist who took a sample and week later 2nd aug was told sample contained bad cells and in order to tell if benign or cancerous I needed a total duct excision which will remove all ducts and then they will test this. It's now the 18th Aug and still have not received a surgery date and when rang appt line told me consultant was on leave which has slowed appt down they advised to expect appt mid Sept but the waiting and worry is really driving me nuts I am off work coz it's all I can think about. I feel like if I knew a date I can start planning in my head. Has anyone been through this is so what was your wait time do you have a pre op if so how long before op do you have this. Also how long do you wait for results after surgery. Thanks 

  • Hi Francis .. everyone’s case is unique and different areas have varying practise but it seems waiting is common and usual .. but of course difficult .  There are some time scale guidelines .. I undersarnd they are  62 days from point of concern to a first treatment or 31 days form point of diagnoses to first treatment .. so they should honour these within the situation .. if  someone is on leave there are usually other members of staff doing equivalent roles so could be worth phoning to speak to someone else .. I recently had to switch consultant to keep within a time frame .. I would certainly make enquires .

  •  

    Hi Sam,

    Welcome to the forum,

    You are at one of the worst stages of your cancer journey. Knowing that something might be amiss, but unable to confirm that this is so until you can confirm it with surgery, is really frustrating. Most of us wait 2-3 weeks for this type of surgery, but, as AMP257 said, protocols vary throughout the country and doctors have to have holidays too.

    It is up to you whether you wait until mid September and get the consultant who usually does these operations, or whether you opt for a locum, who may not have the same experience. Are you best being off work at the moment? Perhaps time might go by a little quicker if you were occupied by work. We usually advise people waiting for results to keep themselves as busy as possible.

    You will find that your emotions are all over the place at present and, may find yourself crying a lot. This is not at all unusual. I have had 2 bouts of breast cancer in the past 10 years and, on both occasions only had to wait a week for my pathology results, but this can be up to 3 weeks in some hospitals. I had a pre-med on both occasions, but there is nothing untoward with this. This just ensures that your surgeon knows of any problems which might arise during surgery.

    I do hope that you get an appointment soon. Please let us know when it comes through. We are always here for you.

    Kind regards,

    Jolamine xx

  •  

    Hi Francesca,

    Welcome to the forum.

    I hope that by now you have had your results and, that they bore good news.

    If you can, please update us on where you're at. We are always here for you.

    Kind regards,

    Jolamine xx

     

  • Just heard from the hospital and my surgery date is next Tuesday 27th Aug OMG 

  •  

    Hi Sam,

    Fantastic - not long to wait now. You'll find all of this so much easier once you know what you are dealing with.

    Here's hoping that it all goes well and that you don't have too long to wait before you get your results.

    Kind regards,

    Jolamine xx

     

  • Thank you yes least I can prepare myself for the surgery then just wait for results like you say fingers crossed the wait for results isn't too long x

  •  

    Hi Sam,

    Don't forget to ask your surgeon how long it is likely to be before you get your results. This gives you a time scale to go by. Many don't do this and are just left in limbo until the results come through.

    Kind regards,

    Jolamine xx

  • Hi Francesca,

    i had a total duct excision yesterday and, like you, am surprised by so much swelling and bruising. How long did it take for yours to go down?

    cheers

  • Hi, 

    It look about  4 to 6 weeks for all the bruising to go. My nipple is still quite sore when touched but only a little. I got the all clear which is the best feeling ever. I found the waiting for news really hard and just took a day at a time, tried to keep busy and kept thinking no news is good news which it was for me. 

    It is a hard journey and I think we all over think every little thing and Google although great has it's draw backs. This site is great and just the odd person commenting and supporting really helps. 

    I hope this helps you and will be thinking of you