Expecting possible breast cancer diagnosis / Sore hip

Here for the first time. 38F.

About 2ish weeks ago, I found what felt like a thickened area of my breast. I was at a point in my cycle where boobs do things like that, so I waited until a few days after my period to ring the GP when it hadn't gone down. Saw GP on Friday, he was upfront that there's about a 4cm lump (!!!), and in his experience it's suspicious. He ran me through the list of benign lumps, and why it doesn't seem to be those. Very briefly discussed the kinds of cancer treatment there are. Said he hopes he's wrong, but my overwhelming sense from the appointment was that I'm bracing for bad news. Of course, I'm now waiting for my breast clinic appointment. 

Googling has actually comforted me somewhat: knowing what to expect at the breast clinic and if it is cancer, what that all means, what might happen logistically. What's freaking me out is that I've had on and off hip pain for years (since my teens), and it's acting up now. It's a kind of discomfort where I feel the need to 'pop' my hip a lot, and some low level pain, nothing that's ever bothered me that much though. It's the kind of thing that happens when I exercise either too much or too little, and usually lasts a week or two before going away. 

BUT, I foolishly googled "breast cancer hip pain" and now distractingly anxious that I have metastatic breast cancer, when it hasn't even been confirmed if my newfound lump is cancer or not. 

I know, of course, that no one here can tell me one way or another, but maybe some of you have experience with the waiting for diagnosis, and the fears like this that can haunt. I realise that if it is cancer, I'll have a lot of this kind of waiting, and wonder how on earth I can learn to handle it well, maybe even gracefully? Even if it were some kind of super terminal cancer, I'd feel a bit silly spending the final whatever-amount-of-time I had worrying about the technicalities of exactly how bad a diagnosis could be.

Any advice welcome. Thanks everyone :,) 

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  • Hi 

    I'm  awaiting a clinic appointment aswell for a lump I going which I thought was a bone but then the doctor said something about nodules that weren't on other breast , a two week waiting time from seeing my doctor has turned into six weeks before getting an appt which intake is COVID and possibly half the people allowed at a clinic , I've also had a sore back one side on side breast is playing up going into my neck but doctor insists this is stress . I've had problems before and was at the breast clinic just over a year ago in October and had a fibromendinia and they weren't concerned and biopsied.I've found the wait is horrible and your mind goes into overdrive and I have myself diagnosed . This is normal I try and tell myself to be positive but it is so hard . Hopefully you are not waiting too long

  • Thanks for your response [@Tezz]‍ and sharing your story. I'm so sorry to hear your wait extended to 6 weeks - that must have been so difficult! Do you know if we're allowed to bring someone with us to the breast clinic appointment?

     

     

     

  • Hi 

    the letter I got in was to travel alone too your appointment but if you needed to take someone I guess it is if you have disability or something too call them in advance , I hope this helps 

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