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[CLKD]

Explain to your GP that you are working through two bereavements and don't want to risk upsetting your system at this moment in time.  Ask if there is a menopause clinic or consultant in your area and the lump should be investigated regardless of whether you can palpate it/not.  Push your point that she should offer to refer you particularly as she wants you to stop HRT - maybe it's her personal view or it may be due to Practice FUnds!

[catfreak]

Hi. Just an update. Spoke to GP today. Wants me to go in and discuss about HRT & breast lump. I asked if she was prepared to continue prescribing HRT and she said for now but not long term. She knows women can be on it for up to 10 years but not forever! She said about hot flushes coming back if off HRT  told her I can live with them but not the moods - she said they could give me something else for them  Shes given me another prescription for now but I need to go to surgery to discuss. Im not happy as by sounds of it they dont want me on it. I will tell her howI feel when I see her. xx

[CLKD]

Ask for a referral to a meno clinic/specialist?  Explain also that ladies can stay on HRT for as long as necessary, 80 years+ …….

Let us know how you get on. Don't wait until the end of this script ……...

[Dorothy]

One step at a time.  Get the lump checked out first, so you don't have to keep worrying about it.

If the GP is happy to keep prescribing HRT for up to 10 years, that gives you another few years' supply by which time a)hopefully you will be in a better place emotionally b)you will be past average menopause age, so no longer so vital to keep taking it and c)  you may have a different GP or the guidelines may have changed again!  Still be worth trying to find someone more knowledgeable in case you need further help and advice meanwhile, but at least the pressure is off short-term if you know she will keep prescribing for a few more years.

[CLKD]

Words of wisdom from Dorothy  . 

Let us know how you get on cat freak ?

[catfreak]

Thanks so much for the replies & comforting & supporting words. I will update once Ive seen GP if people dont mind - I dont want to be boring ..... x

[Dorothy]

Please do let us know - that's what the forum is here for!

[Bomber]

I have been asked to step down my HRT recently from Everol 50 patches to 1mg tablets and have found the whole process quite terrifying with extreme symptoms returning to the point where I was afraid to drive my children in the car. I'm now on 2mg tablets which should be equivalent, but I'm still really suffering. Please be cautious about how you come off HRT and also when you come off it. I went on HRT quite reluctantly because I was scared of the risks, but my symptoms were so bad in the end I had no choice. It's very easy for those not suffering in the same way to dispense 'best advice' without understanding the potential impact.

[CLKD]

So why Bomber did you change if you were feeling 'better'?  Maybe go back to your GP and ask for the regime which suited you better?

[Dancinggirl]

catfreak - you are too young to be without HRT.  I am now 60 and had a premature meno which started in my 30s - I have been on and off HRT since my late 30s. The 5-10 year rule only applies if you are in your late 50s or into your 60s - your GPs are out of date. Hope you breast lump is OK.  I would ask for a referral to a gynae or meno clinic if I were you to get specialist advice.  Do look at the NEW NICE guidelines as well - your GPs need to be brought up to speed. DG xxx

[Mary G]

Catfreak, sorry to hear about the loss of your father and father in law, you have had a very difficult time and it is a lot to face and try to come to terms with.

Would it be possible for you to ask for an ultrasound breast scan?  This is more accurate than a mammogram (although they will probably do a mammogram first) and they can tell you immediately what the lump is which will put your mind at rest.  I was told that breast cysts can come and go all the time (inflate and deflate with liquid?) or sometimes you have them for years but they are very common and very easy to identify. 

I agree that your doctor is out of date, there is no longer any time limit on taking HRT so there is no reason to give you unnecessary stress by threatening to withdraw it.  If your doctor continues to be difficult, it would be worth finding another doctor who is HRT friendly and actually knows what they are talking about.  You might have to do this privately but why not try another NHS doctor first?