Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => Other Health Discussion => Topic started by: CindyC on August 20, 2019, 12:35:13 AM
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Hi everyone :)
I've come to this wonderful Forum over the last few years and found oodles of help on my menopause journey. From was I going crazy with my symptoms, (seemed to have every one in the book!) to pretty much telling my Doctor which HRT I'd like to go on lol.....which was Femoston Conti 1/5.
Honestly, I felt like a new person, well, back to a ‘normal' me. It meant as a single person working full time I could actually cope with my job again. For the past 4 1/2 yrs everything has been hunky dory, until a couple of weeks ago when I got a phone call after a routine mammogram for further investigation.
For some reason I feel I want to share my story.....just in case it helps someone else....and probably a bit of ‘get it off my chest' too! Lol
I'm 58 now, so this was my 5th one.
First time - all good
Second - recall for ultrasound, dense breast tissue as never had kids.
Third - 6 mths after starting HRT, all good
Fourth - all good, but manual check by Doctor recommended, all good.
This one - recall for further investigation :-\
So yesterday spent the day in Royal Perth Hospital. Whizzo mammogram showed a little, as in 5mm, bright white area deep and low in my right boob. This was followed by ultra sound, checked again by another consultant, and I had to stay and have a core biopsy. To say I was shitting myself is putting it mildly! I thought I would be out by lunchtime Lol. Luckily I had two friends for support crew!
Core biopsy for me was..well..scarey, and today yep, I ‘feel' like I've been stabbed 7 times to get the 7 little samples! Bearable...just uncomfortable when I move.
Have to return today for results.....and now I'm in kind of a daze! :o Can't help myself from googling...and yep...mammogram images exact same as mine are cancerous.
Hard to think about ‘where to from here'......was it the HRT?....would it have happened anyway? Will they take me off HRT? Will all my old symptoms come back and I'll have to deal with that as well? 🤷♀️ And of course so many other things going through my mind right now!
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Hi everyone :)
I've come to this wonderful Forum over the last few years and found oodles of help on my menopause journey. From was I going crazy with my symptoms, (seemed to have every one in the book!) to pretty much telling my Doctor which HRT I'd like to go on lol.....which was Femoston Conti 1/5.
Honestly, I felt like a new person, well, back to a ‘normal' me. It meant as a single person working full time I could actually cope with my job again. For the past 4 1/2 yrs everything has been hunky dory, until a couple of weeks ago when I got a phone call after a routine mammogram for further investigation.
For some reason I feel I want to share my story.....just in case it helps someone else....and probably a bit of ‘get it off my chest' too! Lol
I'm 58 now, so this was my 5th one.
First time - all good
Second - recall for ultrasound, dense breast tissue as never had kids.
Third - 6 mths after starting HRT, all good
Fourth - all good, but manual check by Doctor recommended, all good.
This one - recall for further investigation :-\
So yesterday spent the day in Royal Perth Hospital. Whizzo mammogram showed a little, as in 5mm, bright white area deep and low in my right boob. This was followed by ultra sound, checked again by another consultant, and I had to stay and have a core biopsy. To say I was shitting myself is putting it mildly! I thought I would be out by lunchtime Lol. Luckily I had two friends for support crew!
Core biopsy for me was..well..scarey, and today yep, I ‘feel' like I've been stabbed 7 times to get the 7 little samples! Bearable...just uncomfortable when I move.
Have to return today for results.....and now I'm in kind of a daze! :o Can't help myself from googling...and yep...mammogram images exact same as mine are cancerous.
Hard to think about ‘where to from here'......was it the HRT?....would it have happened anyway? Will they take me off HRT? Will all my old symptoms come back and I'll have to deal with that as well? 🤷♀️ And of course so many other things going through my mind right now!
Good luck ! I was recalled from my very 1st mammogram and was terrified. Fortunately it was a false alarm but I was stressed about the 2nd one last year because of that 1st experience.
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Thinking of you, best wishes for your results.
I have permanent cysty breasts that are impossible for me to thoroughly check so that is my worst nightmare.
X
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I hope you get good news today Cindy.
I had my results yesterday after a vacuum assisted biopsy 10 days ago. Thankfully it was benign.
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Hi Cindy
Sending you positive vibes, I hope it all goes well today
Jeepers xx
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Hi Cindy
Sorry to hear the stressful time you’re going through and thanks for sharing!!
When you started hrt 4 1/2 years ago, were you already post menopause at that stage?
I hope you’re ok, as this must be very scary for you, but it’s great you’ve been having checks and that they’ve found this, which is very small.
You’ve made me realise I need to book my mammo, which I’ve already delayed, so thanks for that.
All the very best and keep us updated how is goes today!! X
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So sorry to read this CindyC
Hope you get some positive news today.keep us updated.
Lanzalover x
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Whatever happens today (and fingers crossed it's good news), you are proof of the benefits of being on a regular screening program. By the end of today, you'll know what you are dealing with and you will have an action plan. Can you update us later? Sending you positive and calm thoughts xxx
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Let us know. Whatever your result it is experience shared. What did the Staff intimate? You are being followed up. If it is the 'worst case scenerio', maybe offer your records and results for a Thesis ......... the more research done on HRT and cancer the better informed we and the medical profession will be!
In the meantime - :foryou: :bighug: = gentle, of course ;-)
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Can't help myself from googling...and yep...mammogram images exact same as mine are cancerous.
My second was like that, but they found nothing.
Hope your's is the same :)
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How nice it is to see all your messages! And I do thank you all for your kind and supportive words, they do mean and help a lot!
Sooo....results for core biopsy at this stage are ‘indeterminate'! On the one hand not obviously cancerous, but ‘something' there and either way it needs to come out. Good news is that it's so small, 7mm, so will be very small area. They will do further tests over the next couple of days to make final call on core biopsies.
Next week I have to see a breast surgeon, then probably following week overnight for an op to remove the area. However...if the final tests show any sign of cancerous cells there will be more of an op that will include lymph node something or another and all will be tested. And if cancerous, yes....may well be radiation/chemo, but consultant said let's not go down that rabbit hole until we get final results. I was in a bit of shocked dazed state by this point so it sort of went over my head lol
Jari.....,.yes, I was post menopause when I started on Femoston Conti. Hadn't had a period for about 16 mths if I remember rightly.
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Hi Cindy, it sounds like you are in good hands and also very good that it is so small.
Quite a day for you. I'm sure you're ready to relax a bit and have a nice evening and digest all this.
In first post, you were asking whether all your symptoms would return coming off hrt.
As you started hrt 16 months already post menopause, then it's quite possible that now 4 1/2 years on, that all or at least some of your original symptoms have lessened or gone... maybe?!
Good to be taking it step by step and that they are acting swiftly.
Keep posting and updated with your news. Thinking of you! X
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I would ask the Surgeon to take lymph nodes at the same time! The reason that I had two lots of surgical intervention was due to the fact that the lump was non-sinister until it was sliced in histology when I went back for further surgery. No reason why nodes can't be taken at the same time.
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My lovely consultant Fiona rang me today with final results on the core biopsies. Nothing sinister found! Yay!! 😀
However...lol....because this is a papillary lesion, which are rare, I still need to have op to make sure they get all area out, which will then also be tested. Apparently core biopsy is not alway accurate with this type of lesion, and 20% chance diagnosis will be upgraded after biopsy area tested.
She did reassure me again that the area is ‘tiny'!
Not out of the woods yet! 😳
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That's good news Cindy!! :)
When will you be having the op?
Take good care! X
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Good luck Cindy x
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That's good news Cindy!! :)
When will you be having the op?
Take good care! X
Not sure yet. Should see surgeon next week, then they'll schedule after that.
I meant to ask consultant...will they test biopsy while I'm still under GA...coz if they find any malignant cells I guess they'll want to test some lymph nodes as well.
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That is really great news xxx
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That's a good question for your consultant. If you have a notebook, maybe start making some notes and questions you might have and take along with you on your next appointment.
I just read up a bit on papillary lesions and they seem to be rare and in most cases will be benign.
As they have so far found nothing sinister, then it sounds very promising, but of course you and they want to make absolutely sure.
It sounds like you have a great team who are getting each step moving along quickly.
Take good care in the meantime. X
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Knowing what I know now, I would insist on the lymph glands being taken at the same time. No need for 2 anaesthetics if this is elective surgery. Because my lump was non sinister I had to have a 2nd operation 8 days after the 1st ::). Where the lymph nodes were removed and I can't remember it was 5 or 9 ::) I don't grow hair along the scar.
:foryou:
The lump should be sent automatically to histology, do check with the Surgeon otherwise there really isn't much point in surgery. Mine wasn't sinister until it was sliced ::). They told me how big it was but that wasn't in feet and inches ;-).
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In a quandary about my HRT, as no one at Clinic has mentioned it yet.
Been on Femoston Conti 1/5 for 4 1/2 yrs and it has been great. Have always been dreading the day I go for script when Doc tells me I have to stop due to length of time on it.
Now...with this tiny lesion...and fingers crossed assuming no cancerous cells are found after biopsy op....do I come off HRT because this thing still shouldn't be there?
Of course ‘if' my diagnosis is upgraded after the biopsy, which after reading endless reports could be 20% chance....I'm guessing I won't have any choice but to come of it :(
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It seems strange that your clinic have not advised you what to do about your hrt. Maybe, as you say, they're waiting for the results of your biopsy, to be able to give you the best advice, but that's definitely another question to add to the list. :) x x
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Let us know. Do tell them prior to surgery how good you have felt on HRT thus far. These issues need taking more seriously with more discussion and research as to the real risks of HRT triggering breast disease.
How R U spending today?
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Let us know. Do tell them prior to surgery how good you have felt on HRT thus far. These issues need taking more seriously with more discussion and research as to the real risks of HRT triggering breast disease.
How R U spending today?
Well....most of the day at a dog show supporting friends....which is good as it keeps me away from googling! Lol
I have been soooo good on Femoston....as in feeling ‘normal'....so unless they can give me very good evidence that it's bad for me and I'd be ‘really' stupid to stay on it.....I won't want to stop taking it.
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Hopefully your results will all be ok and therefore they may well not have a problem with you staying on it.
All the very best with your op next week and let us know how it's going!
Have a lovely day at the show and in the sunshine! :) x
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:scottie: take plenty of water and shade!!! it's going to be HOT ............. dogs shouldn't be out in the heat :'( :-\
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:scottie: take plenty of water and shade!!! it's going to be HOT ............. dogs shouldn't be out in the heat :'( :-\
It was a pleasant sunny day here in Western Australia, maybe 20 degrees?.....even a bit chilly when the sun went behind a cloud! 7pm here now and I have the fire on :)
Jari....next week should hear when I get to meet surgeon, been told maybe 2-3wks. Then they will schedule op......so still a waiting game!
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We would be glad, usually, to get to 20C :lol: put a cardy on Girl :D
Track temp at Silverstone racing today is 40C!
Dogs all behaved? It's 3.00 p.m. here.
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We would be glad, usually, to get to 20C :lol: put a cardy on Girl :D
Track temp at Silverstone racing today is 40C!
Dogs all behaved? It's 3.00 p.m. here.
Yes, friends new Golden Retriever pup behaved extremely well bless her :)
40C at Silverstone! Dam that's hot for the UK! Would be hot for here too, but at least we have air con! I emigrated here 18yrs ago, took me 3yrs to acclimatise, wore t-shirts & shorts all year round while locals were wearing thick jumpers and ugg boots! Lol
I come from Somerset, South West....born in Bristol :)
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We would be glad, usually, to get to 20C :lol: put a cardy on Girl :D
Track temp at Silverstone racing today is 40C!
Dogs all behaved? It's 3.00 p.m. here.
Yes, friends new Golden Retriever pup behaved extremely well bless her :)
40C at Silverstone! Dam that's hot for the UK! Would be hot for here too, but at least we have air con! I emigrated here 18yrs ago, took me 3yrs to acclimatise, wore t-shirts & shorts all year round while locals were wearing thick jumpers and ugg boots! Lol
I come from Somerset, South West....born in Bristol :)
I have a colleague from Sri Lanka who has been living in the UK for over 30 years. She still wears jumpers when the temperature outside is close to 30 C. Yesterday I was in short sleeves and she had a sweatshirt and denim jacket.
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That is track temperature on the tarmac, there are specific tools to measure so that they know which rubber to put on. It is expected to be higher today :o so it is wondered whether the new track will melt :D
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Hi CindyC
Glad your initial biopsy was ok. These things are scary aren't they?
I had a routine appointment with my gynaecologist this year & she felt a small lump. I was sent for a ultrasound & they found a cyst & a fibroadenoma 1. I then had to have a mammogram & they still weren't sure about it. I then had a further 2 ultrasounds to finally be told that it wasn't cancer. All these things just stress you. I hope the next tests are fine too.
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Update on where I am with this 7mm papillery lesion!
Finally got date to meet surgeon 17th September. Apparently Head of Breast Surgery and well thought of so that's a plus I guess!
Op. will apparently be sometime 2-3 wks after that, then a further 2wks to get biopsy results. I am seriously over the waiting game already! I just want to know one way or another! Even though I am s***ing myself about the op. and results.:(
Still unsure what to do about my HRT. I don't want to stop taking it, don't want to go back to all the menopause side effects I had before. No cancer cells found as yet to see if Progesterone or Oestrogen reactive. I know all these test results have been sent to my GP, but no call up from them to go and see him, don't even know if they would do that?
Considering if I should wean myself off over a couple of months and see how I go?
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I would wait! Because the surgery might be postponed and you don't want more symptoms on top of the worry. Discuss with the Surgeon or maybe ring the Secretary and ask? Why stop if it ain't necessary?
How are you filling your time?
:hug:
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I would wait! Because the surgery might be postponed and you don't want more symptoms on top of the worry. Discuss with the Surgeon or maybe ring the Secretary and ask? Why stop if it ain't necessary?
How are you filling your time?
:hug:
Good point...I have enough on my plate! Ha!
I might see if I can have a chat with the consultant I saw at the clinic, same place I have to go to see surgeon, she was really helpful and nice. Not sure if it would really be the surgeons area? Consultant didn't bat an eye lid when she was taking my medical history and I mentioned the HRT for 4 1/2 yrs.
Time wise....full time working, friends dropping round for coffee after work, trying to stop myself googling! Lol. The anxiety bits seem to come in waves...all the what if life turns upside down in a few weeks.
But...I know I need to practice what I would say if it was a friend of mine.....one step at a time! Don't worry about it until it happens, could be stressing over something that's not even going to happen! Lol
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Why is the Consultant different to the Surgeon :-\ - I'm completely lost now ::)
Easier said than done though. This is about you ........ but what is the worst that could happen? What support do you have ........
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Why is the Consultant different to the Surgeon :-\ - I'm completely lost now ::)
Easier said than done though. This is about you ........ but what is the worst that could happen? What support do you have ........
Ok...so the Consultant Doctor saw me after mammo/ultra sound, discussed what they found and told me I needed to have core biopsy. Went back to see her next day to discuss results and that it needs to come out. Then she refers me over to the breast surgeon.
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Tnx. That clears up my muddle ::)
How R U today?
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Op. scheduled for the 18th October.
Have to go in day before to have a ROLLIS seed inserted where the lesion is as its too small to see or feel without imaging. Not looking forward to that bit as it means another jab of anaesthetic in my boob, which is 30 seconds of not nice pain, same as when I had core biopsy done. i keep telling myself....I lived through it once already!
Lesion is at 5 o'clock, right boob, so they will do a 2-3cm incision in the crease underneath. They will then remove lesion, seed and some margin using imagery. Internal stitching, steri strips on outside.
Have to wait until 31st October to go back for final results. Small chance of it being cancerous....but still possible. Apparently mucii? fluid was found in core biopsy and that can be found in cancerous areas, hence why they want to get all area out to check.
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I suggest a nightie that ties up rather than one that pulls over the head in case the area is sore after surgery. It makes examinations much easier ;-).
Did you continue with the HRT?
:hug:
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Yes to still on HRT. Pre surgery Nurse went through all sorts with me, including any current medications/vitamins etc. and I asked re. HRT. She asked Surgeon, they said stay on it for now and they would discuss with me when I go in to get final results on the 31st.
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Hi Cindy. Just to say I have sent you a PM. Hope that's OK.
Wx
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:foryou:
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Well....op.is all done and dusted. Very ‘deer in headlights' time for me never having had any op. before! Lol
Yep, I'm sore, bruised, but it's getting easier day by day. Anti inflammatories, Panadol and snug fitting after surgery crop top seem to be doing their job. Didn't realise how even holding a coffee mug can pull across your chest! Ha! Actually put my arm in a make shift sling for a day or two so I remembered ‘not' to use it!
Resting up off work at home this week, and nothing more I can do but wait to go back for biopsy results on the 31st.
I have ‘everything' crossed I will just be able to put this experience behind me.....and that they will give me the OK to stay on HRT!
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:foryou:
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Woohoo!! Biopsy results came back benign! ;D To say I am relieved is an understatement!!
Can still be a little sore sometimes but all healing well. Next step....visit to GP for HRT script! Consultant said nothing in biopsy to say promoted by the HRT, as no cancerous cells found, was a benign intraductal papilloma. She felt at the end of the day it was my decision and my quality of life.
I just have to decide if I try coming off it to see if all my menopause symptoms return.....or just stay on it as I feel good as I am!
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Oh well done CindyC...
I'm soo pleased for you...bet you felt the pressure lift off straight away didn't you?
It's your decision at the end of the day, and as the doctor has said it's your quality of life, I'd stay on it if it were me, I suffered badly from symptoms, and I wouldn't want to go back there, so I'd stay on it just incase it all came back. So it depends if you could cope IF they did return...good luck anyway. :foryou:
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That's great news CindyC. x