Solid mass, big confused

[AllisonW34]

I found a large lump in my right breast (2cm) that seems moveable but the ultrasound says it is solid, irregular in shape and has good see -through. I am 34 years old, no family hx of breast cancer except my paternal grandmother had it in her 60s, never smoked, used birth control, and I don't drink. I have fibrous breasts and a maternal family history of breast cysts. It does seem tender but maybe because I can't help checking it repeatedly. I am very, very scared especially when I think of my toddler. Can someone explain what "god see-through" means and if, given the ultrasound results, is it still possible that this is a cyst or so something else benign? I see the surgeon tomorrow but I pray that someone will get back to me sooner as I am truly terrified and the surgeon while known for being very good at surgery is as well known for having a crappy bedside manner.

[bluebutterfly2222]

Sorry to hear that your pathology report indicated breast cancer.

Here is a link to a thread in the BC Expert Forum that provides a little information that about medullary BC that might be of interest to you:

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/Breast-Cancer/medullary-breast-cancer/show/965178

Wishing you all the best,
bluebutterfly

[AllisonW34]

Medullary breast cancer. Having pet scan Friday to determine stage and pathologist sending info to Vanderbilt for confirmation as this type of cancer is rare

[japdip]

I can certainly understand your concerns there but you are thinking so far ahead here .... you haven't even received a firm diagnosis at this point. I think you should concentrate on thinking more on the positive side and not over stressing about something that hasn't happened, and may not ever happen. You know even the youngest children can pick-up on our feelings so try to relax a bit and have some fun times with that 2 year old. Regards .....

[AllisonW34]

I just want to live at least long enough to see my 2yr old grow up. Of course, I want more than that, ideally, but I am most frightened of leaving him.

[japdip]

Of course there is always HOPE .... I'm sure the additional Path studies will clear this up ... I would be encouraged by the fact that something wasn't found immediately even if additional investigation is now required. Try to stay as calm as you can and I know that is a lot to ask as well as hard to do. More waiting but that often happens in this journey; seems like we're always waiting for something which most women agree is the hardest thing of all.  Take care..

[AllisonW34]

Can you tell me there is good hope that I'm ok? Or would I be deceiving myself?

[AllisonW34]

Results not as good as hoped. All removed and had clean edges but some "questionable" cells and won't know until next Wednesday. So pretty scared again.

[japdip]

You're more than welcome ... that is what it sounded like to me but as you say only the Pathology studies on the specimen after removal will tell for certain. Best wishes for your procedure on Friday ... will be waiting for your update.  Take care

[AllisonW34]

Thank you so much for the info. I met the surgeon this afternoon and he says it is most likely a fibroadenoma that he will remove Friday. I won't know absolutely until then but at least I can breath again. I am still worried but much more hopeful. I will update after Friday.

[japdip]

If it means that there is no vascularity then it is good. It may well be a fibroadenoma (benign breast tumor) and they do cause discomfort and tend to grow rapidly. The BIRADS scale goes from 0 to 5 and is merely a way of rating what is found on film regarding what should be done next. A score of 4 would indicate that a biopsy was necessary. I will say though that the fact that the shape is deemed "irregular" may be of some concern but there is no way to tell until either further studies or some type of biopsy and keep in mind that it can certainly be one of several things other than Cancer.  Please update after you see the Surgeon ....

[AllisonW34]

They said that I had to have an ultrasound first and I am guessing from the size they just want to get it biopsied ASAP. What is a BIRADS number? I don't care about his bedside manner. I just want to know if there s still a chance that it isn't cancerous or if that old be deceiving myself. Is see through good? Or bad?

[japdip]

First of all pay no attention to his bedside manner; have an answer ready for anything he might say that you don't appreciate :) That is a fairly large size to have appeared in a short period of time; I'm a bit curious as to why you only had the Ultrasound and not a Mammogram too. Was a BIRADS number mentioned in your report ?? It might seem that "solid" and "see through" are opposite terms but I would imagine that it meant there was no vascularity (blood supply or vessels) noted contained within the mass. Good luck tomorrow and don't forget to hold your own with the Doc and his "personality" ... by the way it has nothing to do with his skill.   Take care ....