Does Breast Cancer Hurt - honest truth from bc patients
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JC....I am thinking of you today! Yes sometimes the rollercoaster of this beast gets rolling fast! It is hard to take it all in! So fast at times & others so slow! I'm not sure where you live but yesterday my BS=Breast Surgeon talked about more things that I may have to go through. He said get the big picture....know ALL your options before you make a desicion. If you have a Cancer Nurse Navigator at your hospital talk to her or see if your hospital has one. She is a wealth of information. Get a second opinion especially if you are not comfortable with your Dr's. It's your right & most insurances allow them. When you have time come ask ?'s. There is a thread for just diagnosed here do some reading as they have a lot of infor. Let us know how your doing!
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Thanks julz4, I am scheduled for a mastectomy on July 20th. Still waiting for a MRI to see if there are any other areas that need biopsied. This is my last week of work before going on sick leave. I am relieved in a way because I am exhausted. Still waiting for the final pathology report and the ER/PR and Her2 results. Thanks for the suggestion for checking out the "just diagnosed" thread. Hope all is well with you.
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It sounds like things are moving along! Waiting for those tests are hard! I'm glad you have a little time off before surgery. I had 6 days off. My SIL came over & between her & my DH we cleaned the house MAJORLY! It was one less thing to worry with. Also if you Dr. prescribes pain meds get them before surgery & any other regular meds you might take make sure you don't need any refills. Prescription or other wise. That way you aren't scrambling to get them just after surgery. Stock your refrig. Make sure you have some ginger-ale or coke to settle your tummy after. Or any other little things you might like or need. I'm sure on the surgery Before & After forum here there might be many other suggestions too! Good Luck! Sending super healing thoughts your way! Also have a big soft pillow for your ride home from surgery! To put between You & the seat belt! Works wonders! Also to help support your arm on the couch at home too!
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Thanks for the advice, I never thought about filling the perscriptions prior to surgery but it is a good idea. Looking forward to a bit of rest before the surgery. I will definitely check out the other forum as well.
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MK87 - yes, as said, you need a breast care center to know, the GP attitude you got is what is costing lives. He needs dirt kicked in his face by many with bc, geez, eyes rolling across the floor. . . . .
JColford - thinking of you. We just know, that is the point. It is more than a lump which could be anything, it is the pain the exhaustion, the odd smells from our body, the veinous patterns like Psalms121 mentioned, the sugar cravings, intuition, and more. You were so right to press on. Hate it was IDC.
Pain under arm pit. I had that too. Ended up the IDC can traveled into lymph nodes.
Pain in general. There were pains in both breast and axilla on right side, before surgery these were relieved by holding my breast though aggravated by the bra so I guess the gentle maneuver to change the way breast and arm was at the moment, movement of tissue gently, that helped me. OMG the nipple pain, since the mass was right behind the nipple, that did not go away from anything, sorry, but I did not try meds, I did use some alt pain relief to get me to the surgery. Had more pain after surgery than before though. One thing that helped esp w nipple pain was filling bra with cottonballs.
Good to read everything you all wrote though hard to know you have to be here at all. But pass it on, breast cancer does hurt for what.... about half? We'll getting some info here about how it hurts but not the percentage really.
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Everyone - inviting you to go to this bco thread and post slogans for the upcoming Breast Cancer Awareness Month. These slogans are not what you think... this is a place to do some venting. Please pass it forward to your favorite threads. Thanks
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First time no pain......no clue.....SURPRISE! Second time lots of pain. Pain so fierce I would grab my breast tightly and sqeeze hoping that would help. It hurt all the time....kind knew but was in denial......SURPRISE!
Doctors should never tell women that if it hurts it isn't BC! That's criminal. Just my 2 cents. Namaste'.
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Great question...I did have pain in the primary tumor in my right breast but that may have been because it was right where the under wire of my bra touched it. I did have three other tumors under my arm pit that I didn't even know were there (the primary and one of the lymph node tumors were both over 4cm at diagnosis). I couldn't believe that I didn't even know some of them were there until US. I'm guessing that any sign is a reason to get checked out because everyone seems to have different symptoms. I don't have pain in the right side anymore since surgery, but now i do have the "bee sting" pain in the other side. I've refused all chemo and rads so that couldn't be the reason for my pain.
cin
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I HAVE A LUMP IN MY LEFT BREAST, VERY CLOSE TO MY NIPPLE. IT'S A HARD LUMP AND PAINFUL TO THE TOUCH. MY MOTHER HAS HAD BREAST CANCER 2 TIMES ALSO CANCER OF THE UTERUS AND NOW ADENOID CYSTIC CARCINOMA . MY GRANDMOTHER ALSO HAD BREAST CANCER
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nonnie, have you called the doc to get into to see what is going on? sounds like you want to have a mamo to see what is up
remember, it ain't cancer till they say it is so keep your mind off that for now
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i can relate to the bee sting feeling
i have radiating pain also, feels like its all the way to the bone, sharp and burning.
lots of pain in my shoulder and shoulder blade
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A beautician I went to had pain in shoulder and shoulder blade, she had no idea she had breast cancer. You just reminded me.
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My DCIS was so close to the chest wall, I felt nothing. It showed up on an MRI. Had a uni mx; my follow up MRI in May was clear. Now have been having pain in my remaining breast. Saw my BS, had an ultrasound, they want to biopsy it. Waiting to be called to schedule biopsy; fearing the worst. Does it ever end? If it DOES end up being cancer, I will say that the pain helped find it.
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I, too, had pain and like some here thought that cancer does not hurt and waited. I was having night sweats now and again so I chalked it up to hormonal changes as I was getting closer to menopause.
Bee stings, shooting pains. Man, if I had known . . .
The tumor is in the lower part of my breast, just below the nip. It still hurts from time to time (I just started Tamoxifen to shrink the tumor prior to surgery) and it hurts increasingly under my armpit--and that has me worried too.
Scary stuff. But we know now and can tell others.
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lbarbados and scorchy, two more for the list, thank you for sharing. The answer to the question, does it never end? is no, it does not, and that is why we need to take time each day and make it end, stop it from engulfing you, if only or an hour. Especially in the beginning, it does not stop, it is like waking up to the elephant in the room each day then carrying it around while reading about how to take care of an elephant. Now more than any other time in our lives, we must learn to take the time simply for us, not letting the cancer be a part of that time. I have started watching some intellectual comedy, working again, gardening, etc. I have a book to read but for now, it seems all the reading is still about cancer, if not for me then for someone else, but that is all right, it is forward thinking anyway.
LOVEEssa (I changed my avatar to the bluebird, love birds)
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Thank you for this thread.
I have not been diagnosed yet. Meeting with surgeon this Thursday. I have had 'lumps' for a few years. They do not show up the Mammograms or the U/S. In the past few months, one of the lumps started to hurt. The pain starts in my left breast and is also in my shoulder and under arm. I went to my OB/GYN and he immediately ordered another U/S. Again, nothing showed on the U/S. The Radiologist, my OB/GYN and myself can all feel the painful lump.
Because of my age, I am 39 now, and no family history of BC I was never sent to have any of the lumps that I have biopsied or investigated further. This makes me angry after reading, literally, thousands of BC stories from amazing ladies going through hell.
Hopefully soon I will have definitive answers for myself. Whether the tests come back postive or negative, I will be sure to be a better advocate for myself and to inform my friends and family of the dangers of ignoring signs.
So right now, YES it hurts. Right before my period, I look and feel pale and withdrawn from the pain. The pain goes to a dull ache the rest of the month. Always there. Will let you know if I have cancer after my appt.
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I have a teeny tiny lump in my left breast that I discovered just a week or so ago. The thing that brought me here was the micro calcs found on my mammo in July (they are clustered) and the "wait and see approach" come back in 6 months yada yada EVEN though I have a lot of cancer in my family history (not BC but ovarian, colon and liver) and had carcinoma in-situ in my cervix in my mid 20's myself. I also had a needle biopsy on this same breast in the same spot for fibroids in my late 20's!
I have been having some shooting pains in this breast for a few weeks and I thought that it was due to the imaging and the flattening of my breast but it keeps happening even though this was July 30th. And, a stinging sensation in my nipple, like a bee sting keeps happening too. The night sweats really have me worried as well.
I pray that this is all in my head. I am being pro-active and seeing a BS on 10/1 instead of waiting for another mammo at the end of January. I tried to get an earlier appt but this woman is the expert in micro calcs and DCIS so I am sticking with the Oct. date as she is also located in the only BCC in my state at Yale Smilow center.
Pain is an indication that something is NOT right in our bodies. How dare any doctor negate our feelings and not check out anything that gives us concern. I am not going to let this go even if they think I am crazy. I want a biopsy or at the very least an MRI to alleviate any concerns I have that this is something more than just something to "watch" closely. I have too many risk factors.
I pray that this thread allows everyone to know that pain is NOT normal and it is our body's way of making us sit up and take notice. We are NOT crazy. We pay their salaries (the medical profession) and they are not God. They need to do what we ask them to and not poo poo our very educated fears about our own bodies. No one knows our body like we do.
Thanks for allowing me to vent. My boob hurts. That is not normal and I need to find out why.
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I have one thing to say. Keep going to learn what it is. Two things, and just do what you can for yourself in the meantime. Never just wait, push through, top priority.
There is the PET CT scan that I would have had at beginning if only I knew what it could do for me. Or pay for the thermogram for about $150 to see if there is activity of cancer or infection, this is revealed. The PET CT shows the activity of cancer cells feeding though sometimes the activity is so low bcz it is infection instead. There is also the Navarro urine test, do research, to find out if the mammos will not show, the MRIs, the ultrasound.
Whenever I go to my GP, she who has a history of bc in her family, she always says it is fibroids, it is not the right shape, if it hurts it is not bc. Why do I still go there? I love her and she will learn if only through me, I am strong, been there done that and I am more alternative minded and have other doctors on my team who are on the same page, so she is getting a real education, she knows it, and she is not getting this thread link from me again.
IzzyKat and April - thanks for sharing, come back and let us know. Recommending you stop by some of the more light-hearted threads while reading too, take a moment to grin, it is important now.
LOVEEssa
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Hi, I am hoping you can reassure me that I'm not going mad. I was diagnosed with dcis high grade, in my right breast, in December last year, I'm 49. I had a partial mastectomy followed by a full mastectomy and diep reconstruction in march. Recovery seems to be normal so far. I also had a reduction on the left side at the same time to try and match up the old with the new a bit better. Here is where I am concerned, I am experiencing quite a lot of pain in the left breast. I have hormone related pain in it (used to be them) the week before my period usually, but this is a week past my period and this has not happened before. What should I be thinking about this? Could it just be cysts playing up?
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SuzyBlue - I wish I knew what to tell you besides my experience, strength and hope. I know my right breast was the affected but the same symptoms were happening in the left, just three months behind. I was told fibroids but let me tell you one was the size of a green bean and then grew a wart like cyst on top of it, though that went away w some alt tx I chose. They were fibroids and hurt. Cancer? Who knows? But I do know that because of the lymph nodes, time is of the essence as far as knowing what you are dealing with and tx, I waited too long (memory) and lymph system became affected too.
As always, push through to get to the bottom of it, we have to. There are conventional and alternative ways to find if there is cancer in your body, thermograms included. Do some research or go with your doctors, either way, you need to know.
LOVEEssa
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Just checking on the thread. To keep it in light, if you read but don't want to comment, coudl you please just type 'bump' in reply box and submit so it will come up for attention of others searching this info. Appreciated.
LOVEEssa
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Bump
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I didn't have pain, as such, but it was a feeling, as though a needle was pushed into my breast. I immediately put my hand there and felt the lump!
I know many people who were dx without any incklings beforehand. Everyone is different.
Although I checked myself regularly, I was thankful for the needle-like feelings otherwise I never would have spotted it. I still wonder how I missed it.
I'm here nearly 5 years later and doing great. It's a distant memory.
Take care.
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Yes it was the pain that led me to find my lump. Sometimes cancer hurts and sometimes it doesn't. I thought the old "breast cancer doesn't hurt" line from doctors had been well and truly killed off. Depressing if some of them are still trotting it out.
The other one that hacks me off is that breast cancer has no relationship to pregnancy. Yes it does. For three years post-partum women are at increased risk of a BC diagnosis.
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Appreciate the input from both UK sisters. Yes, the old doesn't hurt docs are alive and well in the USA, I have a GP who works for an MD and all are on same page, it doesn't hurt. They are learning from me, it does. I am relentless. The only way the old school types will learn is if we show them, that for say half of women and men.... it does hurt and they need to believe it and own it.
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Had a heart test today to see if I can go back on Herceptin. The Tech said she takes an unofficial poll - did I find my own lump? I told her I did. She said 95% of most women say they found "the lump" and many have told her IT HURT. I told her about this thread and how it is a passion of mine to get the word out that YES, BREAST CANCER CAN HURT, PAIN, ITCH...
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This has been a fantastic thread to read. I have not been diagnosed with BC but I have had 2 incidences of "unusual" pain, both times in my right breast. I live in the UK and am lucky enough to have private medical Insurance. When I have gone to the GP and you tell them this they will at least write you a referral if you push them. I had a mammogram and US last Dec that came back clear (although the breast consultant manually discovered a lump in my left breast which came back benign from biopsy). This time (I have posted elsewhere here) I had stabbing pains and more worryingly a rash and itching. No swelling or thickening but Im still worried. An US with another clinic recommended an MRI as I have very dense breasts so I went back to the original clinic and had this done along with a further US on right breast only. Both clear. I also had a punch biopsy on the rash which has come back ok. Rash and pain still ongoing - have been told most likely hormonal as underarm pain I have is linked to all the breast changes. My consultant also said what someone else here clarified (but said in a bit of an inflammatory way by her) that most pain is not cancer. That is different from saying that cancer is not painful and I agree that many doctors and sites are totally wrong if they say this.
Incidentally, I also took a punt and emailed images of rash with history to Dr. Cristofanilli at Fox Chase. He is AWESOME and replied saying he thinks it's a skin thing (obviously has not seen me in person)
From all of this I will say that you have to keep pushing until you feel your questions have been answered. If my rash is no better in a few weeks I'm getting a second opinion. And pain is what sent me on my journey - I now know I have very dense breasts which is helpful to me for the future. I would alway check out pain that is not normal for you.0 -
When I found my second BC, I felt a burning/branding sensation in the breast. The oncologist and BS told me it was common after having a lumpectomy. My lumpectomy was over two years ago. I pushed for an appontment and the surgeon felt two lumps. She order a mammogram and an ultrasound the same day and they found a third lump.
Just like tlm1 said - I would alway check out pain that is not normal for you.
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I went to see my GP but as she was off on maternity leave I had to see a new doctor, I normally wouldnt mind but as she didn't know my history it was a bit off putting. Anyway she thought I had a breast infection but also found two lumps, so put me on antibiotics and anti inflammatories and said she would send a fax to the hospital breast clinic to get me in for an urgent mammogram. A week later I hadn't heard anything so rang the clinic only for them to say they hadn't received a fax. Phone call to the Drs, they sent another fax, still no appointment. Phone call to the breast clinic and finally some action though they want me to have an ultrasound instead. So tomorrow, three weeks after seeing the doctor I'm off for my 'urgent' scan!
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I had a nagging pain in the left breast especially when drinking coffee. That was what made me go in. I thank God the pain was there. It was a 3.2 cent. IDC. -KLeeR
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