Lump but negative imaging
I noticed a lump in my left breast on 11/16 and was seen the next day. My Dr ordered a mammogram and ultrasound. Since originally finding the lump, I also found a second smaller lump on the same breast. After getting imaging done yesterday, the radiologist told me that they can’t see anything remarkable on my scans with the exception of the fact I apparently have dense breasts. I asked what the lumps are and she just said that’s just the way my breast feels and I don’t need any further follow up. I do have another appointment at a better hospital on 1/9 to review my imaging. I was just curious if anyone with dense breasts had negative imaging and later found out they had BC or if I should just take the first doctors word for it that everything is normal.
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Hi @mtnbee! And welcome to our community, though we're sorry to hear about the concerns you're facing. We totally get that waiting for your test results is probably making you feel a bit anxious, but your upcoming appointment on 1/9 sounds like a positive step toward gaining further clarity. Until then, you may want to check out this link for more resources and information about Common Imaging Questions.
Hope this helps, and keep us posted!
The Mods
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You didn’t state your age and menopausal status, but as someone who had lumpy breasts which got even more lumpy at times during my menstrual cycle, I’ll say that I had doctors try to aspirate a lump, as well as multiple call backs for ultrasound after mammograms when I was premenopausal. Everything then was benign. Ironically, the lumpy and frequently tested rights breast was not the one that developed cancer 8 years after menopause.
However, the lump I eventually self detected on the left which felt really similar to all the nothing lumps from days of old did turn out to be a grade three 4 cm cancerous tumor. The fact I became aware of it while taking vaginal estrogen treatment made me think it was also nothing. Obviously I was wrong!
I still have very dense breast tissue and have since become educated that not only do we with dense breasts have less success in mammographic detection of small tumors, we also have a higher risk of breast cancer. My advice to my younger self would have been to insist on 3D mammograms accompanied by ultrasound. I’d also tell myself that I’m likely to have a few false positives and to just flow with that. The earlier we find tumors the easier course of treatment we should have.
Stay aware of your body, and keep asking questions. Also know that when imaging knows what to look at it’s really good at determining whether biopsy is needed or not.
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