I found a lump

[aodirjjd]

Sorry you probably get hundreds of these on the board. I’m only 35 and found a breast lump when showering today. I’m shit scared and just really worried that I won’t get seen quickly because the nhs is such a mess right now. I’m going to call gp in morning and beg for an appt.

do all lumps get referred to breast clinic or is there chance doctor will poke it and say it’s not needed ? Are people still actually seen in two weeks if a referral is needed ? I’ve spent all evening googling private breast scans trying to get an idea of costs because I can’t bear the idea of waiting weeks for a referral that is delayed or some other drama like lost test results. Has anyone done this? It seems initial appt is £250 which I could afford but I wasn’t sure how much biopsy’s etc might run too. If I’m seen with nhs do I have to wait ages for any results or can they give me all clear quite quickly from breast clinics?

I’ve got a holiday in 6 week that I’m desperate to go on as well. I know logically this lump is almost definitely nothing and I’m really upset that if I don’t get seen quickly I might struggle to get travel insurance.

I hope you hear soon. I had 2 biopsies done at the same time , and both were fibro - somethings...

Theyre common as are lumpy breasts as you get older.

I was also told that the ultrasound would've shown the cancer immediately, biopsy was done as a safety measure and painful as anything!

I was seen on the NHS and told that a hardened area could be felt. They couldn’t do a mammogram etc until later as too booked up. Today I went privately. There is no lump, nothing. I saw a consultant with 30 years experience. I had a mammogram just to make sure and it was completely clear. I’m so glad I scraped up the money to pay. It will have cost £400, but worth it. The private hospital is overwhelmed and putting on extra clinics because so many women are getting a poor service from the NHS.

The waiting is agonising, but in the end, it makes no difference to the outcome. A couple of weeks is neither here nor there with breast cancer. With other cancers it might be more important, but not this

I’m really sorry none of us can expedite your appointment and I really feel for you. There is nothing more worrying.

I hope however some stories on here, like mine I added, will reassure you that it might not be the worst news.

Hi op
im in the exact same situation. 45 with a big lump- I saw the GP wasn’t given an appointment with the breast clinic until the end of may as the 2ww doesn’t exist anymore. They moved it forward to the 11th May at a non local hospital when I complained.
i feel for you, the wait is absolutely awful.

@Grapewrath I’m glad you’ve got an appt closer now. who did you complain to?

I am hoping private appt will settle it but just wondering what options are if I do need expensive biopsy which requires nhs and it ends up being such a long wait.

i thought maybe I had misremembered what gp said but it was clear GP receptionist wasn’t aware two week wait wasn’t a thing for that hospital anymore.

I phoned the actual clinic and told them that my Dr had given me reassurance it would be two weeks. The receptionist was very nonchalant and said ‘there's nothing at your local hospital’ so I asked why I couldn’t be seen at another. Then they found me the appointment.
Whats even worse is that my GP wasn’t going to see me for nearly 2 weeks initially. Luckily I called 111 and they got me in at urgent care who referred.
I used to be a huge fan of the NHS but this and other recent experiences have made me realise how bad it’s got.
Sadly I’m not in the position to go privately. The waiting is torture.

I said the same to receptionist and she was equally nonchalant… I didn’t actually request alternative hospital though so I’ll try that when they call to make the appt if I still need it. At the moment they haven’t even got as far as looking at my referral to book the appt.

edit: the gp part was completely smooth for me though. (Apart from having to call 62 times!)I did get an appt for that morning so I can’t complain there. It’s shocking that your gps office would make you wait weeks to be seen for a lump which anyone could confidently guess would likely mean a cancer referral.

@aodirjjd it is highly likely as I said above that the consultant you see privately will, if they think you need a biopsy, will get their NHS secretary to put you on their NHS list immediately.

It is very common for people to start private then move onto the NHS list.

Dont let that be an extra thing you need to worry about right now.

I waited three weeks with my last one and rang the hospital repeatedly they hadn’t got any paperwork, the GP said they sent it.

In the end the GP surgery rang me and the doctor her self apologised that she’d forgotten to do it and I’ve been left waiting for three weeks. I stopped over the phone to her and told her I was really pissed off.

Sobbed

@TheExclusiveSandwich that’s awful. I know my gp has definitely sent mine as hospital can see it on their system. They did try and say the gp had sent it very last thing on Friday which annoyed me me because I got an email through nhs app at 1pm so I knew that wasn’t true.

so after telling me I’d likely hear by Friday they’ve called this morning and said they have an nhs appt on 13th. I’m a bit torn what to do now. Two more weeks of waiting or £600.

Well your private appointment is Wednesday, so if you don’t want it, free it up quickly. There will be someone else out there who is desperate.
You can’t put a price on your health.

I am also waiting for an appointment. I'd take the Wednesday one and pay the £600. If it is cancer you'll start treatment 2 weeks earlier. If it isn't cancer you'll avoid 2 weeks of anxiety and constant worry. I wouldn't cancel the NHS one until after the private one though in case you need further tests, biopsies etc. You can always cancel it on Wednesday if you don't need anything else.

Pay, but in the meantime stay on the NHS cancellation list.

I literally could not wait, my anxiety was off the scale but if you think you can wait now you’ve got the appointment date then cancel the private and wait for the nhs one.

i am swinging back and forth on it. I am leaning towards nhs mainly because I could get inconclusive results on Wednesday and then need a biopsy which means requesting that from nhs which means time gap of all clear/bad news between nhs and private could end up being the same.

i am just trying to work out how much I might regret giving up the appt when it’s this time next week and I still have a week to go. I think my mental health has been really really poor last week partly because I hated the uncertainty and confusion of being told I should definitely get seen within two weeks and then being told this wasn’t accurate. But now I know when I’m being seen it’s still ages but I can count down.

I would keep both for sanity's sake and then you will have a first and second opinion and can decide what next for follow-up with a clear mind on what the issue is. I know £600 is a lot of money but I think worth it for the clarity and peace of mind and getting two opinions at the early stage to make the forward path easier and clearer.

It depends how you're feeling, OP. If you think you'll be mentally okay waiting 2 weeks, I'd save the money.

If it will be torture to wait that long, go with the private appointment.

Have you felt the lump since? How is it feeling?

Kind of depends what they think it is, I mean if they can see it's obviously nothing then it's fine - but if they aren't sure - the only way they can know is biopsy - so if you can't get that done privately, you are back with the NHS anyway.

At my appointment the scan, mammogram and biopsies were all done at the same time.

Does the private appointment also include a mammogram? If not, I would wait for the NHS appointment. Or find out how much it would be, if it's an extra. Normally they would do mammogram, ultrasound and examination.

@SOBplus its tricky because if first opinion is it doesn’t look good then I have a torturous wait for nhs to confirm it. But if it’s all good then obviously peace of mind would be amazing. I think @RiverFlowers has summed it up exactly.

@Delphina17 right now I feel like i could wait it’s just trying to guess if id regret that in a few days. There are some bits I’m stressing like what if I cancel my private appt and then nhs say I don’t even need a scan and send me on my way, or what if nhs appt gets cancelled. And I spot inconsistencies between their letters which set of anxiety around getting lost in admin. But ultimately if I wasn’t well at some point I’d have to trust nhs anyway. Lump is definitely still there, feels huge to me but I don’t think it’s actually changed and I remember doctor muttering 1cm as she measured so it’s obviously not that big! I keep thinking I feel the odd twinge but I think that’s imagination.

When I spoke to nurse to book private appt she told me it’s unlikely they’d recommend a mammogram for me as I’m young and apparently they don’t work as well under 40 which fits with what a lot of responses here have said. So the £600 I’ve referenced is appt (£200) plus ultrasound (£400) but not biopsy(£3k).cost would be fine for mammogram if needed as it’s only £200.

I've nothing really to add, just hope you get what you need and it is all for naught and you can have a laugh and drink to celebrate all good findings!