any GPs here? what results does GP get from breast screening?

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the routine NHS breast screening that you get invited to every 3 years - it says that your GP gets notified of your results/attendance, but what does that mean if the patient is one of the 4% sent for further results? Does the GP get the same letter as the patient (which says nothing really other than they need more information to make a final determination, and an appointment date/time), or does the GP's letter contain information about the reason for recall, or description of what they found, or any requests for further info about the patient's history etc? Does the GP get it at the same time as the patient (about a week after screening) or do they only get the results once the extra assessment has been done and there is a final outcome to report (either discharged or treatment needed).

I have to go back in a couple of weeks for further tests, but I have an unrelated GP appointment in the meantime, and want to know how much they might be able to tell me about the reason for it, if they have already had a letter (and would it only be my named GP that gets the letter anyway, and the one I see might not know anyway?). If they can't/won't tell me anything more (because they don't know or haven't been told or don't feel they should share details) then I might as well not derail the appointment. But if they do know, I'd really like to have some idea of what was found! It's an anxious wait regardless.

I’m not a gp but I was recently called back after routine screen in October and have been having tests since. My letters have started appearing on my nhs app now, they weren’t on at the time so not sure if they hold them back before uploading but they don’t really say anything more than what I know

I'd imagine they'd just get the same letter as you and the letter will be available on your med record to whatever clinician is treating you not just your named GP (work in an unrelated to breast screening role!)

thanks, yeah I wondered if they were held back too. I got a letter by post, and the identical letter in my hospital app (mychart), but not showing in my NHS app yet - and I don't know if the GP letter would have been the same as the hospital one anyway.
I hope your further tests are ok

if they get the same letter as me, that's totally neutral and says nothing about the reason, so I guess there'd be no point asking.
also the GP that would see me wouldn't likely read letters that are already in there unless I asked (which I could if it was likely to say something different), but I wondered more if it would be a note made on the file that would be easily seen by any doctor accessing the file that there was something likely to cause anxiety happening!

My call back I found out was for a 4cm area they could see on the mammogram, I found out on one of the letters that appeared later than it was graded t4/5 which means it’s highly likely it is cancer, although so far all my biopsies have come back benign which is baffling them as it’s inconsistent with images. You can be called back for all sorts of reasons, sometimes it can just be that the picture wasn’t great or there was folded skin or something. Also if it’s your first mammogram you have more chance of being called back as they have no previous images to compare to if something looks slightly off

There might be a note but it would say something like "breast screening recall" or something fairly neutral I'd imagine.
I don't think they will have any info you don't have. I hope all goes well for you.

That said I don’t know if the grading came after the initial mammogram I think it came after the more detailed 3d mammogram they do at the hospital

I hope it's not the same for you, but I went to my GP because I found a lump and was referred to the breast clinic. I had a lumpectomy and radiotherapy but there is nothing on the app about it at all. In fact the only thing that appeared was my 'refusal' to have a mammogram; I phoned them to say I already had one booked through the clinic so wouldn't need the 3 yearly screening. I had a bone scan and asked the practice nurse at a routine medication review if she had the results as I hadn't heard anything 'oh no' she said 'we don't always get the results of any hospital tests' which made me wonder what the point of the app is.

thanks.
this is after the routine screening rather than symptoms, but it isn't the first one, so they do have previous ones to compare to. I don't remember getting any results after the last one but obviously I must have been told all was fine at some point.

I hoped there'd be a more detailed letter to the GP but didn't know if they would be able to share it with me anyway. Or if the GP treating me for unrelated issues will have a heads-up somehow from the file that I'm going for further assessment, even if I don't specifically mention it, as it might explain why I'll be a little all-over-the-place when I'm there! There is nothing in my records on the NHS app though, but I imagine GPs can put up flags or notes or whatever regardless.

But the appointments are so short and there is enough to discuss anyway that I don't want to waste their time bringing it up or explaining, if all they have is the same letter as me.

The screening call back is fast, faster than the admin cogs turn. So they will probably get the same info as you do. The radiologist who examines the mammogram is a specialist in all things breast cancer, it’s all they do, so they will flag anything suspicious and if the image is not up to clinical standard. Often with large breasted ladies there may be bits of breast tissue missing off the image or sometimes artefacts.

I think the stats are 1 in 100 mammograms is recalled and 1 in 10 of the recalled patients have cancer. They will also call back if your breast tissue is too dense or if you have calcified areas.

My routine screening coincided with me finding a lump and it was found to be cancer. Oddly the radiologist said that my GP would be in contact, but since it was a screening mammogram I took it that she could see something that shouldn’t be there. As a dentist I’m familiar with radiographs and to the trained eye anomalies are pretty obvious.

The call back appointment is fairly intense so probably worth taking someone with you. They will start with another radiograph or go straight to ultrasound. The radiologist is in charge of the clinic and will examine the images straight away. So there is a fair bit of waiting around.
They may do a biopsy and place small titanium rods to locate the lesion being investigated. Then will take further mammograms to establish a baseline view.

The bad news is that the radiologist can accurately diagnose the presence of cancer but they can’t tell you what sort. They use words like suspicious rather than cancer because there is always a small chance it isn’t cancer. They can give you an idea of size or if there is evidence it has spread to lymph nodes. They can also tell you where it is in the breast.

After they’ve finished they will either discharge you or you will be given an appointment for the breast surgeon/oncologist.

The breast cancer team are a well oiled machine and very sensitive to the emotions that patients experience. Patients like me will present as quite laid back, I knew it was cancer ( I recognised the consistency of the lump), others will be weeping and wailing, bordering on hysterics. They don’t judge you.

I’m crossing my fingers for you that you are one of the majority that get called back and there is nothing wrong.

I’m in my 5th year post cancer and hoping that it stays NED ( no evidence of disease -the new term for remission).

The good news is that breast cancer is now almost 99% survivable for all types, so is probably the best cancer to be diagnosed with . Patients picked up by screening often have the b st outcomes because the disease is picked up before you are aware you have it.

I got called back in October and after the additional mammograms and ultrasound I could tell that they thought it was Breast cancer even though they didn’t directly say. They used the word suspicious as poster above says. However the first core biopsy came back benign, so they did a vacuum biopsy to take a bigger sample which also came back benign so I’ve just had surgery to remove the whole 4cm area they could see for testing now waiting on results. I’ve found them very thorough

thank you for the reassurance and explanation of what happens.
I'm hoping that it's more likely to be small, if it is anything, given that it was after a screening rather than a symptom.
I hope those of you waiting for results get them soon and that things are OK. I guess there are a lot of people at any one time waiting for this sort of thing! I think here about 4% get called back, so I know it is common and I probalby know several people who've been called back and we've just never talked about it.

In my area, the routine screenings take place at centres around the county, and if there is a technical problem with the scan and they just need more images, you get called back there, apparently. But if it's something that they need more detail about or if they've seen something suspicious, then you go to the main assessment centre, which is where I've been called. So I know it's more than just technical, anyway, but could still be one of many benign changes.

Just have a short while to wait (thankfully). And the other appointment to get through in the meantime, but hard to think about other medical issues that seem trivial in comparison! (but equally don't want the GP to write me off as an anxious mess about something that isn't important, so I do kind of hope they do get a flag that there are sensitive issues going on and they should be kind!). I don't think I'l ltry asking them for further detail then, as they probably don't have it and I'll just end up upset if I have to discuss it.

I recently went for a lump but ended up using my work healthcare scheme. I’ve just got the letter they wrote to the GP. However it won’t show on my app for ages (this happened before too) as I think it takes time for them to scan and put it on record.

My biggest lump ended up being a cyst which they drained there and then but they have also referred me for an MRI because I have extremely dense breasts and they want to be sure that the other lumps are not something to be concerned about (but I can only have that done at certain times of the month so need to wait).

I don’t think the GP ever knows much more than what they tell you as until they do further checks they can’t be sure anyway. Good luck and I hope it’s nothing serious.

thank you. I hope your MRI turns out OK.

I imagine the final results letter will go to the GP and get put on my records, but I'm not sure about this initial letter. I was really just hoping that they would have a bit more info about why I was recalled, and given that I already had an appointment at the GP before the recall appointment, I was hoping they might tell me, but not sure if they would even if they did know anything.