Wellness

[Mary Bailey]

On 5/31/2014 Katrin B said:

My partner had the same calcification issue. Mammography / MRI every 6 months for a while. After 2 years of this she insisted on a lumpectomy and it turned out to be Breast Cancer. She is doing fine. The most peculiar thing that stuck with me is something an oncologist told us :" The calcifications are a shadow of something else going on."

Hope all of you are diligent with the follow-ups and fortunate in never being diagnosed with anything worrisome.

I will call next week.

Between what you said & what shoekitty said, I'm a little concerned.

[AnotherView2]

I appreciate running into this thread. Next week I am having another follow up mammo on my left breast and an ultrasound afterward. The radiologist said there was some ""density"" he wanted to check further. I will ask about calcification...

[4lifeinnh]

I had the same experience as Shoekitty. In my case Biopsy of the calcification came back as ducal carcinoma in situ which is early cancer still confined to the milk duct. I had 2 surgeries and radiation. That was 10 years ago. So glad that my surgeon insisted on doing the biopsy instead of waiting and doing mams every 6 months. OP, hope all is well for you!

[Annabellethecat66]

I've had that (they didn't do anything). I've had to have a solid mass removed (not cancer). There have been several times when I've had something show up on the mamogram and then the Dr said, "cut way back on anything that has caffein in it.

I did and it went away.

[QP Doll]

Yes, way back over 32 years ago, they found massive calcifications. I had biopsies in both breasts & they were benign. They now say this is unnecessary surgery. So if I were you, I would not let this be any concern. Calcifications seem to be very common, but benign.

[Gayle2]

I have gone through 2 surgical biopsies. I am on the 6 month deal as well. Results have been benign. The only "downer" was that the second biopsy was near the nipple and the scar was about a inch long. When it healed....it healed weird and now I have a dimple at the scar every time I breath. Trust me, I know this is not a problem compared to dealing with cancer. The only thing I will do different is go to a watch status. Before, I wanted everything "out" because it scared me and there is a family hx. of breast cancer in my family. Now I will respond only if the calcs change form, grow etc. I wish you well with your healthcare.

[NYwoman]

I have had galactorrhea (constant milk production due to hormone imbalance) for many years. I, therefore, have cystic breasts and now calcifications. They look at the differences in my mammograms because of it and I have had a breast sonogram.

[Vivian]

Mine were diagnosed years ago. They never showed that pattern that is more serious. Nevertheless, I have my digital mammograms every year. My daughter has now been diagnosed with them. She is also vigilant. I don't worry about them as much as I did when I was first diagnosed since it's been such a long time, but I know how important it is for me to be checked.

[earth1st]

Yes, I have had this experience and kind of a double whammy. In Dec. I had a routine mammogram and almost simultaneously noticed a growing nodule in my groin. This was getting bigger and bigger and was sent to a surgeon for a biopsy. This turned out to be lymphoma and began seeing an oncologist. This is at a stage where it is very treatable and he routinely checks my blood and so far, I am at a point where it is watch and wait, so no chemo as of yet and keep my fingers crossed this was be the status quo. However on my routine Mammo there were some calcifications that needed a work up and I kind of delayed it while dealing with the lymphoma. I did have a biopsy and as another poster commented, I have DCIS which is the best form of breast cancer one can hope for. The biopsy itself was not bad and my results came back very fast. I opted to see the same surgeon who did the inguinal biopsy and now more decisions needed to be made. Option 1 was a lumpectomy which would have to be followed by radiation therapy and Option 2 was a simple mastectomy with no radiation needed. I had decided I did not want to go thru radiation therapy as it takes a big toll on the body, so I am now scheduled for a mastectomy on June 24th. I was offered reconstruction and also declined that. I am going thru this pretty much alone and just trying to be an informed patient. So I read a lot and want to get back to a more "normal" life. The bottom line is without the biopsy, there is no way of knowing whether or not the calcifications are malignant. Also, there are financial considerations as treatments can be extremely costly and I do not have deep pockets.

So my best advice is to get the biopsy and deal with whatever the outcome is in the most proactive way you can.

Good luck to you.

[conlt]

Yes, I have had 6 Biopsies on the same general area and 1 Lumpectomy since 2005. All were benign. In my case, they have concluded that all the Biopsies caused scarring that then shows up as suspicious on Mammogram. Last year I did not have to have even an ultrasound. I am due now for my Mammogram so we will see. Don't get nervous there are many false positives. They told me most are benign.