lump

I had my first-ever diagnostic mammogram today. Apparently this involves both the squishy-squashy x-rays of the breasts, flattened like last season's discarded purses, in a machine that is simultaneously ripping the tissue from armpit and ribcage, and breast ultrasound.

The x-rays were unremarkable and show no changes from my previous mammograms. That's good.

During the ultrasound, the radiologist found a lump. I knew it was there, it has been there forever, and no doctor has ever remarked on it during an exam, and it has never shown up on a mammogram. I figured it was just part of my usual lumpy-tissued breast.

On the u/s, though, it showed up quite definitely as a dense mass, quite solid, and not tiny, either. Hmmm.

The radiologist said it wouldn't show up on an x-ray because it's in the midst of some very dense tissue. She recommended either a u/s guided needle biopsy (I think this is the same as a core biopsy), lumpectomy, or diagnostic u/s every 6 months for the next 2 years. Given my thyroid cancer history, she recommends having it biopsied, so I'll schedule that when the doctor's office gets back to me with a reference.

I suppose I should be freaking out about this, but I have worry fatigue. I've spent too much time worrying about too many things, and frankly, my life is great even if I have had to deal with a lot of health issues -- so you know what? I'm not flipping out about this (at least, not now). The radiologist said it looked benign, so we'll go with that for now.

The biopsy will hurt, and then I'll wait around for a week or so with a weight on me, until the results come back, and then I'll either relax or gear up for another long slog through medical hell. Whatever. I'm too busy to curl up and whimper about yet-another-thing going wrong with my body, which apparently took my lame jokes about my warranty expiring on my 39th birthday quite seriously.

It was supposed to be a joke...