Questions on Mammogram

Hi D.,

I just had this happen and I was very nervous as well. My next Mammogram was fine but they are catching smaller and smaller irregularities. I will need to go in again in 6 months but right now everything is okay. You might only have an issue with one breast. That was what happened to me. I wish you good luck. I was also told that this happens a lot but with all the breast cancers and women dying it is a lot scarier world. Send positive energy to it and don't panic until you know something.

Hi very common about one out of 4 go back they are just being extra careful I just went back you can't help but scared but wait until you have the repeat breast tissue can ge hard to read and sometimes they need different views good luck! P. P

I just had my second digital last week in a new city , after losing my husband a year ago I moved back to my hometown, and they compared this years to last years and found an area of dense tissue that seemed bigger. So I have to go back for more films. I am trying to stay calm, and hope this is a normal occurrence to have to redo films. Am I right? I'm scared because after a marriage of 40 years, I don't have my husband to lean on, and my 2 daughters are one on each coast with me in IL.

Hi D.,

I definately would not be overly concerned. It is very common to require follow up. They tend to be very careful. I get called back every time I have a mammogram. Apparently some women have "lumpy" breasts which require more follow up; even ultrasounds. Best Wishes. God Bless.

J. L.

I went through that once. There was a "shadow" on the film, and I had to go back to see if the technician could "make the shadow go away". She did this by squashing my rather large breast as hard as she could to try to flatten it as much as possible, to be sure there wasn't any mass there. There wasn't, and all is well!
Also, I have a friend who used to take mammograms, and when this happened to me, I called her right away, to get her opinion. She told me what you were told-it happens all the time, so don't fret.
Best of luck, and try to be calm and cool.

There are lots of things it could be...... If you have breastfed within the last few months for example, it can be calcium deposits. Until you've heard the worst, expect the best.... I'll say a prayer for you!

Hi D.!
Good Morning to you!
I just had one yesterday!Last year the very same thing happened to me-I went to have an annual and about 4 days later they called me back to come in for another one. They say it's because sometimes when you are on the younger side your breasts are more dense and fiberous-therefore they may be shadows or in my case scar tissue from previous biopsies. I know how you are feeling about the whole call back and it's aweful-your whole life has just flashed by you.
It'll be o.k.!
Get back to me and let me know how it went-you'll be in my prayers!

Korey

Hi D., that happened to me last time I had a mammogram done. They usually just do it for a precaution, for me, there was like a little dot they saw and it happened to be a fold of skin. I was worried to death before I got the 2nd one done, but I wouldn't get too worried. They also tell you right there if it ok, you don't have to wait. Good luck.
B.

I have gotten a call back, blurry film I think. Apparently I have very dense breast tissue. Everything was fine.

just to be on a safe side go have ti film taken

Hello,

It happened to me recently as well, but I was informed immediately by the technician (before the mammogram had begun) that they might call back - especially since it was my first mammogram. Because of the digital readings, it captures more, but until a closer look is taken, they can't tell if there is a mass or just dense breast tissue. More often than not (I was told), it's just to confirm a case of dense breast tissue - which was my case. Good luck.

this has happened several times to me - never anything of consequence. If you can, ask to have the radiologist read the "films" while you're there. They may want to do an ultrasound too - again, better safe than sorry is the approach there. Not fun, but hopefully it is nothing as has been the case for me. Good luck.

I'm only in my 20s but I had a lump and instead of doing the mammogram they went straight to an ultrasound bc they knew it was there and would have to do one anyway. Maybe they didn't get a clear picture so they want to redo it. If they saw something they would be doing a different test to get a better image.

Hello,

Of course you're very nervous. Every woman would be!
But, please try to ease you mind by knowing that they just want to take a better look.

My friend just went through the same thing. It came back normal. ANYTHING could have caused a poor view... You may have flinched, muscle twitched, skin overlapped. So many variables.

Have you ever done one before, or is this your first?
Was there ever any kind of trauma to your breast? Did you breast feed/not? If they have no baseline to compare to, they may want a better view of something that is benign. (I had BR surgery and they needed a better view/angle of the scarring so they could form a baseline.)

It is unnerving, yes, but try to think of it as a road map of your body. And, until they tell you differently, they just need to see it from another angle.

My prayers are with you~

Hi,
Sort of but it happend when I was still at the hospital. They took the exrays and since they weren't busy they looked at them right away and asked that I have more take. It was only because my breasts are dense so you may have the same issue. They just wanted to get a few more shots. Good Luck!

Good Morning. I had a similar situation. This is especially common if it is your first mammogram. If they see something, they just want to make sure it's normal for you. I went for my first several years ago and was called to come back within the week. It makes you really think about things. When I went back, they had trouble getting a clearer shot of the area; so they had me go for an ultrasound, immediately. I was almost in tears it was so overwhelming. The nurses were great, they evaluated the films and results before I left and it turns out it was nothing. They had me return for a follow-up in 6 months just to make sure. I am now back on the "annual" schedule. I won't lie, I was very anxious during those 6 months, but what a relief when it was confirmed to be nothing. And even with the anxiety, I took the attitude that I'd rather have them double check now, than find out later, when it's too late, that it was something that could have been treated. I have since spoken to many women about this and it seems we're not alone...

Hi D.,
The same thing happened to me just a few weeks ago. I am 35 but my doctor wanted me to have a baseline mamm. now since there is history of breast cancer in my fam. Like you said, it was all a piece of cake and they called me the next day to come back. It meant nothing more than they didn't get good enough shots the first time and needed to take some from a few different angles. A week later I got the results that everything looked great. So don't be nervous!!! Good luck!

A. B.

Hi! First of all, try not to get too stressed out about the follow-up. Usually, the second visit is to rule out anything that remotely looks questionable or the tech didn't get enough films the first time around. I've had both scenarios int he past. If anything, be reassured that you are being taken care of by professionals that want to be as sure as possible that there isn't anything to worry about, serious or otherwise. Hang in there!

Try not to sweat it. I had the same call, was sure that I had cancer since it was "several areas" that needed to be re-evaluated. First one, no comparison. Diagnosed with a lot of glandular tissue. I was planning my treatment/death and how it would affect my kids and husband...all to find out that this repeat mammogram is ridiculously common. Need to go back and get squeezed harder (if you even thought that was possible). Good luck.

I have had two mammograms and I got called back both times. They did an ultrasound and further testing the second time around both times. (Mammograms are harder to read in woman with denser breast tissue-usually smaller breasted women)Anyway the first time it was a lymph node they saw on the films-totally benign. The second time it was fibrocystic breast tissue-she gave me the option to have a biopsy and I did just for piece of mind. Totally benign too. Nervewracking! I wish I waited until I was 40-I'm only 37 and all this waiting and wondering was tough!

It happens a lot - it's happened to me several times. It's particularly common in women with fibrocystic breasts or "dense" breasts. Digital is better but not perfect. If they saw something definitive, they wouldn't have asked for more films. Try not to worry, but don't hesitate to ask questions and demand to speak to the radiologist. The technician who does the mammo may not have (or be allowed to give) much info, but you can start there and also ask the name of the radiologist. Sometimes you can wait after your appointment until the radiologist is free to talk to you - I've had them call me in to let me look at the films. Not that I really know what I'm seeing, but it helps me to have something visual in front of me and to listen to the doctor explain at the same time he/she points things out. Take a pad & pen too so you can jot down notes. Consider taking a friend with you as another pair of ears as well as support. Good luck!

Hi D.,

Newton-Wellesley hospital invested in digital imaging equipment, which does give a better read. However, in my case, once they had this new technology they saw something but couldn't compare it to my old films because the spots didn't show up with the old technology. So I got a call to come back in too. In my case we decided to do a biopsy to be sure since my sister had breast cancer, and thankfully it turned out to be just calcifications in my milk glands on my right breast. They put a titanium tag (picture a teeny-tiny link from a necklace chain) in my breast to mark the spot so on future scans we know this area's already been cleared. Same thing happened the next year with the left breast, so now I have two titanium tags. Most expensive jewely I own, too bad nobody can see them!

Hang in there, I know it makes your mind jump through hoops but it's likely nothing to worry about (and if it is, you're going to catch it early!).

Good luck!

If you tend to have dense breast tissue, it's very common, I believe I've had to go back at least 3-4 times in the past 10 years and each time, nothing to worry about.

Hi D. -
As you can tell this is a common experience. I go to Faulkner Hospital Sagoff Centre in Boston. Because they have doctors to look at your films before you leave so you dont have to come back, and if they see anything suspicios or questionable, they will take more films at that time, and not have you come all the way back in.

It does take about a year to get an appointment, but to me it is totally worth it. You know when you leave, you dont have to wait 4 days to get a call back.

Good luck on the retake of your films!!

L.

The same thing happened to me two years ago as well. The woman who called really didn't give me any explanations or tell me how common it was to get a call back, but a friend assured me that it does happen. So I had an ultrasound that showed what they saw on the mammogram was a small cyst, as they expected and nothing to be worried about. My advice? Go in with a positive attitude and expect it to be a routine follow-up instead of stressing over it. Stressing over it, like I did, won't help whether it's a routine follow-up or not.