Currently trying not to spiral
Apologies in advance, this might be long. I’m 35 and over a month ago I started having tenderness & swelling on the outer side of my left breast. I can’t remember exactly when it started. I brushed it off because I’ve had on and off tenderness for years and have been told before that it was just that I had very dense tissue & any swelling previously was hormonal. It always started with the left & then usually the right would feel the same after a few days. Not this time. On top of the swelling & tenderness I started having changes in my areola/nipple. I noticed the nipple turning inward more and it has been so sensitive, itchy, and flaky. I also feel like the skin has become thicker around the edges. Toward the end of April I was feeling around and noticed the nipple was very painful. I was trying to figure out if I was feeling a tiny lump under the areola/nipple area and that’s when I noticed some mostly clear fluid came out which I’ve never seen happen before. I couldn’t make an appt until after I got back from a trip but I finally went in this week when these issues still hadn’t gone away.
I described my symptoms and my doctor did an exam and compared the difference/changes on the left side to the right. I was expecting the usual “oh it just feels like normal dense tissue” explanation but from what she could feel, the symptoms I described, & my extensive family history of cancers it seemed like she was pretty concerned. She ordered a mammogram & ultrasound to be done asap along with a referral to the breast clinic. She ended up calling the imaging center herself because she wants me seen within the next 7 days and they had initially tried scheduling me out a few weeks. So now I’m trying not to panic until I go in next Tuesday for imaging because something about this just feels different than anything I’ve felt before.