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Mammogram recall

(59 Posts)
Lemonnutmeg Thu 20-Feb-25 06:34:11

Hello everyone. New here. Just found you all.
Anyway, I'm having a major panic over the first mammogram recall ever. All others have been fine until this one.
I'm 78. I have nothing I can see or feel but the anxiety levels are off the charts.
Anyone else having or had this ?
Any words of wisdom would be gratefully received.

Calendargirl Thu 20-Feb-25 06:54:29

Had a recall the mammogram before the last one.

Recall letter came Thursday, appointment Monday.

Worried all weekend, went to hospital, another mammogram and examination by consultant.

He declared no problem.

What a relief!

Last one was ok, no recall.

So easy to say, don’t worry, I know, and of course you will, but chances are it will be ok.

Hope all goes well for you.

Whiff Thu 20-Feb-25 07:14:14

Lemonnutmeg I won't say don't worry because you are worried. But I look at this way it's better to know if there is a problem and it will be dealt with quickly. A friend of mine had 3 recalls each time it was a cyst she worked herself into a terrible state.

My mom never had a mammogram until she was 73 and only because she had a pain in her left breast . Turned out the cancer was in her right breast it was the size of a pea and couldn't have been felt by touch .. Had masectomy and lymph nodes removed . It wasn't until she was 86 she got cancer in her other breast masectomy and lymph nodes removed and 15 doses of radiotherapy she lived until she was 90.

A recall is better than having them ignoring if they find an anomaly.

madeleine45 Thu 20-Feb-25 07:55:51

it is scary of course, and you cannot help worrying about it, but the only answer now is to go and get it done. You wont really stop worrying until they look at it and hopefully say its ok, but it is very good that they are checking so well. You have reminded me that I must ask for a mammogram myself as I do not get any recall now I am 79 and have had two types of cancer, (but not breast cancer) I dont enjoy going , and am sure that no one does, but if we dont do this we only worry in the other was, of what might be happening. So I hope all goes well and in the meantime try to give yourself some calming things to do. I tend to get very physically tense when I am worried and so going swimming I find helpful and doing a little yoga, always keep books by my bed, so if I wake up in the night and cant get back to sleep , put the light on and read, rather than lying in the dark worrying. Hope all goes well

WhiteSwan63 Thu 20-Feb-25 08:07:59

I can understand how worried you must feel. I’m waiting for the results of my latest mammogram but it’s been weeks so hopefully no news is good news.
The comments so far have been very encouraging. You are entitled to worry so just wanted to say I understand and send you a handhold x 💐

Lemonnutmeg Thu 20-Feb-25 08:50:15

Thank you everyone. So supportive and genuinely helpful

Grammaretto Thu 20-Feb-25 08:55:40

Good luck to you.
I had a recall once and I was worried. I had a biopsy and it wasn't cancer.

Here in Scotland we are only offered mammograms up to the age of 70. It seems odd given that so many older people develop cancer.

Retread Thu 20-Feb-25 08:56:32

Lemon there have been similar threads in the past with numerous replies of recalls, with all clear outcomes.

I too had a recall and got all worked up, as it turned out, for nothing! smile It was merely a case of the first mammogram being a bit blurred and therefore ... they were being cautious. A good thing!

flowers

ViceVersa Thu 20-Feb-25 09:00:34

I had a recall last year, and I admit my worry was off the scale, but the nurses at the breast clinic were wonderful - incredibly reassuring and thankfully, all was well. They did tell me that the majority of recalls are not because any sinister has been spotted, but in the event that there is something of concern, the earlier it has been found, the better. I hope all goes well for you.

Redhead56 Thu 20-Feb-25 09:13:25

I had recall some years ago I was told to go to Linda McCartney centre in Liverpool. I was terrified to be honest so much so my daughter took time off to go with me.I was sick with worry had lots of tests more scans etc was after what seemed like hours given the results.
It turned out because I had a milk cyst clump when breast feeding my daughter. It was aspirated and had left scar tissue that is what caused the recall. It wasn’t visible on the scan I had previously but it had grown over time.
What a relief it was my advice is take someone with you just for company and try not to worry.

Marydoll Thu 20-Feb-25 09:17:48

Grammaretto

Good luck to you.
I had a recall once and I was worried. I had a biopsy and it wasn't cancer.

Here in Scotland we are only offered mammograms up to the age of 70. It seems odd given that so many older people develop cancer.

You can request them. I had my last one a few months ago, but received a letter stating I could continue if I wished to do so.

I had a recall and my appointment was on Christmas Eve, I was out of my mind with worry. It turned out to be nothing sinister.
The examination was so thorough, I think I saw three different doctors, trying to work out what was showing in the scan, for which I was extremely grateful.
Better to be recalled, than for something to be missed.

AuntieE Sat 22-Feb-25 13:14:47

Yes, I too had a recall years ago now, and both DH and I got all worked up and worried, as is only natural.

It turned out that when the mamograph was taken, the radiographer forgot to mark the mole I have on my right breast on her print-out, and as it is a perfectly ordinary birth-mark, there was nothing to worry about.

I hope something similar happens for you, but better safe than sorry.

Unfortunately, this sort of letter from hospitals have a nasty habit of showing up on Friday afternoons!

FranA Sat 22-Feb-25 13:15:55

Whether you worry or whether you don’t isn’t going to change the outcome so why worry.

4allweknow Sat 22-Feb-25 13:34:34

Sometimes tgere is a recall when there is a problem with the picture. Had one years ago when the whole area hadn't been captured and tgen another when the angle wasn't correct. Interested in that there are some over 70s having mammograms, thought they were stopped at 70 years of age.

V3ra Sat 22-Feb-25 13:37:59

4allweknow I had a routine recall mammogram a few weeks ago, I'm 67.
I was told I'll be called again in three years time as they do so up to the age of 71.
After that I can request an invitation if I want to.
I will because my Mum had a

V3ra Sat 22-Feb-25 13:39:01

...my Mum had a mastectomy so I will request to carry on being screened.

Taffy1234 Sat 22-Feb-25 13:43:06

Hi try not to panic too much. I have had three recalls until one doctor marked the innocent cyst on my record and it’s never happened since.
Lots of people get recalled I think they work on the principle better safe than sorry.
Hold tight and hope for the best.

REWIRING Sat 22-Feb-25 13:48:22

4 years ago I was recalled too. I am a worrier anyway but was planning my funeral!!!! A couple of friends were being treated for breast cancer at the time too. I attended the recall and after an ultra scan it was found to be a cyst that had calcified on the outside. But I understand the worry when recalled it is only normal x

icanhandthemback Sat 22-Feb-25 14:17:02

I remember the sheer terror I felt. It turned out it was a small cyst in the milk duct. It was aspirated, tested and I left feeling reassured. I hope things turn out as well for you.

threads Sat 22-Feb-25 14:33:44

Poor you, yes of course you are worried. When this happened to me a few years ago, the nurse explained that I had been recalled because the image looked "different" in her words. To which I commented that the test had felt "different" ... which was a polite way of saying that it had been especially uncomfortable! She then went on to say that differences are what they are looking for. In this case it was simply not the same as the previous images.
Hope this may help you.

Tina1957 Sat 22-Feb-25 14:39:51

Try not to worry,I also have been recalled and everything was fine.Hope all ok for you too.

granjan66 Sat 22-Feb-25 15:01:31

I have been recalled twice, apparently I have dense breast tissue!
All was all right.

Lahlah65 Sat 22-Feb-25 15:12:43

I have had a recall too in the past, and remember how anxious I was. But it turned out to be nothing to worry about. I was told that as the imaging technology gradually improves it shows more detail, and just to be sure they like to check things out. They’re looking for changes, and a lot of the time the changes they see are simply due to changes in the images. I was actually reassured by knowing that these were picked up effectively. I really hope that this will turn out to be the same for you - there is every chance that it will.

cc Sat 22-Feb-25 15:25:28

I've had a recall too, and also years ago had an exploratory operation because I had a leaky nipple. Both times were fine but either way it would have meant that the problem had been found early.

Madmeg Sat 22-Feb-25 15:32:49

I'm sure everyone gets worried about this but almost everyone I know has had a recall at some point in the past - including me. In my case it was "fatty tissue" which apparently shows a shadow in the same way as a cancer. Oh, and tons of years ago I went to the GP after feeling a lump - it was a cyst and he used a syringe to empty it.

They dare not ignore anything at all unusual, but in many cases it is NOT cancer.

I hope all is well for you.