Breast lump in daughter, please help

[hopeful927]

My 15 year old daughter found a pea sized lump behind her nipple. I told her it was nothing to worry about but we would have the Dr check to make sure. I told her 15 year olds don't get breast cancer. Inside I am freaking out! I don't want this to ruin my Christmas but I am so worried. Please help!

[uru]

Your right, they don't get beast cancer. Probably fibroadenoma

[Masonn]

She is 15, there is no need to worry. If there is no history of breast cancer, then there is REALLY no need to worry. The only thing that would cause it this young is if it was caused by heredity. Even then, just don't worry, she is 15. Breast cancer isn't a young person's cancer.

[hopeful927]

Her grandmother had breast cancer. Now I'm worrying even more!

[Fishmanpa]

I can see you're quite worried as reassurance is not helping (sadly, it rarely does). Please note her grandmother had it and how old was she when she got it? See my point? The chances are virtually nil.

If you're that concerned, just have it checked out.

Positive thoughts

[hopeful927]

Thank you everyone. I went to her pediatrician, and she thinks it is just a milk duct or due to her hormones. She said to wait for one cycle, and if it is still there we will go to the breast health clinic. That made my anxiety shoot up again! What if it doesn't go down! I just don't want to ruin my Christmas worrying about this.

[misslove]

If she's 15 I would say it's her breast starting to develop. The doc knows what they are doing. I'm sure she'll be fine! Enjoy your Christmas and family. It will be ok Mamma :)

[hopeful927]

Thank you for all your advice. It does help. I am still wrestling with the fear of breast cancer but rationally I know this is silly as she is only 15. Problem is that with health anxiety all rational thoughts go out the window. I keep wanting to check it but I know that will make her anxious about it and I don't want that. I still have an internal struggle going on. Sigh, anxiety sucks.

[misslove]

Yes it does! Try to relax and do what the dr said. Do some crafts with her to take your mind off it. My 6 yr old and I are gonna make homemade bird feeders over winter break :) Pinterest has a lot of ideas

[hopeful927]

I know, I'm trying to distract myself but it is so hard. My irrational thoughts like my 15 year old has breast cancer just keep popping in my head. So fristrating

[hopeful927]

Has anyone heard of lumps in 15 year olds?

[Fishmanpa]

Has anyone heard of lumps in 15 year olds?


I went to her pediatrician, and she thinks it is just a milk duct or due to her hormones.

With respect, rather than try to feed your anxiety asking about similar situations, take what the doctor said as reassurance, stop looking for affirmation and enjoy your holidays.

15 year old girls have hormones galore and their bodies are changing on a daily basis. Her doctor is spot on IMO.

Positive thoughts

[hopeful927]

I'm really struggling. I keep reading all the posts you all have been to help. I'm so frustrated with myself. I keep worrying about this stupid lump in my 15 year olds breast. I keep trying to stop myself from worrying about it and checking it as I don't want to worry my daughter about it. I wish there was a way to just forget about it, listen to my Dr. And see how it goes in the next month. I'm so disappointed in myself.

[pulisa]

I can certainly understand your concern but that doesn't mean to say that I think that your daughter's lump is sinister. The truth is that you will not be 100% reassured until a definitive diagnosis is made. I don't think that you should transmit your fears onto your daughter no matter how hard that might be though.

You're doing the right thing by having it investigated. The chances of a 15 year old having a malignant breast lump are miniscule but you will be 100% reassured once you know for sure.

---------- Post added at 20:23 ---------- Previous post was at 20:20 ----------

Oh and yes, my friend's then 14 year old had a lump scanned and it was a harmless cyst. It dispersed without medical intervention. I know this info won't really help you but it shows that teenagers can have these things...

Take care-I appreciate your anguish and wish I could help more..

[.Poppy.]

Honestly, be as careful with you thinking as you can - if you go too far down this path, it won't matter what the other doc says (if you even have to see him) as you'll just end up convincing yourself that he's wrong or missed something.

I have been there before, and it's a nasty place to be.

Like others have said, the chances of this being harmful are very, very, very, very slim. Even if it were something that needed to be dealt with (highly doubt it is) you've caught it early enough that it wouldn't be a problem, either.

You need to find a way to distract yourself and put this out of your mind the best way you can. Honestly, what works for me is flat out telling myself I'm being silly. For example, I may think "my head hurts...what if it's a brain tumor?" (as I did last night) to which I will instead firmly tell myself "don't be ridiculous...you've had headaches like this before and it's nothing, don't worry..." at which point I will then do something with my friends or family as it's hard to stew over your bad thoughts when you're trying to keep a conversation going with someone else.

I wish you the best of luck and a Merry Christmas. You can get past this, just try to be more mindful of your thoughts.

[hopeful927]

Thanks again. This website is one more thing to help. I read all of your comments and it truly helps. Id be lying if I said I was fine, I am still really struggling with my worry. My irrational thoughts are just insane. I'm most upset that it is ruining my Christmas which is really disappointing to me but I am masking it pretty good so my kids are all still having a great Christmas. Again, endless thanks for all of you.

[hopeful927]

So I have been doing a lot better with this issue lately. I can't explain it, but on Christmas day I literally felt my anxiety lower down and I could think of this breast lump more rationally. I had a great week this past week, and really felt I was myself. Now that I am back at work, I had to make the follow up appointment for my daughter. For some reason my anxiety is peaking now. The appointment is for Thursday, and I am sure she will be referred to the breast health clinic just to let us know what it is. What can I do to make sure my anxiety doesn't take over again. I have been able to think rationally before, teens don't get breast cancer, it is smooth and round another symptom of it being benign, her breasts are so new and developing that there is a lot going on in them. I just need advice on how to deal with the anxiety now that I have the follow up appointment scheduled. I loathe health anxiety like never before.

[hopeful927]

Anyone?

[puzzledlass]

When my sister was about 16-17 she had a breast lump. Turned out to be nothing, and was a cyst or something.

[dakotasmom]

I had a lump on my breast when I was 16 that also turned out to be a cyst, I'm 22 now alive and well!

I know this must be so scary for you but really I'm sure she's just fine :)

[hopeful927]

So I went to the doctor for a re-check this morning and her doctor again reiterated that she was not worried about it. She said it is very small, and exactly the same size. She recommended leaving it, and rechecking it at her next appointment. So this is good news in the fact that I have a doctor saying it is nothing to worry about and that she is so not concerned that she doesnt' even feel that we need to go to the breast health clinic. Part of me, you know, the anxious part, almost wants to go the whole way with getting a definitive answer. I told her to recommend what she would do if it was her daughter and she said that she would leave it and check it at her next appointment. I'm challenging myself to listen to the doctor, and to try to think like a "normal" person would. Any advice?

[Fishmanpa]

I'm challenging myself to listen to the doctor, and to try to think like a "normal" person would. Any advice?

Do exactly that ;)

I'll give you an example... I'm going to a dermatologist next week. Pretty standard check up at my age. I've had a spot on my upper back near my neck on the same side I was irradiated during cancer treatment that has been driving me bonkers for the last few months and one of the reasons I'm getting things checked out. It itches and it feels like there are insects burrowing under my skin crawling out and about... Not fun! I don't suffer from HA but I will admit that the thought of skin cancer crossed my mind as I've certainly been overexposed to the sun many, many times in my life and the cancer I had, Squamous Cell Carcinoma, is a known type of skin cancer (although mine was internal Head & Neck). There's nothing visible there but I can feel some small raised bumps and the area is very sensitive.

That being said, hydrocortisone cream helps and I've had all sorts of nerve related anomalies since treatment. If all is well, and I really expect it will be, guess what? I'll just deal with it as I do all the other nasties I deal with on a daily basis.What's one more in the big scheme of things? That's normal thinking IMO :)

Positive thoughts

[hopeful927]

I am trying although it is hard. Part of me wishes we were being sent for a test so I could 100% rule it out, but I need to start taking my doctors advice and listening to her. That is what she has studied for and is there for. Just so hard sometimes.

[hopeful927]

Anyone else have trouble trusting their doctor?

[Fishmanpa]

Just a quick glance on the board shows three other threads about trusting doctors and tests. It's a very common thought pattern of HA sufferers. Perceived swellings and normal aches and pains become sinister deadly illnesses. Sometimes the mind can actually cause symptoms where none existed before.

Certainly, there's a sense of comfort knowing others are going through the same thing and it can be cathartic writing out your fears and thoughts but at the same time it's feeding the dragon. Finding something to distract your mind from going around and around in the negativity will help. Watch a funny movie. Listen to some cheerful music. Read a book. Engage in a hobby. Anything but sit and dwell on what deep down you know is not an issue.

Hope you find some shelter from the storm...

Positive thoughts

[hopeful927]

Thanks so much. I agree with you. The part I am stuck in is the fact that it isn't a perceived swelling, it is actually a lump. That is what I get stuck on, even though my doctor says I shouldn't worry about it and that it is nothing to be concerned about.
I agree, going round and round does feed the dragon. Thanks for your wise words.

[pj67]

Hi hopeful. I really understand where you are coming from, I have a lot of health anxiety about my kids. Is your daughter we'll developed or is she just starting to develop breasts? I think the fact that it is behind the nipple is reassuring as lots of young girls ( and boys) get lumps behind the nipple due to hormones and they are completely normal. Could it be a breast bud?

[rebeccad]

My Eldest son at 14 had a lump behind his nipple , he had it for a about 12 months and then went , I had it checked by 2 Drs becauSe of course I freaked , they said it was hormonal changes x