Tomorrow, my wife will get her annual. She has had lumpy cysts all her life, a fact which tempted many doctors to go "deeper". True, this condition cannot be openly dismissed, as a cancerous "lump" might become present at any time. Anyhow, about 25 years ago, we were still living in Phoenix, a routine mammogram suggested to a specialist (we had no insurance), that a biopsy was needed. A procedure which I forget the name of, but my wife described it vividly. A thin, corkscrew-shaped probe was screwed into her breast under local anasthesia, a procedure she described afterwards as the most painful experience of her life, and tissue samples were extracted. She said afterwards, she would NEVER submit to such a biopsy again. One thing led to another, a "suspicious" finding of pre-cancerous tissue in her cervix during a concurrent PAP smear test, produced the decision by the doctor (?) to order a "cone biopsy" of her cervix. Studying up on that, we learned that a conical cyclindrical section of the opening of the cervix was excised as both a diagnostic process, as well as preventive, as it might remove cancerous tissue. Remembering my Father's grit, denouncing a Radical Maxillary Operation on his 19 year old son many years earlier, I stopped any further medical procedure. Amidst dire predictions of consequences by the doctor, we continued about our daily lives. The breast biopsy was ruled negative. Meanwhile, the doctor in question was charged with myriad serious crimes, and wound up eventually in prison. Think what MIGHT have been done to my poor wife. Today, many years later, her annual mammogram continues to exhibit the same cyst structure, and our hospital's diagnostic folks proclaim it "normal". So, how does one meaningfully evaluate medical recommendations, the results of which might prove deadly, or harmless? Ya wonder why I have problems trusting the medical profession? Frank
I have the same problem as your wife (cysts) I also share your problem with the medical profession using 'caution' and self awareness every time Wish her well
We have no such problem here, but I have known several women with cystic breasts who have been cured by giving up or reducing their intake of coffee. I don't know if it was the coffee or the caffeine, as I have not heard of such incidents in tea drinkers. The doctors involved believed it was the caffeine that caused the cysts. The cysts are always benign, but getting to that diagnosis can be painful and cause anxiety. There is a robotic biopsy machine here that is reported to be nearly painless as it is so quickly done that it is over before the pain sensation registers.