With a lilt in my step

It looks like my original diagnosis of myself having a breast infection was accurate.

Still dragging ass this morning and with a feeling of dread, I went to have my breast ultrasound done. The tech said my breasts are dense overall (which is probably attributed to my age. As women get older, their breasts become less dense. I'm still only 37. Most women don't start getting mammograms till they're 40 or older.) She said I do not have fibrocystic breast condition (which is a benign breast condition caused by cyclical hormones. Multiple cysts of various sizes develop in one or both breasts and can cause discomfort or pain that fluctuates with the menstrual cycle or when you drink too much caffeine.)

It appears that I have no new no tumors after all. When she was wanding the painful area, she found multiple large dilated milk ducts. She said the suspected knot behind my nipple appears to be an inflamed milk duct, too. Apparently on mammograms, these dilated milk ducts appear to be tumors.

From my web research, I found that in women who are not breast-feeding, mastitis can occur from a dilated or irregular milk duct, an injury to the breast (such as a cut or bite), or less commonly from breast cancer. The common symptoms of mastitis usually affect only one breast and start as a painful area that is red or warm. Fever, chills, and flulike symptoms or body aches can also develop. Signs that mastitis is getting worse include swollen, painful lymph nodes in the armpit next to the infected breast, an increased heart rate, and worsening flulike symptoms. Mastitis infection can lead to a breast abcess , which feels like a hard, painful lump.

Aside from the lump, this describes me. I thought this was the case from the start, but got more and more scared when the medical professionals blew me off and then the mammogram was abnormal. We'll find out tomorrow for sure. I'll keep taking my antibiotics and hope this fixes things. The pain is less since I started taking them, but that could be psychosomatic.

Regardless, I like the NO TUMOR news. I look forward to seeing my hunky doctor tomorrow.