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Painful mammogram

Posted: Nov 12, 2010

I had a mammogram a few days ago which was very painful. The tech asked if I had a high caffeine intake, which unfortunately I do. She said this can make the test more painful. I saw on line that if you reduce or eliminate the caffeine intake about a week prior to the test it will help. I must say it was painful enough to perhaps make me avoid going back next year. It has been some years since I have had a mammography. I am glad I went, but it was not a pleasant experience.

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Painful Mammogram - MT

[ In Reply To ..]
If the mammo is just before menses, the that can be painful as well. Before menopause, I would try to schedule them not around "that time of month."

Don't give up your mammograms for your coffee or anything else. They do save lives.

painful mammograms - Viva

[ In Reply To ..]
They always hurt and I drink a lot of coffee so I take a Tylenol or two about half an hour before the procedure, just to take the edge off. I do this before pelvic exams/paps too.

Mammograms - VRT

[ In Reply To ..]
don't save lives. They let you know if you have disease. They don't save lives. What saves lives is taking care of your body, exercising, a diet low in fat and hormones (dairy and meat) and avoiding radiation which is what a mammogram gives you a good dose of every single year. I don't have mammograms.

The amount of radiation - long time CMA

[ In Reply To ..]
is so small and minimal in comparison to missing a tumor in your breast, it is not worth the risk of skipping it. Yes, eating well and exercise are an important part of your health but preventative medicine to detect problems before it is too late to survive is a vital part of your health as well. You should really have mammograms, colonoscopies, PAP smears, blood work, EKGs and chest x-rays along with a physical. There are many other factors other than eating healthy and exercising such as genetics that no one can get around. When you do finally feel a lump in your breast, it is much harder to get into remission than if you had caught it early with a mammogram, a very simple test that is well worth the miniscal amount of radiation that you recieve.

I Know Someone... - MT

[ In Reply To ..]
Who ate extremely healthy, exercised, didn't drink alcohol or caffeine, was at a good weight, and she didn't think a mammogram was important. She was dead within 1-1/2 years of her finding the lump on her own.

And I know tons... - VRT

[ In Reply To ..]
of people who claim to be "extremely healthy," at a good weight who don't drink or smoke but still continue to eat a terrible diet...the one most doctors prescribe, plenty of meat and dairy. They only think they are healthy.

And I know - SM

[ In Reply To ..]
A physician who was diagnosed with breast cancer who jogs regularly, eats an extremely healthy diet and is very slim. If you want to ignore your tests that's up to you, but we all know the facts. I still say the earlier you detect a problem the better. People argue against whether or not smoking causes lung cancer. Some people smoke their entire adult life and don't die from it. I had two aunts, both of whom were smokers and both are deceased from lung cancer. No one can be 100% sure, no matter how careful she is. Prevention cover a lot of ground, but mammograms can detect something in time to save a life. The technology now is digital and you get a very small dose of radiation.

I know of several doctors... - VRT

[ In Reply To ..]
who would disagree with you and they treat their patients with preventive nutritional advice and less invasive procedures. They have great success. So many tests that come with risks on a yearly basis cannot be a good thing.

Mammogram - TT MT

[ In Reply To ..]
This happens to be true; and is also applie to the days before your period, and not drinking caffeine a week before your period helps a lot to prevent soreness in the breasts. I worked for an OB-GYN office and we often told the patients to limit their intake of caffeine because it would cause breast discomfort, and also chocolate. The discomfort is also caused by compression on the breasts if you have cystic breast disease because these are fluid-filled sacs and any pressure on them can hurt. I have this condition and it hurts twice as much after the test. I feel the same way that you do and it always makes me rethink going back, but then I always do the breast cancer walk every year and see how many lives have been saved by getting the mammograms. I just wish there was another way..this seems like it should not happen in this day and age of technology, and I feel like I am going into a torture device!

I know of... - VRT

[ In Reply To ..]
so many women who have lost their lives AFTER having a mammogram. So much for "mammograms save lives." I won't even do the breast cancer walk simply because it is strongly supported by Dannon yogurt, a dairy product. It is a known fact that breast, uterine, ovarian and prostate cancers are all "hormone-related." Dairy is full of hormones. Maybe one day people will wake up and face reality but not if the medical community has anything to do with it. ; )

True, but - Early detection

[ In Reply To ..]
having mammograms can pick up a tumor in time to save a life, the same as a colonoscopy. I know three people personally who had a cancerous tumor diagnosed and had it removed and are alive today because of it.

Saving Lives - MT

[ In Reply To ..]
I know a few people who took very good of themselves and still got breast cancer. Exercising, eating right, etc., is great, but they won't pick up a tumor too small or too deep into tissue to feel with the hand.

Detection does not always save lives... - VRT

[ In Reply To ..]
and to say so is just deceptive tactics by the medical community. There's never a word mentioned about how to go about preventing, it's all about detecting. My mother died after her colonoscopy which is supposed to "save lives." She was found to have a very small polyp, supposedly cancerous which they removed and told her she would be fine. Then....they changed their minds and felt she should also undergo chemo which is also supposed to "save lives." She got an infection in her blood after her second treatment and died within a few days. Mammograms and colonoscopies are money makers and fear tactics is what people respond to. I think it's dirty pool.

So sorry - SM

[ In Reply To ..]
I am so sorry that your lost your mother. I have two friends who had a surveillance colonoscopy and in both cases a cancerous polyp (in one case 3) was removed. They had no symptoms. One of the women was going to cancel the test, feeling certain that nothing was wrong. Today she is cancer free. On the other hand, one woman I know had a colonoscopy and awoke in SICU. The physician perforated the colon. She had to have immediate surgery and a temporary colostomy. Thankfully, after much recovery she is fine. I guess we all need a crystal ball to tell us what to do and when to do it.

Detection does not always save lives - Hobbin Bobbin

[ In Reply To ..]
I agree. The only thing that can save you from breast cancer is self checks every month.

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