On discovering breast lumps

Before we move onwards to the serious stuff, i just want to pat myself on my back (haha pathetic but funny!) for completing an impossible task. Ladies and gentlemen, Rachel has finally cleared her desk tonight.

*cue clapping*

I threw away junks that have been sitting on my desk for ages. Wipe my table clean using a rag. Finally utilize my drawers (they come with the desk) and now they are happily filled with useless stuffs that I insist on hoarding (like my fallen tooth. I mean, come on, it's kinda yucky but awww, both at the same time! Don't judge!).

Now that my desk is shining, I can finally sit down and sip on my green tea in the cutest rabbit cup and talk about serious stuff, like my surgery.

On my previous post, I talked about how to detect changes in your breast, and a little bit about understanding your boobs and how to spot lumps. Again, reminder that I am not a doctor, and what I am about to tell you may not be accurate. This is my own experience, and at any time you are at doubt, please, please, please see a doctor.

Background story first, I am a Malaysian, currently working in Singapore, and I hold an Employment Pass (a required work permit for me to legally work here). The mechanics of the medical industry in Singapore is very different from where I come from, where of course, local Singaporeans and PRs are entitled to utilize their Medisave (paid using a portion of their retirement money - I'm not going to explain on this, but feel free to read up!) and if local Singaporean and PRs choose to receive any medical treatment from a government hospital, they are entitled to a subsidized rate. In my case, I am considered a foreigner (or Foreign Talent (FT), a nickname given by locals), therefore my medical rate is expected to be higher. I think the situation is similar in a lot of other countries too, so i totally get it. So girls, lesson number one, PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT YOU OWN A MEDICAL INSURANCE!

Ok background story getting too draggy, but my point is that, because of that, I chose to go for private hospital, because even if I were to choose the former, the rate would be about the same for me. However girls, lesson number two (only applicable if you are staying in Singapore), DO NOT GO STRAIGHT TO THE HOSPITAL IF IT'S NOT AN EMERGENCY! Unless your house is made of gold, or you found the money printing machine in your storeroom, or your last name ends with Kardashian (Sorry, gotta apologize for the last bit, too much Keeping Up with the Kardashians obviously. But you get my drift?). I don't quite know how the healthcare system works here, I just go with the flow. And ask a lot of people for advice. Basically, for all non emergency matters, visit your nearest clinic or more commonly known in Singapore as General Practitioners (GP). Let the doctor know what's going on, and they will refer you to a specialist if needed. At that point, you can let the doctor know, if you would like to go for a govt hospital or private or you can ask your doctor for recommendation.

Back to my story, I actually went to the GP twice. First time, I found out that the doctor on duty was the male doctor and I weren't too comfortable with that, so I left. About a week later, I went back with a gungho face and met with the lady doctor and she found the lump on my left breast as well. I didn't know what to do then, so GP referred me to a breast surgeon in Mount Alvernia Hospital. I had to wait for my appointment date, so I couldn't go to the specialist immediately, so I went to work. And ladies, that was when I broke down, emotionally.

(Mental comment: Why do I feel like this is turning into a lengthy documentary of some sort? End of mental comment)

I couldn't stop crying, and I hated myself for being so weak. I know the facts, I did my homework, I knew that the chances of the lump being cancerous are low. Yet tears streamed down nonstop. Mind you, at that point, I have only confided in my boyfriend about it. I didn't know if i should tell my sisters, my mom, my close girlfriends? But right after my visit to GP, I did all that, crying all the way. Now that I think about it, it does not mean that I was weak. I was just scared of what may happen. I was thinking about mastectomy, reading up on dealing with cancer, and although it scares me at that time, I felt more prepared before I see my specialist. And she was Dr Joy Lee from Joy Lee Breast and General Surgery in Mount Alvernia Hospital. Although I am glad that my doctor is a she, her title "Breast Surgeon" scares me a little. For those who are doing their research on potential doctors and happen to land on my humble blog, here's my comment on Dr Joy: She is wonderful, very cheerful and assuring. She definitely knows what she is doing, she can tell if the lumps are malignant or not, just by performing ultrasound scans. And like all doctors, she works fast. So do your homework before you see her, write down all the questions that you want to ask her, and she will be happy to answer them. Just that because her pace is pretty fast, I tend to lose track and forget to ask her the questions I meant to ask. I feel that she's great albeit a tad expensive (specialist in private hospital, what do you expect?), and so far, post-surgery, I felt almost close to no pain at all :) It's too early to tell though, as it has only been like, 5 days since I've had lumpectomy done. Feel free to leave comment below about your choice of doctor!

Dr Joy found the lump on my left breast and pin pointed out that according to the ultrasound, it's a solid lump (~2cm), but it looks benign. However, she checked on my right breast, and found 4 other smaller lumps (~1cm). My heart sank, and I was quite shocked as I am only 26 this year! However, it kind of runs in the family, so I have only my genes to blame. Last lesson of the day ladies, even if you couldn't feel it, doesn't mean they are not there. If you are above 40, I suggest you to go for mammogram at least once a year! Dr Joy performed a fine needle aspiration on one of the lumps, so that she can send the cells to lab for further testing. It hurt a teeny weeny bit when she was trying to 'scratch' the lump so that she can retrieve some cell samples, but I was a good girl, and I went through it just fine. Dr Joy suggested a few methods of removal since there were so many lumps, but she gave me time to think about the options. After leaving the hospital, I started to cry again. Felt so silly, but couldn't help it :( Waited about 5 days for the lab result to come back, and trust me, I rang the hospital every day to check! It was agonizing!! But the results came out clean! BENIGN!

I was overjoyed (geddit geddit?). But the lab test cost me SGD600, ouch. Hey, if SGD1.6k for an LV bag is worth it, what's SGD600 for a piece of mind? More on the surgery day and procedures next!

xo