Interview 10

Age at interview: 69

Brief Outline:

Had a benign cyst about 20 years ago, which returned twice and was removed surgically. Has always attended for routine breast screening and results have been normal.

Background:

A retired telephonist. Divorced with 1 adult child.

It was easy to change her appointment to a more convenient date.

So when you get a letter every three years what does it actually say?

They just sort of said that it's the breast screening unit thing and would you like to, you know it tells you a date and if you don't want to go or you can't go on that date would you please ring this number and say that you don't, you know you don't want to go. Same as on the last one I got, and I can't remember whether it was too early for me or something, I think it was so I just rang them up and I said "Can I change it?" And she said "Yeah." And I said "Well can I make it on a Tuesday?" and about, well you know dinner time, after eleven or something and she said "oh yeah." So they made it for was half past twelve weren't it, yeah, yeah. So they're quite good at that, they will change it, I think that's twice I've had to change it yeah.

Have you ever missed an appointment?

No, no I've always sort of rang, I think this is just the second time when I've, I think there was another time. Something happened and I thought oh I can't go on that day so I just rang up and I said "Can I come," I said it again "can I come on a Tuesday please?" and she just looked at it on Tuesday "Oh yeah so and so," if you say, like you want to go after eleven or something I mean they're quite good, they will get you in you know yes. I mean actually when I cancelled it I think I was only about two more weeks you know after that before I could go again, so it wasn't too bad then. Because I thought oh it'll probably be about five or six weeks but it wasn't, it was only about two weeks so it was good yeah.

She always attends for breast screening and will continue to do so until she's no longer fit enough.

Like when you're over, I mean they was stopping it I think when you're, was it sixty five, you see but then they said "Oh no you can come again," so I went again you see and then you see they said they were stopping it at seventy but now you see they said I can go again, so I'm going to go again.

Yes. If you want to, you can go again?

Yeah, yeah.

So you would want to keep on going? 

Oh yeah as long as you can go because I mean it don't matter how old you are really, I still think you're, you ought to go. Unless I got to that stage where I couldn't go [laughs] I got too old then probably you know. But I will go, yeah. 

They gave me a green card this time, August 2003 and then it's got August 2006. 

Is that your next appointment?

Yeah I think I've got to ring them up. But then when I got this letter it was saying something and that's when I rang up and I couldn't get through to anybody. But I might ring it up again and just say well they're not going to write to you, that's all it is, but I want to know when you've got to ring them up about it. 

So even though you're 70 you want to carry on? 

That's it, yeah

And have mammograms every three years? 

Yeah, yeah.

Why do you want to carry on?

Well in case there is anything any time [laughs].

She doesn't worry while waiting for her results and would expect a letter or phone call if there...

So how long does it usually take before you get the results?

Only about three weeks I think, it wasn't long before I got that. And each time when it comes I think oh crikey, that's quick. Which you do because sometimes you know they'll say "Oh we'll let you know, it could be a while but we'll let you know." But I suppose if there was anything wrong you don't worry because you think, well if anything was wrong anyway they would be writing to you or ringing you up and telling you to go back again, yeah.

But between the time you have the mammogram and you get the results, do you think about the results or you just get on with things? 

No, not really. I just get on with my life and you know.

It doesn't worry you at all?

No, no I just think oh well they'll ring me up straight away or something if there's anything wrong [laughs].

And when you get the letter is it a relief?

Yeah you think oh this is it, you know there's nothing wrong you know.

She was repeatedly given antibiotics for an inflamed cyst before eventually having it removed...

Oh it's a few years ago now, I went in the bath and I thought oh God I've got this lump, and it was just white, it was, you didn't have to feel it, you could just see it and it weren't there before, you know it just seemed to come. So I rang the doctors up the next day, got me in at night time, tea time and I went and he says "Don't worry it's just a cyst," he said "If it was gristly or something," if he felt it, it was soft it was one thing, it was hard it was something else you know. So he says "Don't worry about it."  

Anyway two years after that it come back again, just red, so I went back again. Gave me some antibiotics, went again. Then I went again and it looked worse and so he says to me "I'll have to give you antibiotics again," and he says "Bath it in salt water." Well I couldn't do it and he says "and try and keep squeezing it to try and get this pus out of it." So a woman round the corner says to me [laughs] "Come round here every night and I'll do it for you, you see," so I was round there, well it was awful. I was going, still going to work but I'd got this pad on you know and it was, it went black and blue.

And I thought, and it come all big so I had to go back again once I'd took these antibiotics, then I went back again, and then I went back again. And he said "This is all I can give you now," he says "but I can't send you anywhere as it is now because nobody will even look at it." So anyway when this last lot of antibiotics I took it, went down, so then he sent me then to the hospital and they decided then that I ought to have it out because they said "Each time it comes angry," they kept saying "it will come worse." You see so I thought well I thought that were bad enough. Because even say to bend down like that, I was having to go like this you see because it was just hurting me so much. 

So anyway I went and had it out in the end, only under a what is it a local thing isn't it, you know, so I had it out and I never had any trouble after that, it just stayed as it was.

Having a benign cyst made her more aware of the importance of breast screening.

And if I was to ask you what are your reasons for attending what would your reasons be?      

Well because I had this cyst, probably if I hadn't have had it I might, I don't know, I might have gone really you know but that's made me more aware to go. 

Well I'd tell them [other people] that they ought to go really [for breast screening], I think everybody ought to go. If it's only for, because I mean some people like you've heard about them and they've had these cancer things and all this, they don't even know they've got them do they?  I was just lucky really that mine, I don't know whether that is the way the cysts go, like stick out like a little lump, you know what I mean, it wasn't nothing, just like a little white lump you know.