Lumps in the breasts

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Female Breast

Causes of breast lumps

Normal female breast anatomy

Breast lump removal - series

Lumps in the breasts

Alternative Names:

Fibroadenoma; Breast mass; Abnormal breast mass
Treatment:

If a woman has been diagnosed with fibrocystic breast disease, she should examine her breasts monthly to watch for changes.

A well-fitting bra should be worn to provide good breast support. The effectiveness of vitamin E, vitamin B-6, and herbal preparations (such as evening primrose oil) are controversial and should be discussed with your health care provider.

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Consider restricting dietary fat to approximately 25% of the total daily calorie intake and eliminating caffeine and cigarette smoking to see if symptoms subside.

Birth control pills may be prescribed because they often reduce symptoms.

The choice of initial treatment for biopsy-confirmed breast cancer is based on the extent and aggressiveness of the disease. Currently, breast cancer is viewed as a systemic (involving the entire body) disease that requires both local and systemic treatment.

Local treatment may include lumpectomy, mastectomy (removal of part or all of the breast, and sometimes involving the armpit lymph nodes), and radiation therapy -- all directed at the breast and surrounding tissue.

Systemic treatment includes chemotherapy and hormone therapy, which circulate throughout the entire body in an attempt to eliminate cancer cells that may be present in distant parts of the body.

Most women receive a combination therapy including surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and hormonal therapy. Therapy will depend on the extent of the local disease, if there is cancer in local lymph nodes or in other parts of the body, as well as the genetic findings after analyzing the cancer cells.

Expectations (prognosis):

Thelong-term outlookdepends on the type of problem. See the specific condition for detailed information.

Complications:

Because fibrocystic changes may make breast examination and mammography more difficult to interpret, early cancers may occasionally be overlooked.

Even with aggressive and appropriate treatment, breast cancer often spreads to the lungs, liver, and bones.Cancer returns to the breasts inabout 5% of cases after total mastectomy andremoval of the armpit lymph nodes, ifthe nodes themselves were found to be cancer-free.Breast cancer returns in about25% of cases in those with similar treatment where the nodes were found to have cancer.

Calling your health care provider:

Call your health care provider if new, unusual, changing, or "dominant" lumps are noted in breast tissue during your breast self-examination.

Also call for an appointment if you are a woman:

40 or older, and have never had a baseline mammogram
35 or older, with a mother or sisterwho've hadbreast cancer, or you have a past medical history of breast, uterine (endometrial), ovarian, or colon cancer
25 or older, and you are not sure how to perform a breast self-examination