I feel a lump in my breast- now what?
It can be alarming to feel a new lump in breast tissue. The first thing to do: don’t panic. At GRACE breast imaging we know how to evaluate breast lumps and will help you navigate this finding quickly and efficiently. A new breast lump does not automatically mean breast cancer, but it does need to be taken seriously and be fully evaluated with both a clinical breast exam and imaging performed by a breast expert. While breast cancer can certainly become first apparent as a new lump, there are many findings in breast tissue that can feel like a lump that are not cancerous. Appropriate imaging evaluation is an important part of determining what is causing your lump. While a mammogram, ultrasound or MRI can sometimes be enough to give a definitive answer, other times a needle biopsy may be necessary to arrive at the answer. No matter what, the breast health experts at GRACE are on your team and will help you determine what is causing the change and the best course of action if treatment is needed.
When you feel a lump, it is a good idea to have a clinical breast exam by your healthcare provider
Although the clinical breast exam can be useful, breast imaging is a crucial step in determining what in the tissue is causing that lump. The first exam to evaluate a lump is a diagnostic mammogram and a breast ultrasound.
While most of the time a breast MRI is not needed to evaluate a lump, if the diagnostic mammogram and ultrasound are inconclusive and the lump continues to be bothersome to your or your clinician, an MRI can be helpful to look a the tissue in a different way.
In some cases, a needle biopsy might be needed to get more information. Needle biopsies are most accurate when performed with image guidance by a breast imaging expert to ensure that the area of concern is adequately sampled. Even if a biopsy is recommended, there are many possibilities of what the pathologist, the doctor who looks at the cells under the microscope, might see.
If the area of concern can not be accessed with image guidance or if more tissue is needed, the area felt as a lump can be surgically removed for either patient factors/comfort or to get more information.
Listen to your intuition. If something doesn’t feel right, seek help. Even if you have had a normal imaging report or biopsy result in the past, do not ignore a finding that is worrisome to you, no matter your age. At GRACE breast imaging we address every patient concern completely, every time.
There are many non-cancerous (benign) causes for a breast lump. Here is a list of a few of the most common causes of benign breast lumps: cysts, fibroadenoma, normal glandular tissue, lipoma, hamartoma, lymph nodes, papilloma, vasculitis (inflammation of a vessel), abscess, hematoma/bruising. vessels (calcified or collateral), scarring or fat necrosis, skin-based findings (sebaceous cyst), and many more!
If cancerous cells are found, it is most probable that they will have started from breast tissue. There are different types of breast cancer, and there are also many other types of cancer that can sometimes be found in the breast including lymphoma, melanoma, metastatic cancer from another body part, and soft tissue tumors such as liposarcoma, among others.
No matter what is causing your lump, the healthcare team at GRACE will help you get answers and develop a plan.