How to feel out a breast lump?

Breast lumps are a condition that may occur in women of all ages. When faced with this situation, you should not rush to seek medical treatment. The cause of this condition is mostly due to breast hyperplasia, which is a benign lump. However, you should not take it lightly and you should actively understand the cause and then prevent it. Moreover, breast lumps can be felt. So how do you feel out breast lumps?

When we find a breast lump, we don’t have to be too nervous, because most of them are breast hyperplasia or benign lumps. Of course, even if you have breast cancer, there is up to 80% chance of cure, so there is no need to panic. In fact, the best way is to consult a professional breast doctor for diagnosis.

There are two commonly used methods for X-ray examination: mammography and dry plate mammography. In addition, breast ultrasound examination can reveal irregular masses; combined with clinical examinations by professional doctors, the diagnostic consistency rate can reach 95%.

It is best to schedule breast self-examination 3 to 7 days after the end of menstruation, because the breasts are less congested and softer at this time, making it easier to feel lumps. You should first check whether the breasts are symmetrical, whether their shapes are abnormal, whether there are inflammatory changes and orange peel-like edema on the skin, etc. Then use your left hand to check the right breast and your right hand to check the left breast. Use the tip of your finger to press flatly on the breast, starting from the upper inner quadrant of the breast, then the lower inner, lower outer, upper outer quadrant, areola area, and finally the tail of the armpit.

Do not pinch it with your hands, otherwise you may mistake normal breast tissue for a lump. Then squeeze the nipple with your fingers to see if there is any abnormal discharge. Finally, use your left and right hands to cross-touch the lymph nodes in the armpits and clavicle area to see if there is any swelling, redness, or pain.

If you feel uneven tissue masses that are lumpy, granular, and elastic during breast self-examination, and whose sizes range from a few millimeters to 1 centimeter, they are most likely normal breast lobule masses, which are usually larger before menstruation and smaller after menstruation and are sometimes tender. Do not treat them as tumors.

Nature of the mass

Many female friends panic when they find lumps in their breasts. Most patients with breast lumps are women between the ages of 30 and 50. There are many causes of breast lumps. However, the vast majority are harmless or not a big problem.

Lumps are more likely to appear before your period. Later, the lump may change in size. Breast lumps were once considered a medical condition, even called "fibrocystic breast disease," but science later proved that the condition is actually quite common, and so the name was corrected. Breast lumps usually stop appearing after menopause, but they may develop from other causes.

Cyst-type mass

According to experts from the Breast Department of Henan Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, this type of lump is caused by a cyst containing pus in the breast. Massage the lump with your fingers and it will feel very smooth. This type of lump can cause significant pain, but in some cases, it may not cause pain at all. Cystic masses may result from hormonal imbalances that regulate menstruation. Women over 50 don't usually develop these lumps, and they are not cancerous. Professional drainage of the pus can eliminate pain and swelling.

Sebaceous cyst

It is caused by blockage of the ducts of the hair follicles. It feels much the same as a cystic lump. Hormonal stimulation or trauma can make the condition worse. If these lumps do not cause other complications, then no treatment is needed. If treatment is required, all you need to do is make a small hole at the protrusion and remove the blockage.