How to deal with those annoying breast nodules?

How to deal with those annoying breast nodules?  Breast nodules are very common, most of which are benign, and some can even disappear on their own. Patients do not need to be too nervous, but they should not be taken lightly. After all, some nodules may be closely related to breast cancer.

Every year after the end of the physical examination season, a group of worried “patients” or “quasi-patients” will emerge, disturbed by the various “cysts, nodules, and hyperplasias” on the physical examination sheet.

For female friends, breast nodules are words that often appear on medical examination reports. “Breast nodule”, as the name suggests, is a lump on the breast, which makes people involuntarily think of breast cancer. How can we not have fear?

So, are breast nodules and breast cancer the same thing, and what should be done with breast nodules on physical examination?

The nodule is a just a phenomenon

Breast nodule is a morphological change of breast tissue in imaging equipment, and it is also a common sign in imaging. Simply put, breast nodules are just a phenomenon, not the disease itself.

Different types of breast nodules have different diseases behind them. Specifically, breast nodules can be found in various breast diseases, such as breast hyperplasia, breast cyst, breast fibroadenoma, plasma cell mastitis, breast cancer and so on. These diseases can be manifested as nodules. Fortunately, about 80% of them are benign diseases.

Some nodules are so “frequent” that they disappear on their own

Breast nodules caused by breast hyperplasia are the most frequent of all breast nodules. They come silently and go without a trace.

In women of childbearing age, the cystic or solid enlargement of the breast lobules will occur during the menstrual cycle. This is a normal physiological phenomenon, which is shown on color Doppler ultrasound, which are some hypoechoic structures called “nodules” These hypoechoic structures often change with the menstrual cycle. This is why the clinician tells you to review the color Doppler ultrasound 10 days or half a month after menstruation.

What’s more interesting is that during the review, you will be surprised to find that the nodule that made you anxious has disappeared on its own! Lost! Up!

You may ask, what should I do next? Before the war started, the “enemies” ran away by themselves. What are you still struggling with? Just take a regular physical examination while stealing pleasure.

Some nodules hide murderous intent

Although the proportion of benign breast nodules is very high, there is still a small part of them with sinister intentions and hidden murderous intentions. What do these nodules look like?

Generally speaking, ultrasound shows uneven echoes of tumors, unclear borders, obvious blood flow signals, edge burr-like or crabfoot-like changes, clustered fine calcifications, etc., which are all typical sonographic features of breast cancer.

When a lesion suspected of being malignant is found by ultrasound, it can be combined with mammography or MRI, and if necessary, ultrasound-guided needle biopsy of the mass can be used to confirm the pathological diagnosis.

In addition, self-examination should be done in daily life. If a female friend finds that the nodule suddenly enlarges, there is no pain, the texture is hard, it feels like the tip of a human nose, the shape is irregular, and the mobility is poor, you need to be highly vigilant, especially for women with a family history of breast cancer. It may be related to breast cancer.

How to find breast nodules?

B-ultrasound is the most powerful method to detect nodules. It is cheap and has no radiation. It can find small lumps. It is “good at” early detection of lesions, and it can clearly distinguish the size, shape, cystic or solid of the lumps, and whether the boundary is clear. , So as to roughly judge the benign and malignant masses.

Mammography is also an important method for breast screening, and it is more sensitive to calcification.

Breast magnetic resonance can be used as a supplement to B-ultrasound and molybdenum target. Magnetic resonance has no radiation. Compared with B-ultrasound, it is more objective and not easy to miss. It can see all the breast masses at a glance. According to the contrast enhancement curve of the masses, it can further judge benign and malignant.

Specifically, how to conduct a targeted examination should also ask a doctor to analyze and make recommendations based on age, medical history, and family history.

Which nodules need puncture or surgical removal?

Nodules with malignant lesions are considered at the first diagnosis, and they are treated in two categories: one is if it is malignant and requires neoadjuvant treatment before radical surgery (that is, chemotherapy and then surgery), such patients need a biopsy; If it is malignant, there is no need for any other treatment before radical surgery. This type of patient can be directly resected for tumor. According to the pathological results, it is necessary to choose whether surgery or other treatments are needed.

Of course, imaging examinations suggest that it is “benign”, but cases of breast cancer found on biopsy after surgery also occur from time to time. Therefore, some people with “benign” nodules on B-ultrasound and mammography may also require surgery, such as:

1. Women aged 40 to 60 are at a high risk of breast cancer

Therefore, if a female patient over the age of 40 is found to have grown a new nodule within 1 year, no matter the size, no matter one or more, it is recommended to be surgically removed and sent for pathological examination;

2. Patients aged 35-39 are in a “fuzzy zone”

If a single (single solid nodule or mass> 1 cm) or multiple breast nodules are found, surgery or follow-up observation can be selected according to the patient’s wishes. If the patient has serious ideological concerns, or does not have time to go back to the hospital for review, resulting in the inability to find the progress of the disease in time, minimally invasive surgery can be considered;

3. Single nodule

Surgery is recommended when nodules ≥ 2 cm and grow rapidly;

4. Multiple nodules

When imaging cannot confirm that all nodules are benign, surgery is also recommended. It is difficult for doctors to judge the nature of all nodules based on imaging examination alone. One of several nodules may be cancer, so pathological diagnosis after surgery is very necessary;

5. If the patient is planning to become pregnant, surgery is recommended before pregnancy

Because pregnancy and breastfeeding may lead to tumor growth and even malignant transformation, surgery is recommended to prevent breast lumps during pregnancy from causing difficulties in diagnosis and treatment.

Sum up:

In summary, breast nodules are very common, most of them are benign, and some can even disappear on their own. The patient does not need to be too nervous, but it should not be taken lightly. After all, some nodules may be closely related to breast cancer.

(source:internet, reference only)

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