How to self-diagnose breast disease

Breasts are women's secondary sexual characteristics. Healthy and plump breasts can make women more confident and reflect their beauty. However, the breasts are also prone to certain diseases, which can pose a great threat to women's health. Especially in recent years, the incidence of breast cancer has been very high, becoming a potential danger to women's health. Therefore, we should learn to detect breast diseases by ourselves in our daily life.

1. Feeling bloating and pain before menstruation.

Breast pain may occur 1 to 2 weeks before each menstruation. Even the slightest friction from wearing a bra may become unbearable. This condition may also be accompanied by a series of symptoms such as headaches, fatigue, tension, insomnia, and constipation. After menstruation comes, the bloating and pain gradually disappears. It could be PMS. The hormones in women's bodies change before and after menstruation. In addition to causing breast pain, water retention, edema, acne, and irritability may also occur before menstruation. At this time, as long as you control your diet and relax your mind, you can get relief.

2. Feel a lump with unclear boundaries.

One week before menstruation, intermittent swelling or dull pain begins to appear in the breasts. If you gently touch the breasts at this time, you can feel strip-shaped or triangular glandular tissue, which is granular, soft in texture, with unclear boundaries and no obvious lumps. It could be lobular breast hyperplasia. This is a type of mammary gland dysplasia, which is mostly related to female endocrine imbalance. The main manifestation is breast pain, which does not occur frequently. At this time, you should maintain a happy and peaceful attitude, adjust your diet structure, and insist on breastfeeding after giving birth, which can help alleviate the symptoms.

3. A lump is felt above the breast.

If a lump is touched on the outer upper part of the breast (single lump), it is firm in texture, smooth in surface, with clear boundaries, and can be easily pushed. At the same time, the growth of the lump is very slow and there is no other feeling. It could be a breast fibroadenoma. Women who suffer from this disease generally develop it at a young age, mostly between 20 and 25 years old. The medical community believes that the disease is related to the activity of estrogen. Although this is a benign breast disease, it can also become cancerous. Once discovered and confirmed, surgery should be performed promptly.

The breast pain is sometimes mild and sometimes severe, and is characterized by cyclical attacks, especially aggravated before menstruation; multiple, nodular lumps can be felt in the breast, which are not hard in texture, and sometimes there is nipple discharge. It could be cystic breast hyperplasia. This disease, also known as chronic cystic breast disease, is a benign hyperplasia of the breast stroma. The incidence rate is high, commonly seen in women aged 25-40. Most patients will recover on their own within 2 years after onset, but in view of the possibility of cancer in a small number of patients, follow-up visits every 3 months should be conducted for dynamic monitoring of the condition.

5. Rash appears on the breasts during breastfeeding.

Some women who are breastfeeding will develop rashes on their breasts, mostly occurring in the nipple or areola area. The boundary between the diseased skin and healthy skin is clear, covered with a few scales or thin scabs, and the itching is obvious. It could be breast eczema. This is a common allergic rash in breastfeeding women. These women often have allergic constitutions, and the onset of the disease may be related to eating foods that cause allergies. This disease usually heals itself after the baby is weaned.

When a very superficial lump appears on the skin of the breast, it is smooth and soft, has clear boundaries, is movable, and is almost painless. It could be a breast lipoma. This disease is more common in middle-aged women. The lump is only found in one breast and grows slowly. It can be removed surgically without much risk.

7. The lump can be moved.

A cherry-sized, soft, pushable lump can be felt near the nipple. If you squeeze it gently, you can see some bright red or dark red bloody fluid at the nipple, and occasionally there will be pain. It could be an intraductal papilloma. The patients with this disease tend to be older. Because intraductal papilloma has a pedicle and villi, and contains many thin-walled blood vessels, it is very easy to have bloody discharge. This disease may turn into cancer in 6% to 8% of cases and should be removed surgically as soon as possible.

8. "Orange peel-like" changes.

I accidentally felt a small painless lump in the breast. The surface of the lump was hard, bumpy, and had unclear boundaries. The size of the lump quickly increased and grew rapidly. The skin on the surface of the lump had protrusions and depressions of hair follicles due to lymphedema, forming a very special "orange peel-like" change. It could be breast cancer. If you find the above situation, you should seek medical attention as soon as possible without hesitation.