What causes chest pain?

The sensation of the breast is controlled by the intercostal nerves and the 3rd and 4th cervical nerves. Once these nerves are damaged, pain will occur. Therefore, breast pain is not a specific symptom of a certain disease. Early-stage breast cancer rarely causes pain, except in some advanced-stage breast cancer or inflammatory breast cancer. Breast pain often comes from non-tumorous breast diseases.

Causes

The sensation of the breast is controlled by the intercostal nerves and the 3rd and 4th cervical nerves. Once these nerves are damaged, pain will occur.

(1) Stimulation of female hormones: About 10 days before menstruation, the body's luteinizing hormone will increase, and the body's water and salt will accumulate in the pelvis, lower body, breasts, etc. At this time, there will be a feeling of breast swelling and pain, which is medically called "premenstrual syndrome."

(2) Wearing ill-fitting bras: Some young girls wear ill-fitting bras, which squeeze their breasts and cause pain. Sometimes the stainless steel wire on the outer edge of the bra does not fit the breast, and is pressed against the ribs just below the breast, causing pain.

(3) Caused by psychosomatic disease: Some people are easily excited and anxious, and then they may experience abdominal pain, diarrhea, stomach pain, and even chest pain. This type of condition is difficult to diagnose.

(4) Caused by trauma: Some girls feel that their breasts develop slowly and they do not need to wear bras yet. However, when they are taking physical education classes or jogging, collisions or fluctuations are inevitable, which may cause bleeding in the subcutaneous tissue of the breast and cause pain.

(5) Breast cysts: Breast cysts are caused by elevated estrogen levels and a lack of antagonistic luteinizing hormone. This condition often occurs in women over 35 years old and is relatively rare in young girls.

(6) Infection: The outer skin of the breast becomes itchy and is scratched with unclean fingers, causing inflammation or cellulitis of the subcutaneous tissue, resulting in swelling, heat and pain on the epidermis.

(7) Breast tumor: The chance of breast cancer patients being diagnosed with breast pain is less than 10%, so breast pain is mostly caused by good reasons.

(8) Caused by chronic anovulation: Young girls often have a menstrual cycle that is too long, that is, the estrogen state lasts too long. Without the protection of antagonistic luteinizing hormone for a long time, the breasts will feel swollen and painful under the long-term stimulation of estrogen.

Clinical symptoms

There are many diseases that cause breast pain, the most common of which are acute mastitis, persistent pain, obvious tenderness, and pain that can cause a throbbing sensation after a cyst forms. In cases of breast hyperplasia, bilateral breast pain is common, with one side being more severe and often showing regularity. The breasts swell and ache before menarche, and the pain spontaneously subsides and disappears after menstruation. In some patients, the pain can also radiate to the armpits or shoulders and back.

Plasma cell mastitis (also known as enlarged breast tube syndrome) is often accompanied by local itching and burning pain. My nipples are dry and cracked, and I feel severe pain when breastfeeding.

A very small number of breast cancers may cause mild dull pain or aching, and the onset is often irregular; some advanced breast cancer tumors may ulcerate and die to form ulcers, which may cause persistent burning pain; inflammatory breast cancer causes the breast skin to become red, swollen, hot, painful, and accompanied by tenderness.

Inspection

When diagnosing breast pain, the breast clinic doctor will understand the medical history, understand whether there is a cause, the onset and duration of the disease, the characteristics of the pain, whether treatment has been carried out, what the actual effect is, and then conduct a physical examination.

In diagnosis, sometimes it is also necessary to combine imaging diagnostic examinations, including mammography (breast molybdenum target photography), color Doppler ultrasound, and breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). If breast pain is accompanied by nipple discharge, some examination methods for nipple discharge can also be performed, such as ductoscopy, breast tube angiography, nipple discharge cytology examination, etc.

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After diagnosis, appropriate treatment is given.