Breast Pain Evaluation in Gomti Nagar, Lucknow

Doctors group breast pain into three patterns, because the pattern points to the cause.

• Cyclical pain builds before a period, affects both breasts, feels heavy or tender, and eases once the period starts.
• Non-cyclical pain does not follow your periods. It may be constant, may sit in one area, and can burn or ache.
• Chest-wall pain feels as if it is in the breast but comes from the muscles or ribs behind it. It often hurts more when you move or press on the spot.

Most breast pain comes from normal hormone changes. Oestrogen and progesterone rise and fall through the month, and the breast tissue responds. Pain can also appear in pregnancy, during breastfeeding and with some medicines, including hormonal treatments.

Other causes include a breast cyst, which gives a tender swelling in one spot. A breast infection (mastitis) brings redness, heat and fever. An injury, an old scar, a bra that fits poorly or a strained chest-wall muscle can also hurt. In many people no cause is found, and that is not a worry in itself.

Breast pain on its own is rarely caused by cancer. Most breast cancers do not cause pain at first. Pain together with a new lump or another change is the reason a doctor should see you, as described on the breast lump evaluation page.

Many people with breast pain do not need a scan. If the pain follows your cycle, there is no lump and the examination is normal, a doctor can often reassure you without imaging. A scan is useful in these situations:

• Pain in one area that does not settle over a couple of menstrual cycles.
• A new lump, thickening or firm area along with the pain.
• Nipple discharge, a nipple change or a skin change such as dimpling or redness.
• Swelling or tenderness in the underarm.
• An earlier abnormal scan, or a strong family history of breast cancer.

The usual scan is a breast ultrasound, which examines a tender spot closely. A mammogram is added in older women, or when the doctor advises it. Neither scan measures pain. They look for a cause such as a cyst or a lump, and a normal result is reassuring.

Simple steps often help, and your doctor can suggest more. A well-fitting, supportive bra, worn day and night if that is more comfortable, helps many people. A pain diary kept over two or three cycles shows whether the pain follows your periods.

Your doctor may also review your medicines. Do not stop any prescribed medicine on your own. If you want to take a painkiller, ask your doctor which one suits you.