Written By: Bhavyajyoti Chilukoti | Published : October 31, 2017 1:39 PM IST
One of the most common symptoms of breast cancer is a presence of a lump in the breast, which in most cases is not painful. However, this doesn't mean that breast cancer lumps are painless because in rare cases, it can lead to pain in the breasts. So to help you detect breast cancer at an early stage, doctors advised breast self-examination. Dr Pawan Gupta, Additional Director, Surgical Oncology, Jaypee Hospital, Noida explains the characteristics of breast cancer lumps to answer if breast cancer lumps are painful and hard or painless and soft.
Typically, breast cancer causes hard lumps because the breast mass is made up of multiple lobules packed with dense tissue. And hence, when a lump starts forming, it usually doesn't cause any pain, which makes it difficult to diagnose breast cancer. In most cases, breast cancer lump is hard in consistency and mostly, fixed to parenchyma, breast tissue present close to the body and not on the outer surface. Here are few characteristics features of breast cancer lumps you need to be aware of.
1. The lump is hard and well-defined in nature. This is the reason, you can experience a lump, if present, during breast self- examination. Here's how to do a breast self-examination to check for cancer.
2. It is fixed to parenchyma and hence, it does not move unlike fibroadenoma, which is a benign type of cancer. One of the key symptoms of fibroadenoma is the presence of a hard and movable lump.
3. It is painless, in most cases. Hence, if you feel a lump that is hard but painless, then consult a doctor at the earliest.
4. The lump increases in size over time. So if you have a lump that has grown in size int he past few months, it's time to consult a doctor.
5. Usually malignant but depends on age. In young girls, the chances of malignancy are low and in an older woman, the chances of malignancy are high.
You can also experience various types of lump such as a lump, which is not hard or firm, could indicate in-situ carcinoma or a lump that can be either painless or painful could be a sign of cystic carcinoma. However, these conditions can only be diagnosed clinically. You may also like to read about breast lumps Is it cancer?
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