Breast Cysts

Breast Cysts

Breast Cysts Described Simply and Clearly Here so You Know What They Mean to You

When checking for signs of breast cancer, you may find breast cysts instead. The tricky part is that it is not always easy to tell the difference between signs of breast cancer and breast cysts.  If you feel a lump in your breast, you should see the doctor to find out if it is because of breast cysts.

Breast cysts can occur in any breast. They are fluid filled sacs that show up when a milk gland in the breast increases in size.  The cyst can be as small as a pea or as big as a golf ball.  Most women who get cysts are of the age 40-60 years.

Most cysts can’t be found as signs of breast cancer and can’t be felt on exam.  It takes an ultrasound of the breast or a mammogram to show a cyst on the breast.

Cysts are not usually a cause of breast cancer.  When a cyst is found using a breast cancer ultrasound, it can be aspirated (sucked out) using a needle and a syringe.  If the fluid is clear or slightly yellow in color, it is not usually checked out for cancer using a microscope.  If a cyst is found to have bloody or brown-colored fluid, it is checked for cancer.

Some breast cancer types will form cysts.  Lobular carcinoma of the breast is breast cancer coming from the milk glands.  These breast cancer types can begin to form fluid.  This is uncommon and most breast cancers do not form cysts.

@font-face { font-family: "Arial"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }

When a Breast Cyst is Suspected

When a breast cyst is suspected, it is usually because a breast lump is felt on exam or an abnormality is found on mammogram.  The doctor will then order an ultrasound.  This is especially true if the breast lump is smooth and round.  Breast cancer itself tends to be lumpy and firm—like scar tissue.

If a suspected breast cyst is noted, an ultrasound will be able to tell if the breast lump is filled with fluid or is solid.  If the breast cyst is fluid-filled, the fluid is aspirated and the cyst goes away.  It may or may not be checked under the microscope depending on the criteria listed above.  If the breast lump is solid, a needle biopsy or a surgical biopsy is done on the breast lump.

An ultrasound is accurate in finding a breast cancer cyst 95 to 100 percent of the time.  This is the best test to find a breast cyst.  Breast ultrasound  is painless and involves using a probe that runs across the breast, sending out high frequency sound waves to the breast tissue.  If the breast lump is a breast cyst, it shows up dark on the ultrasound.

Which Signs of Breast Cancer Are Like a Breast Cyst

A breast lump can feel like a breast cyst or a breast cancer.  It is difficult to tell.  Both show up as lumps when you feel them.  Both can be invisible to the touch but can show up as an abnormality on the mammogram.  Both can be either small or very large.

This is why the ultrasound is so important.  It can tell the difference between a solid tumor and a cystic tumor.   It can guide a needle to find the breast cyst and get rid of the fluid in the breast cyst.  Only one in a thousand cysts will be cancerous.  Those are good and comforting odds.

http://www.getwellsite.com/breastcancerbooks.aspx

If You Have Fibrocystic Breast Disease

Some women have a disease called fibrocystic breast disease.  They have many cysts growing out of the lobular areas of the breast.  Sometimes several cysts show up and get big at the same time.  The woman has a series of cysts that need to be removed.

In such cases, the ultrasound is used to find each breast cyst and drain it.  Suspicious cyst fluid is sent to be examined under the microscope.  Most cysts are just drained because they can become big and painful.  Women with fibrocystic breast disease have painful breasts.

Women with fibrocystic breast disease have other problems, too.  It is more difficult to find a suspicious breast lump on breast exam.  The mammogram can be difficult to interpret.  It is often hard to get all the cysts removed so a woman with fibrocystic breast disease can have breast cancer and not even know it.  Breast cancer is found at a later stage in some women who have many cysts in their breast.

Do All Breast Cysts Need to be Removed?

If a breast cyst is uncomfortable or looks suspicious under the microscope, you need to consider having it removed through aspiration.  The doctor can do this with ultrasound guidance.

If a breast cyst is not removed, it can go away all by itself or it can get bigger. It can also stay the same.

Breast cysts are not a cause of breast cancer and only certain breast cancer types even form cysts.  It is up to you to decide if you want to have a breast cyst aspirated.  Speak with your doctor for further advice.

http://www.getwellsite.com/breastcancerbooks.aspx

Dr. Christine Traxler

2 27 2010