Breast disease
Breast disease | |
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Specialty | Gynaecology, mastology ![]() |
Breast diseases can be classified either with disorders of the integuement, or disorders of the reproductive system. A majority of breast diseases are noncancerous.[1]
Breast awareness is a goal of the breast health movement. Rather than promoting the largely ineffective, formally structured breast self-examinations, breast awareness promotes informal familiarity with the normal state of a woman's breasts.
Neoplasms
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/c1/En_Breast_cancer_illustrations.png/170px-En_Breast_cancer_illustrations.png)
A breast neoplasm is an abnormal mass of tissue in the breast as a result of neoplasia. A breast neoplasm may be benign, as in fibroadenoma, or it may be malignant, in which case it is termed breast cancer. Either case commonly presents as a breast lump. Approximately 7% of breast lumps are fibroadenomas and 10% are breast cancer, the rest being other benign conditions or no disease.[2]
Phyllodes tumor is a fibroepithelial tumor which can either benign, broderline or malignant.
Malignant neoplasms (breast cancer)
Among women worldwide, breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer death.[3] Breast self-examination (BSE) is an easy but unreliable method for finding possible breast cancer.[4] Factors that appear to be implicated in decreasing the risk of, early diagnosis of. or recurrence of breast cancer are regular breast examinations by health care professionals, regular mammograms, self examination of breasts, healthy diet, and exercise to decrease excess body fat.[5]
Fibrocystic breast changes
Also called: fibrocystic breast disease, chronic cystic mastitis, diffuse cystic mastopathy, mammary dysplasia
Infections and inflammations
These may be caused among others by trauma, secretory stasis/milk engorgement, hormonal stimulation, infections or autoimmune reactions. Repeated occurrence unrelated to lactation requires endocrinological examination.
- bacterial mastitis
- mastitis from milk engorgement or secretory stasis
- mastitis of mumps
- chronic subareolar abscess
- tuberculosis of the breast
- syphilis of the breast
- retromammary abscess
- actinomycosis of the breast
- duct ectasia syndrome
- breast engorgement
Abnormal nipple conditions
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/0e/Invertednipple.jpg/220px-Invertednipple.jpg)
Abnormal nipple conditions include:
Other breast conditions
- supernumerary breasts
- gynecomastia (males)
- Mondor’s disease
- Paget's disease of the breast
- nipple discharge, galactorrhea
- breast cyst
- mastalgia
- galactocoele
See also
References
- ^ "MedlinePlus: Breast Diseases".
- ^ Page 739 in: Mitchell, Richard Sheppard; Kumar, Vinay; Abbas, Abul K.; Fausto, Nelson. Robbins Basic Pathology. Philadelphia: Saunders. ISBN 1-4160-2973-7.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) 8th edition. - ^ World Health Organization (2006). "Fact sheet No. 297: Cancer". Retrieved 2007-04-26.
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ignored (help) - ^ Breast Self Examination at The Breast Site
- ^ Seven things you should know about breast cancer risk Harvard College. Last updated June 2008