Knowing how your breasts normally look and feel is an important part of breast health. Finding breast cancer as early as possible gives you a better chance of successful treatment. But knowing what to look for does not take the place of having regular mammograms and other screening tests. Screening tests can help find breast cancer in its early stages, even before any symptoms appear.
The following are the symptoms of breast cancer:
A lump in the breast – the most common first sign
The woman usually finds the lump. Sometimes the lump is seen on a screening mammogram before it can be felt. The lump is present all the time and does not get smaller or go away with the menstrual cycle.
The lump may feel like it is attached to the skin or chest wall and cannot be moved. The lump may feel hard, irregular in shape and very different from the rest of the breast tissue.
The lump may be tender, but it is usually not painful.
Pain is more often a symptom of a non-cancerous (benign) condition, but should be checked by a doctor.
A lump in the armpit (axilla)
Sometimes small, hard lumps in the armpit may be a sign that breast cancer has spread to the lymph nodes. Although these lumps are often painless, they may be tender.
Changes in breast shape or size
Skin changes
The skin of the breast may become dimpled or puckered. A thickening and dimpling of the skin is sometimes called orange peel skin.
Redness, swelling and increased warmth (signs that look like an infection) may be a sign of inflammatory breast cancer.
Itching of the breast or nipple may be a sign of inflammatory breast cancer.Itchiness is often not relieved by ointments, creams or other medications.
Nipple changes
Some people’s nipples are always pointed inward (inverted). Normal nipples that suddenly become inverted should be checked by a doctor.
Discharge from the nipples can be caused by many conditions, most of which are non-cancerous (benign).
Discharge from one nipple may be a sign of breast cancer, especially if it appears without squeezing the nipple (is spontaneous) and is blood-stained.
Crusting, ulcers or scaling on the nipple may be a sign of some rare types of breast cancer.
Sometimes a breast cancer can spread to lymph nodes under the arm or around the collar bone and cause a lump or swelling there, even before the original tumor in the breast tissue is large enough to be felt. Swollen lymph nodes should also be checked by a health care provider.
Although any of these symptoms can be caused by things other than breast cancer, if you have them, they should be reported to a health care provider so that he or she can find the cause.
Because mammograms do not find every breast cancer, it is important for you to be aware of changes in your breasts and to know the signs and symptoms of breast cancer.