Extremely dense breasts and multiple cysts, new??? lump found?

schurchill

Last year I experienced bloody nipple discharge from my right nipple. I went through lots of tests (mammogram, ultrasound, ductogram and MRI) to try and determine the cause. Although the reason for the blood was never discovered (it has since stopped) the results showed that the breast parenchyma was extremely dense. And I had multiple cysts throughout my breasts. Fine, I though nothing of it and wasn't really bothered and had never really felt any cysts myself. Last night I was doing a self exam and felt a hard lump in my left breast. I am assuming (hoping) it is one of the cysts on the MRI. I did a little research about dense breasts and was a bit nervous to read that my cancer probability was higher because of it. I don't want to overreact to a situation that has already been looked at but now am questioning if I should go back to the doctor to check this lump...

Any insight about this?

MR BREAST DENSITY: The breast parenchyma is extremely dense. There is moderate
 background parenchymal enhancement.

 MR FINDINGS: No suspicious extramammary findings.

 LEFT BREAST: There are multiple cysts throughout the breast parenchyma,
 measuring up to 11 mm in the upper outer quadrant. In the lower outer quadrant
 of the breast seen on series 7 image 97, there is a kidney bean shaped 5 mm
 well-defined nodule with some plateau enhancement kinetics and high T2
 precontrast signal intensity. This lesion is consistent with an intra-articular
 parenchymal lymph node. This is BI-RADS Category 2. There are no suspicious
 lesions.

 RIGHT BREAST: Numerous cysts are seen scattered throughout the right breast
 parenchyma, the largest at the 9:00 position measuring 18 mm. The nipple is
 unremarkable. No suspicious periareolar or enhancing lesions are seen. The
 remainder of the breast parenchyma is also unremarkable.

 IMPRESSION: No findings suspicious for malignancy. No cause for bloody nipple
 discharge is seen. Numerous cysts scattered throughout both breasts. Clinical
 follow-up for the nipple discharge suggested.

MinusTwo

schurchill - the report you are quoting that said no suspicions for malignancy was from the end of last year, correct? Who has been following up on the nipple discharge as suggested? Although you indicated the discharge has stopped, what doc were you seeing?

Docs are not likely to do another MRI this soon. If you're really upset about the lump, I would suggest you go see your GYN. What did the docs say about the cysts after your MRI? Did they schedule regular follow up exams? Mammo or ULS?

I NEVER did breast self exams because I found lumps everywhere, every time. This was over a period of 45 years until a mammo finally saw DCIS. I don't suggest people stop with the self exams, just to let you know with extremely dense breasts and numerous cysts it's unlikely you'll know w/o out regular imaging.

VeeHow

I have very dense breast tissue and my breasts are always full of cysts. One cyst got the size of an egg, this was aspirated with no further problems. My breasts tend to be as lumpy as a bag of beans. I have stopped doing self breast exams since I find changes constantly. I would get anything you feel checked out but I wouldn’t worry too much about it.

LoverofJesus

Veehow, I have both breast lumpy. One recently more lumpy and hard than the other. No one lump but like you said a bag of beans and the entire breast is Firmer to touch than the other. But the other has several lumps too. The right one has more. And when I lay down they all spread out so you feel lumps all over. When it feels firm is when I sit up and all the little beans lump together

I'm going for a mammogram next week but I've been so scared. anything you could share with me about how yours feel to examine them would be great. Maybe it would calm my nerves so I won’t be so scared.

Aftonfog

I have also dealt with dense breast tissue and multiple cysts for years. I finally found a doctor who put me on a yearly mammogram schedule and began to monitor me more closely. Due to a family history of breast cancer, she wanted to be cautious. My previous doctors told me to take Tylenol (which wasn’t helpful). I am having a BMX in June. While you most likely will not have as an extreme outcome as mine, all I can suggest is to be persistent and vigilant. I agree with the previous advice about asking your doctor about any new changes. If you feel like your doctor is brushing you off, find a new one! Dense breast tissue is so tricky.