Big red patch on right breast with lumpy feeling

Daughter123

Big red patch on right breast with lumpy feeling underneath but no itch or pain in that specific area. This breast has had some tenderness for a few days now however. Especially deeper into the duct and discomfort on the side boob. I'm extremely worried..has anyone had this?

It won't allow me to post a picture...how do i do this?

MelissaDallas

Hi Daughter123,

You should see your doctor. Most things like this turn out to be simply skin issues or even an infection, but those symptoms can also be a sign of inflammatory breast cancer and that should be ruled out promptly.

You are not allowed to post pictures. See above: “Note: Please do not post pictures of your symptoms. It's important to have anything unusual checked by your doctor.”

Daughter123

Thank you so much MelissaDallas for explaining all this,

I feel discomfort in my right breast so that is what is giving me the most anxiety. I'm going to try to not think about it because I did make an appointment for next Wednesday. I guess whatever happens happens. I just hate how life recently hasn't been very calm lately. Constantly things to worry about and constant stress. I really hope it's just a simple skin infection too. Thank you so much again. Will update.

MelissaDallas

Skin stuff is really common. IBC is very rare. Glad you have your appointment made to get it checked. If you start feeling ill or feverish or if the skin starts feeling hot before Wednesday you might go to an urgent care. Another possibility is yo could have mastitis. Quite a few women come through here with non-lactational mastitis too.

LivinLife

Welcome Daughter123! I'm glad you have an appointment for next week.... Yes, please let us know how things go....

Daughter123

Got too anxious today and went to Urgent Care. They didn't even feel my breast completely for lumps nor did they check my lymph nodes. No ultrasound technician either. And the Dr said it's likely to be a fungal infection because it seems like it's on the skin and not inside the breast. He barely felt it though. I definitely feel like there is something round attached to the skin, as the skin is somewhat raised but when you touch it you can feel the rest of that thing whatever it is. He gave a fungal cream to me. I put it on but it's still red, and the bump is still there. I also get pains in my breast. Like whole entire breast and it comes and goes. I've never had anything like this. And he just brushed it off as hormonal/cycle related pain. I just hate that it felt like a waste of time to go there and I don't think this is a fungal problem. I might be able to go to my primary dr's on Monday if i call them at 7am.

MelissaDallas

You go to urgent care (or the emergency department) if you believe you have symptoms of an infection, especially fever, chills, pain, skin hot to the touch. They do not do breast diagnostics or ultrasounds. Fungal infections of the skin on the breast are very common because breasts stay damp and warm and covered up. It takes a couple of weeks to resolve fungus (like athletes foot) whilediligently using medication. Putting it on a time or two wouldn’t make any difference in the appearance. Kepp using it until you get in for your other appointment

AliceBastable

You just went today but you think the anti-fungal should have cleared it up already? That's not at all realistic. Please listen to MelissaDallas.

Froggyjr

Please make sure you see your primary care doctor or OB/GYN *ASAP*. They would be better than urgent care. You know your body and that something isn't right. I'm hoping the best for you and that this is nothing major.

MinusTwo

Sorry Froggy - I have to side with Melissa & Alice. It is more likely ANYTHING except breast cancer. And even if it is, an urgent care doc or a PCP won't be able to make that call. And she has not even given the cream she was prescribed any kind or chance.

I see this is your first post. Have you had breast cancer? What type & grade & hormone status? What was your treatment? How far out are you? Some of us have been here for years and seen many posts like this. No, we are not docs, but there's no point in making someone panic even more.

Daughter123

Thank you MelissaDallas,

I got a second opinion and the doctor prescribed me antibiotics. They also did bloodwork though and blood doesn't show there is an infection (regual wbc count). Breast keeps hurting. Other breast nothing. I'm getting very emotional. I'm 29 and I just recently got engaged and want a baby. I'm in love with my future husband. I don't want to remove both of my breasts. I don't want to put him through this. I don't know what else it could be other than ibc because the pink part of my skin doesn't feel sensitive to touch but instead my whole right breast is hurting. And I also feel nauseous and can't eat.

Daughter123

MinusTwo, I haven't had cancer before but my mom did (hence my username). DCIS 7 cm 3rd grade. She got it about 3 years ago (she was 66). I'm 29, and I really don't want this. IBC tends to happen more in younger women (under 40) and is the deadliest breast cancer and the most misdiagnosed one. I already have a chronic liver condition that is somewhat suppressed by my immune system so idk if my body could handle all the chemo from IBC. I've viewed multiple pictures online, and mine is a faint pink thickened skin. Breast hurts with sharp pains every now and then. Feels heavy and warm to the touch. All symptoms of IBC. If it was a fungal infection, why would my whole breast hurt? Why would it not appear in blood work? This pain i'm having is acyclic, as i've never had breast pain around ovulation (when it started) and it's never been just one breast affected. I've never had an issue with my breast or a bacterial or fungal skin infection before.

jhl

Daughter,

Please, please take a deep breath. You are 29 years old and not very likely to have breast cancer. Sadly, your family has history and you have been reading Dr Google which might be the worst thing you can do. I agree, Urgent Care was not a place to get any kind of reassurance regarding breast cancer. They do - Urgent Medicine and diagnosing breast cancer is not urgent in the medical sense. Where did you go to get your second opinion? If you don't have a primary care physician, I would encourage you to see and OB-GYN. The know what normal breasts look & feel like. The only way to pursue the diagnosis is to do some kind of imaging - a mammogram, ultrasound or MRI then go from there. Whomever this provider was who provided the antibiotics must have had some feeling there might have been an infection. Did you have a conversation at that visit about a mammogram?

At 29 and looking to get married, it is time you had a regular OB-GYN, particularly if you want to become pregnant. But, don't put the cart before the horse & get worried. Take one step at a time. Have you spoken with your mom? She might provide some helpful insight.

Take care,

Jane

Daughter123

Thank you Froggyjr...When I first found the red patch on skin, it looked circular but felt like a bump was underneath it. It slowly went away....now it's the pink skin again, slightly darker and more diffuse... I also got shooting pains on the duct (in the center of breast). The past 2 weeks i had been taking this stupid hormonal herbal medication and i upped the dose a bit. I did that for the first half of my cycle and then around ovulation and after the shooting pains began, I started using progesterone cream (for my pcos, it helps regulate my cycle). I used progesterone cream for 2 more months before this too (half my cycle). Everytime i would use it, my breasts would swell the next day. I do wonder if maybe it's a blocked duct? Because my breasts used to swell so much?

I also had a pimple or two on my chest before the red spot appeared (I think). I wonder if it was due to me touching the pimple and causing an infection. But even then, why would my whole breast sting from it for over a week without more skin being affected? And if it is an infection, why would it not show on my bloodwork? I feel like my breast was hurting even before this thing appeared. Which is the scarier part. I just don't know what I will do if I do have it. I'm still finishing college and on my last year. Happily engaged. I just want things to be okay...

jhl

Daughter - why are you taking herbal stuff that might influence your hormones? Stop that! Are you getting a prescription for your progesterone cream from a GYN? That is very unusual in a woman your age.

Daughter123

Jane,

Thank you for your response. I went to an ER thinking it was maybe an infection. They did the tests there. The doctor there said that my best option is ultrasound because younger women have dense breasts and mammogram wouldn't be reliable. But she said if it was ibc, ultrasound alone wouldn't be definitive because of ibc not usually causing lumps and that I would likely need a biopsy but I would have to first see my OB/GYN (with whom i have an appt on Wednesday).

My mom said that it's not likely to be cancer (she lives a bit far from me so she hasn't been able to see it yet). But she doesn't know that ibc can affect younger women. She says that she thinks i'll be better tomorrow..

Thank you and I agree, I should start seeing an OBGYN more often. I'm just really worried because of the pain.

Daughter123

jhl,

I'm embarrassed to say that I've been taking this supplement in order to gain weight and have better figure. The progesterone cream was not prescribed by the doctor but is from a reputable company and many women who have pcos use it for their condition and it helps...My doctor wanted to put me on birth control and because of possible health risks I decided to just use the cream during the second half of the month...It helped me to get my period back which I missed once. I also had painful ovulation and this helped me a lot..

I stopped all supplements today..

jhl

Daughter,

Where to begin?? Progesterone cream or any hormonal cream, tablet, powder you can purchase without a prescription is absolutely unregulated. I have my doubts about the reputation of the company. We don't know why PCOS develops but we do know it involves not just the ovaries but also the pituitary gland and the adrenal glands. As you said, it does have long term health and fertility consequences. By using an unopposed progesterone of unknown potency, you are just increasing the luteal phase & when you stop, you menstruate. You are not treating the PCOS rather you are treating the lack of a period.

I would encourage you to stop all this stuff and go back to your doctor. Also, really read and learn about PCOS. You mentioned you wanted to become a mother. The very best way to do that is to treat your body well now with physician guidance so you can reach your goal knowing you are healthy. Don't mess around with herbal and over the counter supplements, particularly if you might have a family risk of breast cancer. Some of our cancers are estrogen & progesterone sensitive so we must be careful we don't expose ourselves unnecessarily. Also, don't try to gain weight using hormones. There are safer methods than that. Your significant other likes you just the way you are.

Stay healthy

Beesie

Daughter,

First off, the average age for IBC is 57.

Next, between the hormonal herbal medication, the progesterone cream, the pimple you were touching, the red patch that went away but then came back more pink and diffuse.... what sounded in your original post as though it could be IBC no longer sounds like IBC. It sounds as though your breast is reacting to the cream and your touching the pimple and who knows what else. It sounds like an infection.

Calm down and stop thinking about chemo and mastectomies. Instead, stop everything you are taking and using except for the antibiotics the doctor prescribed. Follow the doctor's advice. Give your breast a chance to heal. From how you describe your breast, it may take a while.

SKWUT04

Daughter,

I'm not an expert. I'm only just going to a PCP tomorrow about a lump I found about 10 days ago that's been making my whole right breast hurt for about five days now - feels like it wants to fall off. But I AM rather experienced with health anxiety, which it sounds like you are experiencing. I spiraled pretty hard over the summer after a kidney stone diagnosis. I could make a very long list of the cancers and conditions I've diagnosed myself with in the last nine months, the latest being breast cancer. What helped me tremendously - and what's helping me right now as I await my appointment - has been speaking with a therapist regularly. He helped me understand my OCD-like behaviors with googling symptoms and self-diagnosing and how it causes a "serotonin hit" and together we found tools that help me cope.

Earlier tonight for instance, I got caught up in a wave of sheer terror that this is it. I'm going to get terrible news and have to sideline everything i've been working so hard for. I recognized what was happening, took a bubble bath, and meditated for 20 minutes. I feel calmer, even though I'm still terrified, but I also know there's nothing I can do right now except wait for my appointment, no matter how many times I touch my boobs to compare them.

I feel completely out of my weight class to be giving anyone any advice here given that I'm not sure what's going on with my own boobs, but I felt called to encourage you with my story of health anxiety and to encourage you to find someone to talk to. I'll never forget sitting in the chair at the salon waiting for my color to process while googling 'stomach cancer' because I was so sure I had it (it was h.pylori likely picked up while in central America and a probable ulcer). Or informing my doctor that she had to be wrong - it wasn't a UTI at all, but kidney or bladder cancer for sure. I too am programmed to think the worst and it's HARD not to be thinking the worst right now.

Hugs and peace to you - may it all turn out well.

Daughter123

jhl,

Thank you so much for taking the time to write that. I stopped all supplements, and my breast no longer feels as tender and inflamed as before. Nor does it seem as enlarged anymore but it hurts a bit more. Also when I look closely early in the morning when it's most pale, I can make out pink oval borders with a paler middle. I'm going to try to follow what the dr said as I'm hoping this is a fungal issue. But I still don't understand the source of pain for my breast and nor does my doctor. He "urgently" referred me to an MRI but when I tried to make an appointment, they said that wince i'm 20 days past the first day of my period, I have to wait until my next cycle......Hopefully I won't need it by then because it will be cleared by fungal medicine. I'm going to try my best to find the best possible OBGYN for my reproductive issues (I also have small fibroids outside the uterus).

Thank you for explaining the stuff for PCOS. And I know he loves me.. he has been so worried for me and I hate that he has to go through all this.

Daughter123

Beesie,

Thanks for writing what you wrote...I feel a bit calmer knowing there is still chance it might not be ibc

I stopped taking all the supplements and the progesterone cream.. My breast no longer looked as enlarged and doesn't seem to feel hotter than the other breast. The pain changed and in the morning felt like it got worse but right now it isn't as bad I don't think. The swelling of my breast definitely went down. I also noticed in the morning when the pink rash was paler, that there was a border of the rash and it was a darker pink and looked heart-shaped or oval but inside is much lighter. This made me think of the other doctor who thought it might be a fungal infection. Also anytime i put fungal cream on it, it gets more pale. Anytime I put antibiotic cream on it, it gets darker. I told this to my Dr. and he told me to stop the antibiotics because they made the pain a worse and gave me racing heartbeat (woke up in the middle of the night with over 100bpm, left arm pain and strong headache). I also asked him if i could take oral antifungal, and he was hesitant but he prescribed it. I'm also getting the other antifungal cream (stronger) that was prescribed by the other doctor. I'm hesitant to take the antifungal medication now because I read that it can cause serious liver damage and I already have a liver disease. That is possibly why my dr was hesitant. He also referred me to MRI as "urgent", and I called to make an appointment but because it has been 20 days since the start of my period they said i'd have to wait until my next cycle as the MRI might not be accurate....Idk what to do now...no one has felt my lymph nodes either and I have no idea how to tell if the little marbles I feel are normal or shouldn't feel this way. My other option could be to get a skin biopsy from a dermatologist but i might have to wait to see if the condition is improving first...

Thanks for taking the time to read this

Mary

Beesie

Mary, if your breast is not as enlarged after you stopped the supplements and progesterone cream, that's good. IBC gets worse, it doesn't get better.

As for your lymph nodes, if you have a breast infection, it wouldn't be surprising at all if your nodes are enlarged. That would be a sign of the nodes doing their job, trapping the infection from the breast and keeping it from getting into your body. So that would actually be a normal and good thing, and it wouldn't mean that you have cancer. Yes, cancer can enlarge the nodes too, but most often lymph nodes enlarge because of infection.

It sounds like you have been getting medications from more than one doctor. You need to have one doctor who knows everything you are taking, regardless of who prescribed it or told you to take it - and knows everything were taking but have now stopped (the supplements and progesterone cream, which might be what caused all this) - and you need to stick with what this doctor says. Be patient and give this time to improve. It sounds as though improvement might already be starting and hopefully that continues.

Daughter123

Beesie, thank you for reassurance. I noticed my breast hurts now whenever I walk, drink cold water (or maybe just drink in general) or flex my abdomen. The pink part is the part that worries me most, as I see it has borders that are changing every time i look at it. and there is another little pink dot that nearby it. My fear is that fungal infections wouldn't be pink but i don't know. My breast hurts like there is a sore muscle in it. The breast doesn't seem more enlarged than the other one, nor does it seem hotter.

Daughter123

Update: after putting on the antifungal cream for long enough and then removing, the red patch almost disappears..........There is still pain in my chest whenever I try to pick something up or when I drink water...I have a feeling this is pain from sore ligaments from the previous days of having a heavy breast... Crossing fingers....

Thank you so much ladies. I'd be in a much worse situation right now if it wasn't for you... And I apologize for my panic and for dumping all my health anxieties in this forum. I will take all your advice to heart. Thank you so much. I'm hoping for the best.

jhl

Mary,

There is no need to apologize but you have learned some good life lessons here. First, don't panic and don't assume the worst. There are so many very normal aches, pains & tweeks that we experience in normal maturation. Second, go to reliable doctors and only use approved medications, particularly when it comes to reproduction. Consumer web sites can lead you down a dangerous path. You have told us you are going to choose a GYN and start a professional relationship, which is a good thing to do at your age. If you cannot help yourself and want to look at information online, use reliable ones only. WebMD, Johns Hopkins, Mayo Clinic as well as your state's university school of medicine will have information that is provided by licensed reputable medical providers in all specialties. If you have concerns, write them down and ask your questions from your GYN. Finally, the ultimate lesson particularly of this site is go & live your life fully & joyfully. None of us wanted our diseases and some of us will have lives shortened by them. But, try not to get bogged down with worry & chasing what-ifs. You will never get that time back.

Enjoy your significant other and all the joys you have ahead.

Jane

Daughter123

Jhl,

After trying not to worry about it for a few days and following the doctor's recommendations, the spot is fading and my breast almost no longer hurts. I remember about 5 days ago, I was so confident it was ibc, and was crying and praying. After all, how is it possible for all these symptoms to be a coincidence? Turns out it was, or God gave me another chance. I could not stop crying today, thinking how grateful I was as I was sketching my wedding dress for next year. I found out when I was 16 that I had chronic hep b from who knows where (I was a virgin) and also some hormonal imbalance that gives me pcos-like symptoms. I have been living with my head buried in the sand all these years because I've been unsure what to do, and I've made myself feel like a victim this whole time. Constantly expecting not so happy news, hence the health anxiety. But I am grateful for being healthy enough for the effects of both these conditions not being apparent. I remember when I first got diagnosed with chronic hep b, that I was so disheartened and felt cheated and like I wasn't given a chance at (womanly) happiness and a long life. I realize now that it's all a mindset, and that if tomorrow I start treatment for hep b and in a year I get down to 0 count, It's gonna be different but it's going to go against what I had conditioned myself to believe. I remember thinking that I should experience as much as possible in life quickly because i might not live long. That I could go without a warning. But that only led to a tumultuous and a mostly unhappy youth. I felt undesired and unwanted because of my conditions, and on top of the fact that I was just getting by until I heard the bad news, living without dreams and hopes and goals, I felt like that really stripped me of my own power. So what you said really resonated with me. I will never get those years of worry back. But I am overwhelmed with how grateful I feel for being healthy even with my conditions. Thank you, beautiful, strong women. May the universe return all the positive energy that you put forth. As for me, I will try to make the best use of the time I have on this earth.

Mary