I have a painful swelling on my right breast. Could it be breast cancer?

Question

Hi doctor,

I have swelling in my right breast (upper side), and I feelit when I press it. It was painful too. I have high TSH. I am 32 years old. Is there a chance of breast cancer?

Please help.

Thank you.

Answer 1

lHello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

First of all, I would like to say that it is quite a commendable thing to be aware of these situations. Most women are not aware of breast lumps and tend to ignore them.

I would like to ask you a few questions about the swelling. Is it a single swelling or multiple ones? Is the skin around the swelling red and painful? Have you recently breastfed? Did you have a fever in the previous one or two weeks? Have you checked yourself the left breast for such swellings?

Most breast lumps are benign, but they have to be checked out thoroughly to rule out any malignancy. But since you are 32 years of age, it is unlikely to be a malignancy, and I would ask you not to be worried. Mammography will have to be performed to look into the consistency of the lump. Whether it is benign or otherwise, treatments are available, and it is a fairly common condition. If the breast lump is found to be benign, can it be easily excised?

I have gone through the report that you have posted, and it is written that ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate) is high, and TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone) is high. TSH values done at the time of any illness cannot be relied upon and therefore may have to be repeated at a later stage. When the report was open, I saw only a peripheral smear report and not a TSH or ESR report.

Kindly upload those reports, and I will be able to comment on them. Kindly answer the above questions, and I will help you out in a much better fashion.

I hope this helps.

Thank you.

Answer 2

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Just to clarify why I am calling it a lump, any swelling on the breast is referred to as a breast lump. That is medical terminology and does not signify anything.

I have gone through the reports (attachment removed to patient identity). I wanted the report to rule out any infection in the breast that could have led to the swelling. Your blood reports are normal, and it is unlikely to be an infection. But your TSH level is 10, and thyroid hormone supplementation is indicated. But that is a separate issue, and do let me know if you want me to consult on the medications.

For your breast swelling, mammography is indicated. It is a common investigation and is done easily. I would advise you to go ahead with it.

I hope this helps.

Thank you.