If your chest hurts. Chest pain in women: a warning sign or a normal phenomenon? What are the symptoms of breast cancer?

The human chest is a pair of mammary glands that are attached to the pectoral muscles. In men, the mammary glands do not normally develop and are rudimentary; in women, during puberty, the breasts enlarge and take on a hemispherical shape.

Based on these physiological characteristics, most women often mean pain in the mammary gland by chest pain, and pain in the pectoral muscles for men. Moreover, women usually associate this manifestation with the approaching menstruation and consider it normal, while men attribute the pain to malaise or excessive zeal in training in the gym.

However, for both, chest pain can be not only a physiological manifestation (for example, during menstruation, during lactation or after excessive exercise), it can also serve as an alarming symptom of a serious illness.

Causes and manifestations of chest pain

Hormonal abnormalities in the body

The mammary gland is an organ whose growth and development is controlled by sex hormones. Therefore, the main explanation for why a woman’s breasts hurt is a change in the normal ratio of hormones affecting the tissues and cells of the mammary glands. Hormonal levels in the fairer sex may change due to the reasons listed below.

Monthly fluctuations in different phases of the menstrual cycle.

Before menstruation, there is an increase in the content of hormones in the body (which is considered normal), designed to maintain a possible pregnancy. At this time, the breast becomes enlarged and slightly sore due to stretching of the capsule, or itches due to irritation of the superficial nerve endings of the stretched skin. When you press on the nipple, a few drops of colorless or yellowish liquid may come out. With the onset of menstruation, the woman’s painful sensations disappear, and the mammary glands after menstruation return to their original size and become soft.

In the middle of the cycle, there may also be short-term painful sensations in the chest along with pain in the lower abdomen, arising under the influence of hormones that ensure the release of the egg from the ovary. After ovulation, pain of this kind disappears without a trace, the breast tissue does not change.

If a woman has a hormonal imbalance in the direction of predominance of estrogens for a long time, their excessive amount can lead to constant tissue swelling and the development of mastopathy. In such cases, the chest becomes full, swollen and very painful. The pain can be so intense that the woman cannot wear a bra or other tight clothing. In addition, changes appear in the breast tissue in the form of heaviness or small nodules.

Mastopathy is no longer considered a physiological manifestation of a difference in hormone levels; it is a disease that requires a careful approach to treatment.

The influence of the hormones progesterone and prolactin during pregnancy

In the first trimester of pregnancy, the breasts may hurt due to the effect of progesterone, a hormone that maintains pregnancy, on the breast tissue. Under its influence, the alveolar tissue grows, the gland increases in volume, preparing to perform the subsequent function of lactation.

Around the beginning of the 12th week, when the continuation of pregnancy passes to the placenta, chest pain decreases. At the end of the third trimester of pregnancy, the body begins to prepare for childbirth and feeding, prolactin production increases, so the breasts again become full and painful.

Increased milk production and enlargement of the gland during lactation

Immediately after childbirth, due to prolactin and oxytocin, there is a sharp increase in milk production and secretion, which leads to painful breast enlargement. If breastfeeding is observed “on demand,” pain in the mammary glands of a nursing mother quickly disappears.

If milk stagnation occurs or an infection occurs, then mastitis develops - a disease that is characterized not only by severe pain in the chest, but also by redness of the skin and the appearance of a swollen area of compaction (usually on the sides of the mammary glands), as well as a deterioration in the general condition of the woman and an increase in body temperature .

Changes in the gland due to termination of pregnancy

After an abortion, your breasts may hurt for about a week. This time is necessary to naturally reduce the concentration of pregnancy hormones and reduce their effect on the mammary glands. If pain persists for a longer period after termination of pregnancy, you should consult a doctor to find out the cause. One of the options for the development of such a situation could be the continued growth of the ovum after an unsuccessful abortion, for example, if a woman tried to get rid of the pregnancy on her own with the help of medications.

In other cases, the cause of prolonged chest pain after abortions (especially frequent and repeated ones) are severe disturbances in the regulation of sex hormones, which can lead to mastopathy, various genital diseases and infertility.

Gynecomastia

Hormonal imbalances in the male body can lead to gynecomastia (literally meaning “female-like breasts”). When it appears, in addition to pain in the chest, in men alveolar tissue grows, the mammary gland enlarges and takes on the appearance of a woman’s breast.

This pathology occurs when there is a disruption in the body of the stronger sex in the production of male sex hormones and/or excessive secretion of female ones. The cause of such hormonal imbalance and subsequent gynecomastia can be:

presence of tumors;
use of hormonal drugs for the treatment of cancer (testicular cancer),
taking medications to quickly gain muscle mass (anabolic steroids);
diseases of the endocrine system (diabetes mellitus and thyroid dysfunction);
liver or kidney disease;
taking alcohol and drugs (marijuana, heroin);
use of certain types of antibiotics, tranquilizers, as well as drugs for the treatment of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and cardiovascular system.

Non-hormonal causes of pain

The chest can also hurt for reasons not related to hormones, for example, after bruises and against the background of certain infectious diseases (shingles). Also, pain in the chest area in both men and women can occur after training with weights, for example: in cases of selecting the wrong weight, incorrect technique, or working with record weights.

A situation of unilateral pain, when, for example, the right chest hurts in isolation, can also appear due to injury and sprain (most often, damage to the pectoral muscles and ligaments occurs when performing bench presses). In the event of such an injury, pain may be accompanied by swelling, swelling and hematomas in the sternum and shoulder, as well as weakness or dysfunction of the arm and disruption of the natural contour of the injured pectoral muscle.

If the left breast hurts in isolation, first of all it is necessary to exclude diseases of the cardiovascular system (angina pectoris, heart attack), since ischemic pain in the heart can be disguised as pain in the mammary gland, and also radiate (“shoot through”) to the area of the scapula, neck, jaw , abdomen, shoulder or left arm. Pains of this nature are usually very strong, tearing, pressing and burning, which distinguishes them from muscle pain.

Also, pain not related to the heart may appear in the left side of the sternum, the cause of which may be:

cervical or thoracic osteochondrosis;
scoliosis;
muscle weakness in the thoracic spine;
costal cartilage disease;
stress, depression or neurosis;
bloating;
disease of the stomach or pancreas;
and much more.

Breast cancer

The cause of pain in the chest area, and in both women and men, can also be cancer. Despite the fact that men's mammary glands are not naturally developed in the event of endocrine disorders, as well as due to cirrhosis of the liver, genetic diseases, unfavorable heredity or radiation exposure, they are also susceptible to breast cancer, although this occurs very rarely. In women, on the contrary, breast cancer ranks first among cancer diseases.

Typically, in the early stages, breast cancer is painless, but in both sexes, symptoms characteristic of cancer appear in the breast area: a hard nodule can be felt, skin changes (“lemon peel”) and nipple retraction are visible, as well as enlarged lymph nodes.

For early detection of both malignant and benign neoplasms in the mammary gland, it is necessary to regularly conduct breast self-examination. The video will tell you how to do this correctly.

Diagnosis and treatment for chest pain

Treatment of chest pain resulting from injuries to ligaments and muscles should begin with a visit to a surgeon; if pathologies in the heart are suspected, you should urgently consult a cardiologist; for osteochondrosis and other problems with the spine, see a neurologist; for problems with the gastrointestinal tract, see a gastroenterologist. Or you can simply seek help from your local therapist, and then follow his direction.

In case of pain in the breast area, as well as the appearance of other symptoms (enlargement of the gland, the appearance of discharge, etc.), women need to make an appointment with a mammologist or gynecologist, and men with a mammologist or surgeon. The doctor will pay attention to the appearance of the mammary glands, symmetry, the presence of lumps and their consistency, the condition of the nipple and breast skin, as well as the axillary, supraclavicular and subclavian lymph nodes. Already at the stage of questioning and external examination, a preliminary cause of pain in the chest can be established.

Further examination to identify the causes of breast pathologies may include the following steps:

Ultrasound - allows you to determine formations in the soft tissues of the breast larger than 0.5 cm. This study is preferable for young and nulliparous women.
Mammography is a type of X-ray examination of the mammary glands, which detects even the smallest nodules located deep in the breast. This method is widely used both for primary diagnosis and for monitoring the growth rate of detected tumors. Young women undergo mammography only when indicated.
Ductography is the introduction of a special substance into the milk ducts for subsequent x-rays. The contrast fills the branched system of excretory ducts, and this makes it possible to assess the preservation of the internal structure and functional tissue of the mammary glands.
Biopsy - this method allows, without an incision, using a very thin needle, under the control of an ultrasound sensor, to take a piece of breast tissue for microscopic examination and determine the type of changed cells. The choice of treatment tactics often depends on the results of the biopsy - if malignant cells are detected, radical removal of the mammary gland is performed.
MRI and/or ultrasound of the chest and abdominal organs, pelvis and head - to determine the primary disease that caused chest pain (if there is a suspicion that changes in the mammary gland are the consequences of metastasis of a tumor of the uterus, lungs, liver and other organs) .

The prescribed treatment will depend on the identified cause that may be causing the chest pain.

So, for example:

for manifestations of premenstrual syndrome or ovulatory pain, treatment is usually limited to the use of vitamins and herbal preparations with mild hormonal activity;
if purulent inflammation of the mammary gland is detected, it is often recommended to take a course of antibacterial drugs orally; sometimes it is necessary to open and drain the lesion;
diffuse forms of mastopathy, as well as the manifestation of gynecomastia in men, can usually be corrected by prescribing hormonal drugs;
nodules, cysts and tumors may be removed surgically;
If your chest hurts due to muscle strain or inflammation, anti-inflammatory tablets and ointments, as well as warm compresses, will help.

You need to know that the severity of chest pain is not always directly proportional to the severity of the disease. Sometimes a mild form of mastopathy leads to severe pain even from contact with clothing. Conversely, some forms of cancer are painless until the final stages.

Therefore, if painful breasts bother you periodically or constantly for quite a long time, the best solution would be to seek help from a qualified specialist.

The condition of the female mammary glands directly depends on the ratio of sex hormones, which constantly changes throughout life. If pain appears in the mammary gland, the woman begins to analyze what it may be associated with and becomes frightened by the accompanying signs. Often the worries turn out to be in vain; the sensations are caused by reasons unrelated to breast diseases. But often a pain reaction is a symptom of pathology in the tissues of the gland, requiring immediate examination.

Content:

Classification of chest pain

When a woman consults a doctor with complaints of painful symptoms in the breast area, the first thing the doctor asks about is the nature of the pain, its duration, frequency, and location. The main feature by which pain arising in the mammary glands is classified is the presence or absence of frequency of their onset.

There are 2 types of painful sensations:

Non-cyclical. Their duration and intensity are in no way related to menstruation (for example, pain due to breast bruises, breast disease). Non-cyclical pain most often occurs in one breast, is localized in a specific area, is constant, and can intensify over time.
Cyclical. Their occurrence is associated with the processes of production of certain hormones in various phases of the menstrual cycle.

Immediately after menstruation, estrogen levels rise, which leads to the formation of a new egg in the ovary. After about 14 days it matures and ovulation occurs. As a result of fertilization of the egg, a woman becomes pregnant. At this time, the level of progesterone increases, the embryo enters the uterus, and its development begins. Changes occur in the mammary glands, and nagging pain in the chest may occur.

If the egg is not fertilized, then the hormone ratio changes in the opposite direction, leading to the removal of the egg along with the uterine mucosa. Menstruation begins, a process associated with pain both in the uterus and in the mammary gland. After menstruation, they go away if the woman’s health is fine.

Nature of pain

Mastalgia (also called mastodynia) is pain in the mammary gland. It can be stabbing, cutting, shooting, aching, burning, pulsating, constant. The pain may radiate to the shoulder, accompanied by a feeling of chest fullness due to swelling of the soft tissues.

Based on the nature of the sensations, the doctor will make an assumption about the presence of the disease.

Causes of pain

Causes of chest pain may include:

hormonal processes associated with the menstrual cycle;
changes in breast tissue during pregnancy;
breast diseases;
chest injuries;
operations on the mammary glands;
diseases of other organs and systems of the body.

Causes of cyclical pain

PMS (premenstrual syndrome) is one of the main sources of cyclical chest pain. Aching or stabbing pain appears a few days before menstruation and ends after it. Painful sensations are accompanied by swelling of the breasts; touching them becomes painful due to swelling of the tissues.

The occurrence of such a syndrome is associated with various factors: the state of the nervous, endocrine, cardiovascular systems, and metabolic rate. Therefore, the nature and strength of the sensations associated with PMS vary from person to person.

Painful sensations during ovulation (rupture of the follicle and release of the egg). Many women do not feel it.

The intensity of pain can be affected by the anatomical structure and size of the breast. Typically, pain that occurs in the mammary gland due to hormonal changes associated with the menstrual cycle does not require treatment.

Video: Pain in the mammary glands associated with menstruation

Chest pain during pregnancy

Significant hormonal changes are observed in a woman’s body during pregnancy. An increase in prolactin levels leads to an increase in the number of glandular tissue cells, proliferation of the milk ducts and the vascular system. In the mammary gland, preparation for lactation occurs, the volume of the gland increases, pressure on the nerve endings of neighboring tissues increases, which causes pain.

Chest pain during menopause

During menopause, a significant hormonal shift occurs again in a woman’s body. In some cases, this can lead to breast diseases. As a rule, younger women experience menstrual irregularities, for which they consult a doctor. This allows you to notice the symptoms of diseases in a timely manner.

During menopause, menstruation is no longer regular and may disappear altogether. The appearance of chest pain is sometimes the only symptom that reveals a serious illness. Therefore, the occurrence of pain during menopause should alert a woman and force her to go for a check-up with a doctor: a gynecologist, mammologist, or endocrinologist.

Diseases that cause chest pain

Sometimes chest pain becomes a concomitant symptom of diseases of other organs. For example, with heart disease, a woman is bothered by aching pain in her left breast. With liver diseases, pain occurs in the hypochondrium and radiates to the right chest.

The source of pain may be neuralgia, inflammation of the intercostal nerve. In this case, the stabbing pain intensifies when breathing, walking, radiates to the back, and depends on the position of the body.

Diseases of the mammary glands as a cause of pain

Mastopathy- pathological proliferation of connective and glandular tissue of the mammary gland with the formation of individual nodes and cystic voids in its tissues. Sometimes discharge from the nipples appears. An aching, dull pain is not always felt immediately; it may appear at a later, dangerous stage of the disease, when mastopathy can degenerate into a malignant tumor.

Video: Pain in the mammary glands with mastopathy

Fibroadenoma- a benign tumor in which painful lumps appear in one or both glands. Usually, when detected, they are removed to prevent them from degenerating into cancer.

Mastitis- infectious inflammation of the mammary glands. Usually occurs during lactation. Cracks that form in the nipples when feeding a baby, as well as stagnation of milk, cause purulent inflammation of the ducts. The process is very painful, accompanied by increased temperature, swelling and redness of the gland. Occurs in one breast or both. Requires treatment with antibiotics or surgery.

Breast cancer. Pain occurs in various areas of the chest. In the early stages it may not bother a woman. Symptoms of this disease are changes in the structure of the skin of the breast, redness, and the formation of shapeless dense nodes, which gradually become very painful. The burning pain becomes constant, and there is an increase in the axillary lymph nodes, which causes additional pain.

The Importance of Breast Self Examination

Breast pain is very common. If it is associated with menstruation or pregnancy, then most often no treatment is required.

Women should perform breast self-exams regularly. During the reproductive period, it is recommended to do this on the 5-7th day from the beginning of each menstruation, when the breasts are soft. During menopause, when the cycle is disrupted or there is no menstruation at all, breast self-examination is performed once a month on any day. Self-diagnosis is necessary in order to notice the slightest changes in the breast tissue. If pain that is not associated with the cycle occurs, it is necessary to consult a doctor as soon as possible, especially when debilitating pain disrupts the normal rhythm of a woman’s life.

Warning: If continuous chest pain lasts more than 2 weeks, if after menstruation (when normally it should not exist) it not only does not disappear, but also intensifies, this may be a sign of a serious illness. The situation deserves special attention when pain appears in one gland or its individual parts.

At-risk groups

The risk of chest pain increases in women in the following cases:

if they did not give birth at all or gave birth to only 1 child;
had multiple abortions;
after childbirth they could not or refused to breastfeed the child;
are overweight or have large breasts;
have a hereditary predisposition to breast cancer;
live an irregular sex life;
suffer from diabetes mellitus, endocrine diseases;
suffered chest injuries.

Stress and bad habits increase the likelihood of breast disease and pain.

Diagnosis for chest pain

Palpation. Allows you to carefully examine the condition of the breast manually, detect lumps, tissue swelling, external changes, and violation of the symmetry of the mammary glands. The lymph nodes in the armpit area are also examined.

Ultrasound. Allows you to detect compactions, determine their size and location.

Mammography- X-ray of the breast, which allows us to determine the nature of changes in its tissues and the extent of their distribution.

Ductography- X-ray examination of the milk ducts into which a radiopaque substance is released.

Biopsy. The tissue of the seal removed during the operation is selected and examined under a microscope. This allows you to accurately determine the nature of the lesion and make a prognosis regarding the further development of the disease.

Pneumocystography. It is a type of biopsy. The contents of a cyst or tumor are collected using a long, thin needle.

Many women (more than 70%) have experienced chest pain at least once in their lives. Typically, this condition worries women of reproductive age, but it is also possible during the postmenopausal period. According to statistics, approximately every tenth representative of the fair sex experiences discomfort in the mammary gland more than five days a month. Of course, such a situation has an impact on a woman’s condition, her mood, work and family life. Why might pain occur in the chest?

Nature of pain

The causes of pain are largely explained by its nature. Unpleasant sensations in the chest can be of two types:

Cyclical. In this case, pain is observed in both glands and spreads throughout their entire area, most affecting the outer and upper part of the chest. Characteristic signs are swelling, irritation of the gland, the appearance of a feeling of fullness and heaviness in it, and pain when pressed. Most often, the chest hurts in this way before menstruation, after which the discomfort gradually fades away. Pain of this nature occurs in two thirds of women aged 30-40 years.
Non-cyclical. Sensations of this type are usually localized in only one gland. In most cases, they occur in a specific place; much less often, non-cyclical pain is diffuse in nature, and the entire gland is completely affected. The nature of the pain is burning, irritating. Most often it is observed in women after 40 years.

Causes of cyclical chest pain

Knowing the factors that can trigger such a condition will help answer the question of why a woman is diagnosed with cyclical chest pain. The causes of pain in the mammary gland are as follows:

Hormonal changes caused by the monthly cycle. In the middle of the cycle, ovulation occurs, which entails a sharp increase in the production of hormones designed to prepare the body for pregnancy and childbirth. This cyclical pain is called mastalgia. With the onset of menstruation, all signs usually disappear.
A dull, aching pain is usually localized in the upper outer quadrants of the chest. It manifests itself especially clearly when pressed. The pain can vary in intensity: from mild to severe, radiating to the arm or armpit. A similar condition is diagnosed in approximately 70% of the fair sex of reproductive age. Sometimes cyclic mastalgia is found in postmenopausal women receiving treatment with hormonal drugs.
Mastopathy. This disease is characterized by pathological proliferation of breast tissue. Why does it arise? The cause of mastopathy lies in a woman’s hormonal imbalance. In the first stages of the disease, its symptoms appear before menstruation and then disappear. In advanced cases, they are observed constantly. With mastopathy, the main symptom is pain in the mammary glands, they become swollen and swollen. With palpation, you can feel the seals. A woman's chest hurts when pressed. This condition requires mandatory treatment.
Imbalance of fatty acids in the body. Such a disorder usually leads to increased sensitivity of the mammary gland to hormones. Taking primrose oil helps eliminate the problem, a feature of which is the normalization of the balance of fatty acids.
Pregnancy. To maintain pregnancy, progesterone is actively produced in a woman’s body. It causes the growth of alveolar tissue, which increases the volume of the mammary gland and is intended to prepare it for lactation. Almost every woman during pregnancy feels that her breasts are sore and swollen. Later the discomfort disappears. Pain may recur at the end of the third trimester. The glands become engorged and painful.
Abortion. After an artificial termination of pregnancy, chest pain may occur. They usually go away within 1-2 weeks. If the discomfort does not disappear for a long time, you should consult a doctor. Sometimes they are explained by the continued growth of the fertilized egg due to an error in surgical intervention, sometimes caused by a hormonal imbalance.
Taking a number of hormonal drugs used in the treatment of infertility, as well as some contraceptives. In addition, similar problems can be caused by taking certain antidepressants.

Causes of non-cyclical chest pain

The causes of non-cyclical pain are usually associated not with hormonal imbalance, but with anatomical changes that have occurred in the gland. In most cases, unpleasant sensations are explained by the following circumstances:

Mechanical damage to the mammary gland. Breast pain can be caused by injury. Squeezing or compression of the gland caused by the wrong choice of underwear can also lead to pain. To avoid the occurrence of such problems, every woman should carefully select a bra when in transport or in crowded places, try to protect her breasts from shocks and impacts.
Breast surgery.
Fibroadenoma. This is the name of a benign tumor localized in the mammary gland. This is one of the forms of nodular mastopathy. When pressing on the patient, a mobile round formation not connected to the skin can be detected. It can be either small (2 mm) or large (up to 7 cm).
Mastitis. With mastitis, inflammation begins in the mammary gland. The chest turns red, the skin over the affected area becomes red, and the temperature of both the local and the body as a whole increases. The disease develops very quickly (within a couple of days). The overwhelming majority of patients are nursing mothers. Why does this disease occur? There are two reasons for the appearance of this pathology: milk stagnation (lactostasis) and infection (it enters the body through damage to the nipples). Mastitis needs immediate treatment, since if left untreated it can lead to extremely negative consequences. In rare cases, the disease is diagnosed in non-lactating women.
Breast cancer. In rare cases, discomfort in the gland is a sign of breast cancer. Usually at an early stage the disease does not cause discomfort. The reason to consult a doctor is the retraction of the nipple, the appearance of discharge from it, enlargement of the lymph nodes, and a palpable compaction in the tissues.
Breast abscess. This is a disease in which suppuration occurs in a certain area of the chest, separated from other tissues. This pathology is quite rare and is of a secondary nature. An abscess is a consequence of some other inflammatory disease of the mammary gland, for example, mastitis.
Cyst. Such a pathology can cause discomfort in the gland. Filling with liquid, the formation begins to put pressure on the surrounding tissues, which leads to discomfort. The pain can be both sharp and aching, dull. If a cyst is detected, the patient must consult a doctor to find out the causes of the disease and undergo treatment.

Chest pain may also not be related to the mammary gland, but may be dictated by problems with muscles, nerves, joints, or the chest wall. The causes of chest pain lie in diseases such as scoliosis, osteochondrosis and other disorders of the skeletal system. Heart disease also often leads to pain (for example, angina pectoris).

Breast pain (mastalgia) is common, mainly in women aged 30 to 50 years.

Pain most often occurs in the upper-outer part of the mammary glands, and can radiate to the armpits or arms. In most cases, the chest pain is moderate, less often the discomfort reaches medium or high intensity, deprives you of peace, and becomes a cause of anxiety and stress. This is largely due to the fear of serious illness. Although pain in the left or right breast itself is not a symptom of breast cancer and does not increase the risk of developing it.

Depending on the time of occurrence, pain in the mammary gland can be:

cyclical when your breasts hurt before or during menstruation;
non-cyclical when pain is not associated with the menstrual cycle.

To determine why the mammary glands hurt, it is useful to keep a diary in which you can track all changes in the mammary glands throughout the menstrual cycle. In a diary or on a calendar, you need to mark the days when the pain appears and when it disappears, what its intensity is, and what it is associated with. If necessary, you can show this diary to your doctor, which will facilitate diagnosis.

Reasons

Why does my chest hurt?

The cause of cyclic pain in the mammary glands is considered to be a change in a woman’s hormonal levels before the onset of her next period. The pain appears at about the same time every month, usually 1-3 days before the start of menstruation and goes away with its end. The intensity of the pain may vary. Post-menopausal women taking hormone replacement therapy may also experience cyclic pain in the mammary glands. Cyclic chest pain is not a symptom of illness.

The cause of non-cyclic pain in the mammary glands cannot always be determined. Pain in the left or right breast can occur with the following diseases:

mastitis - inflammation of the mammary gland, more common in breastfeeding women;
breast lumps - there are different types of benign (non-cancerous) lumps, some of which may cause pain;
Breast abscess is a painful, purulent formation in the breast tissue.

Non-cyclic breast pain can also be caused by injury, such as a sprained chest muscle or a breast injury. In rare cases, mastalgia can be caused by medications, such as certain types of antifungals, antidepressants, or antipsychotics.

Breast pain: treatment

If your chest hurts before menstruation (cyclic mastalgia), non-drug treatment methods usually help relieve the condition, and less often - painkillers. If there is a more serious cause for chest pain, your doctor may prescribe specific drug therapy.

In 30% of cases, cyclic chest pain goes away on its own within 3 menstrual cycles. For some women, it periodically appears and disappears over several years. Knowing that discomfort in the mammary glands is not dangerous to health, it is easier to deal with them.

If the mammary gland hurts cyclically, using a comfortable bra that fits in size can provide relief. It must be worn throughout the day. It is also recommended to wear underwear at night, but for sleeping you need to choose a bra with little support. During training and active pastime, it is advisable to use a sports bra.

If necessary, you can take a pain reliever such as ibuprofen or paracetamol. You can also use drugs containing non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), topical in the form of gels or ointments, for example: indomethacin ointment, diclofenac gel. Follow the manufacturer's directions to make sure the medicine is right for you. For example, topical NSAIDs should not be applied to broken skin.

Some experts believe that chest pain can be relieved by making lifestyle changes:

reduce caffeine consumption, which is found in tea, coffee and Coca-Cola;
reduce consumption of saturated fats, which are found in butter, chips and fried foods;
stop smoking (if you smoke).

Sometimes women turn to alternative medicine, such as acupuncture or reflexology, to relieve cyclical chest pain, but the effectiveness of these methods has not yet been scientifically proven. If the cause of mastalgia is mastitis, an abscess or another infectious disease, then antibiotics and surgical treatment quickly bring relief.

Drug treatment for mastalgia

Drug treatment is more often required for non-cyclical pain in the mammary glands associated with various benign diseases, but is occasionally prescribed in cases where the breasts hurt before menstruation. For example, your doctor may prescribe danazol, tamoxifen, or goserelin.

These drugs regulate the hormonal balance in the body and can reduce discomfort in the mammary glands. However, in addition to the positive effect, they have significant side effects, for example, such as excessive growth of body hair and an irreversible decrease in the timbre of the voice. Some of these drugs are used in the treatment of breast tumors, but doctors sometimes recommend them to get rid of chest pain.

Danazol is a drug for the treatment of severe pain caused by fibrocystic breast disease, a disease in which benign (non-cancerous) lumps form in the breast. Side effects:

rash;
weight gain;
decrease in voice timbre, sometimes irreversible;
hirsutism (excessive hair growth) - for example, on the face.

Tamoxifen is a drug to treat breast cancer, but may also be prescribed for breast pain. Side effects:

vaginal bleeding or discharge;
hot flashes;
increased risk of developing uterine cancer (endometrial cancer);
increased risk of thromboembolism - when blood clots form in the veins (thrombosis), which can lead to blockage of the vessel.

Goserelin is a drug to treat breast cancer, but may also be prescribed for chest pain. Side effects:

vaginal dryness;
hot flashes;
loss of sexual desire;

When to see a doctor for breast pain?

Contact your doctor if you notice any of the following breast changes:

the appearance of a lump or compaction in the mammary gland;
nipple discharge;
the appearance of a lump or swelling in the armpit;
change in the size or shape of one or both breasts;
the appearance of dimples or other breast deformation;
rash on or around the nipple;
change in the appearance of the nipple, for example, it becomes sunken;
chest or armpit pain not associated with menstruation;
any signs of infection in the breast, such as swelling, redness
or chest heat or increased body temperature.

If your breast pain is accompanied by other symptoms or does not go away throughout your menstrual cycle (not just your monthly bleeding), it may not be cyclic breast pain. To determine its cause, consult your doctor.

If your mammary gland hurts, find a good gynecologist who will diagnose and, if necessary, treat your condition. In difficult cases, for a more detailed examination, you may be referred to a mammologist, who can be found using the NaPopravka service.

Women's breasts should be not only beautiful, but also healthy. If a woman begins to feel pain in the mammary gland, she should pay attention to it. Often we are talking about natural and harmless causes of their occurrence. However, we should not ignore those situations when pain is a consequence of the development of some diseases and pathologies.

A woman should consult a doctor if she cannot explain the reasons for her symptoms. For example, they are increasingly intensified or localized in one mammary gland - signs that we are most likely talking about a pathological disease. On the site, we will look at common causes of pain in one of the delicate areas of the female body in order to prevent the development of serious diseases, for example, malignant tumors.

There are many reasons for chest pain. Diagnosis should be made based on the nature of the pain:

Single-sided or double-sided.
Cyclical or non-cyclical.
Acute or chronic.
Stitching, pulsating, sluggish, unexpressed, variable, etc.

Causes of pain in the mammary gland

Why does the mammary gland hurt? Only a doctor can answer this question. We can consider a number of reasons that most often affect sensations in the chest. It should be understood that the female breast reacts to any changes in the body. It often hurts due to ongoing diseases in the reproductive system. It seems that we are talking about various organs, but for some reason the chest hurts.

It is better to consult a doctor so that he can diagnose the mammary glands and identify the causes of their pain. Among them may be:

Period. Many women experience pain in the chest immediately before the onset of menstruation, and then go away with the arrival of menstruation. These pains are cyclical, that is, they occur in the second phase of the menstrual cycle and disappear spontaneously without the use of any medications. In this case, the pain is localized simultaneously in both mammary glands, which increase in size, the skin becomes rougher, and tissue swelling also occurs.
Pregnancy. The breast is the first to react to the fact that conception has occurred and the birth of a child is about to take place. So, during pregnancy, the breasts hurt already from its onset before the woman discovers her condition. Usually the breast hurts a lot, becomes sensitive, increases in size, and hurts symmetrically. At the same time, the nipples also increase in size, changing their color with the areolas. Also, the breasts may hurt immediately before childbirth, as they are preparing to feed the baby.
Wearing tight or uncomfortable underwear. Many girls and women wear small bras to lift or enlarge their breasts. However, these manipulations lead to the fact that the mammary glands occupy an unusual position, which is why they begin to hurt. The pain intensifies when removing the bra, and then gradually goes away.

These pains are temporary and completely natural. In this case, no measures need to be taken other than changing underwear to a suitable size. The pain is bilateral and goes away within a certain period.

However, often painful sensations in the breasts are a consequence not only of hormonal imbalances or tight underwear, but also due to the development of pathological processes:

– a common disease due to hormonal imbalance, which manifests itself in the form of a lump with severe pain.
Chest injuries, squeezing, blows, pressure and other manipulations that do not cause any problems other than pain.
Period or lactostasis. After giving birth, women begin to produce colostrum and milk. It is quite normal if the process is accompanied by pain. However, pain may indicate the development of lactostasis - stagnation of milk, when individual milk ducts are blocked and do not allow milk to come out. In this case, you need to consult a doctor who will help eliminate congestion by pumping. Mothers are advised to frequently put their babies to the breast, pump on their own, as well as massage and keep their breasts warm.
Lack of sexual release, which leads to stress and depression. This can affect your overall well-being.

Oncological and infectious diseases of the mammary glands

Doctors divide pain into cyclical and non-cyclical. If the pain is bilateral and cyclical, then there is no particular cause for concern. Usually we are talking about a menstrual feature, when the breasts swell and swell shortly before menstruation. However, pain can be non-cyclical, localized in one mammary gland - in such a situation we can talk about oncological or infectious diseases of the mammary gland.

Cyclic pain can be associated with pregnancy, when the breasts increase in size, fill with blood and become sensitive as they prepare to feed the baby. Certain changes occur in the mammary glands, which causes pain.

Pain can also be a consequence of taking certain medications, especially hormonal ones. Here you need to consult a doctor so that he can change the medications to others that will not have a similar effect on your health.

Non-cyclical pain is always associated with the development of diseases. Such pain occurs at any period, they have a clear localization, and can appear in only one mammary gland. By themselves they are burning, unpleasant, cutting.

The causes of non-cyclic pain are:

Injuries, bruises, compression.
Previous breast surgeries.
Mastitis is an infectious disease caused by stagnation of milk, into which bacteria penetrate through microcracks in the breast. The pain is accompanied by headaches, weakness, loss of appetite, and fever.
Fibroids.
. With this disease, pain occurs in the later stages. Their appearance indicates the progression of the disease.
– purulent formation in tissues.

When is a doctor needed?

When should you contact a mammologist for consultation and treatment? If the pain intensifies, is not relieved by medications and does not go away on its own, then a doctor is definitely needed:

The appearance of edema.
The occurrence of discharge not associated with pregnancy or breastfeeding.
Redness.
Nipple retraction.
Appearance of orange peel on the skin.
Asymmetry of the mammary glands.
Changes in the shape and size of the breast.

Breast cancer manifests itself in advanced stages, so you should undergo regular breast examinations. It is important to follow preventive measures that will save a woman from various diseases and pains.

During breastfeeding, you need to maintain body hygiene, eat right, wear special underwear, and also use creams to moisturize the skin of the nipples.

Forecast

Every woman should be careful about her breasts. It’s good if the pain is caused by natural causes. If the causes, for example, a small bra, can be quickly eliminated, then the disease will have to be treated. And different forecasts are given here. Some diseases require the use of potent drugs that cause various side effects in the body. That's why it's better not to get sick at all.