Making the Diagnosis
A suspicious lump in your breast should be checked by your doctor. Aside from an extensive physical examination, the doctor will also want to do a mammogram, which is a low-level X-ray that can show abnormal areas in your breast. An ultrasound can sometimes be performed to see if the lump is a fluid-filled cyst or a solid growth. Even if the lump that can be felt is not visible on the mammogram, some sort of biopsy may need to be done.
Using a needle, fluid can be removed from a cyst to check if it contains cancerous cells. A solid lump must be analyzed under a microscope. This requires either a needle biopsy, a core biopsy, or a surgical biopsy to be performed.
For a needle biopsy, a fine needle is inserted into the lump and cells are drawn out with the needle. With a core biopsy, a sample of breast cells and tissues is removed for examination. A surgical biopsy is an operation that removes the whole lump and some normal tissue around it. It can be done under a local or general anesthetic.
Cancerous cells can be tested for the presence of estrogen or progesterone receptors. Other tests, including X-rays, bone scans, ultrasounds, CT scans, or an MRI, may be done to see if the cancer has spread to other organs and tissues.