{"id":24026,"date":"2021-11-27T10:33:00","date_gmt":"2021-11-27T18:33:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/?p=24026"},"modified":"2025-04-03T16:15:56","modified_gmt":"2025-04-03T23:15:56","slug":"i-found-a-lump-in-my-breast-now-what","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/news\/i-found-a-lump-in-my-breast-now-what\/","title":{"rendered":"I Found a Lump in My Breast \u2013 Now What?"},"content":{"rendered":"<article class=\"article\">\n\t<header class=\"header\">\n\t\t<span class=\"type\"><\/span>\t\t<h1>I Found a Lump in My Breast \u2013 Now What?<\/h1>\t\t<time>November 27, 2021<\/time>\n\t<\/header>\n\t<div id=\"block_d8c8e788532f4659457bff26dabe7e04\" class=\"shs-block block-news-article entry-content\">\n\t\t<div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"acf-innerblocks-container\">\n\n<p>Many women have had that heart stopping feeling of finding a lump in their breast during a self-exam. What do you do next if that happens to you?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIf you find a new lump, let your doctor know,\u201d said <a href=\"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/patients-visitors\/find-a-doctor\/germino-jessica-1457647091\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jessica Germino, MD,<\/a> a specialist in breast imaging radiology at Samaritan Health Services and Corvallis Radiology. \u201cRather than assuming the lump is nothing, it\u2019s important to keep your doctor informed.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Germino reported that once you talk to your doctor, there are a number of tools that can quickly diagnose the lump depending on your age and gender.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-ultrasound\">Ultrasound<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>For women under the age of 30, Dr. Germino reported that an ultrasound is usually the next step if they find a lump. An ultrasound avoids unnecessary radiation to the breast while still providing an image of the lump. In addition, younger women typically have denser breast tissue, which can be viewed more easily with ultrasound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-mammogram\">Mammogram<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Women in their 30s or 40s who haven\u2019t had a mammogram yet will likely have a mammogram. If they have dense breast tissue \u2013 which approximately half of women do \u2013 they may also need an ultrasound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe ultrasound helps us see through some of the density and the combination of an ultrasound and a mammogram is very thorough,\u201d said Dr. Germino. \u201cIf both the ultrasound and mammogram are normal, women should feel reassured that the lump is likely not cancer. However, if you or your doctor are still concerned you should listen to that feeling \u2013 a suspicious lump without an abnormality on mammogram or ultrasound may still warrant a needle biopsy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-biopsy\">Biopsy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>A needle biopsy uses a thin needle to extract a small amount of tissue from the lump. The procedure can be done in the radiology department and because the needle is small, the skin won\u2019t need stitches. The extracted tissue is sent to a lab to be analyzed for cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cA biopsy gives you an answer which can be reassuring, especially if you have other risk factors for breast cancer,\u201d said Dr. Germino.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-men-amp-breast-cancer\">Men &amp; Breast Cancer<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Although rare, men can and do get breast cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Dr. Germino, many men who find a lump will need a mammogram to examine the breast tissue. Some may need an ultrasound as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSometimes men can develop a condition called gynecomastia, which feels like a lump but is actually benign breast tissue,\u201d said Dr. Germino. \u201cThis can happen due to a number of conditions in your body or medications you take. If you start to develop breast tissue or feel a lump, talk to your doctor about it so you can determine what may be causing it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-know-what-s-normal-for-you\">Know What\u2019s Normal for You<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>It\u2019s a good idea to be familiar with what is normal for your breasts. \u201cSome women have lumpier tissue than others, which is common,\u201d reported Dr. Germino. To examine your breasts, run your fingers firmly across the breast tissue in a serpentine pattern. Check your armpit and up by your collarbone, too. If you still have periods, hormone fluctuations can change the way the tissue feels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIf there\u2019s something in your breast that is concerning, it\u2019s a fairly straightforward process to find out what it is,\u201d said Dr. Germino. \u201cDon\u2019t assume it\u2019s nothing and don\u2019t feel like you\u2019re wasting people\u2019s time \u2013 just get it checked out.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Learn more about <a href=\"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/health-services\/all-services\/diagnostic-imaging\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">diagnostic imaging<\/a> procedures and <a href=\"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/health-services\/all-services\/cancer\/breast-cancer-awareness\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">breast cancer<\/a>&nbsp;services at Samaritan.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/find-a-location\/samaritan-imaging-north-albany\/\">Samaritan Imaging &#8211; North Albany <\/a>is an accredited breast imaging center of excellence. It offers extended hours until 8 p.m. for routine screenings like mammogram, ultrasound and image-guided breast interventions.<\/em><\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<aside>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"360\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/woman-performing-self-exam-CO-305.jpg\" class=\"attachment-cta size-cta wp-post-image\" alt=\"Woman does self screening for breast cancer, with hand over shirt\" srcset=\"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/woman-performing-self-exam-CO-305.jpg 360w, https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/woman-performing-self-exam-CO-305-300x250.jpg 300w, https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/woman-performing-self-exam-CO-305-120x100.jpg 120w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 360px) 100vw, 360px\" \/><\/figure>\t\t<\/aside>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Many women have experienced the worry of finding a lump during a breast self-exam. Learn what to do next from Samaritan Radiologist, Jessica Germino, MD.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":14496,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","_shs_workflow_notes":"09-27-21","_shs_exclude_from_navigation":false,"_shs_promote_article_on_blogs":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"news-topics":[294],"news-types":[270],"services":[252,234],"specialty":[14,101,295],"class_list":["post-24026","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","news-topics-womens-health","news-types-feature-article","services-obstetrics-gynecology","services-diagnostic-imaging","specialty-radiology","specialty-breast-surgery","specialty-womens-health"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24026","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24026"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24026\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14496"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24026"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24026"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24026"},{"taxonomy":"news-topics","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-topics?post=24026"},{"taxonomy":"news-types","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-types?post=24026"},{"taxonomy":"services","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/services?post=24026"},{"taxonomy":"specialty","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/samhealth.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/specialty?post=24026"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}