Quite often, during a routine examination or mammography, a medical record is left on the medical record that an intramammary lymph node of the breast is detected. What it is? Is its increase dangerous? These questions are asked by every woman who has had to face a similar diagnosis.
Is the intramammary lymph node of the breast cancer? What examinations does the patient need to undergo? What treatment may be needed? These answers will be useful and interesting to each member of the fair sex.
What is an intramammary lymph node
Many women find themselves in a situation where, during the examination, the doctor discovers that the patient has an increased intramammary lymph node in the breast. What is this, you can understand by studying the anatomical structure of the female breast. The named formation is part of the axillary group of lymph nodes , which normally do not appear. It is through them that the outflow of the bulk of the lymph from the chest is carried out. Therefore, in the case of a pathological process in the mammary glands, the nearby lymph nodes are also affected .
Indeed, such a phenomenon indicates the presence of a disease. On the other hand, in most cases, the disease is treatable, so you should not panic.
How is the intramammary lymph node visualized?
You should know, speaking about the intramammary lymph node of the mammary gland, what is this seal, which is located in the upper outer quadrant of the chest. Sometimes it can be felt during palpation, but most often it is found during radiography or mammography.
Quite often, a bilateral increase is observed (when both mammary glands are involved in the inflammatory process). As already mentioned, this process indicates the presence of an inflammatory process.
Intramammary lymph node of the breast: causes of pathology
Immediately it is worth saying that the appearance of an intramammary node in the pictures is not in itself a pathology. Its increase is a consequence of an existing disease. And in most cases, such a change in the lymphatic system indicates mastitis (inflammation in the tissues of the mammary gland).
The reasons include mastopathy. In addition, an increase in the lymph node is observed in oncological diseases, and therefore it is impossible to ignore such a problem - it is urgent to undergo a complete diagnosis.
Causes of inflammation of the lymph nodes in the chest
Inflammation of the mammary glands is a very common problem. There are many factors that contribute to the development of a disease such as mastitis. As you know, the inflammatory process develops against the background of the activity of bacteria, viruses or fungal microorganisms. They can enter tissues both from the external environment and from other foci of inflammation in the body.
According to statistics, in most cases women suffer from mastitis during lactation. If milk stagnates in the mammary glands, this creates ideal conditions for the propagation of pathogenic microorganisms. The state of the immune system, the hormonal background and many other factors also matter.
What are the symptoms of inflammation and other pathologies?
Mastitis is the most common reason why women have an increased intramammary lymph node in the breast. What it is? In essence, this is an inflammatory disease, which in most cases is diagnosed during or after lactation.
The named pathology develops when pathogenic microorganisms penetrate into the tissues - most often these are bacteria, but fungi and even viruses can act as a pathogen. Such diseases are accompanied not only by an increase in lymph nodes, but also by swelling of the chest, severe soreness, fever, and the appearance of discharge from the nipples. In the presence of such symptoms, you should consult a doctor as soon as possible, since the lack of therapy can be extremely dangerous.
Diagnostic measures
It's no secret that doctors recommend that women conduct breast self-tests every month. A correctly performed procedure often contributes to the early diagnosis of various diseases. On the other hand, this is the least accurate diagnostic method.
In most cases, the intramammary node is diagnosed by mammography or chest x-ray. In the picture, the doctor can see a shadow with light inclusions (these are adipose tissues). In the future, of course, additional procedures are carried out.
Diagnosis includes standard blood tests that help establish the presence of an inflammatory process. An ultrasound examination of the breast will also be informative . The most accurate method to determine whether the lymph node is affected by cancer cells is a biopsy.
Using a special needle, the doctor punctures the pathological structure and collects samples, which are then sent to the laboratory. Unfortunately, sometimes damage to the lymph node, on the contrary, can provoke the process of malignant degeneration of tissues. That is why it is important to find a really good specialist who can draw up the most safe diagnostic and treatment regimen.
How dangerous can swollen lymph nodes be?
What to do if an intramammary lymph node of the breast is detected? This is dangerous? Is it worth the worry? There is an opinion that the appearance of this node in the picture can be considered a sign of cancer.
Such a statement is not true. The increase in lymph nodes, as you know, only indicates that the woman’s immune system has to deal with the negative effects of the external or internal environment. And in most cases, such a violation is a sign of an inflammatory process. With cancer, on the other hand, the lymph nodes also change in size. Moreover, they most often become the place of formation and development of metastases.
As you can see, it is impossible to answer unequivocally the question of whether the enlarged intramammary lymph node of the breast is dangerous. This requires thorough research and, in particular, a biopsy.
What does the treatment regimen look like
What therapy requires an enlarged (or modified) intramammary lymph node in the breast? Treatment in this case depends on many factors, including the reason for its appearance on radiographic images.
For example, if there is mastitis or inflammation of the lymph node itself, then the use of anti-inflammatory drugs is necessary. Depending on the cause of the inflammatory process, antiviral, antifungal, or antibacterial therapy may be needed.
In the event that malignant cells were detected during the diagnostic process, the treatment regimen is selected by the oncologist. Naturally, affected tissues, including the lymph node, must be removed. After this, radiation or chemotherapy is performed to help destroy the remaining cancer cells, and then a recovery and observation period follows.