lumps in breast that is very big and hot

Anon, where do you live? Do you have a doctor, or could I help you find someone to go and see?

It will be great if it turns out to be nothing you have to worry about. But three months is enough time to know that it doesn't go away with your cycle.

I would love to know that either you'll make an appointment this week to see your doctor or that you'll let me help you find someone to see.

Please let me know. If you prefer to take this offline, just click on my name in orange up above this post and it will go to my private email box. Let's see what we can help you figure out.

Diane

Then for sure, all of Diane's questions are very important. Message boards are a great place to get some answers, but a breast specialist is your best avenue right now.

You really need to see a breast specialist....truly you do. And Diane is right, how long have you been dealing with this?

Patti Bradfield, President
The Inflammatory Breast Cancer Foundation
www.eraseibc.com

One more question ... is your breast swollen? Are there any skin changes, like a rash or a visible red/pink or black and blue area that you can see?

Hi, Anon. Welcome to EmpowHer, and thanks so much for your question.

Where in your breast are you feeling this lump, Anon? Does it really seem to be the size of a baseball? In other words, it's one lump that is perhaps 4" across?

Can I ask you a couple of questions?

Do you feel any pain when you press on this lump?

Does it feel soft?

By "rolls," do you mean that it doesn't seem to be attached to anything -- that you can move it back and forth?

When was your last doctor's exam or mammogram?

Did you just find this lump, or have you been keeping track of it for a while?

There are different things that cause lumps in our breast -- benign lumps like like cysts and fibroadenomas and more worrisome things like cancer. It's impossible to tell without a doctor's examination. Here are some resources that will help you:

Here's an EmpowHer video from Dr. Jay K. Harness about what to do when you find a lump in your breast:

https://www.empowher.com/media/video/video-dr-harness-lump-my-breast-what-do-i-do-now

And here's a page that compares the different kinds of lumps that we find in our breasts and how they feel and act:

http://breastcancer.about.com/od/risk/a/lump_overview.htm

Does your lump feel like one of those examples?

Here's another very good page that talks about the differences in lumps; scroll down to "Causes:"

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003155.htm

Does one of those descriptions sound like what you have?

Anon, let me encourage you to make an appointment as soon as you can with your doctor to get this checked out. Most likely it is a cyst or something tied to PMS or your menstrual cycle, and nothing to worry about. But when it comes to our breasts, we can't be too careful.

Do you have a doctor you can ask about this? Or at least call their office and talk to a nurse or a nurse practitioner? Or do you need help finding a low-cost or free clinic?