Microcalcinates in the mammary gland - what is it? Causes, diagnosis

Modern medicine makes many efforts to prevent or timely identify various pathologies of the mammary glands. But, despite the abundance of information, there are many topics that remain outside the scope of the interests of a wide audience. Microcalcinates in the mammary gland - what is it and what are they dangerous? What causes this phenomenon and how to deal with them? Let's try to understand.

Microcalcinates in the mammary gland - what is it?

Such a phenomenon as micro-accentification, or calcification (deposition of calcium salts), occurs quite often. They appear on the site of dead or irreversibly altered tissues in various organs of man. Most often this is the result of an inflammatory process. Such formations can be observed in pathological processes in the lungs, kidneys, liver, and prostate. The thyroid gland and heart do not escape the same fate. In this case, both the signs of the underlying disease and the absence of any noticeable changes in the state of health can be observed. The accumulation of microcalcinates in the mammary gland can signal a serious disease such as breast cancer. Fortunately, the identification of these formations does not at all mean an unconditional verdict - oncology is confirmed only in 30% of cases, and the remaining manifestations are related to benign changes. Nevertheless, if even single microcalcinate was detected in the mammary gland, this is an occasion to undergo a serious examination.

Causes of formation

To provoke the formation of microcalcinates, in addition to the oncological pathology of the mammary glands, many processes in the body of a woman can. The most common of these are:

• Stagnation of milk during lactation and lactation;

• Climacterium;

• Overdose of calcium and vitamin D preparations;

• Disturbances in metabolic processes;

• Age changes.

However, in addition to physiological reasons, these formations are also present in a number of pathologies of the mammary glands. With sclerosing adenoses, fibrocystic mastopathy, microcalcinates in the mammary gland are also found. What it is? These pathologies are considered benign processes. Most often, they are accompanied by pains that increase during menstruation. The cyst in the mammary gland can be manifested with pains of a fairly intense nature, extending to the armpit, shoulder, or scapula. By touching these pathologies, it is possible to determine the areas of compaction, depending on the form of the disease, having clear boundaries or passing in the form of strands and fine granularity.

Symptomatic for microcalcinates

The danger of microcalcinates in the mammary glands lies in the fact that the process of their growth occurs completely asymptomatic. If the painful compaction in the mammary gland is easy to detect and in time to take action, then the calcinates, because of their small size, do not show themselves. They cause no pain, no discomfort, no fever. It is possible to detect them only with X-ray examination. In the picture, the microcalcinates in the mammary gland are seen as blackouts having a certain shape and localization. It is for these parameters that the mammologist determines the presence of pathology and diagnoses it.

Classification

As a rule, microcalcinates in the mammary gland do not in themselves cause any pathological processes. But their presence often becomes an important diagnostic factor, indicating a certain pathology. In order to make it easier to establish an accurate diagnosis, they are classified into several parameters.

According to the localization (location) of calcification in the mammary gland, there are:

• Stromal:

• Lobular:

• Ductal.

By the nature of their distribution:

• Segmental - calcifications are located in one lobule of the breast;

• Regional - the accumulation of calcinates is located within one fraction;

• Linear - salt deposits are visually arranged in a line;

• Grouped - the volume of the cluster does not exceed 2 centimeters;

• Diffuse - single calcints are randomly distributed across the chest.

In addition, calcifications are subdivided according to their shape:

• Large entities with clear boundaries;

• Point;

• Croup-shaped;

• Vermicular;

• Broken with clear boundaries;

• Cotton-like.

Stromal microcalcinates

Calcinates of this localization are the safest from the point of view of diagnostics of oncological pathologies. The site of their accumulation is the walls of blood vessels, fibroadenomas, skin or fatty cyst in the mammary gland. The cause of their formation is most often necrosis of adipose tissue and fibrous formations. As a rule, stromal calcifications differ in relatively large sizes, but they do not have clear boundaries. If the scattered microcalcinates in the mammary gland are formed in the space of the sebaceous glands, then they have a clear oval or rectangular shape. All this makes it easy to identify them during X-ray examination.

Lobular calcifications

Calcification of lobular localization most often occurs due to atrophic changes in glandular tissue. In this case, they have a rather distinctive appearance - clearly defined rounded formations, located within one or several lobes. As a rule, the presence of such deposits almost always indicates the presence of tumor processes. In 80% of cases, especially if the examination reveals a painful compaction in the mammary gland, and on one of the proportions of radiography, shapeless spots resemble crescents or bowls, it is possible to diagnose fibro-cystic mastopathy with confidence. However, to exclude oncology, a biopsy is additionally prescribed.

The highest likelihood of a malignant process can be with non-uniform vat-like or powder-like clusters. It is believed that the smaller the calcinates (their size can vary from 50 to 500 microns), their shape is more heterogeneous and the location is more chaotic, the greater the probability of detecting oncology.

Potassium calcinates

Protoccal calcinates are formed in the ducts of the mammary glands. If they are formed due to diseases such as mastitis or ectasia of the ducts, they have clear wormlike contours, interrupted structure and localization, which coincides with the pathway. It is also possible to form calcifications that have the form of dots or small segments with diffuse, indeterminate contours. This is highly likely to indicate a malignant process.

Diagnostics

Diagnosis of this pathology is the doctor-mammologist. The problem is that with palpation of the breast it is impossible to detect not only disseminated microcalcinates in the mammary gland, but also large enough formations. You can see them only on an X-ray. That is why it is so important for women over 40 years of age to do mammograms at least once a year. This study allows time to identify the appearance of microcalcinates, and for an experienced specialist it is easy to determine which disease caused their appearance. In some cases, if such formations are found in order to exclude breast cancer, an additional biopsy of the breast tissue is performed. In addition, a biochemical blood test is necessarily prescribed and the hormonal background is examined.

Treatment and prevention

In the event that microcalcinates are found in the mammary gland, the treatment will depend on what became the cause of their appearance. If the histological examination of the collected material confirmed the presence of a malignant tumor, then oncologists will be engaged in this, and depending on the severity of the process, chemotherapy or surgical treatment will be prescribed. In the event that the process turned out to be benign, the mammologist can prescribe hormonotherapy, breast massage, a corrective diet.

As for prevention, in many ways it depends on the ability of women to take care of their health. All of us live not in the most favorable ecological conditions, we often eat not the most useful products and we lead not the most healthy way of life. But it's enough to single out one day a year, visit a mammologist, take the necessary tests and do a mammogram to know exactly what microcalcinates in the mammary gland are - what it is, whether you have them or not, and what their appearance is due to. And if the cause of calcification is serious enough, then timely diagnosis will help to take the necessary measures in the early stages of the disease.