The commonest presentation of breast cancer is a painless breast lump. Enhanced awareness about breast cancer has resulted in women commonly presenting with a complain of a lump in the breast. This article briefly describes the approach to a patient presenting with a breast lump. A more detailed article for those interested may be found at http://practicingoncology.com/evaluation-of-a-breast-lump/ . A woman presenting with a breast lump is mainly seeking an assurance that there is no malignancy.
If a malignancy is diagnosed she is hoping that her prompt action has resulted in an early diagnosis of cancer. She is seeking answers to these questions fast and we should work towards these goals. The diagnosis of cancer is pathological but clinical and radiological evaluation should precede the biopsy. The aim of clinical examination is to ascertain the need for a biopsy and determining…
