A breast mass can be detected during a monthly at-home breast examination, clinical exam or on a mammogram. Appearing as a dense mass of tissue on a mammogram, it can be composed of glandular or fibrous tissue, and can be non-cancerous or benign, or invasive and malignant. If a breast mass presents a health risk, patients may undergo a number of procedures to remove the lump.
Surgical Biopsy
A surgical biopsy procedure works as both a diagnostic test and a treatment for a benign breast mass. During the surgical biopsy, a doctor makes a small incision to access the breast tissue, then removes the entire mass from the breast, keeping the biopsied specimen for further medical testing. If, during testing, the mass is confirmed to be non-cancerous and benign, the patient requires no further treatment because the entire mass has been removed. If the mass is confirmed as cancerous, the patient may require further treatment to prevent any tumor recurrence. A surgical biopsy is somewhat invasive, but is a less invasive treatment option than other forms of breast surgery.
Lumpectomy
A lumpectomy allows doctors to remove a breast mass while conserving healthy breast tissue. A lumpectomy occurs after a lump has been diagnosed by a prior biopsy procedure. During a lumpectomy, a doctor removes all affected breast tissue, as well as a small margin of healthy tissue around the tumor and tissue likely to be invaded by tumor cells. The doctor may also perform a series of small tissue biopsies around the edges of the tumor to assess the invasiveness of the tumor cells. Following a lumpectomy, patients with a breast mass may require additional treatment, such as radiation therapy, to effectively kill any undetected tumor cells. Penn Surgery also explains that some breast masses may require more than one procedure to remove mass cells in the tumor margins.
Mastectomy
The most invasive and aggressive breast masses, like aggressive breast cancers, require removal by a mastectomy. During this procedure, a doctor removes the entire breast, including the overlying skin. He may also remove some of the pectoral chest muscle underneath the breast to prevent cancer spreading into the chest wall. The doctor also removes a series of lymph nodes--small structures that house immune system cells--since lymph nodes often become colonized with cancer cells during breast cancer development. Following surgery, the patient may experience pain or stiffness in the shoulder, and may develop more serious conditions like lymphedema--a swelling of the hand and arm with lymph fluid. The University of Maryland Medical Center indicates that patients who have received a mastectomy for a breast mass may opt for reconstructive surgery after treatment to restore the appearance of their breast.
