Painful lump

[amb1016]

I am 28 years old. My youngest child is 2, I nursed him until he was a year old, so I haven't nursed in a little over a year. I was experiencing a dull pain in my left breast the other day and came to find a painful knot or lump under my nipple. Is there any reason to be concerned or can this pass with time?

[Dennis MD]

Hi.
There are several conditions that can present with a painful lump under the nipple or breast.  An example would be an abscess of the areolar gland (part of the nipple underneath) where the glands become inflamed forming abscesses.  Another example would be an acute mastitis where the breast becomes tender and swollen.
It would be best to seek consult with your doctor for proper evaluation and management.
I hope that helped.

[DrBhumikaMD]

Hi,
Is the pain and lumpiness associated with your menstrual period or have you started to use OCP in the recent past. This could then be explained to be due to the hormonal fluctuations seen in the above cases.
Other causes of the pain and lump could be a cyst, a fibroadenoma, a breast abscess or mastitis. It would need a proper clinical evaluation to find out the diagnosis. In case of doubt your doctor might need to get cetain investigations and blood work too.
Have you noticed any abnormal features like skin changes or nipple discharge on breast self exam apart from this? It would be best to get a clinical evaluation done if the pain and lumpiness does not subside in a couple of days.
Good luck.