needle biopsy for calcifications

[tilewis]

i am having a needle biopy this friday because they found a cluster of calcifications. how concerned do i really needl to be. they are all so happy at the center and it throws me off. i need to know who bad this can be.

[zouzi]

Hi,
It doesn't matter how many clustered calcifications are found,only their pattern/shape matters.As I responded to the original poster,many grouped calcifications return a benign finding and I hope that your biopsy will be also.Not all lumps can be seen on mammograms...and these could be benign as well as cancerous .Your doctor will certainly do other tests to find out the nature of this lump.Best wishes..and good luck.

PS.If you have more questions,please try to do it in your own new post,because you'll be more likely to get replies.It's was unintentionally that I read your post.

[KA6823]

Hi. I went for a biopsy yesterday. I should hear today or tomorrow. The radiologist showed me my films and looking at them, there are calcifications all over that breast. 3 or 4 clusters and others. Does that suggest all of that area, over half the breast is cancer? What kind of lump is there that the mammo doesnt see? My breast are not dense.

Thanks

[zouzi]

Hi,
Microcalcifications are quite normal in breast tissue and they are not harmful.  However, microcalcifications that grow in a cluster are suspicious because they sometimes cluster around a mass.  In other words, while the mass may not be visualized on film, a cluster of microcalcifications may indicate that there is abnormal growth in the area.  It is proper in most cases to biopsy the area of microcalcifications.  This would most likely be done with mammography guidance.The only way to determine if there is any cancer is to biopsy.Many biopsies done on clustered calcification return a benign finding.I hope that your biopsy result will be favorable.Best wishes...