Breast Discharge

[Kris60]

My daughter is having breast discharge. enough to wet her shirt. She had a baby a year ago, I haved had breast cancer... Should we be worried?

[allmymarbles]

Is the discharge milk?

[OkieJess]

Hi,

Couple questions: what color is the discharge? How much is coming out? Even a small drop can wet a bra/shirt. Is it discharging only when wearing a bra (when the nipple is compressed) or when squeezed? Did she breastfeed?

I breastfed two kids and my youngest is 2. I weaned at 9 months and I STILL get a wet spot on my bra every now and then (pretty often actually) and I can also squeeze and get clear/yellowish/white discharge. I am told this is very very normal and it can last years or go on forever.

If the discharge is green/tainted brown or red blood she needs to be seen soon as this may indicate a need for a breast ultrasound. My one breast leaked blood when I was 7 months pregnant with my first daughter and I freaked out. My Mom was only 3 years out from breast cancer treatment and I got myself all worked up in a tizzy and was convinced I had it too. Turns out it was something called "rusty pipe syndrome" ( pretty funny ) which is a papilloma in the duct of the breast that bleeds. Totally benign and harmless. Phew! So you see there are many kinds of discharge that could be nothing of concern. She should call her Dr and see what they say.  They'll call her in right away if it sounds suspicious.

[zouzi]

Hi,
Most nipple discharges are caused by benign conditions, such as duct ectasia or benign papillomas.
Discharge from the breast, when nipples are squeezed,increases the Prolactin hormone level and the more you squeeze the nipple the more the discharge will continue.
This fluid can be many colors... green, gray, white, brown, blue and black. The amounts of discharge vary with different women.
Women who are on birth control pills and some tranquilizers, produce more prolactin and may have more discharge.
When to be alarmed about discharge is when it happens only on one side, comes out spontaneously( without squeezing),is persistent, bloody or clear and sticky.
If your daughter's nipple discharge is spontaneous and because of your past history with BC, I would advise her to see a breast specialist for special tests to determine if there is an abnormal problem.
As a mom myself,I can understand your anxiety,but I don't think that you should be overly worried about it,because most discharges are not indicative of something bad.However I think that it would be best that your daughter mentions this discharge to her physician,just to be on the safe side.
Best wishes to you both.