Can breast stretch marks act like this?

[hypervigilant]

I feel somewhat trite posting a question like this in a forum where women are dealing with breast cancer, but I've searched the Internet for question/discussion forums about normal breasts and benign conditions, and there just doesn't seem to be anything.  If my question is inappropriate for this forum at this point, please accept my apologies and move my question to a better place!

I posted about a week ago with a question about breast aging.  Without re-telling the whole saga, about 3 weeks ago I noticed a little shadow on my breast that is sometimes more prominent than others - it seems to depend on the time of day, force of gravity, quality of light, dehydration, hormones, gravity, and whether or not my pecs are flexed.  I saw my doctor yesterday, and she couldn't see what I was noticing, nor could she feel a lump in the area.  I think she said something about normal skin markings, like stretch marks and other little freckles, but I don't remember exactly. I specifically asked if it was a dimple, and when she said definitely not, everything else went out of my head with the relief. It didn't occur to me until later to ask "So ... what IS it, then?"  I wish that she had actually seen what I was seeing, but the main thing is that she did NOT see OR feel anything abnormal.  I trust her judgment that's it's nothing to worry about.  

However, I'd still really like to know why I'm seeing that little shadow.  I posted a (probably completely whacko) theory about it in my original thread yesterday, but now I'm really thinking that what I'm seeing is a stretch mark catching the light and making that part of the breast look a little bit creased, especially when I flex the muscle.  I honestly haven't been sitting around obsessing over my body all day, but I have noticed some other stretch marks on my arms and legs that catch the light in very similar ways.  There's one on my bicep very near my elbow that looks almost exactly like the mark on my breast when I move that muscle just right.  Both breast and bicep are rounded, and in both cases I can look down from above and see the marks when the light is right. There's a similar effect with a stretch mark on my knee.  In all 3 cases, the shadow/mark disappears completely when I stretch out the skin, and although I can still see white lines on my knee with tension, only the faintest of white dots remain on the bicep and breast.  With the bicep and knee, it's clearly a skin thing with no underlying tissue involvement.  So maybe all 3 are stretch marks, and I've just never noticed the breast one before now.

So my question is - could this breast thing be a stretch mark?  Can stretch marks be completely invisible except when gravity or muscle flexing acts upon them in particular ways in just the right light?  Can they run in any direction on the breast?  I'm probably making a big deal about nothing, but even with yesterday's reassurance from my doctor that nothing looked abnormal, I'd feel better if I just knew what I was seeing!  

[Jennifer8055]

Hi,

I used to have pretty bad stretch marks and red scars around my belly region ever since I gave birth to my three kids.I had tried Vitamin E oil and cocoa butter which a number of people had recommended but unfortunately it didn't seem to work too well. My Doctor had even suggested that I go for a Tummy Tuck. I then recently read an article about a lady who supposedly got rid of her stretch marks using a particular cream. I tried it and it worked really well. It took a number of weeks but my stretch marks soon faded away. You can read the lady's article at the link below.

http://stretchmarkszapped.wordpress.com

[hypervigilant]

Thank you for your help!  I'm going to keep an eye on the area, and will get back to my doctor pronto if I notice anything suspicious that you described, but right now I feel as certain as I can that this is harmless.  I appreciate your comments!

[PaulMD]

Hi there.

Stretch marks represent a break down in the connective tissues underneath the breast skin which is reflective of the aging process and also can be due to dieting or nutritional deficiencies (like vitamin C).  Yes, it is entirely possible that this can manifest with the shadowing that you have described.  As long as there are no lumps and no other suspicious findings like masses or nodules, then I agree with your doctor that this maybe nothing to worry about.

Regards.