Breast involvements in autoimmune diseases?

[Tharrell]

Has anyone experienced painful breast involvement in their disease proccess?

I'm used to having tender breasts at mid cycle to just before my periods and twice I had to do ultra sounds on my breast because ob/gyn thought she felt abnormal lumps which turned out nothing. I was told to reduce my coffee intake to lower the calcifications in my breast. Last January I had normal mamogram.

So here is the problem: my breasts and nipples have been super tender and I thought it must be due to being mid cycle. I'm not to sure about my cycles anymore since I had hystorectomy two years ago, but I still have my ovaries. It's been more than two weeks now and they haven't ever been this tender for this long.

I had the bright idea to do a search on breast calcifications and autoimmune disease and came accross several hits, but it's soooo confusing.

Apparently there can be breast involvement in SLE, RA, scleroderma, and a bunch of other autoimmune diseases.

Has anyone else have experience with this?

I'm going to send my rheumy a message tomorrow to see what she recommends since she is still looking me over from head to toe to make sure she is not missing anything, plus that all my blood tests are negative.

Any insight would be very helpful.

[irish]

I have had this for 50 years, I think and at the age of 70 I am still going through this. Right now I am having issues. I have one breast that swells up on the side and up under my arm. It is painful and always made me wonder what in the heck it was. I used to think that it was from my hormones but I am now convinced that it is an inflammatory process involving the breast tissue and lymph nodes. It sort of wanes and ebbs for me.

The interesting thing is that I think my Mom had Sjogrens and she would have the same swelling and pain with her breast tissue. I have also had several times that I would have to go back and have ultrasounds because my mammograms had shown a lump of some kind. This has frequently been a lymph node that will be gone when they do a 6 month recheck.

I don't worry about it anymore. I do the breast checks and pay attention when I have more swelling than usual, and have found that it usually goes away. I had one time that one of the lymph nodes got infected under my arm and I needed antibiotic--other than that it is just a mild irritation that occurs off and and over the years. I just adjusted to it. Don't worry about it but do get regular mammograms so that the docs learn the norms and landmarks of your breast tissue. IRish

[LadyDi]

I believe that I have breast involvement that has most likely been related to autoimmune disease for years. I am not in menopause yet (but soon) and for years I have had almost unbearable breast tenderness approx. 1 week before my period.

Also,  at every annual mammogram I must go in for repeat images followed by an ultrasound. It seems that my breast tissue is very dense and cystic.

I have been on Plaquenil going on 6 months now, and it seems that this swelling and breast tenderness has subsided. I think that the anti inflammatory properties that Plaquenil provides may very possibly have alleviated this issue for me.

I'm hoping that means no more repeat mammograms an ultrasounds.....we'll see.

[irish]

I am 70 years old and no ovaries plus on Plaquenil and I still get occasional swelling, etc. I think we are all different. Irish

[aussie mum]

I don't have any answers but I suffer the same as you.

My breasts often hurt, so much so that I insisted I have a mammogram. Thankfully all was fine, but I do wonder why they hurt so much. Wouldn't surprise me at all if it is AI related. I also had severe endometriosis which some say is an AI disease.

I'm 50 now, have had a Hysterectomy (did have 1 ovary left) and am now post menopausal. Unfortunately the pain still comes and goes which makes me think it is not hormonal. Could it be something like fibromyalgia?

I wonder if we'll ever know all the answers.

[irish]

The breasts are a secreting gland so that is the big reason why they are affected in Sjogrens. There are also a ton of lymph nodes in and around the breast tissue plus under the arms. I find it no surprise that the breasts get involved in Sjogrens. If you have every nursed a baby you are aware of all the aches and pains involved with the secretion of milk. The milk ducts are affected in somewhat the same what the salivary ducts are. The only thing is there is no fluid there like with the secreting salivary glands so would imagine it is sort of a lot drier tissue that is affected.

I know that with my third child I tried to nurse and I had very little milk. I was very ill with sjogrens during this pregnancy so as I look back I can really piece the disease and its affect on my body during pregnancy and afterward. Irish

[aussie mum]

Irish, you bring up a good point. I'd never thought of the connection between SJS and breastfeeding but your post makes perfect sense.

[Ark mom]

Last year I was trying to have a third baby, not being diagnosed with Sjogren's yet, then I started having breast pain, bloating, and nausea.  I was so excited because I thought I was pregnant!

My tests were all negative, and then one day I became very ill.  I went to the ER.  I suspected Sjogrens at this point because my eyes and mouth were extremely dry all of a sudden. 

Not only was I devastated to be sick with this I was grieving the loss of the baby that I thought I had.  Life was miserable. 

Off and on my whole life I have had breast pain, which doctors have attributed to fibroid tissue, but ever since I started treatment for sjogrens, my breast pain has disappeared.  Coincidence or not?