What is calcification in the breast?
Breast calcifications are small calcium deposits found in your breast tissue. It’s very common to develop these areas of calcium, especially as you age. Because calcifications in the breast can’t be felt, they’re usually found during a screening mammogram.
Most of the time, breast calcifications are harmless or benign. However, some calcifications can be a very early sign of breast cancer. Your care team will carefully examine any areas of breast calcification seen on your mammogram so you can have peace of mind about your breast health.
Types of calcifications:
Breast calcification symptoms
Breast calcifications don’t cause any symptoms. Because they are so small, you can’t feel these calcium spots with a breast exam. Most people don’t know they have areas of calcification in the breast until they go in for an annual screening mammogram. When X-ray images are taken during this routine screening, breast calcifications appear on the images as bright, white spots.
Because microcalcifications don’t cause symptoms but can be an early sign of precancerous
cells or breast cancer, it’s important to get your annual screening mammogram. Mammograms
easily detect these calcifications and give your care team vital information to guide your care.
You can also be proactive about your breast health by addressing other breast symptoms and
talking to your doctor.
What causes breast calcifications?
The causes of breast calcifications are not entirely known. They’re often considered normal as you age. However, they may be more likely to form if you have other breast health conditions.
Some possible causes of breast calcification could include:
- A previous breast injury or infection
- Benign changes in the breast, like breast lumps, breast cysts or fibroadenomas
- Past breast surgeries, including breast implants
- Breast cancer treatment
Diagnosis of breast calcifications
If your screening mammogram shows areas of calcification in breast tissue, the radiologist who reviews your mammogram will use magnification to look at the size, shape and distribution of the calcifications. Based on this, the radiologist will classify the type of breast calcification.
If your mammogram shows the more significant, scattered type—macrocalcifications—then your mammogram may be all that’s needed. If your breast calcifications show up as microcalcifications—smaller specks, especially in a group or line—then you may have other tests to get a closer look and diagnose the cause. The two most common tests to help with a diagnosis are a diagnostic mammogram and a breast biopsy.
Diagnostic mammogram
A diagnostic mammogram helps give your team more images of your breast tissue or detailed photos of a specific area.
When you get a diagnostic mammogram, you can expect a similar process as your routine screening mammogram.
Biopsy
A breast biopsy is a minimally invasive procedure that takes a small sample of the breast tissue where you have calcifications. Your care team then sends this tissue sample to a lab to help diagnose the cause of the breast calcification. Because breast calcifications are tiny, your team may use imaging to help guide your biopsy.
Breast calcification treatment
Your care team will create a treatment plan for your breast calcifications based on the type of calcifications you have. When calcifications appear on a mammogram, the radiologist who reviews your images puts these calcifications into one of three categories. These categories serve as a way to guide the next steps in your care.
In general, breast calcifications are more likely to be in the suspicious category if they are smaller specks, aren’t all a consistent shape or size, or are clustered together instead of scattered throughout the breast.
If your report lists the breast calcifications as “benign,” you don’t need any treatment. If you have a mammogram report that lists calcifications as “probably benign” or “suspicious,” you’ll talk with your doctor about additional monitoring or tests for your care.
The three breast calcification categories are:
Our breast imaging centers near you
We offer several locations for your care, including women’s imaging centers in North and Central Texas, to monitor and diagnose breast calcifications.
Baylor Scott & White Darlene G. Cass Women's Imaging Center At Junius
3900 Junius St , Dallas, TX, 75246
Baylor Scott & White Darlene G. Cass Women's Imaging Center At North Dallas
9101 N Central Expy , Dallas, TX, 75231
Baylor Scott & White Women's Imaging Center - Irving (Macarthur & Hwy 183)
2001 N Macarthur Blvd , Irving, TX, 75061
Baylor Scott & White Women's Imaging Center - Las Colinas (Macarthur & I-635)
440 W Lyndon B Johnson Fwy , Irving, TX, 75063
Baylor Scott & White Women's Imaging Center - Plano
4716 Alliance Blvd , Plano, TX, 75093
Baylor Scott & White Medical Center - Lake Pointe
6800 Scenic Dr , Rowlett, TX, 75088
Breast Center At Baylor Scott & White - Grapevine
1631 Lancaster Dr , Grapevine, TX, 76051
Baylor Scott & White Imaging Center - Forney
763 E Us Hwy 80 , Forney, TX, 75126