What are calcifications?
Breast calcifications are calcium deposits within breast tissue.
They appear as white spots or flecks on a mammogram.
Breast calcifications are common on mammograms, and they're especially prevalent after age 50.
Although breast calcifications are usually noncancerous (benign), certain patterns of calcifications — such as tight clusters with irregular shapes and fine appearance — may indicate breast cancer or precancerous changes to breast tissue.
On a mammogram, breast calcifications can appear as macrocalcifications or microcalcifications.
When calcifications look suspicious, further studies, such as a biopsy, are needed.
Causes
Possible causes of breast calcifications include:
- Breast cancer
- Breast cysts
- Cell secretions or debris
- Ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS)
- Fibroadenoma
- Mammary duct ectasia
- Previous injury or surgery to the breast
- Skin (dermal) or blood vessel (vascular) calcification
Products that contain radiopaque materials or metals, such as deodorants, creams or powders, may mimic calcifications on a mammogram, making it more difficult to interpret whether the calcifications are due to benign or cancerous changes. Because of this, skin products of any kind should not be worn during a mammogram.
When to see a doctor
If your radiologist suspects that your breast calcifications are associated with precancerous changes or breast cancer, you may need to have another mammogram with magnification views to get a closer look at the calcifications.
Or the radiologist may recommend a breast biopsy to test a sample of breast tissue.
If breast calcifications appear to be caused by a benign condition, your radiologist may recommend a six-month follow-up for another mammogram with magnification views. The radiologist checks the images for changes in the shape, size and number of calcifications or whether they remain unchanged.
Source:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/symptoms/breast-calcifications/basics/definition/sym-20050834
