Diagnosing Breast Cancer

How breast cancer is diagnosed

If a screening mammogram is abnormal, doctors use more tests to find out if it is breast cancer. They may refer women to a breast specialist or a surgeon. This does not mean that she has cancer or that she needs surgery. These doctors are experts in diagnosing breast problems.

• Breast ultrasound. A test that uses sound waves to make pictures, called sonograms, of areas inside the breast.
• Diagnostic mammogram. If you have a problem in your breast, such as lumps, or if an area of the breast looks abnormal on a screening mammogram, doctors may have you get a diagnostic mammogram. A diagnostic mammogram may take more detailed x-ray pictures of the breast from different angles to check the abnormal area more closely.
• Breast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). A kind of body scan that uses a magnet linked to a computer. The MRI scan will make detailed pictures of areas inside the breast.
• Biopsy. A biopsy is when a small piece of tissue or fluid is removed from the breast and looked at under a microscope to see if there are cancer cells. There are different kinds of biopsies (for example, fine-needle aspiration, core biopsy, or open biopsy).

Staging

If breast cancer is diagnosed, other tests are done to find out if cancer cells have spread within the breast or to other parts of the body. This process is called staging. The type and stage of breast cancer tells doctors what kind of treatment you need. For more information, visit Stages of Breast Cancer.

More information

• How Breast Cancer Is Diagnosed (National Cancer Institute)
• Understanding Breast Changes and Conditions: A Health Guide (National Cancer Institute)