NR 281 Pathophysiology Course: Fibrocystic Breast Disease

Fibrocystic Breast Disease: Pathophysiological Processes
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Course: NR 281 Pathophysiology
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Introduction
The Fibrocystic Breast Disease refers to various benign nodules in the breast, where the firm movable masses become more painful during menstruation when there are hormonal fluctuations (Moin, 2013). The changes in the breast tissue affects many women, but is most common during the child bearing years and less common after menstruation. The clinical manifestations are more commonly experienced during menstruation and ease after the menstruation onset the manifestation vary and include dense irregular breast tissue, breast tenderness and pain, breast fullness add at times nonbloody nipple discharge. Many women experience fibrocystic change at one point in time but mostly diagnosed between the ages 30 to 50 and rarely before adolescence and after menopause (Murshid, 2011). This will focus on etiology, pathophysiological processes, clinical manifestations & complications, diagnostics, as well affected health patterns of Fibrocystic Breast Disease.
Etiology
Even though, there is no exact identified cause, but the breasts tissue changes because of hormones especially estrogen and they are more pronounced for women with Fibrocystic Breast Disease (Sakoda et al., 2011). This increases the risk of swelling and tender lumps, and when the fibrous tissue grow excessively there is a thickening lump. This occurs because of the formation of the fibrous tissue as well as the hyperplasia of the epithelial cells in the ducts and glands. The condition can affect any woman, but for the child bearing women, birth controls and hormone therapy may be effective to reduce the effects symptoms. There is an increased risk of Fibrocystic Breast Disease for girls start menstruating early, those who have their first child while 30 years or older and those who have never had a child. The age, and hormonal changes during menstrual cycle provides clues on the likely risk of the Fibrocystic Breast Disease compared to environmental causes or lifestyles
Pathophysiological processes
The increase of the estrogen to the progesterone ratio increases the risk of FBD, but other hormones are also involved (Sakoda et al., 2011). Besides estrogen predominance, the deficiency of progesterone also increases the risk of the condition. For instance, the prolactin hormone also changes the breast where women with elevated levels of the hormone are more likely to have FBD than those who have normal range levels (Moin, 2013). Even though, the mechanism of development of Fibrocystic Breast Disease is not well understood, the condition is non-pathologic since it can be found in women who have healthy breasts. The enhanced reaction of the breast tissue to the cyclic changes of ovarian hormones causes changes in the breast cysts or fibrosis tissue. As such, the benign breast condition then results in the thickening and lumpening of the breasts. The symptoms of Fibrocystic Breast Disease mainly emerge when the swollen lumps develop into breast cysts, but a mammogram is necessary to differentiate them from the cancer cysts (Habor, et al., 2009).
Clinical Manifestations & Complications
The nodules like masses are usually accompanied with both pain and tenderness, where the cyclic masses are movable and soft. Some of the patients may also have breast swelling and tenderness as well as enlarged lymph nodes. FBD has an epithelial origin, and the epithelium has an inner layer as well as the outer myopithelial layer. The classification of the FBD is divided into the non proliferative lesions, proliferative lesions without atypia, as well as atypical hyperplasias (Guray & Sahin, 2006). Fibrocystic Breast Disease is not associated with increased risk of can...