Breast Pain

Hormonal fluctuations are the number one reason women have breast pain. 

The breasts develop due to an increase in estrogen during puberty. During the menstrual cycle, various hormones cause changes in breast tissue that can lead to pain or discomfort in some women. While breasts do not typically hurt, occasional breast pain is not uncommon.

Mastalgia, a breast pain that are not due to underlying disease, is a common condition among women. The pain is usually categorized as either cyclical or noncyclical.

Cyclical pain means the pain is associated with your menstrual cycle. Pain linked with the menstrual cycle tends to subside during or after your period.

Noncyclical pain can have many causes, including injury to the breast. Sometimes noncyclical pain can come from surrounding muscles or tissues arising from tight fitting bra, pregnancy, menstruation, breast feeding or exercise, rather than the breast itself. Noncyclical pain is much less common than cyclical pain, and its causes can be harder to identify.

Causes of breast pain

Mastalgia 

This can vary in intensity from a sharp pain to a mild tingling. Some women may experience breast tenderness, or their breasts may feel fuller than usual.

Hormone fluctuations

A woman’s menstrual cycle causes hormone fluctuations in estrogen and progesterone. These two hormones can cause a woman’s breasts to feel swollen, lumpy, and sometimes painful.

Women sometimes report that this pain gets worse as they get older due to increased sensitivity to hormones as a woman ages. Sometimes, women who experience menstrual-related pain won’t have the pain after menopause.

If breast pain is due to hormone fluctuations, you will usually notice the pain getting worse two to three days before your period. Sometimes the pain will continue throughout your menstrual cycle.

To determine whether your breast pain is linked to your menstrual cycle, keep a log of your periods and note when you experience pain throughout the month. After a cycle or two, a pattern may become clear.

Developmental periods that affect a woman’s menstrual cycle and potentially cause breast pain include: puberty, pregnancy and menopause.