The Meaning of Breast Exam During Pregnancy

Pregnancy-associated breast cancer (PABC) is breast cancer diagnosed during pregnancy or within 1 year of delivery.  With the social transformation and the gradual increase of the average reproductive age, modern women in current social lifestyles are under great pressure, which also leads to the high incidence of developing breast cancer.

It is important to note that women during pregnancy have very high levels of estrogen and progesterone, which are also risky factors for rapid growth and metastasis of breast tumors.

Breast examination has often been ignored during pregnancy examination. Thus, this may lead to late discovery when it comes to tumors. Due to estrogen stimulation during pregnancy, even benign tumors tend to grow quickly, while malignant tumors may grow even faster and metastasize easily to other organs.

Experts suggest that women with pregnancy plans, especially those with breast disease or a family history of breast disease, should include breast exams in their regular examination before and during pregnancy.

• How to do breast examination during pregnancy？

Palpation is not recommended for breast exam when it comes to not-yet-formed lumps, small lumps or lumps located in deep. Instead, professional imaging examination is required for accurate screening.

However, pregnant women are not suitable for x-rays imaging tests. On the other hand, compared with European and American women, Asian women generally have less breast fat and more glands, which belong to the dense mammary glands, and it may become denser in pregnancy, delivery or lactation stage. A minor lump in a dense breast maybe missed during Mammography test.

Ultrasound examination is a safe and accurate examination method for pregnant women, and it is easy to operate and radiation-free, which provides helpful information for clinical preoperative staging. As a non-invasive examination method that can be widely applied for pregnant women, ultrasound examination should be the first choice.

Intelligent full volume breast ultrasound system IBUS is specially designed for women with dense breast tissues. The advanced screening method can diagnose breast cancer early. It's comfortable and safe for repeated inspection.

• Advantages of IBUS 60 for Pregnant Women

  Non-invasive & radiation-free

  Comfortable patient experience

  Accurate examination method

  Valuable information for clinical preoperative staging

  Effectively diagnose breast cancer early