What is Granulomatous Mastitis?

Granulomatous mastitis is a rare inflammatory disease of the breast that occurs mostly in women of childbearing age within two years of pregnancy. Since it can be difficult to distinguish from breast cancer even on mammography or ultrasonography, it is difficult to make a definitive diagnosis without a biopsy.
Patients usually present to the doctor with complaints of unilateral breast lump and pain, but sometimes complaints such as nipple retraction, discharge, armpit glands, and a distorted appearance of the skin may be present.
Once a definitive diagnosis is made, the disease is treated with corticosteroids or surgical removal of the mass.