Big breast next door, is this normal? & bull; hello healthy

Big breast size one side is a common concern that surrounds many women, including adolescents and adult women. What not many people know is that a pair of breasts doesn't always have to be the exact size you think you have been.

One-sided large breast, also known as asymmetrical breast, is a condition when a pair of women's breasts differ in size, shape, position, or volume of the two breasts. In general, asymmetric breasts will show more distinction during puberty and will eventually balance the two sizes on their own. However, up to 25 percent of women report that the difference in the size of the two breasts persists throughout their life.

More than half of the world's female population has a pair of large breasts next to each other. Typically, the left breast will be larger - up to 20 percent - than the right side. Few women have symmetrical breasts that are exactly the same size.

Why can the breasts be one-sided?

Any discussion of the size or shape of a woman's breast requires some basic understanding of the anatomy of the breast itself. The breasts are fat glands located at the front of the chest wall. The average weight of one breast can be 200-300 grams, and is basically made up of 12 to 20 lobes that spread out from the nipple, like the spokes of a bicycle wheel frame. These lobes are triangular in shape, each of which has a central channel that ends at the nipple, through which milk flows out.

Your breast tissue changes according to your breast cycle. For example, you may often notice that your breasts feel fuller and firmer, as well as more sensitive, when you are ovulating. In fact, breasts can become enlarged due to water retention and additional blood circulation to the breasts. However, this also happens when both breasts are the same size. One study found that the breasts will appear at least asymmetrical on the first day of ovulation. During the menstrual period, the breasts will deflate again.

The exact reasons why the size of the two breasts are one-sidedly larger is not known with certainty, but the most likely determinants include changes in the hormone estrogen or traumatic injury.

Is it necessary to check the large breast next to the doctor?

If the difference between the two breasts seems very significant, up to two cups or two times larger than the other side, this can cause some psychological problems, especially during adolescence, when a young woman's body and soul have undergone so many changes with very fast. This extremely rare medical condition is known as juvenile hypertrophy (JHB), in which one breast grows extraordinarily larger than the other.

In cases where asymmetrical breasts cause such a heavy physical and psychological burden that the doctor recommends surgery, talk to a breast plastic surgeon first to perform a breast mass reduction procedure, aka breast reduction surgery, instead of using implants. The study found that women with adjoining large breasts who underwent a reduction procedure reported greater satisfaction than those who chose implants.

Generally, slight differences in breasts on normal days do not require special attention. Just make sure you choose a bra with a cup that fits the side of your larger breasts, and you can get around the "emptiness" on the other side with the help of bra pads to fill the bra cup.

When is the big breast next door a risk factor for breast cancer?

If the change in breast size occurs suddenly and seems very obvious, consult a doctor. Sudden changes in breast shape and size can be a sign of infection, lumps, cysts, or even cancer.

Sometimes, the development of non-cancerous fibroid tumors that you are not aware of can also cause one-sided large breast size. Other possible causes of this difference include scoliosis (curvature of the spine), and defects in the chest wall.

Research from the UK, quoted from WebMD, shows that large differences in size are independent risk factors for breast cancer - especially in women who are at high risk of this disease. The study, published in the journal Breast Cancer Research, reports that every 95-gram increase in asymmetric breasts, observed with mammography, is predicted to increase the chances of breast cancer risk by up to 50 percent.

However, what needs to be understood is, even if medical findings indicate a strong association between large breasts and breast cancer, this characteristic is only one of many factors that can affect your risk of breast cancer (family history, age, reproductive history). , and others).

The best way to check your breasts yourself is when you are in the shower to make it easier for you to notice the slightest change from damp conditions and slippery wet hands. If you have had big, one-sided breasts for a long time, don't worry. However, if this change in size occurs suddenly, or if you notice a change in the breast, the slightest, consult a doctor. Breast self-examination will not reduce the risk of death from breast cancer, but it is important to be able to detect breast changes as early as possible and avoid delaying consultation with a doctor.