The presence of blood flow signals within a breast nodule indicates that blood vessels are traveling through the interior of the mass, which is a suspicious sign of malignancy and requires further investigation.
The description of blood flow in breast nodules is mainly categorized into no blood flow, internal blood flow and marginal blood flow. Internal blood flow indicates that blood vessels are within the mass, either in the center of the mass or across the margins of the mass. Marginal blood flow means that the blood vessels are at the edge of the tumor, forming complete or incomplete rings.
Generally malignant tumors such as breast cancer are blood-rich and will show abundant blood flow on ultrasound, so the presence of blood flow signals is one of the signs of suspected malignancy. However, the presence or absence of blood flow and the richness of blood flow are not the diagnostic criteria for determining the benign or malignant nature of a lump. Some breast cancers do not have a rich blood supply, whereas inflammatory lesions as well as papillomas may have a rich blood supply.
It is recommended to combine the BI-RADS classification of ultrasound report and other examinations such as molybdenum target to make a comprehensive judgment of the condition of the breast nodule with the blood flow signal, and follow the doctor’s instructions for further examination and treatment.