How is a mammogram performed?

  Mammography is a method of examining the nature and location of lesions by injecting contrast into the breast ducts and then taking mammograms to show the distribution of the contrast.  A normal mammogram shows a progressively thicker sinus shape at the areola, followed by progressively thinner branches, with each dominant duct having 3-4 branch ducts and several smaller branch ducts and end-branch ducts, with a progressively thinner diameter of 2-3 mm, and each branch duct being unobstructed and spreading to the end-branch blind ducts and lobules. If the ductal system of the breast is diseased, the angiogram may show varying degrees of ductal compression, luminal obstruction, narrowing, interruption, or irregular branching ducts, ductal luminal dilatation, and ductal displacement.  The scope of application of mammography: 1, non-lactation, non-pregnancy nipple overflow, or nipple overflow beyond the normal lactation period, and the X-ray plain film can not show the lesion.  2, after mammography to understand whether nipple overflow is related to breast lumps and breast duct lesions. Case sharing: The patient had unexplained nipple overflow in the right breast, the overflow was dark red and bloody, no clear mass was palpated in the breast, and a mammogram in our outpatient clinic suggested clusters of calcifications in the areola area and the lower quadrant of the right breast. The dilemma at the time of admission: 1. local excision of the suspected calcification on the mammogram is not possible, as this may leave a benign intraductal papillary component, and the nipple will still overflow and may become cancerous in the future. 2. excision of the blue-stained ductal system after dye staining the overflowing ductal system is not possible! This way, if the calcification is not in the diseased ductal system, the clustered calcification cannot be removed, thus leading to possible cancerous tissue remaining in the breast.  In order to solve the dilemma encountered in the clinic, the only way to clarify not only the internal lesion of this diseased duct, but also the relationship between the suspected calcification and the diseased duct, was by mammography. In this case, multiple intraductal occupations, worm-like destruction of the ducts in the areola area, and interrupted destruction of the ducts in the inner lower quadrant were found on the imaging. Comparing the mammograms before and after the examination, the calcified areas and the visualized ductal system overlapped. The problem was solved! The lesioned duct system was removed, as well as the suspected malignant calcifications, and all problematic lesions were removed!