Can itching be a sign of breast cancer?
Itchiness of the breast is not usually due to cancer. It is more often caused by other conditions that can affect the breast such as eczema or mastitis (inflammation of the breast).
Paget’s disease of the breast
Paget's disease is a rare skin condition that can cause itching.
This condition develops in the nipple or the darker area of skin around it (the areola). It usually first appears as a red, scaly rash of the skin that may look like eczema. There might also be some discharge or bleeding from the nipple.
With Paget’s disease, there might be breast cancer in the tissues behind the nipple. Or there might be carcinoma in situ. This means that there are cancer cells but they are completely contained within the lining of the breast ducts. It is possible for someone to have Paget’s disease of the breast without having cancer but this is less common.
Inflammatory breast cancer
Inflammatory breast cancer is a rare type of breast cancer that can cause skin changes in your breast. With this type of cancer, the breast or part of the breast can become red, inflamed, painful and swollen. It can also cause itching of the breast.
!-->
