What are the changes in breasts during menstruation?

The mammary glands change in response to changes in hormones during the menstrual cycle. During the first half of the menstrual cycle, estrogen levels gradually increase and the breasts undergo proliferative changes. After ovulation, the level of progesterone increases, and prolactin also increases until 3-4 days before menstruation. The ductal epithelial cells in the lobules hypertrophy, and the secretions in the interlobular and terminal ducts also increase.

Therefore, before menstruation, you may feel breast swelling, breast enlargement, firmness, and even varying degrees of pain and tenderness, and there may be lumps to touch. After menstruation, estrogen and progesterone levels decrease rapidly, estrogen stimulation to the mammary gland weakens, and the mammary gland undergoes involution changes. The secretion of mammary duct epithelial cells decreases, cells atrophy and fall off, edema subsides, and the volume of mammary lobules and alveoli decreases. At this time, the breasts become smaller and softer, pain and tenderness disappear, and the lumps also shrink or disappear. The countless repetitions of the menstrual cycle cause the breast to always be in a cycle of proliferation and involution, re-proliferation and re-involution, which is particularly evident in patients with breast hyperplasia.

The mammary glands change in response to changes in hormones during the menstrual cycle. During the first half of the menstrual cycle, estrogen levels gradually increase and the breasts undergo proliferative changes. The countless repetitions of the menstrual cycle cause the breast to always be in a cycle of proliferation and involution, re-proliferation and re-involution, which is particularly evident in patients with breast hyperplasia.