What is Atypical Hyperplasia of the Breast?
Atypical means “not ordinary” and Hyperplasia means “excessive growth of normal cells in the tissues of an organ”. So in simplistic terms atypical hyperplasia of the breast means that there is an unnatural growth or proliferation of cells in the breast tissue. Most often this occurs in the milk ducts. The cluster of cells in the duct looks like a small tumor by mammography. Although atypical hyperplasia is not cancerous itself, it has been associated with a moderately increased risk of breast cancer. A doctor will most likely remove the cluster of cells or collect a sample of the cells and run tests to determine what might be causing this growth.
