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Nipple discharge
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Nipple discharge is the name given to any fluid that comes out of one or both nipples when there is no pregnancy and no breastfeeding. It is more common than it seems: it is the third most frequent breast complaint, right after pain and a lump.
It comes out where milk would come out. Each breast has between fifteen and twenty milk ducts, the small tubes that open onto the nipple, and the fluid can come from just one or from several at once. Handling the breast .. caressing it, sucking it, massaging it .. can stimulate those ducts to release fluid.
The good news is the proportion: 97 percent of cases of nipple discharge have a benign cause, meaning it is not cancer. The kind described as pathologic has a fairly well defined profile: it usually comes from one side only, it shows up on its own without anyone touching the breast, its appearance varies, and depending on the cause it comes from a single duct.
There is one case that falls outside the rule. In a man, fluid coming out of the nipple is always considered abnormal.
In brief
Nipple discharge is any fluid that comes out of the nipple outside of pregnancy and breastfeeding.
Each breast has 15 to 20 milk ducts, and caressing, sucking or massaging it can stimulate them to secrete fluid.
One duct may drip, or several may drip.
97% have a benign cause; pathologic discharge is usually one-sided, spontaneous, variable in appearance and, depending on the cause, from a single duct.
It is the third most common breast complaint, after pain and a lump; in a man it is always abnormal.
Sources (1)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingBreast Nipple Discharge, StatPearlsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
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