Lumps in the armpit, is it dangerous? What caused it?

Have you ever felt your armpits? Did you find a lump there? Sometimes, you may have lumps in your armpits without you knowing it. This can be caused by various diseases or conditions in your body. So, it is important for you to feel your armpits regularly as an early check up step.

Why do lumps grow in the armpit?

Armpit lumps can appear due to enlarged lymph nodes under your arms. Lymph nodes are glands found throughout the body and play an important role in your immune system. When you feel your armpits, you can feel the lump is there in a very small shape, or maybe it can be bigger and feels very pronounced when touched.

Most armpit lumps are harmless. These lumps often appear due to abnormal tissue growth. However, armpit lumps can also be caused by more serious health problems.

What caused it?

Lumps in the armpits can be caused by many things, such as cysts or infections, for example, because you often shave your armpit hair. However, these bumps can also be a sign of a more serious health problem.

Some of the common causes of underarm lumps are:

• fibroadenoma, is a growth of fibrous connective tissue not cancer. Bacterial or viral infection,
• lipoma, in which harmless fat tissue grows,
• cyst,
• lymphoma,
• breast cancer,
• leukemia,
• lupus,
• yeast infection,
• allergic reactions to deodorants or soaps, and
• adverse reactions due to vaccination.

What are the characteristics?

The most visible symptom is of course the lump itself. You can find it by tapping it slowly. This lump can be found in very small to large sizes. The texture of the lump can vary depending on what caused it.

Lumps caused by cysts, infections, or lipomas are usually soft when touched. Meanwhile, lumps caused by breast cancer are harder and don't move when touched.

Another lump due to breast cancer, lymphoma, and leukemia, a lump because this usually has symptoms, such as changing size quickly or not disappearing.

Lumps caused by infection or allergic reactions are often associated with pain in the armpits and tend to feel softer. Lymph node infections can also cause painful lumps.

Lumps caused by infection can also show other symptoms, such as the following:

• fever,
• night sweats, and
• swelling throughout the lymph nodes in the body.

Be careful when it appears in a woman's armpits

Although armpit lumps can be found in both women and men, women who most often experience this. Lumps under the arms in women can be a sign of breast cancer and women are more at risk for developing the disease than men.

It is recommended that women regularly perform breast self-examination (BSE) every month, especially around one to three days after menstruation ends. This is to check whether there is a lump around your breast or not. If there is, you can get it checked out as early as possible to the doctor.

Take note, your breasts during menstruation may tend to be softer and there are lumps. This is because there are hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle and this is normal. This is why it is recommended that you do breast self-exams 1-3 days after your period ends.