Looking for any credible info on whether Breast Cysts are related to thyroid disease or hormone levels?

[Pamela0106]

I have some already from self research and continue to google for more but wondered if any of you have any links or research sources I may not have read. You are all so knowledgeable on here I felt it was worth asking x

[SeasideSusie Remembering]

Pamela0106

It's not something I have researched but I had very many years of multiple breast cysts during peri-menopause, one ultrasound showed 24 cysts at one time. I was told it would settle down after menopause, which it did. Had about 13 aspirated over the years.

However, a couple of years ago, by now many years post-menopause, I discovered more cysts, on ultrasound of one breast (only one because that was where the lump was, other not scanned) there were 10 cysts, nothing done about them this time.

Radiologist told me I shouldn't be having them at my age, it's a younger woman's problem, and likely to be excess oestrogen. I'd already done sex hormone tests privately and knew that my oestogen was rock bottom, and at my age it would be quite low anyway. So maybe there is a link and I didn't know about it.

I wouldn't mind reading through anything you've already found if you're happy to pass it on, don't mind PM if you don't want to put it on the forum.

[Pamela0106 in reply to SeasideSusie]

I will send you over some links later today x

[Pamela0106 in reply to Pamela0106]

Oops I completely forgot to send you stuff over. To be honest a lot of it is what others have already posted on here already. Lol. Happy to send over in PM if you want still, otherwise hopefully the replies on here will suffice for you xx

[radd]

Pamela0106,

I have not had breast cysts so have no experience but have read it can be to do with oestrogen dominance which is common in woman with low thyroid hormone.

Progesterone levels start to decline from the age of about 35 anyway and with possible additional adrenal fatigue (caused by low thyroid hormone) the adrenal glands may sequester progesterone to help make cortisol (to support the low thyroid hormone). This drop in progesterone creates a progesterone/oestrogen imbalance called “oestrogen dominance”.

Oestrogen should balance progesterone as each have opposite effects in many tissues. Oestrogen does not have to be elevated to be dominant .... just higher in levels than progesterone .

Oestrogen dominance causes the liver to produce high levels of a protein called TBG (thyroid binding globulin) which binds with thyroid hormone and decreases the amount that can be assimilated into and utilised by the cells.

Also, many with Hashimotos have MTHFR issues, which can mean an impaired ability to excrete unused hormones from the body. A high fiber diet and regular bowel movements will help decrease oestrogen levels since it is moved through the body when the gallbladder releases its contents into the GI tract. Improper elimination can cause oestrogen to be reabsorbed & levels to become even higher.

If you google something like "Breast cysts & Thyroid" you will get loads of interesting reading regarding the connection.

.

Oestrogen Dominance & Breast Cysts.

nobreastcyst.com/thyroid.html

.

MTHFR (actually for PCOS but good reading & I consider relevant to your cause).

mthfrsupport.com.au/mthfr-a...

[BadHare]

Not what you're asking, but they can be related to pituitary adenomas.

[researcherUK]

The common denominator for both is iodine deficiency.

Breast tissue has a greater concentration of iodine than the thyroid.

Iodine decreases the ability of estrogen to adhere to estrogen receptors in the breast and sends all excess estrogen out of the body in a critical detoxification via the potassium iodide symporter.

Without adequate iodine, breast tissues are susceptible to estrogenic stimulation. This leads to the production of micro-cysts which will develop to become fibrocystic.

Here are some online references:

kathleenbarnes.com/iodine-a...

larabriden.com/iodine-for-b...

hormones.gr/1/article/artic...

ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/152...

Other references:

1. P. E. Preece et al., “Importance of Mastalgia in Operable Breast Cancer,” British Medical Journal, vol. 284 (1982), pp. 1299–1300; and L. E. Hughes and D. J. Webster, “Breast Pain and Modularity,” in Benign Disorders and Disease of the Breast (London: Bailliere Tindale, 1989).

2. J. H. Kessler, “The Effect of Supraphysiologic Levels of Iodine on Patients with Cyclic Mastalgia,” The Breast Journal, vol. 10, no. 4 (2004), pp. 328–36; W. R. Ghent et al., “Iodine Replacement in Fibrocystic Disease of the Breast,” Canadian Journal of Surgery, vol. 35, no. 5 (Oct. 1993), pp. 453–60.

3. Kessler, “The Effect of Supraphysiologic Levels of Iodine on Patients with Cyclic Mastalgia.”

4. B. A. Eskin et al., “Mammary Gland Dysplasia in Iodine Deficiency,” Journal of the American Medical Association, vol. 200 (1967), pp. 115–19.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to researcherUK]

But if you've tested and you're not iodine deficient.....?

[researcherUK in reply to SeasideSusie]

What sort of iodine tests have you done?

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to researcherUK]

Genova Diagnostics urine non-loading test. Result exactly mid range - 150 (100-199). Practioner recommended a Multi at the time for symptoms not connected with breast cysts, which contained iodine (which I questioned) and my level rose to 250, I then stopped taking the Multi. This was at the time of my post-menopause cysts when the ultrasound showed 10 were present in one breast.

I didn't test pre-menopause, there was no forum and not so much information then.

[researcherUK in reply to SeasideSusie]

Although the 24 hrs iodine test is reliable it gives you a snapshot. Levels of 150 are deemed to be adequate but not optimal. 185-199 are better. Technically speaking you were deficient although your levels were showing "within the range". Usually, with those optimal and sufficient levels, only 90% is shown in the urine test. A combination of two tests (urine and blood) will give you a better picture of your iodine levels. Unfortunately, not all labs conduct the blood test.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to researcherUK]

How can the urine test be a snapshot when it's done over a 24 hour period? Surely a blood test is more of a snapshot than a 24 hour urine test.

[researcherUK in reply to SeasideSusie]

It is a 24 hrs snapshot. Can you guarantee that your levels do not fluctuate?

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to researcherUK]

And a blood test is a snapshot of a few seconds surely.

I doubt any test is accurate because levels of everything fluctuate all the time. Iodine levels will fluctuate depending on what you eat/drink - if I ate a meal of fish and had plenty of milk to drink and a yogurt during the 24 hours of the test, then the level would be quite a lot higher than if I didn't.

[researcherUK in reply to SeasideSusie]

Precisely!

24 Hrs test, when it was first introduced, was an effective measure to assess nation's iodine status. However, as I have indicated, it is not a reliable measure for assessing the iodine status of an individual because of very high variation in daily dietary iodine intake.

Research has established that 10 UIC measurements from spot samples or 24-hour collections are required to establish an individual’s iodine status with 20% accuracy.

Going back to your levels and noting that the kidneys excrete approximately 90% of the ingested iodine in urine and putting the 20% accuracy as a factor. This confirms, although your numbers were within the range, that you were deficient when you did the test.

As much as the breasts cells require more iodine than the thyroid, but unlike the thyroid, they do lack the ability to store iodine. A constant and adequate supply is required even after menopause. Cases of post-menopausal women with mastalgia and breast cysts have been documented.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to researcherUK]

OK, so would trying to maintain a level of around 190-200 be adequate? And if a multi supplement containing 150mcg iodine (also included selenium) increased my level from 150 to 250, what amount of supplementation would be right?

[researcherUK in reply to SeasideSusie]

I personally take 200-225 mcg/daily of iodine from supplementation and I add a few flakes of sea vegetables to my diet every now and then. I don't drink milk or eat yogurt as I gave up dairy but I have seafood (cod has the highest concentration of iodine). If you have not taken any iodine supplementation before and being me extra cautious, I'd do what I did..best to start on a low dose 100-150 mcg and see how you feel. Take high B2-B3 along with selenium.

Iodine not only sorted my congested and painful breasts but I can sweat now since my iodine levels became optimal. In the past, I was painfully hot all day and doctors kept pointing towards hot flushes and approaching menopause which I knew it wasn't the case but couldn't put a finger on it until later on. Confirmation came as well from a liver blood test that showed how fast my body was processing/eliminating excess estrogen. The doctor then said if you ever needed HRT, I am happy to prescribe. I didn't need it when my thyroid and iodine were sorted and menopause arrived recently. I feel hot when my iodine levels drop so I add a tiny bit more rather than increasing NDT.

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to researcherUK]

I have taken iodine - 150mcg - as part of a Multi supplement that my then practioner recommended, never as a stand alone supplement. That 150mcg iodine increased my level (repeat urine test) from 150 to 250 and I wasn't comfortable with that as the practioner attached no importance to it. I no longer use the practitioner.

[researcherUK in reply to SeasideSusie]

The Iodine levels within your multi-vitamins were adequate then.

Did you mean that you've felt unwell with those levels?

[SeasideSusie Remembering in reply to researcherUK]

No I didn't feel unwell with the rise in iodine level. I was concerned about the not insignificant rise in level in a relatively short time but she didn't attach any importance to it.

I didn't find the practioner particularly helpful, she was more concerned about my Levo/T3 doses yet I hadn't consulted her about my thyroid, I originally consulted her to have a hormone panel interpreted (sex hormones/adrenals) and sent her all the recent tests I'd had carried out (trying to get to the root of my ongoing symptoms). She got a few things confused, I was unimpressed with her and eventually stopped consulting her.

[researcherUK in reply to SeasideSusie]

Good for you! I trust you are far better now than when you were under her treatment.

[carolen]

Hi Yes, was plagued by cystic breasts before the menopause and have had hypothyroidism for years, never connected the two ! Also, just reading about miscarriages and problems getting pregnant alongside being hypo which I also suffered from. No one ever mentioned a connection and I didn't join the dots here either !!

[Debbie2012]

Had breast cysts about 10 years ago, before hypo diagnosis and menopause. Very interesting, thanks.

[limasog]

I have been hypo for 25+ yrs and have had very lumpy bread tissue and cysts most of my life. The cysts were really bad when I had excessively sub optimal thyroid levels. Once I started taking NDT the cysts disappeared and my breast tissue was no longer lumpy. I have within the last year developed thyroid symptoms again due to high reverse t3 and, you guessed it, the cysts are back. Definitely a link between optimal thyroid levels and breast issues in my experience.

[lady_eve]

My immediate reaction was 'oestrogen dominance', too. Be warned, though, my GP told me *forcibly* that there's no such thing.

Wishing you well.