The normal breast (right) contains the yellow “stroma” that surrounds the milk-making tissues (here, purple) of the breast. The microscopic image at the bottom shows the two tissues of the stroma: the “dense” pink fibrous tissue and the “non-dense” clear, open fatty tissue.
It’s not clear why some women have a lot of dense breast tissue and others do not.
You may be more likely to have dense breasts if you:
Are younger. Your breast tissue tends to become less dense as you age, though some women may have dense breast tissue at any age.
Have a lower body mass index. Women with less body fat are more likely to have more dense breast tissue compared with women who are obese.
Take hormone therapy for menopause. Women who take combination hormone therapy to relieve signs and symptoms of menopause are more likely to have dense breasts.
The normal breast (right) contains the yellow “stroma” that surrounds the milk-making tissues (here, purple) of the breast. The microscopic image at the bottom shows the two tissues of the stroma: the “dense” pink fibrous tissue and the “non-dense” c...
