I recently posted a question on a lump i discovered under my left breast (nipple) since then i have had a mamagram... results came back negative.. Dr thinks my lymph nodes are bigger than what he likes to see so he is sending me for a CT scan abdominal. and a biopsy for the lump in my breast. I have complained of my glands from day one (6yrs ago) to my dr and his reply was "nothing to be concerned with." they are always swollen. not as much as they were but always noticable. i have been undetectable for 5yrs now and cd4/770. Would a CT scan show if cancer is present and if so shouldn't it have been ordered a long time ago when nodes were first discovered? Also what does a biopsy consist of? removal of all infected breast tissue? if so and it is located directly under the nipple will they remove that too?

It sounds like your doctor is being very cautious and is trying to rule out whether you have breast cancer or not, even though the mammogram was negative. A biopsy can take a small piece of tissue or may take the entire abnormal lump, but would not take the nipple. For details about the biopsy procedure itself, make a list of all the questions you want to ask and bring the list woth you when you see the surgeon who will do the biopsy. The CT scan as another way to look for abnormal growths, but cannot tell you exactly what kind it is-- for that, you need tissue that can be evaluated under a microscope. Good luck!