Hello and thank you for your post.

I am really sorry to hear about the problem with your breast , this sounds like it is a distressing time for you.

You are right in that mastitis has nothing to do with cancer and does not cause it. However it is good to know that you are being cared for by the breast team. They are the best people to know what to do. As this is not cancer we are not experts on it but I have looked at the clinical guidance about how it is treated.  It says that if after having antibiotics ( and sometimes a few different types are needed) and draining the breast the mastitis does not get better then surgery may be needed. This involves removing the infected area, and not the whole breast. It seems (from what I have read) that the infected area is often small. I don't know if this will be needed. 

Although mastitis is often seen in reference to breast feeding, it can occur in women (rarely men) who are not breast feeding. Smoking can increase the risk of some types of mastitis as can nipple piercing.  Another cancer charity called Breast Cancer Now has information about mastitis that you might want to read, you can see it here 

You may already know this but taking warm baths and doing gentle massage can sometime help. Also taking over the counter pain relief (follow the instructions on the packet about when to take them) can make you feel better too.

I hope you will be okay.

Take care

Caroline