1. Know Your BSE
Knowing your body includes an awareness of your breasts that can help you identify future changes. The National Cancer Institute reports breast cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer for U.S. women. Some women perform standing, breast self exams (BSE) during their showers, but the American Cancer Society (ACS), at www.cancer.org, recommends a more thorough exam also be performed while lying down. If you have implants, talk to your surgeon about how these feel during self exams. If pregnant or nursing, ask your doctor about breast changes so you can perform self exams during these times. Let your self exams supplement regular check-ups by a physician.
2. Look: The Standing Exam
You can stand in front of the mirror with arms down by the hips to look for alterations in size, shape, color or contour of the breast. Raise your arm up to look at and feel in the area beneath. The Susan G. Komen for the Cure website, www.komen.org, also suggests viewing your breasts in a mirror after placing the hands on the hips and tightening the chest muscles. Leaning forward in this hand-on-hips position provides yet another way to catch what may not be easily visible.
3. Touch: The Reclining Exam
The ACS guidelines recommend lying down and placing an arm behind your head. A pillow can elevate the shoulder. Using the pads of your three middle fingers on the other hand, feel the tissue. You can check tissue with dime-sized, circular motions of your three middle fingertips. Press lightly, then apply medium pressure, and finally feel firmly. If you are not sure how hard to press, ask your doctor. Use the three pressure levels in each spot and move to the next spot without lifting the fingers up. The ACS and Komen websites provide illustrations on how to move around the breast in strips, in an up-and-down pattern. Repeat these same exam steps for the other breast.
4. Identify Important Issues
Feel for lumps, knots or thickening. This can be in the breast, around it or under the arm. Watch for an inward turning of the nipple or other area, as well as a puckering or dimpling of the skin. Additional signs requiring medical care include nipple tenderness or a fluid discharge that initiates from the nipple suddenly. Be aware of breast pain in a certain area that does not disappear. Identify if the breast, areola or nipple has become scaly, red or swollen.
5. Report Changes
A change in the breast does not automatically indicate cancer; most changes are probably non-cancerous issues. Yet why take a chance with your body? Report them to your doctor. Be sure to discuss your exam technique with her as well. Begin the self exams in your twenties and continue them each month. Remember, the BSE is one great tool, but is not a substitute for clinical care.
This article is not designed to provide medical or professional services and is for informational use only. If you have, or suspect, a health problem, please consult your doctor.
