Self-Examination Of Breast Cancer

Mastering Breast Self-Examination: Your Guide to Breast Health

What Is A Breast Self-Examination?

Breast self-examination (BSE), sometimes referred to as breast self-awareness, is an easy-to-use practice that helps women keep an eye on their breast health and spot any unexpected changes in their breasts.

A breast self-exam is a method of early detection that involves physically and visually inspecting the breasts to look for any indications of breast cancer. Learn about the natural appearance and sensation of your breasts by performing a breast self-exam. Breast self-awareness, also known as knowing how your breasts typically appear and feel, will help you see any changes or abnormalities in your breasts, such as new lumps or skin changes. You should notify your healthcare physician as soon as you notice any changes in your breasts during a breast self-exam.

While a breast self-exam is a helpful technique for the early diagnosis of breast cancer, routine mammograms, and clinical breast exams should still be performed.

Should I Do A Breast Self-Exam?

You can find changes that could be symptoms of an infection, a breast condition, or even breast cancer by performing monthly self-exams of your breasts. Recognizing what is typical for you is the aim of a breast self-examination. Knowing how your breasts normally feel and seem will help you spot changes (should any take place).

For your breast health, self-exams are crucial. However, they should never take the place of routine mammograms and breast examinations performed by your doctor. To have routine breast cancer screenings, you still need to visit your primary care physician and/or gynecologist.

Discuss self-breast examinations with your healthcare physician. Following your medical history, they may advise you on what to do and demonstrate the proper technique.

How Frequently Should A Breast Self-Exam Be Performed?

All adult women are advised to conduct breast self-exams at least once per month. According to Lillie D. Shockney, the Johns Hopkins University Distinguished Service Professor of Breast Cancer, "Forty percent of diagnosed breast cancers are detected by women who feel a lump, so establishing a regular breast self-exam is very important."

A breast self-exam should be done for women who are still menstruating a few days after their period has ended. A breast self-exam should be done by postmenopausal women on the same day every month, such as the first or fifteenth. Pick a day that is consistent and simple to remember, such as the first or last day of the month or your favorite number. Keep a notebook of your discoveries or write down your observations on your smartphone.

Breast self-examinations help you get comfortable with how your breasts typically feel and appear, but mammography can help you find cancer before you notice a lump. Let your healthcare provider know if you detect any changes in your breasts, including a new lump, painful place, changes in the way your skin looks, or discharge from your nipples.

Who Should Do a Breast Self-Exam?

Doctors may advise monthly self-exams beginning at age 20 for those with a significant family history of breast cancer. For the remainder of your life, including menopause and pregnancy, you can continue.

While studies of cisgender persons (those whose gender identification matches the gender they were assigned at birth) reveal that women are 100 times more likely to have breast cancer than males, breast cancer can affect anybody with breast tissue.

Breast cancer can also affect:

Transgender Men: Transgender men are equally susceptible to breast cancer. Doctors advise obtaining annual mammograms above the age of 40 if you haven't had top surgery (subcutaneous mastectomy) to remove breast tissue. Between tests, you can do a self-breast or self-chest assessment. Self-examinations can help you learn how your "new normal" feels and looks if you've undergone hormone therapy or top surgery so you can be on the lookout for any changes.
Transgender Women: If you use estrogen or progestin-only hormone therapy for five or more years, your risk of breast cancer rises. In this case, doctors advise getting a mammogram every two years beyond the age of 50. Breast implants can complicate mammography, but they don't increase the risk of breast cancer. However, conducting breast self-exams may assist you in adjusting to your altered body and detecting changes.
Nonbinary Individuals: Following screening recommendations for cis women is important for nonbinary persons who were born with female reproductive organs and haven't undergone top surgery. Instead of mammograms, you could require specialized MRIs or ultrasounds if you have breast tissue removed.
Men: A monthly self-exam may make sense if you're a cis male and breast cancer runs in your family, so discuss this with your doctor. Men aged 60 to 70 are more likely than women to have breast cancer.

How To Do A Breast Self-Exam: Six steps of Breast Self Examination

Step 1: Prepare

To perform a self-exam, you'll need good lighting and a mirror. It can be done in the shower, in front of a mirror, or lying down. Use your preferred method, but make sure you're comfortable and can see your breasts clearly.

Step 2: Check Your Breasts in a Mirror With Hands-on Hips

Start by standing upright, arms on hips, and focusing on your breasts in the mirror.

Here’s what you should look for:

Typical breasts in terms of size, shape, and color.
Breasts with a consistent contour and no obvious dilation, distortion, swelling, or inflammation.

Bring the following changes to your doctor's attention if you see them:

Skin that is dimpling, puckering, or bulging
A nipple that is inverted (pushed inward rather than sticking out), or one that has altered position.
Edema, redness, rash, swelling or bruising

Step 3: Raise Arms & Examine Your Breasts

Next, raise your arms overhead and observe your breasts again for any changes in shape, contour, or skin texture.

Step 4: Look For Signs of Breast Fluid

Look in the mirror for any signs of fluid (which might be blood, water, milk, or yellow fluid) leaking from one or both nipples.

Step 5: Feel Your Breasts While Standing

Raise your right arm, then look at your right breast with your left hand while using the opposite arm. Keep your fingers flat and close together when using the pads rather than just the tips. Cover the entire breast in a circular motion, beginning at the outside border. Apply gentle, medium, and hard pressure to feel the tissue at various depths.

Pay close attention to any lumps, knots, or thickening you may feel. To achieve complete covering, wiggle your fingers in an upward and downward motion. Use your right hand to repeat this procedure for your left breast.

Step 6: Feel Your Breasts While Lying Down

The next step is to feel your breasts while lying down. Start by feeling your left breast with your right hand, then your right breast with your left hand. Keep your fingers flat and close together while applying a firm, smooth touch to the first few fingertips of your hand. Your fingers should be pressed down and moved in a quarter-sized (or inch-wide) circular motion.

Ensure that you encompass the entirety of the breast, starting from the uppermost part down to the lower portion and spanning from side to side. This should extend from your collarbone down to the upper abdomen and from your underarm region to the area between your breasts. Employ a systematic approach to guarantee comprehensive coverage of the entire breast.

Starting at the nipple, you can make increasing-sized circles until you reach the breast's outer edge. You may also mow a lawn by arranging your fingers in rows and moving them vertically up and down. The majority of women tend to respond well to this up-and-down strategy. Be sure to feel the tissue in each area of your breasts, from the front to the back: use light pressure on the skin and tissue immediately underneath, medium pressure on the tissue in the center of your breasts, and hard pressure on the deep tissue in the back. You should be able to feel your ribs after you've reached the deep tissue.

Key Questions & Answers About Breast Self-Examination

What Are The Problems With Doing a Breast Self-Exam?

You can benefit from a self-exam by learning how your breasts normally feel and appear. However, self-exams of the breast may have problems. Some of the risks of breast self-examination include:

The concept is that a breast self-exam may take the place of a mammogram or a clinical breast exam (done by your doctor). A breast self-exam is a technique you may use at home to get to know your body. Some individuals mistakenly think that when they do self-breast examinations, they do not require medical attention.

Anxiety brought on by suspicions of a lump or other abnormalities. The majority of lumps are not malignant, however, you could experience unjustifiable fear or concern if you believe you have a cancerous lump.

What kind of lumps in your breasts are normal?

Breast tissue lumps are common and often not cause for alarm. Some people naturally have breast tissue that is lumpier. Knowing what is typical for you might make it easier for you to spot abnormal behavior.

When Should I Call My Healthcare Provider?

Consult a medical professional if you see:

A lump or other physical alteration in the breast tissue.
Discharge from your nipple that is irregular or bloody.
Your skin may have dimpling, redness, or edema.
The nipple changes in direction, like going inward.

Remember that factors like menstruation can have an impact on how your breasts feel and seem. A breast exam can be done by a medical professional to determine whether they think diagnostic procedures like an ultrasound or mammography are required.

What Should I Do if I Find a Lump?

Not to worry. There are several possibilities besides cancer. However, if you observe any fresh changes in your breasts, such as:

An area on either breast that is distinct from any other area.
A growth or lump that persists during your menstrual cycle in the underarm, next to the breast, or elsewhere
A change in the breast's size, shape, or contour
A bulge or mass
Under the skin, there is a marble-like region.
A change in how the breast or nipple feels or looks (dimpled, puckered, scaly, or inflammatory)
Release of a clear or bloody fluid from the nipples
Redness of the breast or nipple's skin

What Are The Warning Signs of Breast Cancer?

Breast self-exams are not a reliable way to diagnose breast cancer. The possible danger of a lump you feel during a self-exam can only be determined by a qualified healthcare professional. As you get to know your breasts, it may be good to be aware of the symptoms of breast cancer. Some breast cancer symptoms include:

Nipples that are inverted or that stop sticking out.
Your breasts are red, painful, rash, or swollen.
The skin on your breasts puckers or develops dimples (like an orange peel).
Irregular nipple discharge.

Is a Breast Self-Examination Better Than a Mammogram?

A self-breast examination shouldn't take the place of a mammography or professional breast examination. A breast self-exam is an at-home tool you may utilize in between yearly mammograms or clinical breast examinations your provider does. It shouldn't be used as an alternative to a mammography. The most reliable method of identifying breast cancer is still a mammogram.

Why Are Breast Examinations No Longer Recommended?

Breast self-exams (BSE) are no longer universally recommended due to limited evidence of their effectiveness in detecting breast cancer, the potential for increased anxiety, and improved accuracy of other screening methods like mammograms. Instead, healthcare organizations emphasize breast awareness and prompt reporting of any changes to healthcare providers.

It's not that healthcare professionals don't recommend them; rather, they are aware that self-exams may not always be the most reliable method of identifying or screening for breast cancer. However, the majority of healthcare professionals will still advise you to undertake at-home breast checks to get to know your breasts. This is the most effective approach to learning what is normal for you so that you can notify your healthcare professional if/when something changes.

Can I Rely Solely On Breast Self-Exams To Ensure That I Am Breast Cancer-Free?

In most cases, mammography may identify cancers before they are palpable, making screening essential for early identification. Breast self-exams, however, can assist women in understanding what is typical for them so they can report any changes to their healthcare practitioner when accompanied by routine medical care and the necessary guideline-recommended mammography.

Don't be alarmed if you discover a lump; 8 out of 10 lumps are not malignant. Instead, make an appointment with your doctor. Call your doctor anytime you are worried about having an additional piece of mind.