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BREAST CANCER AWARENESS & TIPS FOR EARLY DETECTION

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month, a reminder to prioritize our well-being and physical health, including our breasts.


Get to know your breasts

Knowing your body and how your breasts normally look is the first step to noticing when something is wrong and preventing serious health problems. Your breasts may go through several changes throughout your lifetime. You may experience changes in fullness, sensitivity, and texture during different stages of life including:


How to do a self-breast exam:

A self-breast exam requires your hands and eyes to help you feel and see unusual changes in your breasts.

Checking your breasts in the shower
National Breast Cancer Foundation

Check in the shower - Press lightly and firmly in a circular motion into your breast and armpit area using the pads of your three middle fingers. This breast exam should be performed at least once a month to help you feel for lumps, hardening, or thickening in your breast tissue.









Checking your breasts in the mirror.
National Breast Cancer Foundation

Check in the mirror - With your arms at your sides, look for abnormalities such as dimpling or swelling in your breasts and nipples. Next, with your arms still at your sides, press your hands firmly against your hips and flex the muscles under your breasts. Again, check for abnormalities in your breasts and nipples. This breast exam should be performed at least once a month to help you see breast changes.








Checking your breasts while lying down.
National Breast Cancer Foundation

Check lying down - While lying down, place a pillow behind your right shoulder and put your right arm behind your head. Using the pads of your three middle fingers, press lightly and firmly in a circular motion into your breast and armpit area. Repeat these steps with your left breast. This breast exam should be performed at least once a month to help you feel breast changes.



(Source: Solis Mammography)


Mammograms

In addition to regular self-breast exams, when you reach 40, it is  recommended for women to start getting mammograms . However, patients with a higher-than-average risk, such as those with a family history of breast cancer or genetic mutations like the BRCA gene, are often urged to start earlier. It's important to have a conversation with your gynecologist or doctor to determine the best time to begin. Mammograms can detect breast cancer early on, sometimes before it’s seen or felt through self-breast exams. The earlier breast cancer is detected the better the health outcomes.



Signs & Symptoms

Each person can have their own unique set of signs and symptoms when it comes to breast cancer. Some people do not experience any signs or symptoms.

Here are some signs of breast cancer to look out for:

  • A new lump in your breast or armpit

  • Thickening or swelling in the breast

  • Pain, irritation, or redness of the breast or nipple

  • Dimpling of the skin

  • Flaky skin of the breast or nipple

  • Nipple discharge

  • Size or shape changes of the breast



Treatment

Having breast cancer can be very scary. There are several treatment options that may be available to you based on the type of breast cancer, stage, and cancer cell response to treatments. Some people receive more than one type of treatment. 


Here are the types of breast cancer treatment options:

  • Lumpectomy

  • Mastectomy

  • Sentinel node biopsy

  • Radiation therapy

  • Chemotherapy

  • Hormone therapy

  • Immunotherapy


There are organizations and support groups that offer amazing education and resources for breast cancer. Check out these organizations to learn more:


Sources:


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