Breast self-awareness and mammograms

Your breasts change with age and through your cycle. The aim is not to sit a monthly exam with a special technique. It is to know your own body: if you know how your breasts usually look and feel in the shower or when dressing, you will spot something new sooner.

• a new lump or thickening in the breast or armpit
• a change in size or shape
• dimpling, puckering, redness or skin like orange peel
• a nipple that has turned inwards, or become red or flaky
• bloody or clear fluid from the nipple
• pain in one breast that does not go away

Most breast lumps are not cancer. Only a medical examination can say so, though, so do not wait and see.

A mammogram is a low-dose X-ray of the breast. The breast is pressed between two plates for a short time, which can be uncomfortable but is soon over. It can find changes too small to feel. The age and frequency of screening vary between countries, but it is generally recommended for women in middle and older age. Ask a doctor what is available where you live and when you should have one.

If your mother, sister or daughter has had breast or ovarian cancer, tell your doctor, as checks may need to start earlier.

Deodorants and bras do not cause breast cancer. And a normal mammogram does not cancel out a new lump: have it checked anyway.