How To Self Examine Your Breasts For Lumps

Self breast examination simply means checking your breasts for changes such as lumps, ulcers, discoloration, and nipple discharge. It involves looking at your breasts for visible abnormalities and touching your breasts to feel for changes that may not be obvious to the eyes. Breast cancer has a better prognosis when detected early and the whole idea of self breast examination is to detect these changes early before they get out of hand. It is important to know that the presence of a breast lump does not necessarily mean you have breast cancer. Most breast lumps are non-cancerous so don’t panic if you discover a lump.

Self breast examination should be done at least once in a month from the age of 20. The normal breast tissue has some lumps except in post-menopausal women in which the breast is composed of more fatty tissue. You should examine your breasts regularly so you know what they normally feel like. This way it will be easy for you to detect any abnormality. It is normal for your breasts to feel lumpy and tender during your menstrual period. This is as a result of the hormonal influence on your breast and will likely regress after your period. 

How To Perform Self Breast Examination

• Expose your body from your waist upwards and lie down with your head on a pillow.
• When examining your left breast, place your left hand at the back of your head while feeling with your right hand so your breast tissue can spread out over your chest wall. When you go on to the right breast, place your right hand behind your head instead. This will make it easier for you to feel your breast tissue.
• With two imaginary lines, divide your breast into four quadrants with your nipple at the centre.
• Begin to feel your breast, moving quadrant by quadrant. Do not poke your breast with the tips of your fingers but feel with the pads of your three middle fingers.
• Use the pads of your fingers to press your nipple down gently to check for any lump beneath your nipple.
• Repeat the steps when examining the other breast.

The downside of self breast examination is that you may begin to feel anxious even when there is nothing to worry about.

What do you do if you discover a lump? 

If you notice any lump in your breast that was not present the last time you checked or a lump that is bigger, harder, and feels different from the other breast, you should see a doctor for further investigations. Most breast lumps are non-cancerous but then you cannot tell just by feeling it. It is important that you see a doctor to confirm that it is a benign lump so you can sleep better at night and not worry about getting cancer.

Conclusion

Early detection of breast lumps is key in preventing breast cancer and its complications. Regular self-breast examination will go a long way in helping you achieve this.

It is important that you know what your breasts normally feel like so you can easily detect if there is a change.

Once you notice any change, go see a doctor so you can avoid unnecessary anxiety or start treatment early if it turns out to be a malignant lump.