You Can Do Proper Breast Cancer Self-Examination at Home, Here’s How

October is breast cancer awareness month and approximately 1 in 8 women in the US will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. Besides thatskin cancerBreast cancer is the most common cancer in women. Although death rates from breast cancer have thankfully decreased over the past few years, it is still important to get yourself screened for breast cancer.

Because even in a world with high quality doctor’s offices and many ways to say talk to a doctor onlineself-care starts with you. By setting aside just five minutes each month to check yourself, you can increase your chances of being diagnosed early if you have cancer. When you find cancer early, the doctor can treat it early. And when it comes to breast cancer, early treatment is key to a good prognosis.

Read more: What is Breast Density and Why You Should Know Yours

How to self-test for breast cancer at home

1. Just look at your breasts in the mirror. Look at different angles, your arms are down and up.

Must see:

• The breasts are smooth and do not show any visible signs of distortion
• The normal size, shape and color of your breasts

Signs to look for:

• Changes in skin texture, such as dimpling, puckering or bulging
• Changes in the area of ​​any nipple
• Any redness, splotches or other signs of a rash
• Abnormal swelling
• Any signs of discharge from either nipple

2. Feel your breasts while you are sleeping, and again while you are standing. Using the pads of your first two or three fingers, make a quarter-sized circle around the entire surface of your breasts (top, sides, front, bottom) and around your armpit. Use light, medium and firm pressure to feel different layers of tissue.

What you should hear:

• The normal consistency of your breasts
• Whatever is “normal” for different regions of your breasts

Signs to look for:

• Lumps or hard masses in your breast tissue
• Firmness or fullness that feels different from the surrounding tissue
• Unusual warmth
• An inverted nipple (pushed in instead of pointing out)

Why should I get screened for breast cancer?

To be clear, self-examination cannot diagnose breast cancer — only doctors can do that with a variety of tests, which may include a mammogram, ultrasound, MRI or breast tissue biopsy.

Self-examination, however, can help you become familiar with your breasts so that you can spot subtle changes. You should be familiar with the size, shape, symmetry (or asymmetry), color and texture of your breasts.

Knowing how your breasts change in relation to yours menstrual cycle again ovulation it can also help you avoid false warning signs.

How often should you be screened for breast cancer?

Doing a monthly breast self-examination is the best way to get used to and stay familiar with the normal look and feel of your breasts. Many health organizations do not see much value in checking more than once a month, even though it does no harm.

Apps and tools to help with breast cancer self-examination

If you have trouble remembering the general look and feel of your breasts, try making a “map” to list the different colors and textures of your breast tissue. These apps and tools can help with your breast cancer screening and keep you on track.

Save the Breast: Provided by the Keep A Breast Foundation, this app helps you establish a regular breast self-examination routine. You can set a date for a monthly push reminder and the app guides you through your self-examination each time.

Know Your Lemons: This app is designed to improve early detection by providing self-assessment instructions, questions, symptoms, assessment tools and more. It also allows you to calculate your personal breast cancer risk level.

B4BC: This app from Boarding for Breast Cancer teaches you how to do breast self-exams, lets you set a schedule that fits your menstrual cycle and offers resources like educational content, healthy recipes and wellness tips.

Bright Pink Chest Light: This handheld tool from the Pink Luminous Advocacy Project aims to make breast cancer screenings easier and more effective. It uses LED technology to identify lumps, dark spots, clusters and other symptoms that you may not be able to see with your eyes or touch with your fingers. This tool does not replace a doctor’s examination, but it can increase the chances of early detection.

What to do if you see something strange

Don’t be afraid. Changes in breast tissue, including lumps and dimpling, are usually benign (non-cancerous). In fact, eight out of 10 lumps are not cancerous. Changes may occur from hormonal fluctuations, cysts, calcification or other benign breast conditions. You should make an appointment with your doctor to get more tests to rule out breast cancer or another medical condition that needs treatment.