After the age of 50, women receive an important letter at home from the Regional Health Service, with a large phone number. Let’s use it to schedule a free visit: mammography. It is a minimally invasive and not very painful examination, we repeat it every two years. Many women put it off out of laziness or shun it out of fear. Still, you mustn’t let yourself go. Because the warning of breast cancer is this very common symptom that we always ignore. The appearance of pain or an obstacle, a lump or a speck that we can feel under the skin.
The best time to implement prevention
We can fight benign and malignant tumors with effective prevention and the good habit of palpation. Some women do it every night after a shower, while they are dedicated to making blackheads disappear with the vodka mask. Others prefer to inspect their breasts in the morning after a yoga session. The female breast must be inspected very calmly, so it is good to do it when our family members do not press to use the bathroom.
How to do periodic breast inspection
Let’s now see how and when to do breast self-examination to prevent tumors. Before menopause, it should be done after the end of the cycle. Those who are already in menopause should do it at least once a week. The supine position is the most suitable for breast inspection. But first let’s look in the mirror. We observe the regularity of our forms and if there were any shadows or clear reliefs never observed before.
Let’s face up on a hard mattress or on the sofa. Or let’s lie on the floor, putting a rug under our back. The palpation on the left is done by extending the left arm up: the right hand must inspect calmly and creating a slight pressure first with the palm open and then with the fingers. We keep the right arm parallel to the shoulders. The right breast is groped in the same way, this time we raise the corresponding arm.
What to do if we encounter obstacles under the fingers
The appearance of obstacles under the fingers is not necessarily the sign of a tumor. But even a limited and subcutaneous accumulation is certainly not a normal presence on the breast. We highlight the point with a marker before going to the doctor, so we will facilitate his work. It may be a small growth: for example, a fleshy mole emerging that should be kept an eye on because it could be a small melanoma. Or a small skin tag is forming, which we will definitely need to show the dermatologist. It will be up to him to decide whether to remove it surgically or not.
What to do if we experience breast pain
If we have a little pain in the breast, it could be a small hematoma. Perhaps this bruise appeared because we bumped into something carrying a grandchild in our arms, loaded ourselves with groceries, or moved something heavy around the house. But if the annoyance lasts for a few days, we can’t let it go. Any painful symptom in an area as vulnerable as the breast is a wake-up call to listen to. If the subcutaneous pain seems difficult to locate, we repeat the palpation at different times of the day and mark the painful point with a marker.
Breast cancer warning could be this very common symptom that we always ignore
The dermatologist is the first specialist to consult. It will be he who will understand if the obstacle we feel is an accumulation of subcutaneous sebum, if it is an ingrown axillary hair under the skin, or if it is something else. The first inspection we will do to avoid breast cancer is a skin ultrasound. If necessary, the dermatologist will direct us to an oncologist specialized in breast cancer. It means that an accurate mammogram must be redone and an ad hoc blood test required. In order to identify fibroadenomas, cysts or dysplasias as soon as possible.