Prevention
On January 15, Yao Beina, a singer suffering from breast cancer, was confirmed to be admitted to the ICU. Once again, the dreaded term “breast cancer” jumped into the public eye. What should we do to prevent this evil that lurks in the shadows and devours women’s health? Should we be like Queen Angelina Jolie and cut off the whole breast?
Breast self-examination and breast cancer screening will probably help women to detect the disease as early as possible and reduce the possibility of having their lives eaten up.
”The specific methods of “breast self-examination
Observe the appearance of the breast, such as whether there is any abnormal discharge from the nipple, whether there is any abnormal change in the size and shape of the breast, and whether there is any abnormal change in the skin of the breast (such as orange peel-like change).
The touching technique is shown in the figure, mainly to feel the texture of the breast and whether any hard lumps appear. Lie flat on the bed, lift the arm on the side to be examined, and use the index finger, ring finger and middle finger of the other side to touch the breast area up and down, up and down in small increments to see if there are any lumps present.
It is better to feel standing up than lying down
For those who don’t have much “real-world experience”, my advice is: it’s definitely better to stand than to lie down.
The reason is this: due to gravity, when we stand, breast tissue is relatively concentrated in the lower part, overlapping glands appear particularly thick, small lumps are easy to hide; and lying down, breast tissue is relatively flat, the thickness is not affected by gravity. This makes it easier to check for meaningful lumps on hand inspection.
How do I know what to feel
I will teach you a simple and easy way to know what to feel.
”Lips”
Normal breast tissue is soft and loose and feels like your lips.
”Nose
Lobular hyperplasia tissue feels like the nose, a little tough but very elastic – except for the beauty of plastic surgery nose job.
”Forehead”
The most dreaded lump of breast cancer feels like your forehead, hard to the touch and not easy to push.
If you are still not sure, get it checked by an experienced breast specialist as soon as possible.
Don’t forget to check the nipple areola area!
Remember to squeeze the nipple at the end to observe if there is any overflow and remember to see which hole appears to be the case. If you have to come to the clinic the next day, remember not to squeeze too much. If you squeeze all the water, the doctor will not be able to judge the nature and extent of the overflow.
Breast Cancer Screening
It is important to note that self-examination of the breast is not a good way to detect breast cancer at an early stage. In many cases, the abnormalities found by self-examination are not related to breast cancer, and it is not a substitute for other screening methods.
All you have to do about self-examination is to go to the hospital as early as possible for further examination if you find abnormalities.
The number of new breast cancer cases and deaths in China accounts for 12,2% and 9,6% of the world’s number of new breast cancer cases each year. Breast cancer is also the cancer with the highest incidence rate among Chinese women, but the death rate of breast cancer is decreasing year by year, and it is a cancer with relatively good treatment effect.
How to screen for breast cancer?
The American Cancer Society recommends that
1. 1 mammogram per year for women over 40 years old.
2. “High risk” (see below for details) women, regardless of age, need to have a breast MRI once a year.
3. Women between the ages of 20 and 39 should have their breast examined by a breast specialist once every three years, including external observation and palpation of the breast; women over the age of 40 should have their breast examined by a breast specialist once a year.
4. All women over the age of 20 can have their breasts examined by observation and touch themselves.
High risk includes.
After professional risk calculation, get a lifetime chance of breast cancer > 20%;
Genetic testing reveals BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations (e.g. Angelina Jolie);
Have a parent, child, or sibling with a BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation;
Previous breast radiation treatment at age 10-30, etc.
Consultation with a breast specialist is required to determine if the risk is high.