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How to perform a proper breast self-exam?

Started by copperridge912 · · 👁 7 views · 195 replies

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Participants copperridge912Casey Palmer5Kenneth Hernandez67placidotter15silentowl43darkviper5placidjackal97Betty Hill82Hannah Price3electricdriver78Michael Jones23Sandra Walker82Larry Scott5placidfox55Betty Bennett10rustycanyon50Kevin Nelson6slyraven82Justin Gonzalez87Michael Miller39analogowl18Bradley SmithSam Gonzalez67Bryan Wilson33 …
analogsailor10 analogsailor10 Newcomer
1 message
joined Jun 2005
#141 ·
I’m not actually scared of the biopsy itself, but honestly, the whole "hospital circuit" is just exhausting. I’ll get my ultrasound results this Friday, and I’m 99% sure everything is going to be fine—I really don't want to start spiraling or panicking. That tiny 1% sliver of doubt comes from seeing my grandma and my aunt go through surgery for this exact thing. Here is what the mammogram says:

There is approximately 1 cm in size well circumscribed low density nodule seen in the inferior portion of the right breast posteriorly, which I think represent small cyst.
No soft tissue mass, spiculated lesion or malignant calcifications are seen in the right or left breast on the present examination, which would be suspicious of carcinoma.

If it turns out to be just a cyst, how often should I be getting mammograms? Isn't doing one every year—which is pretty standard—actually bad for you because of the radiation exposure?
placidorca24 placidorca24 Member
23 messages
joined Sep 2004
#142 ·
analogsailor10 said:If it turns out this is just a cyst, how often am I looking at getting a mammogram? Isn't doing one every single year—which is what they usually recommend—actually kind of risky because of all the radiation exposure?

Since we're talking about a cyst that needs monitoring via ultrasound, you'd probably want to go in every six months. As for the mammogram, you typically wouldn't need to worry about that for another two years.
Alex Foster6 Alex Foster6 Active Member
54 messages
joined Feb 2004
#143 ·
My paternal grandmother was diagnosed with breast cancer. I recall hearing somewhere that the risk factors are significantly higher when it comes through the maternal line rather than the paternal side...

Could someone please confirm or debunk this? Any clarification would be appreciated.
slyraven82 slyraven82 Newcomer
5 messages
joined Dec 2002
#144 ·
If you scroll back just a couple of pages, you’ll run into some posts from Claire where she breaks down those two specific genetic "pathways."

For more deep dives on this, check out www.mayoclinic.org
...or just give them a call and ask.

Good luck. 🙂
Alex Foster6 Alex Foster6 Active Member
54 messages
joined Feb 2004
#145 ·
I didn't find anything on that site...
Alex Foster6 Alex Foster6 Active Member
54 messages
joined Feb 2004
#146 ·
I did some digging on Google... and it doesn't actually matter which side you come from, whether it's the paternal or maternal line. It is entirely possible to inherit the predisposition from either parent, yet it’s also possible to develop cancer without any genetic link at all. 🙄
darkviper5 darkviper5 Member
13 messages
joined Sep 2003
#147 ·
Alex Foster6 said:So, I was doing a little digging on Google earlier... and honestly, it doesn't even matter if it's coming from your dad's side or your mom's side... you can inherit things through either line, or you might not inherit anything at all and still end up facing cancer... 🙄

I mean, why are you letting this weigh you down so much?
Genetics is really just one tiny piece of the whole puzzle when it comes to why cancer happens, right? Like, sure, you can test for the BRCA gene, but even if that shows up, it isn't some kind of guaranteed prophecy that you'll actually develop it or anything like that.
The main thing is just staying on top of your regular checkups and making sure you mention to your doctor that there’s a history of breast cancer in your family.
Just try not to get stuck in that negative headspace, because life is way too short for that, I guess.
🙂
darkviper5
Justin Gonzalez87 Justin Gonzalez87 Active Member
78 messages
joined May 2005
#148 ·
Alex Foster6 said:My paternal grandmother had breast cancer. I’ve heard somewhere that the risk is significantly higher if it comes from the maternal line rather than the father's side...

Can anyone confirm, debunk, or just explain this?

My maternal grandmother had breast cancer—actually, everyone on my mom's side passed away from some form of cancer.
My mom is 55, looks great—maybe a bit more curves than average😁—and her only real health issues are high blood pressure and gallstones.😉
There you go.🙂
nimbleskipper13 nimbleskipper13 Member
34 messages
joined Feb 2005
#149 ·
Breast cancer tends to be passed down through the maternal line, much like ovarian cancer.
Women with a positive family history of breast cancer fall into a higher-risk category, meaning they often need more frequent mammograms and breast ultrasounds.
Generally speaking, you should perform self-exams monthly, get an ultrasound every year once you hit 20, and schedule your first baseline mammogram by age 40.
nimbleskipper13 nimbleskipper13 Member
34 messages
joined Feb 2005
#150 ·
darkviper5 said:I get the feeling you might be a guy, or am I wrong 🤔??
The scar from a procedure like that is usually only about 1 inch long and is barely visible.
Any small lump, regardless of how "benign" it seems, has the potential to turn malignant.
It can happen, though it isn't a guarantee.
And honestly, no lump is worth the constant anxiety and nightmares a woman goes through because of it.
Around here, it's standard practice to just remove them; better safe than sorry. 🙂

...."more or less a star".....
🙄 ccccc....

That is simply not true.
Ladies, please take some time to educate yourselves. There is so much information regarding breast cancer available online these days.

Check out some of these resources:

PHP www.breastcancerfund.org

PHP www.breastcancerfund.org

PHP www.breastcancer.org

[A major US health organization website]

👋
Michael Jones23 Michael Jones23 Active Member
116 messages
joined Aug 2006
#151 ·
nimbleskipper13 said:Basically, you should be doing self-exams every month, getting an ultrasound once a year after you hit 20, and then starting basic mammograms at 40.

oh! and who’s actually going to do all that for me? even for just a standard manual check, I have to go hunt down a referral for an oncologist!
it’s still such a massive headache to get access to this stuff here, unfortunately...
Kenneth Hernandez67 Kenneth Hernandez67 Regular
351 messages
joined May 2005
#152 ·
SELF-EXAMINATION, just like the name implies, means you’re checking your own breasts and abdomen... there's no need for a doctor's referral 😉
Joshua Jones Joshua Jones Member
19 messages
joined Apr 2004
#153 ·
nimbleskipper13 said:Breast cancer is passed down through the maternal line, much like ovarian cancer.

😕 However, I’ve been doing some reading on several reputable medical websites, and they suggest that inheritance can actually come from both sides of the family...
nimbleskipper13 nimbleskipper13 Member
34 messages
joined Feb 2005
#154 ·
Ashley Watson said:Oh, so who's supposed to handle all that for me? For a standard exam, I'd have to go looking for an oncologist referral just to get a manual check-up!
Unfortunately, access to those services is still really limited here...

Who said you need to see an oncologist for that?
Gynecologists and surgeons perform breast exams.
By the way, where exactly is "here"?
nimbleskipper13 nimbleskipper13 Member
34 messages
joined Feb 2005
#155 ·
Jessica Roberts19 said:😕 I was reading on some medical websites that it can be inherited from both sides of the family...

For women with a positive family history of breast cancer—meaning cases appearing on the maternal side—the risk is roughly 4 times higher than the general population. However, for women who carry the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations, that frequency jumps to 8-10 times higher.
darkviper5 darkviper5 Member
13 messages
joined Sep 2003
#156 ·
nimbleskipper13 said:That’s just not true at all!!!
Honestly girls, maybe we should all try to get a little more educated on this... I mean, especially nowadays when there’s just an endless amount of info about breast cancer floating around online...

Just take a quick look at some of these American sites:

www.prevencijaraka.org/rak_dojke.php

www.breastcancerfund.org

www.breastcancer.org.

www.europadonna.org

👋

Well, please enlighten me then,
what part isn't true?😕
nimbleskipper13 nimbleskipper13 Member
34 messages
joined Feb 2005
#157 ·
Lisa says
every little cyst, no matter how "benign" it seems, can turn into something malicious
It can, but it doesn't have to be the case
and

That isn't quite right... a simple cyst or a fibroadenoma will NEVER become malignant. Those days when we operated on them for no reason are long gone. In fact, doctors won't even perform a biopsy on a cyst unless it grows large enough to press against surrounding breast tissue, distort the milk ducts, or becomes non-compressible.
With an FA, a fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) is mandatory for cytological verification. Otherwise, they aren't touched unless there are complications like inflammation or necrosis.
Both cysts and FAs tend to fluctuate in size during the menstrual cycle; they may grow during periods of high hormonal activity (though it's not a rule) and typically regress after menopause.
darkviper5 darkviper5 Member
13 messages
joined Sep 2003
#158 ·
nimbleskipper13 said:I mean, I don't know, it doesn't really seem right to me... like, a simple cyst or even a fibroadenoma will NEVER turn into something malignant, you know? I guess those days when doctors used to just jump straight to surgery for everything are pretty much over now. Honestly, I think they don't even bother with a biopsy for a cyst anymore unless it starts growing way too big and starts pushing against all the surrounding breast tissue, or maybe if it starts messing with the milk ducts or just becomes impossible to compress during an exam, but otherwise, it seems like people just leave them alone.
So, basically, when you're dealing with an FA, they always make sure to run a fine needle aspiration biopsy—you know, that cytological verification thing—just to be absolutely certain about what's going on, and I guess they usually just leave it alone unless things start looking a bit sketchy, like if there's some unexpected inflammation or necrosis popping up, which would obviously change the whole game.
So, I was just thinking about how even things like FA can actually shift around a bit in size depending on where you are in your menstrual cycle, which is kind of wild when you think about it, and I guess they might also tend to grow a little during the MLS season—not that it’s a guaranteed thing or anything, obviously—but then once you hit menopause, they usually just start to regress again, I suppose.

I mean, I don't know, maybe I'm just tripping, but I feel like I actually read some totally different claims somewhere else, I guess?
I'm not really sure if you happen to know any German or anything, but hey, I'm just hanging out here!
So, I was just sitting here thinking about that whole fibroadenoma thing, and honestly, it’s kind of a lot to wrap your head around, isn't it? Like, you hear a word like that and it sounds so incredibly intense and scary, but then you talk to a doctor or look things up, and it turns out it's usually just one of those benign little lumps that doesn't mean anything too crazy is going on. I guess it's just one of those things where your body does its own weird thing sometimes, and maybe it's nothing to sweat over, though I totally get why anyone would feel a bit freaked out at first! It's just one of those random health quirks, I suppose.
I mean, I'm right here too, I guess! Just hanging out and staying in the loop, maybe? Anyway, I'm around if anyone needs me! I mean, honestly, it’s just so incredibly clean, you know? Like, everything feels totally spotless and just... pure. I guess I’m just being super picky, but there's something about that kind of clarity that just makes me feel so much better, maybe even a little bit more at peace with everything going on. It's just such a good vibe, really.
I mean, I guess you could totally read those claims if you really wanted to, especially those last few paragraphs... maybe? It’s all kind of there if you look closely enough, I suppose.

So, I was thinking about how things work over in Germany, and honestly, it feels like they’re getting super cautious lately, where they end up removing all these "safe" lumps just because people are spooked, you know? I guess it mostly comes down to the fact that some doctors aren't even totally sure about their own diagnoses, which is kind of wild when you think about it. It seems like there are just way too many cases where radiologists might miss something or fail to spot a malignancy, maybe because they lack enough experience, or perhaps they just don't have the right high-tech equipment on hand, or whatever. It's all just such a weirdly delicate situation, I suppose.
I mean, I guess it’s just that deep-seated fear some women have, you know? Like, they’re sitting there during a biopsy just worrying that the doctor might totally miss the mark—like, what if there actually *are* malignant cells right there, but they just don't hit the spot? It’s such a heavy thing to deal with, honestly.
I mean, since they’ve had cancer cases pop up in the family before, I guess that fear is just driving them toward it all over again, maybe? It’s like, once you've dealt with that kind of thing, it just stays in the back of your mind, you know?

I guess what I’m trying to say is that when you're dealing with something like a fibroadenoma—you know, one of those "safe" little lumps that isn't even a big deal—the whole call to just go ahead and have it removed really comes down to the woman herself, I suppose. Like, at the end of the day, it’s her body and her choice, so if she wants to get it taken care of just for peace of mind, that's totally her call, maybe? It's all about what feels right for her personally.
So, like, I mean, sure, a doctor can give you all the info and suggest what to do, but if you ask me, I’m pretty certain that like 95% of women who decide to just go ahead and have those little lumps removed are doing it mostly out of pure fear, you know? It’s just because breast cancer is such a massive, scary thing that pops up everywhere these days, so everyone is just kind of panicking.
I mean, I totally get that fear, I really do... like, it’s such a heavy thing to carry around, you know? I guess I just feel it deep down sometimes too, if that makes any sense. It's like this constant, nagging little thing in the back of your mind that just won't quit, maybe? But yeah, I definitely relate to that feeling more than I probably should admit.
nimbleskipper13 nimbleskipper13 Member
34 messages
joined Feb 2005
#159 ·
As a surgical specialist focusing on breast health... my own professional experience suggests otherwise...
nimbleskipper13 nimbleskipper13 Member
34 messages
joined Feb 2005
#160 ·
Of course, it's not JUST my own experience... there are clearly defined protocols for breast diagnosis and treatment... but that's not really what this thread is about anyway.

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