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Breast Cancer Health Centre
Diagnosis |
Breast Self Examination (BSE)
The best time to do BSE is about a week after your period ends, when your breasts are not swollen or tender. After menopause, or if you do not have regular periods, your BSE should be done on the same day every month.
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1. With your hands
relaxed at your side, look in a mirror to check for changes
in the size or shape of your breasts. Look for any redness,
new bulges, dimples, folds or creases or skin that looks like
an orange peel. |
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2. Raise your arms
straight above your head, and look for the same changes as above.
Your breast tissue runs from below your collarbone to below
your breasts and includes all of the area under your arms. You
need to examine all of the breast area. |
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3. Put your hands
on your hips and push in with your hands. Again look for any
changes in your breasts. |
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4. Place one hand
on your hips and rotate your shoulder slightly forward. Using
the finger pads of the other hand, check the area under your
arm for any lumps. Change arms and examine the other underarm. |
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5. Use the soft
pads of your fingers not the tips. |
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6. Do the next part
in the shower or sitting upright in the tub. Use soapy hands
as they can 'feel' the tissue better. Place one arm behind your
head and use the other hand to examine your breast. Remember
to use the soft pads of your fingers not the tips. |
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7. Think of your
breasts as a clock. Start at 12 o'clock right below your collarbone.
Press firmly to move the tissue beneath the skin. You are feeling
for any changes. At each 'hour' make overlapping circles all
the way down to and including the nipple. Don't forget the area
under your arms. Change hands and examine the other breast. |
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8. Lying down with
one arm behind your head, use the opposite hand to examine that
breast. Use overlapping circles and examine the entire breast
as shown above. Change arms and examine the other breast. Using
hand lotion may make your fingers more sensitive. |
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9. Roll to one side
with your wrist on your forehead. Put a towel under your shoulder
for support. Examine the outer side of your breast and underarm
areas using overlapping circles. Examine both breasts. |
The images and text on this page were provided
by the Ontario Breast Screening Program.
Clinical
Breast Examination
The doctor will first
examine the breasts for any changes in shape or size and then gently
feel the breasts and also examine the area under both arms. This
is a good time to learn how to do breast self-examination (see above
section) if you don't already know how.
Mammography
Screening mammography
is a quick and safe x-ray to find problems in a woman's breast.
A diagnostic mammography, on the other hand, takes a little more
time. A mammography involves the breast being squeezed between two
plates for a few seconds while an x-ray is taken.
With up-to-date equipment,
these x-rays expose women to only a very low level of radiation.
This amount of radiation is not felt to significantly increase breast
cancer risk.
A mammogram alone cannot
prove that an area of concern is breast cancer. To confirm that
a tumour is cancer, a biopsy - a procedure in which a small amount
of tissue is removed and examined under a microscope - must be performed.
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