Self Breast Exam

A breast self exam (BSE) is an examination that allows a woman to become familiar with the normal look and feel of her breasts. BSE should be done once a month just as your period is ending. If you no longer have monthly periods, do a BSE on the same day each month. The Komen Foundation recommends that all women should perform monthly BSE by age 20.

1.) Feel for a hard lump, thickening or any change in your breast tissue.

2.) Lie on your back with a pillow under your right shoulder.

3.) Use the pads of the three middle fingers (not your fingertips) on your left hand to examine your right breast.

4.) Press using light, medium, and firm pressure in a circular motion without lifting your fingers off the skin.

5.) Follow an up and down pattern.

6.) Feel for changes in your breast, above and below your collarbone, to the center of your chest, and in your armpit area. (Breast tissue is in more places than just the breast itself.)

7.) Repeat on your left breast.

Look for any changes in the shape, size or appearance of your breasts. Look for dimpling, rash or puckering of the skin or nipple, nipple discharge or any change from normal. Inspect your breasts in four steps:

• Hold arms at sides

• Hold arms overhead

• Press hands on hips to tighten chest muscles

• Bend forward with hands on hips.

First of all, do not panic. Eight out of ten breast lumps are NOT cancerous. Breast lumps are actually very common, especially in pre-menopausal women, and they normally go away by the end of the menstrual cycle. But do not ignore a change in your breast either. The best advice is to see a doctor.