Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in Nigeria, and many cases are found late, when treatment is harder. Screening helps find breast cancer early, often before there are any symptoms, when it is easier to treat. Here are the types of breast cancer screening, who should get them and when, and how to check your own breasts.
1. Breast self-examination and breast awareness. Knowing how your breasts normally look and feel helps you notice changes early. It’s free and you can do it at home, but it doesn’t replace other screening.
2. Clinical breast examination. A doctor or nurse examines your breasts and armpits for lumps or other changes. It is often done during routine check-ups and is especially useful where mammograms are hard to access.
3. Mammogram. A low-dose X-ray of the breast, and the main screening test for women over 40. It can find cancers too small to feel. The breast is pressed between two plates for a few seconds, which can be uncomfortable but is quick.
4. Breast ultrasound. Uses sound waves to look inside the breast. It is often used for younger women with dense breasts, during pregnancy, or to check a lump found on examination or a mammogram.
5. Breast MRI. Uses magnets to create detailed images. It is mainly used, alongside mammograms, for women at high risk, such as those with a BRCA gene change or a strong family history.
6. Genetic counselling and testing. For people with a strong family history of breast or ovarian cancer, testing for gene changes such as BRCA1 and BRCA2 can guide how early and how often to screen.
If screening finds something unusual, a biopsy, where a small sample of tissue is taken, is the only way to confirm whether it is cancer.
Recommendations vary, so ask your doctor what is right for you. As a general guide:
Risks you can’t change:
Risks you can reduce:
Look: stand in front of a mirror with your arms by your sides, then raised. Look for changes in size, shape or skin, such as dimpling, puckering, redness or a nipple that has turned inwards.
Feel: lying down or in the shower, use the pads of your three middle fingers to feel each breast in small circles. Use light, medium and firm pressure, follow a pattern so you cover the whole breast, and check up to your collarbone and into your armpit.
Do this once a month, a few days after your period ends, when breasts are less tender. If you no longer have periods, choose the same date each month.
Most breast lumps are not cancer, but always get them checked. Men can get breast cancer too, so men should also report any lump. Read about the early warning signs of breast cancer and common cancers in Nigeria.
Women should also be screened for cervical cancer. See cervical cancer symptoms and treatment.
What is the best type of breast cancer screening?
For most women over 40, a mammogram is the main screening test. Ultrasound and MRI are used in addition for some women.
Does a mammogram hurt?
It can be uncomfortable for a few seconds while the breast is pressed, but it isn’t usually painful.
What do breast cancer lumps feel like?
Often hard, painless and irregular, but they can also be soft or tender. Any new lump should be checked by a doctor.
This article is for general information and does not replace advice from your doctor.
