MONTHLY BREAST EXAMINATIONS

I did a complete physical examination on a 42-year-old woman last week while in the family practice office. The examination included a pap smear and a breast examination. One question that is asked when addressing women’s health issues is if monthly breast exams are done on a regular basis. I have been surprised how many women, young or older, do not do their breast exams regularly. I have heard the answers, “no,” “sometimes,” “once in a while when I think about it,” or “I really should do them more.” There are those women who say they do them regularly but they seem to be a minority.

While palpating to feel for any abnormalities I felt a mass in her left breast. It was about 1.5cm round, moveable, and soft. I compared her left breast with her right. I did not feel anything in her right breast. I looked at her medical history and noticed she had masses removed from her breasts in the past. They had all been benign. I talked with my preceptor who also palpated the left breast. She felt what I felt. Although we both thought it was either an inflamed lymph node or a cyst it was better to be safe. Afterall, we do not have x-ray vision. It was decided to order an ultrasound of both breasts. We discussed this with the patient who looked very concerned. She had been through this before and I could tell she did not want to go through it again. I really did not blame her for feeling the way she did. She was one of those woman who told me, “I really should do them more.” I hoped it was just a cyst or an inflamed lymph node for her sake.

I want to emphasize to both women and men how important it is to do monthly breast examinations. Men can get breast cancer too although the incidence is not as high as in women. Everybody should be familiar with the “normals” in their bodies so they can identify any abnormalities. Tumors detected early are nearly 100% treatable. The current statistics is one in eight women will develop breast cancer during their lifetime. This is something that should not be taken lightly.