UNDATED – October first marks the beginning of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, one in four women will have Breast Cancer in their lifetime. In addition statistics show that every two minutes in the United States, a woman is diagnosed with the disease.
According to Dr. Kelley R. Smith, a women’s health specialist at Penn Highlands, self screening is an important factor to catching the disease.
“Breast exams can be tricky,“ explained Dr. Smith. “Sometimes we don’t know what we’re feeling, but a breast exam can help you become more familiar with how your breasts feel and look normally, so you can identify some changes that might have occurred.”
Any noticeable changes during self exams should be taken to your doctor immediately, no matter how insignificant the changes seem. Currently the disease has a 99 survival rate if caught early enough.
