Self-Breast Exam

Check your breasts on a regular basis. There are five steps to a breast self-examination.²¹

1. Standing in front of a mirror with your shoulders straight and your hands on your hips, look at your breasts for any of these changes below:
   • A lump, hard knot, or thickening
   • Swelling, warmth, redness, or darkening
   • Change in the size or shape of the breast
   • Dimpling or puckering of the skin
   • Nipple changes: itchiness, scaly sores, bloody discharge, or dimpling
   • New pain in one spot that does not go away
   • A lump in your armpit (axillary mass)
2. Raise both your arms and look for the same changes.
3. Look for fluid coming out of one or both nipples (this could be a watery, milky, or yellow fluid or blood).
4. Lie down, placing your right arm behind your head. With your left hand, use gentle pressure to feel the right breast from top to bottom. Change arms and place your left hand behind your head. Use the right hand to completely feel the entire left breast.
5. Stand up and repeat the same steps in #4 on both breasts.