I've comforted elderly ladies whose sense of decency prevented them from taking much notice of their own breasts. The resulting fungating tumour's purulent discharges expunging the contents of their mammaries finally forcing them to notice them.
I've celebrated the negative, the results of urgent fresh frozen section examinations while the surgical team waited back in the OR. I've sorted specimens, applied dressings, cut the sutures and provided the necessary equipment for all sorts of breast related surgeries - and I've faced my own mortality.
Strangely it took me weeks to pluck up the courage to consult anyone the pea sized lump in my breast, despite the fact that I was working in an area with a special interest in breast surgery. Those weeks could have been the difference between life and death had it turned out to be anything more sinister than a harmless cyst. I knew this and still could'nt face the reality of having discovered my own breast lump...At the age of 25 I was lucky. My lump stayed with me for a few years and finally disappeared when I'd fed two children for nearly three years (in total) - quite obviously they had sucked me dry!
Two things I've identified that prevent many women from completing self examination are modesty or embarrassment and fear. Despite strong media campaigns on television, in newspapers and magazines many women still find themselves uncomfortable with idea of breast examination.
In other cases these women are frozen in fear of what may be. It's so easy to stand in judgement; though having experienced this for myself it's easier to understand. This is why I appeal to all my readers to promote breast examinations. Ladies; it's time to feel your boobies! Visit Feel Your Boobies.com to find out more...
