WATCH: Breast screenings necessary for men and women
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and to do breast self-examinations as well as mammograms might clear up doubts for some women.
It is suggested by most doctors that women should start visiting their radiologists for mammograms at the age of 35 years.
A mammogram is a screening procedure which can be done without having any symptoms of breast cancer, fibroadenoma or cysts.
Local mammographer Flora Sibanyoni says this all depends on the family history, if the woman is on hormone replacement therapy of due to age.
“The reason we don’t suggest screenings for younger women is that the breast is very dense due to high oestrogen levels, which makes it difficult to detect any lumps easily,” she says.
However, it is suggested that breast self-examinations can be done at any age. After the mammogram a sonograph needs to be done.
Local sonographer Salome Mashiane says once a lump is detected through a mammogram, the mammographer will point out the images.
Read: Breast cancer is also a man’s disease
These images will then be looked for when the sonograph is done.
“Based on the criteria, we judge the area of abnormal tissue (lesions),” she says. A compressed or magnified view is done of the lesion and the results are given to the radiologist on duty.
She claims the radiologist will be able to see if the lump is benign (not cancerous) or malignant (cancerous). If the lump is malignant, the doctor will brief the patient on what the procedure is.
Although not all lumps are malignant, a Fine Needle Aspiration (FNA) or biopsy will be done for analysis under sonar guidance. An FNA is a type of biopsy procedure where a thin needle is inserted into an area of abnormal tissue and liquid is extracted to be sent for analysis at a laboratory.
Salome says this procedure can help to make a diagnosis or to rule out cancer.
Read: WATCH & LISTEN: ‘Fight like a girl’ key rings for breast cancer
A biopsy is done to extract lesion tissue, which is also sent to the laboratory to be analysed.
These tests can take between three and five working days.
Dr Reshma Naik, N17 Hospital radiologist says, the procedure is the same in men.
She claims there is a misconception that men have smaller breast tissue, but doctors use the same process with a mammogram and ultrasound.
“Breast cancer in men is more aggressive,” she says.
Dr Naik says people who have a family history of breast cancer, should start their screening 10 years earlier.
“Every mammogram has an ultrasound and the costs are included.
Therefore, private hospitals offer lower-cost screenings during the October.”
She recommends the TLC approach: “Touch the breast, look at the breast and consult your doctor,” she says.
