YRMC oncologist suggests women begin self-examining breasts much earlier than 40

October is breast cancer awareness month.

It’s an annual campaign to educate women on symptoms and treatment of the disease.

Breast cancer is by far the most diagnosed cancer for women in the U.S. and it’s one of the deadliest cancers, only second to lung cancer.

Yuma Regional Medical Center’s ( YRMC ) Cancer Center sees about 1,000 new cancer patients a year, and 10% of those are diagnosed with breast cancer.

As most women inch closer to their 40’s , typically that’s when they start screening and examining their breasts.

However, YRMC oncology specialist, Raju Vaddepally , M.D., suggests women start building a sense of breast and body awareness as soon as they hit adulthood; that way they can easily detect if something is out of the norm.

” What really matters is trying to know what is the normal breast architecture of what your breasts feel like…[and] anything that is out of normal morphology, ” he said.

Dr. Vaddepally described a lump as very synonymous with having a mass, swelling, or nodule like feeling in your breasts. He said it could be firm or soft.

Early detection of the disease is most important, so YRMC works closely with the City of Yuma to make mammogram screening programs more accessible to the community.

Also, the Yuma Breast and Cervical Cancer Coalition support uninsured women throughout Yuma County with healthcare and social services.

Copyright 2018 KYMA