Signs of breast cancer explained, using lemons

[nitpicker]

http://www.bbc.com/news/health-38609625

Signs of breast cancer explained, using lemons

By Philippa Roxby
Health reporter, BBC News

15 January 2017
From the section Health

We think we know what the signs of breast cancer are, until it comes to checking our own breasts - then we're not so sure. Is that a lump I can feel? Should I be worried about the dimpled skin there? What exactly am I feeling for?

Those were the concerns of Corrine Beaumont, a young designer, who created the 'Know Your Lemons' campaign, which has been shared more than 32,000 times on Facebook in the past few days.

She lost both her grandmothers to breast cancer at the ages of 40 and 62 and when she found very little information on the signs of breast cancer to look out for, she felt compelled to come up with a solution. Lemons became her stand-in metaphor for breasts as she tried to create a simple, visual way of showing what breast cancer symptoms can look and feel like. Corrine describes the egg box of lemons as a playful, friendly image which might help women overcome their fear of the disease.

Two years ago Corrine left her job to start her own charity, Worldwide Breast Cancer.
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Although 'Know Your Lemons' has been going since 2003, this year's zesty campaign image has struck a chord, after it was shared on social media by Erin Smith Chieze.

Breast Cancer Care says women should introduce self-checking as part of a routine. And they have a point. A recent survey of 1,000 women by charity Breast Cancer Care found that a third of women don't check their breast regularly for signs and symptoms of cancer. While 96% know that a lump in the breast can be a symptom of cancer, more than a quarter did not know that an inverted nipple can be a symptom. (snip)

Prof Jayant Vaidya, professor of surgery and oncology at University College London, says indentation or flattening of the breast, particularly when the arm is lifted or when women lean forward, is an important early sign. "Apart from bloody or single duct discharge from the nipple, it is the main visible early sign." But he says that growing veins and inflamed breasts are rare symptoms, and skin erosion, orange peel skin and large bumps are signs of advanced disease.
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