As women, we navigate so many roles as partners, parents, friends and professionals – often putting the needs of others far before our own. But there’s one vital act of self care that deserves our unwavering attention: breast screening. Let’s take a look at why it’s so essential…
It might feel like just another health appointment in an already hectic schedule, but breast screening is a powerful tool in protecting your health and potentially saving your life. It’s a proactive step that empowers you to take control and detect changes in your breasts early on, when treatment is most likely to be successful.
What Is Breast Screening And Why Is It So Important?
Traditional breast screening involves having an X-ray of the breasts, which is called a mammogram. This images captured allow trained specialists to look for early signs of breast cancer, such as tiny lumps or changes in breast tissue, long before they may be felt during a self-examination.
- Early Detection Saves Lives: This is the most crucial reason for breast screening. When breast cancer is detected at an early stage, it is often smaller and hasn’t spread to other parts of the body. This significantly increases the chances of successful treatment and a positive outcome.
- Finding Cancer Before Symptoms Appear: Breast cancer can develop silently, without causing pain or noticeable lumps in its early stages. Screening can identify these changes before you even know they are there, giving you a vital head start in treatment.
- Less Invasive Treatment Options: Early detection often means that less aggressive and invasive treatments, such as lumpectomy (removal of the tumor only) rather than mastectomy (removal of the entire breast), may be possible. This can lead to a better quality of life after treatment.
- Peace of Mind: While the thought of screening can be anxiety-inducing for some, the reassurance of a clear result can provide significant peace of mind. Even if something is detected, knowing this early allows for prompt action to be taken and reduces uncertainty.
- It’s a Routine Part of Healthcare: Just like regular dental check-ups or cervical screenings, breast screening is a vital part of preventative healthcare for women. It’s an investment in your longterm wellbeing.
Who Should Be Screened And When?
In the UK, the NHS Breast Screening Programme routinely invites women aged 50 to 70 for screening every three years. However, depending on your individual risk factors, such as family history of breast cancer, your GP may recommend earlier or more frequent screening for you.
When you receive an invitation for screening, it’s important to make every effort to attend. The mammogram procedure itself takes just a few minutes to complete. The breast are briefly compressed between two plates to capture clear images. While it might feel a little uncomfortable for a short time, it’s a small inconvenience for peace of mind.
Beyond Screening: Be Breast Aware
While breast screening is crucial, it’s also important to be breast aware. This means getting to know how your breasts normally look and feel so that you can be aware of any changes if they occur. If you notice anything unusual, such as a new lump, change in size or shape, skin changes, or nipple discharge, please don’t hesitate to contact your doctor, even if you’ve recently had a clear screening result.
Our health is our most valuable asset. By attending breast screening appointments and being breast aware, we may take a powerful step in protecting ourselves as women and ensuring a healthier future.
The Natural Doctor: Breast Thermography
At the age of 37yrs old, and having breastfed my two children who are now teenagers, I have never been invited to, nor had an NHS breast screening before. I have had silicone breast implants for nineteen years, and eight months ago I had breast reduction surgery with smaller silicone implants. Five years ago, I felt a small hard lump in my right breast and had a physical examination at my doctors clinic, who informed me that it was nothing to worry about and no further action was ever taken.
Not only is this my first ever breast screening experience, but also my first Thermocheck Breast Thermography, which is an innovative private procedure that works differently to a traditional mammogram. Breast thermography is a useful breast health scanning tool used to detect heat and vascular changes in the breast tissue. An abnormal thermogram may be caused by infection or inflammation of the breast, and may indicate early cancer or pre-cancerous changes within the breast. A persistently abnormal thermogram indicates an increased risk of developing breast cancer by 40% over 5 years.
Most importantly, thermal changes in the breast can be corrected with specific nutraceutical intervention, with approximately 80% normalised or normalising thermograms over six months, allowing women of all ages to be proactive about their breast health without any risks.
The Benefits Of Breast Thermography Screening
- 100% safe, radiation-free, non-contact and painless.
- Very early detection of changes in breast health, up to 6-10 years earlier than in traditional mammography
- It is unique in its capacity to visually record physiological changes and metabolic processes as cancers are associated with increased temperature and abnormal blood vessel patterns
- Studies show 90% sensitivity when properly conducted. This means that where there is an increased risk, breast thermography can correctly identify this in 90% of cases
- Thermocheck Breast Thermography can be repeated as often as required, given there is no exposure to harmful radiation. It is therefore particularly suited to regular and frequent breast health checks, including post-surgery, during treatment or in cases where a patient does not consent to surgery
- It is useful for young women for whom mammography is inappropriate due to greater density of breast tissue or greater sensitivity of their breast tissue to adverse effects of ionising radiation.
Thermography is not designed to replace traditional mammography as a cancer diagnostic tool, but can be used alongside it, as it is particularly relevant for younger women with dense breasts for which mammography and self-examination may present difficulties. Thermography and mammography are fundamentally different in what they uncover. Mammography can identify any structural changes, whereas breast thermography uncovers physiological changes in the breast. Mammography can detect an established physical mass in the breast about the size of a small grape, however, studies have shown that breast thermography offers earlier detection as thermography detects metabolic and vascular thermal changes that occur sooner than a mass is established.
The thermography screening process uses the latest advanced and highly accurate technology, a heat-sensitive camera and standardised agreed protocols of thermal imaging. It is a very early form of detection, which can be performed from the age of twenty onwards, to effectively monitor breast health.
Dr Eccles and Dr Anna Forbes are breast health specialists with many years of expertise in managing and optimising breast health. They specialise in supporting and optimising breast health by providing natural, integrated medicine personalised consultations. If an abnormal result is found -a reading of TH3 and above- a consultation with the doctor can provide advice on how to optimise your breast health. This consultation is highly bespoke and depends on your medical history and discussion with the doctor, where information and advice for the best course of action for your case can be provided.
Thermography Results: The Scoring System
1 & 2: This is a normal result for which you can rescan in 12 months. The breasts are physiologically healthy and so an annual breast thermogram can be scheduled, much like a routine dental check-up.
3: This is a borderline result. It represents a relatively lower -but still slightly increased- risk that is mild. It doesn’t mean that there is something sinister going on, but the result should not be ignored since there is a thermal activity present that can indicate a risk of infection, inflammation, or an increased risk of cancer. To be proactive, it is recommended to have a consultation with the doctor.
4 and 5: This higher result suggests an increased risk in the breast. It does not mean there is cancer present, but the greater the score of the scan, the greater the risk. Abnormal results are advised to see the doctor, as they are breast health specialists who can advise on how best to optimise and manage your individual breast health. After assessing the findings of the scan results, the doctors are able to recommend specific powerful nutraceuticals to support optimal breast health, and schedule further testing if necessary. The doctor will recommend the most suitable actions for your case, with a mammogram, ultrasound or MRI scan available for further investigation where there are both physical and thermal changes in the breast.
My Breast Thermography Screening Experience
An initial Thermocheck Breast Thermography Scan and report takes up to 30 mins to complete, using a cutting-edge system developed by Dr Eccles. The screening process itself is performed by a female scan technician for which you receive a full report signed off by the doctor, with the option of having a consultation or zoom call if necessary.
Prior to my appointment, I was given the advice to not have a fever or sunburn before my scan, to avoid massage or stimulation of the breasts, to not shave, wax or use creams, balms or deodorant sprays. I also couldn’t consume nicotine, coffee or chocolate, exercise, take a hot shower or wear a bra before my scan so as not to affect the results.
Arriving for my appointment, I completed my medical and consent forms at reception, before being greeted by the friendly scan technician who talked me through everything that would happen during my appointment and why. Having already read up about it online, I knew what to expect in theory, but it was helpful to have a face to face conversation prior and the opportunity to ask any questions that came to mind. My main thoughts being the risk factors involved with having breast implants and previously finding a lump in my breast five years ago for which I didn’t receive treatment and could no longer feel after my breast reduction surgery.
I marked my areas of concern on my medical notes, allowing the scan technician to check in on these during my appointment in order to determine if further investigation would be necessary from the doctor. The scan itself involves removing clothing and jewellery from your top half, so as not to interfere with the results, and placing your hands behind your head at a series of different angles, seated on a swivel chair. A specialist camera set on a tripod is placed about a metre away, which captures images as you rotate through a series of angles to scan the entirety of both breasts. Unlike a normal camera, there is no clicking sound or flash of light, and the images captured are very colourful as they work on tracking heat in a series of colours to indicate the temperature of the breast tissues as opposed to taking a lifelike photograph. The technician advises you on when to turn, and to what degree, in order to achieve the perfect angles for the scan.
Breast thermography is not recommended if you have had a mastectomy, a breast lumpectomy within the last 3 months, breast reduction or enlargement surgery within the last 3 months, a breast biopsy within the last 3 months, radiotherapy in the last 6 months or are breast feeding or pregnant. As I am almost 9 months post breast reduction surgery I was fine to have my scan and it felt as quick and easy as having a passport photo taken, as I conveniently popped to my appointment on my lunch break.
The scan is repeated twice in order to test the natural difference of breast temperature firstly upon arrival for your appointment, versus after ten minutes of sitting in a cool room with air-conditioning. This means that the temperature drop of the two scans can be accurately monitored, as everybody’s resting temperature may vary, it could take place on hot day, or you may have walked to your appointment rather than driving, which could all impact singular results. Therefore, any areas of the breast which haven’t cooled down between the two scans may indicate inflammation and increased temperature in the breast tissue, allowing for further investigation by the doctor for peace of mind.
Having had two children, I’m well accustomed to doctors, nurses and midwife appointments, so sitting on a chair with my breasts uncovered wasn’t awkward or embarrassing. The staff are very professional, knowledgable and see patients everyday, so it isn’t an uncomfortable or unusual atmosphere to be in at all. As an introduction to breast health, I found it very welcoming, informative and relaxing, and much preferred this non-invasive, non-contact scan to the thought of having my breast implants compressed within a mammography machine after having previously having ruptured and painful breast implants.
Following my scan I was asked once again if I had any questions or concerns, before I put my shirt back on and returned to my day. I was informed that my test results would be emailed to me shortly, along with any further information, advice or contact necessary from the doctor. I’m amazed by how quick, comfortable and convenient my scan was, and want to sing from the rooftops how easy it is to take care of your breast health. There really is nothing to fear, and so much to gain, from having the peace of mind that being proactive with your health brings. Prevention will always be better than cure.
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