Getting checked for breast cancer
1 in 8 women in Scotland will develop breast cancer but, if found early enough, it is treatable. Lots of women do survive it. In fact, you’re five times more likely to survive breast cancer if it’s caught in its earliest stage.
Breast screening alone saves around 130 lives every year in Scotland, helping pick up tiny cancers that can’t be seen or felt, often when they are less advanced.
As well as regularly attending screening appointments, it’s important for women to continue to check their breasts for any changes. Only then do you have the best chance of being diagnosed early and surviving breast cancer.
If you do notice any changes in your breasts, it’s important to contact your GP. There’s no need to feel embarrassed as your doctor is there to help you but if you would prefer, you can request to be seen by a female doctor or practice nurse. You could even take a friend along with you – the most important thing is to get checked.
FACTS
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1 in 8 women in Scotland will be diagnosed with breast cancer.
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You’re five times more likely to survive breast cancer if it’s caught in its earliest stage.
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Breast screening saves around 130 lives every year in Scotland. It only takes about 10 minutes and could save your life.
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Breast screening detects tiny cancers, when they are often less advanced and easier to treat.
Breast cancers found by screening are generally at an early stage – when it’s more treatable. Screenings can detect tiny cancers that you can’t see or feel yourself. Almost all women diagnosed with breast cancer at the earliest possible stage are likely to be cured.
If you’re worried about a change to your body that’s unusual and isn’t going away, contact your GP practice for an appointment. Your doctor or nurse might ask about:
- Medical history: they may ask about your medical history to try and understand what may be causing the symptoms. They may also ask about your last breast screening result.
- Family history: they may ask about whether you have a family history of breast cancer.
- Personal history: they may ask about your age – this is because younger women’s breast may need to be examined using different tests.
Once they know more about your individual situation, they will decide on the next steps.
Many other conditions share breast cancer symptoms, so it’s probably nothing to worry about. But you should still contact your GP. Whatever it is, the earlier it’s found, the easier it will be to treat. And if it’s nothing serious, it will take a weight off your mind.
If the doctor suspects you have breast cancer, they will refer you to a specialist breast clinic. Depending on your age, the doctor may do an ultrasound scan for a more in-depth picture of your breast tissue. Or they may take a sample of the breast tissue to run tests on.
These tests can help to build a better picture of your symptoms and can rule out (or confirm) the presence of cancer. If cancer is found, the doctor can decide on the best course of treatment.
If it is cancer, finding it early gives you more treatment options, and a better chance of treatment being successful and of living well after cancer.
Many people put off getting symptoms checked as they’re worried they’ll be wasting the doctor’s or nurse’s time – or they’re worried about what they might find out.
If you have symptoms, your GP wants to know. If it isn’t serious, the doctor or nurse can put your mind at ease. And if it is something more, finding out earlier means it’s more likely that treatments will be successful.
If initial tests suggest you have breast cancer, the doctor will want to do more tests to find out how early a stage the cancer is at. This may include a scans and x-rays. These will help the doctor to choose the best course of treatment for you.
Real stories
When I was retired, I became really bored and when my chemotherapy started nothing in my life felt normal. Going back to doing those two shifts a week through the nurse bank it really helped to keep me sane because it brought a bit of normality. I also relied hugely on the support of Maggies and Calman Centres, as it helped chatting to people going through the same thing.
One of my biggest worries was telling my family. As soon as you hear the word cancer you instantly panic but I’m very lucky to have such a strong, supportive family around me. Although I’m the strong one who keeps everyone together, I was able to rely on them any time I needed them.
During chemo if I was feeling tired or couldn’t be bothered I knew I could give any one of them a ring and they’d give me a run to my appointments or whatever it was I had to get done that day.
As a woman, losing my hair was really difficult. But the worst part for me was definitely the day that all of my treatment stopped. When I was discharged I had this overwhelming fear because I’d had all the treatment to stop the cancer, so once it was done I thought ‘what’s going to stop it now'.