This week's artwork was donated by Dathan, a pediatric cancer patient who received treatment at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia . This question and answer session was originally conducted on America Online. Self-examinations, by themselves, have not been evaluated in the absence of mammograms or physical examinations by a health professional. However, a significant number of breast cancers are discovered by patients during self-exam, so their importance cannot be overstated.
Mammograms are somewhat painful.
Unfortunately, compression of the breasts is required to get the absolute best pictures. I wish there were a simpler way, and a less painful one. We're working on it, but nothing really comes close to at properly done mammogram for detecting breast cancer. I don't think BSE alone is effective enough screening for me. Mammograms are particularly difficult to interpret in young women and particularly difficult in women with fibrocystic breasts.