It's breast cancer awareness month which got me thinking.... How do mammograms work for women with small breasts?

Submitted ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨SPRUNT@lemmy.world⁩ to ⁨[deleted]⁩

I’m aware that mammogram machines are torture devices designed by pancake enthusiasts, but I don’t know if I ever thought about how it works for women with smaller breasts, and where that threshold is. Are mammograms only effective for B-cups and bigger (for example)? Are smaller breasts limited to manual exam and/or sonogram imaging?

Also, are there any correlations between tumor characteristics and breast size? i.e. are lumps in smaller breasts more dense than those in larger breasts? Are there different things to consider when doing a self exam if you have large vs. small breasts (will issues present differently based on breast size)?

Finally, guys, breast cancer isn’t just for women. Get yourself a bit of knowledge about it in dudes so you know what to keep an eye out for.

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InEnduringGrowStrong@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Here’s a video of a mammography procedure done on a man which should at least show the compression process for smaller breasts.

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- Badeendje@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  What an excellent response with also a cool video. The administrator is also a Chad for doing this video and being the subject to raise awareness.
  
  💯
  
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SolarMonkey@slrpnk.net ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
I’ve wondered about that myself, actually, as a card carrying member of the itty bitty titty committee.

I can’t speak for mammography specifically, as I have absolutely zero intention of ever getting one (I take issue with how sensitive they are these days, as they frequently find tumors that never would have actually caused a problem because they are very slow-growing, leading to over-treatment) but for self-exams, do be aware that certain breasts can have more or less cystic tissue, which can change the feel of the breast. It’s not related to size, afaik, just your own composition, tho larger breasts have a lot more tissue to spread cysts and tumors through, so they might be more or less obvious.

Thus, self exams (for all Humans) are most valuable when you do them regularly, so you know what your own tissue normally feels like, and you can pick out new lumps and monitor them.

I have a lot of cystic tissue, so my breasts are normally a bit on the firm and lumpy side. Nothing to worry about, but if I didn’t know that was normal for me, I might think it was cancerous.

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- partial_accumen@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  
  (I take personal issue with how sensitive they are these days, as they frequently find tumors that never would have actually caused a problem because they are very slow-growing, leading to over-treatment)
  
  Is it your conclusion that that detriments of possible over-treatment on you personally are more dangerous than possible continued growth of an unchecked tumor?
  
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  - SolarMonkey@slrpnk.net ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    If I end up with cancer that grows so fast that a mammogram every few years is the only way to catch it in time, then I frankly wouldn’t have great odds anyway.
    
    But to more directly answer your question, I’m actually pretty unlikely to be willing to go through chemo and radiation treatments regardless if it’s a real threat to my life or not. If it can be excised via surgery, maybe, or if some of the new treatments (like the mRNA vax or the preventative vax) would handle it with minimal side effects, I would do that, but otherwise, nope. I had parents in the medical field, and most of my deceased family has been taken down by cancers, so I know what I’m getting myself into, treated or not. My mom didn’t even bother with treatment (hospice only), because she spent enough time in oncology to know the outcomes. I took care of her throughout, and we had a lot of conversations about treatment and the reasoning behind not going that route, but ultimately people who work with cancer patients tend not to seek treatment themselves for a reason. And I tend to agree with their logic, given the current treatment options.
    
    I’ve had gene screening for it and came up clean (tho I was and still am fully prepared for a double mastectomy or whatever other surgical interventions if it ever becomes prudent), I’d be willing to do a blood screen, plus I do regular self-tests, so I’m not doing nothing, I’m just not doing mammograms.
    
    To each their own, and by no means do I think nobody should be screened or go through treatment, it’s just not something I’m personally interested in doing.
    
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- HowManyNimons@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  They give you a card?
  
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  - SolarMonkey@slrpnk.net ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    Yep, inherited from my mother :)
    
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southsamurai@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
As someone already linked a great video, size doesn’t matter. You can apply any testing to breasts of any size.

Afaik, and I’ve looked into it several times over the years, size doesn’t influence tumor characteristics at all, in any way. You get variances in tumors, but that’s going to be more about how the cells behave as cells rather than the size of the breast.

As far as how the self exam is done, the main issue is being thorough, which can be difficult with unusually large breasts, but tends to be easy enough in any sizes you can pick up a bra for at some place like Wal-Mart. One of my exes had f cups, and self exams were no problem at all.

The process for a self exam is best described with pictures, or in video format Like this one, so I’m not going type it out when videos are easy to find :)

But it is exactly the same for even unusually large breasts, it just takes a little longer.

It’s also something I would recommend everyone learn how to do. As OP said, men can get cancer too, and self exams will detect it earlier. Plus, if you know how to do it, you can share that knowledge. I’ve taught women how to do a self exam because they were embarrassed to ask their doctor or nurses; they didn’t want to look “stupid” by not already knowing.

That’s a legitimate concern, btw. Women very often get treated different than men by providers, even when it’s a female provider. Showing up and not being able to fully advocate for one’s self makes that problem worse, and the idea of showing a lack of knowledge truthfully can end up with a provider treating you different. It can happen even when the provider knows that the discrepancy exists, and tries to minimize it. The subconscious is a powerful thing.

So, man or woman, learn how to do a self exam. Be willing to pass that knowledge on, with no jokes or comments. Be the kind of person that can be trusted to come to for that kind of thing. You might literally save a life, or at least some breasts.

Fwiw, that goes for testicular self exam too. A lot of guys don’t do them, and tend to dislike showing ignorance as well, so they end up in the same situation. So, man or woman, learn how.

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- SPRUNT@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  I’m gonna go ahead and believe you this time, but I’ve been told size doesn’t matter a few times before…
  
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paddirn@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
I was literally just wondering this same thing earlier today.

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Coreidan@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
The same way they work for women with large breasts.

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