— By Dr. Ananya Deori, Associate Consultant, Breast Services at Medanta Gurugram
Early in my surgical career, whenever October arrived with pink ribbons, I asked myself: Why dedicate an entire month to breast cancer? We observe a single day for the heart, a day for mental health, even a day for world cancer. Why an entire month for breasts?
The answer became painfully clear the moment I began seeing patients.
For centuries, our art, monuments, and classical poetry have revered the female form. Yet inside the clinic, I watched women treat this very organ with profound silence and shame. Breasts are burdened by cultural taboo; young girls suffer quietly rather than tell their parents, and grown women delay critical medical care simply because naming their own anatomy feels forbidden. We don’t need a month because the disease is unique—we need a month because the silence surrounding it is so deafening. We dedicate October not just to breast cancer awareness, but to dismantling that fear.
The Truth About Mammograms
Screening changes outcomes because cancer doesn’t announce itself, and that is why it is so dangerous. It sits quietly without pain. By the time a lump is easily felt, critical months have already passed.
A mammogram is simply a low-dose X-ray of breast tissue. Today, 3D mammography (Digital Breast Tomosynthesis) takes thin slices of the tissue, revealing microscopic abnormalities long before a hand can feel them. For women aged 40 and above, an annual screening is essential.
Yet two common fears hold women back:
● “The radiation is dangerous.” In reality, radiation from a mammogram is negligible—roughly 0.3 mSv (compared to over 20 mSv for a whole-body CT scan), equivalent to a few weeks of routine environmental exposure.
● “It is too painful.” The breast is gently compressed for a few seconds to ensure sharp imaging. Five minutes of discomfort brings complete peace of mind for a year.
Debunking the Myths
I regularly hear women say: “No one in my family has cancer, and I live healthy, so I won’t have cancer.”
The reality is that familial cancers account for less than 10% of cases. Breast cancer affects women across every demographic, fitness level, and background.
Furthermore, a painless lump is not the only sign. Spontaneous or blood-stained nipple discharge, retraction or change in direction of the nipple, subtle skin dimpling, or an unexplained underarm swelling all warrant prompt evaluation.
How Can I Protect Myself?
There is no medicine, pill, or injection that protects you from breast cancer, but you can identify early signs through a regular Breast Self-Examination (BSE).
Spend five minutes once a month, ideally a few days after your period ends: look in the mirror for skin or nipple changes, and use the flat pads of your fingers to gently feel the entire breast and armpit for any new, painless knot. Lastly, gently squeeze the nipples to look for any discharge.
Shifting the mind-set
True early detection requires a cultural shift:
● For women: Make breast health a part of your routine —just like checking blood pressure or your skin care regimen. Normalizing self-awareness is an act of dignity, not vanity.
● For men: Drop the awkward hesitation. Fathers, husbands, brothers, and sons must be active allies; men should be the bridge that helps a woman seek professional care without embarrassment.
Speaking openly strips cancer of its greatest weapon: delayed presentation. Pink October exists so that no woman in Assam or across the country ever suffers in secret again.
