October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. According to the American Cancer Society, breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in all women in the United States. Men can also get breast cancer, but it is about 100 times more common in women than in men.

Early detection is key in helping individuals survive this disease. There are three kinds of examinations that play a vital role in breast cancer prevention: breast self-exam, clinical breast exam and mammogram.

Breast self-exam

Breast self-exams are exams you do yourself. By doing breast self-exams regularly, you will know how your breast feel normally. This will make it easier for you to notice changes in shape. Your health care provider can demonstrate how to do a breast self-exam.

Clinical breast exam

Clinical breast exams are done by your health care provider. Your health care provider will look at your breasts to check for changes in size or shape. He or she will also check for any lumps in the breasts. Women between the ages of 20 and 40 should have a clinical breast exam every three years. Women over 40 should have a clinical breast exam every year.

Mammogram

A mammogram is an x-ray picture of the breast taken by a health care provider. The picture reveals any changes in breast tissues that may develop into problems over time. Mammograms also find lumps or growths that are too small for you or your health care provider to feel when conducting a clinical breast exam.

For more breast cancer information, visit http://www.cancer.org/docroot/home/index.asp or http://fcs.tamu.edu/health/h2h/index.php.