Breast Assessment and Breast Injury – What To Expect

Breast health is essential for your physical and mental wellbeing, yet 50% of women experience breast pain most commonly as a menstrual cycle symptom. 1 in 7 UK women will develop breast cancer. It’s important to look after your breast health and to know what to expect from the experts that may help you along the way.

Why might I need to see a specialist?

Like any other part of the body, troublesome breast symptoms that aren’t resolved with basic advice may need more specialised assessment.

Many active women develop lumps and bumps in the breast tissue due to the contact nature of sport. These are often nothing to worry about, but sometimes they may need assessment by a specialist to rule out any other illness.

Who can offer to give me a breast exam?

• GP
• Practice Nurse
• Consultant, such as an Oncologist or Plastic Surgeon

Consent

Before any assessment or treatment, the health practitioner should gain informed consent. This means that they should:

• Fully explain what they are about to do and why
• Give you the opportunity to ask any questions
• Obtain your consent before proceeding

You can refuse any assessment or treatment that you are not comfortable with.

You can change your mind and withdraw your consent at any point during the assessment or treatment.

A female chaperone should be offered to you for any assessment or treatment, or an appointment rearranged for when a chaperone can be available, should you wish to have one. Girls under the age of 16 should always have a parent or guardian present for pelvic health assessments.

Breast Injury

Breast injury is more common in sport than you think. About 40% of athletes experience a blow to the breast which results in an injury to the breast tissue. It’s important to report breast injury to the medical team within your club (if you have one). It helps them get a better picture of the most prevalent injuries happening amongst the team, and they can advise you on the best approach to treatment. If you don’t have a medical team at your sports club, you can seek support for injuries via your GP surgery.

In addition to acute breast injury, many women develop lumps and bumps in the breast tissue due to the contact nature of sport. These are often nothing to worry about, but sometimes they may need assessment by a specialist to rule out any other illness. Like any other part of the body, troublesome breast symptoms that aren’t resolved with basic advice may need more specialised assessment. Your GP will be able to refer you to the relevant specialist, if this is required.

Useful Resources:

The 5-point fit method (and extra fit tips) from the researchers at Portsmouth, in this article with CoachWeb.

Boob Or Bust is a great website with lots of fitting and measuring advice, helpful tips and recommendations.

BoobyDoo is an excellent online shop for different sports bra brands, with online fitting, and some useful videos and articles about getting the right sports bra.

PeBe design and create sports bras based on the research of breast biomechanics and specifically for changing bodies, larger breasts and teens. They offer online and in person fit clinics for whole teams and schools.

Maaree make sports bras for larger breasts and offers online fitting.

Boob Armour provide inserts that protect against breast injury – great for contact sports and physically demanding professions.

Your rights

You have the right, always, to be safe from harm in any environment.

You can refuse any assessment or treatment that you are not comfortable with. You can change your mind and withdraw your consent at any point during the assessment or treatment.You have the right to:

• Healthy relationships and appropriate boundaries.
• Have a say in the decisions, assessments and treatments that will impact you.
• Not feel bullied, harassed or intimated.
• Report any behaviour that makes you feel uncomfortable or unsafe, whether this is online or offline.

Report any concerns

Safeguarding is everyone’s business. No child or adult should be made to feel unsafe.
If you have any concerns, please report them to the police on the non-emergency number 101. In an emergency, always dial 999.