Woman shares photo to raise awareness of breast cancer

The blotch on the right is the biopsy needle mark, the dimple (circled) is the cause for concern.

A British woman has created a Twitter account for her left breast to encourage other women to be more vigilant about checking for signs of breast cancer.

Last week, Claire Warner posted an image of her left breast on Facebook and explained it was just a small dimple that led to her breast cancer diagnosis.

Ok, here goes - the Facebook status and photo I never dreamt I'd be posting - PLEASE READ and more importantly...

Posted by Claire Warner on Tuesday, 5 July 2016

"This is a picture of my left boob," she wrote. "The small purplish bruise is where I had a biopsy taken. The minuscule dimple up and to the left of it is a rare and little-known symptom of BREAST CANCER. Blink and you'd miss it. I hope I'm one of the lucky ones."

Ms Warner will undergo surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy and has "every hope" of being cured.

She said her only symptom was this small dimple and encouraged women to make sure they check for all abnormalities, not just large lumps.

"PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE check yourself and get your loved ones to check themselves also," she wrote.

"If I can help one other person, the way I was helped, then it's been worth showing my soon-to-be-reduced left tit to the world."

Ms Warner has since created a Twitter account called My Left Boob to keep her followers updated with her diagnosis and her original Facebook post has been shared more than 25,000 times.

So...
I think I've got 'it' Biopsy results back next week. I am crushed. On a day where UK news has been full of numb tits, I have one :-(

— My Left Boob (@OfNoSpecialType) June 24, 2016

From age 40, regular mammograms should be part of your breast health routine. The NZ Breast Cancer Foundation recommends annual mammograms from 40-49, then every two years after that.

Under 45, you'll need to pay for mammograms yourself - but seeing as one Kiwi woman a day is diagnosed under age 45 it can be money well spent. Shop around your local mammogram providers - prices can vary quite a lot.

If you're over 70 and still in good health, consider continuing with mammograms. Again, you'll need to fund them yourself, but given that nearly 25 per cent of breast cancers in NZ are found in women aged 70+ it could be well worth it.

The five lesser-known signs of breast cancer

• Changes in the skin of the breast, including dimpling, puckering or redness
• A change in breast shape or size
• Unusual breast pain
• Changes in the nipple, e.g. a turned-in nipple
• A nipple discharge