I don't think I'll ever forget a conversation with one of our oncologists. Not only did he hilariously give us a recommendation to check ourselves daily (overkill!), but he also stressed to us all that breast cancer is something that can hit at any age and more often has no obvious genetic link. So while it is important for women over 40 to get their regular mammograms and for those with a known family history to be extra diligent in checks, it is just as important for all us women to do regular, monthly self-breast exams and follow up with our doctors about any lumps found.
Follow up can be very scary and doctors don't always take the under 40 crowd serious, but I urge all to not just give in. I went through this recently with a friend. She actually had to see 2 specialists because the first just told her, "You're under 30 (she was 29 1/2), so your risk is very low." He went on to more or less say that if she had seen him just a few months later, at age 30, he would test more. Her doctor and I said that was unacceptable and she was sent to a better specialist who not only did further testing (besides a manual exam), but did well explaining what she was experiencing and when to worry. While the wait stressed me out, it was much more relaxing to know what was really going on.
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