maninahat said:
From what I understand, mammograms and breast examinations potentially do more harm than good. People find a lump, panic, head to the doctor and get incorrectly treated for cancer. Often the lump can be attributed to something fairly harmless, though that isn't usually realised until after the woman has undergone dangerous treatments such as a chemotheraphy, or a biopsy.
In otherwords, though there is a tiny chance (we are talking literally 1:1000) that high risk women might catch the cancer early and get vital treatment, there are many more women (up to 600:1000) who are misdiagnosed and risk harm by going for needless treatments.
That's not really true. Yes, a women who feels a lump would likely panic. I felt one when I was in my teens, and I was positive I had cancer. (Mind you, I've always been a worry wort.) My mother also panicked when her mammogram came back with something many years back. Sure, if a woman goes to the doctor, they will have to test to see if it is something. However, the preliminary tests are rather non-invasive. Usually it starts with a blood test and some sort of scan (mammogram or in my case, x-ray because of the position of the lump). My testing ended here because my lump was merely the result of hormones. Then, if those tests point to something more serious or are inconclusive, then they'll move on to a biopsy which, while invasive, is a simple procedure only requiring local anesthetic. (This is what my mother had done and it came back as non-cancerous). Doctors won't flood a patient with poison, which is basically what chemo is, without solid evidence that it is for the best.
The point of self-exam is to understand your own body. Every woman's breasts are different and they change in feel and size even at different stages of her hormonal cycle. If she knows the topography of her's if you will, then she will be able to detect when something changes. Then if something is off, you go see the doctor. It's like the skin cancer self exams. You should know where moles are on your body and what they look like it order to know if something has changed.
But on topic, it's funny that only She-Hulk is performing the exam correctly. Good job, guys.