Freeing the Boobies: Re-examining Why

Blogtober post 10 (and my 50th post, yayyyy!)

By now you know that October is breast cancer awareness month. Not one day, not one week but a whole month-all 31 days of it have been dedicated to breast cancer, that should tell you how much of a problem it is. 

According to cancer.org, breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in women (only lung cancer kills more women each year). The chance that a woman will die from breast cancer is about 1 in 38 (about 2.6%). 

But thankfully, early detection saves lives. This is why the month has been set aside to encourage women to know their bodies, particularly their boobies. Regularly examining one’s boobs would make any slight change easy to detect; be it a growing lump, a discharge from the nipple, change in shape or even an unusual pain. The earlier it’s detected and reported, the higher our chances are of getting treated so we don't succumb to it. 

Risk factors of breast cancer include being female, family history of breast canser, obesity, radiation exposure, starting your menses early, having your first child late, never being pregnant...there are many, some out of our control (Read more on that here). Which is why awareness is so important because every woman is at risk. You can't fold your arms and pretend to be unconcerned because even as a male, you're surrounded by women that you care about.

Now, if you’re married, husbands can help out with this part. As you regularly fondle boobies (which you probably already love to do), you would definitely be more alert to any differences. This is the same motive behind sucking, although this part has been cause for debate.

While one midwife, Madam Mary Azika, has encouraged men to frequently suck their wives’ breasts as a means to prevent breast cancer in women, Dr Naa Aryeetey is of the view that sucking of boobs by a man does not lower chances of breast cancer- breastfeeding babies can though. My guys, you all go turn babies anaa?

Either way, what matters is early detection, so that treatment can commence.

No Bra Day encourages women all the world over to go braless to raise awareness about breast cancer, to stand in solidarity with those battling/who have battled with it, and to pay homage to those who fell on the battlefield. Especially those who, in order to save their lives, had to get a part or even the whole of their breast(s) removed and as a result are not feeling confident or beautiful by society's standards.

That is what the day is about. Not another opportunity to show some cleavage and skin just to tempt the sons of Adam (okay,maybe a teeny tiny bit); you can do that any other day. 

Next time you think of No Bra Day and decide to join the movement and go braless, think of the women who have to hide behind bras and silicon pads so their boobs can look 'normal' and not get ridiculed for one boob looking bigger than the other. Think of how courageous and strong the survivors are, especially those who dare to share their stories. Think of those who have battled with it and sadly, lost. Let it be truly significant.

The whole of the month, health centres will be offering free breast cancer screening. Let's take advantage of it and get tested. Remember, early detection saves lives.