Apparatus and method for facilitating breast self-examinations

Abstract

An apparatus and method for facilitating breast self-examinations and the recordation of evaluative results therefrom, wherein a thin-materialed, tight-fitting, shirt-like garment having a low-coefficient of friction and possessing breast self-examination patterns thereon is utilized to guide a user's fingers during examination of her breasts, and wherein a marking instrument is utilized to mark or ink areas of suspected abnormalities directly on the garment, thereby facilitating future identification and / or comparison with new examination results or findings. The present apparatus and method enables a user to conduct a breast self-examination by palpating her breasts from the outside of the garment, as opposed to directly feeling or contacting her bare breasts.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates generally to medical examination devices and methods, and more specifically to an apparatus and method for facilitating breast self-examinations and the recordation of evaluative results therefrom. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] Recent clinical research studies have established that approximately one in eight women in the United States will develop breast cancer in her lifetime. However, through guidance from breast cancer awareness programs, medical practitioners and associated routine professional examinations, women are encouraged to take a proactive role in reducing the likelihood of developing breast cancer via performing monthly breast self-examinations. Such breast self-examinations typically involve active observation of the superficial breast tissue to visually identify any abnormal changes thereto, and further involve the feeling or palpating of the breast tissue to actively recognize any lump, nodule or tumor that m...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0014] Accordingly, a feature and advantage of the present invention is its ability to facilitate breast self-examinations of all relevant breast tissue and chest area, including the armpit, across the collarbone and down the front of the sternum.

Problems solved by technology

Although women are encouraged to familiarize themselves with such breast self-examination patterns for proper and thorough examination of their breast tissue, many women are, unfortunately, either completely unapprised of, or only moderately familiar with such patterns, and as such, are likely to improperly conduct their breast self-examination.

Additionally, even women familiar with the breast self-examination patterns often neglect to examine all areas considered to be breast tissue, such as the armpit.

However, human skin is inherently frictional due to sweat gland secretions, hair, and the like.

Although necessary for proper examination, application of such friction-eliminating substrates can be messy, therefore entailing subsequent clean-up and inconvenience, and protracting the overall examination process.

As such, it often becomes difficult for many women to remember and locate sites of abnormalities from one examination period to another, and therefore either establishes a potential false sense of complacency upon the non-discovery of the lump in the area of the breast thought to contain same, or a sense of trepidation in seemingly inconsistent examination results.

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