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Overview
Breast cancer affects millions of women around the world, including a significant number of young women who are diagnosed with an early stage of the disease. Since they aren't taught the correct way to search for lumps, these women can look for other signs of the condition in their body.
Nipple Symptoms
Young women often notice the first signs of breast cancer in their nipples. The nipples become retracted or the woman thinks they look indented. Often the nipple will begin pointing downwards instead of straight ahead as it did before. They may also notice that the nipple looks like it's pushing inward. These women may also notice an odd discharge coming from their nipples. The women who notice this problem haven't had a child before, though some compare it to lactating.
Size Changes
A change in size is often an early warning sign of breast cancer in young women. The change happens gradually and over time, but the change is often extreme enough that the woman notices it. The size can grow larger or smaller depending on the woman. There are also changes in the contour of the breast noted. In this situation, the woman may notice some dimpling, especially underneath the breast. Professionals sometimes refer to this as puckering.
Color and Texture
Changes in the color and texture of the breast are also identified by young women with breast cancer. The disease often causes their breast to look red or slightly pink in color. It may affect the entire area or just one portion of the skin. Some women also notice a change in the texture of their skin. The skin begins pitting and takes on the appearance of an orange skin. The color and texture changes may happen at the same time or they may only see changes in one area.
Indentations
An indentation of the skin is a sign of breast cancer, especially the condition as it affects young women. This indentation sometimes occurs on the nipple, but it may occur on different areas of the breast. It looks as if someone touched their skin and pressed down, but the skin never bounced back. This usually occurs on the area right above the breast and is usually found on the area directly above the lump, if the woman finds the lump.
Lumps
A lump is the sign most often associated with breast cancer. However, young women often don't notice this sign because they aren't trained on how to properly give themselves a self-checkup or exam. Instead of looking for a lump, many young women notice a thickening or hardening of the skin. Underneath this area is the lump. The lump typically doesn't cause any pain, but they may notice that the area is tender to the touch.
