October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and the North London Breast Screening Service (NLBSS) is encouraging women to become breast aware.

The NLBSS provides free breast screening every three years for women aged 50 to 70, who are registered with a GP. It is a simple procedure that involves an X-ray examination of the breast, known as a mammogram, that can detect the presence of breast cancer at an early stage.

The mammogram takes a few minutes and your whole visit to the unit should take about half an hour. The NLBSS aims to reach the national target of 70 per cent of eligible women screened.

Dr Will Teh, director of screening at NLBSS, says that it is important to accept your invitation for breast screening, as it can show up lumps that could be missed by self-examination.

"The aim of screening is to detect cancers before they would normally be found," he said. "In 2003 and 2004, more than 11,000 cancers were detected by breast screening in England, of which more than 4,500 were less than 15mm in size. Cancers smaller than 15mm are usually impossible to feel with the hand."

The NLBSS is based at a newly refurbished and redesigned unit at Edgware Community Hospital. They conduct screening from two static units at Edgware Community and North Middlesex hospitals, and from six mobile units that move around north London.

The new unit, which was opened in June by Baroness Amos, took seven months to complete at a cost of £1.9million and has doubled the space available.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but breast awareness is for life. Breast Awareness is about becomming familiar with your breasts and being able to recognise changes.

  • Know what is normal for you;
  • Look at, and feel your breasts regularly;
  • Know what to look for (lumps, pain discharge from the nipple or anything else unusual);
  • Tell your doctor about anything else unusual);
  • Accept your invitation for breast screening if you are over 50;
  • Women over 70 are encouraged to make their own appointments by containing the breast screening office on 020 8951 4045