Time for my annual reminder to all my loyal readers, and anyone who lands here via a search engine or other random redirection, of the importance of being breast aware.  Whether female or male this vile disease can affect you.  Latest UK figures are roughly 50,000 new cases a year including around 325 men.  Or, to put it another way, on average around one woman every 10 minutes and one man a day (a bit more since clinics aren't open in the middle of the night or at weekends!).

I've told my story more times than enough here, so I won't repeat it.  Suffice to say that checking/awareness almost certainly saved my life as I was well below the age for screening.  Indeed many women where I live seem not to be called for initial screening until they are 53 (a quirk of the system that gives a three year window for this)... as I'm still not that old that's pretty scary.

And of course it's not just breast awareness - please do whatever screening is offered and be alert to any vague symptoms including unexplained weight loss, coughs lasting more than 2 weeks, breathlessness, changes in bowel habit, unexplained bleeding etc, and get it checked out. 

It might save your life.  It certainly saved mine.