Your Breast Care Routine Should Include Your Underarms: A Simple 5-Minute Check

Most people associate breast care with looking for a lump. But breast awareness is broader than that, and the area worth noticing does not stop at the edge of the breast.

It includes your upper chest, the area up to your collarbone and your underarms.

This does not need to become a frightening monthly examination. It is simply a short, calm routine that helps you learn what is normal for your body, so you are more likely to notice a change that is new or unusual for you.

What does a breast care routine actually mean?

A practical breast care routine is not a massage, detox or attempt to diagnose yourself. It is breast awareness: becoming familiar with how your breasts, chest and nearby areas normally look and feel.

Breasts naturally vary between people, and they can change with your menstrual cycle, pregnancy, breastfeeding and menopause. One breast may also be slightly different from the other.

That is why the goal is not to compare yourself with a photograph or another person. It is to recognise your own normal.

There is no single perfect checking technique. The routine below is a simple way to make breast awareness easier to remember.

Step 1: Look in the mirror

Stand somewhere with comfortable lighting and look at your breasts or chest with your arms relaxed. Then raise your arms and look again.

Notice whether anything appears different from usual, including:

• a new change in size, shape or position;
• swelling in the breast, upper chest or underarm;
• skin that looks puckered or dimpled;
• unusual redness, darkening or inflammation;
• a nipple that has recently turned inward;
• a rash, crusting or sore around the nipple; or
• unexpected nipple discharge, particularly if it contains blood.

You are not trying to make both sides look identical. You are looking for a change that is new for you.

Step 2: Notice the whole area, not only the breast

Breast tissue and the lymphatic structures associated with it extend beyond the area many people picture as the breast. That is why breast-awareness guidance includes the upper chest to the collarbone and each underarm.

The underarms contain groups of lymph nodes that help filter lymphatic fluid draining from areas including the breast, chest and arm. A new swelling there can have many causes, such as infection or inflammation, and does not automatically mean cancer. However, a new or persistent change deserves medical attention rather than repeated pressing or aggressive massage.

Step 3: Feel for what is normal for you

You may find this easiest in the shower, while getting dressed or when lying down. Use the flat parts of your fingers and a mixture of light and slightly firmer pressure. Do not press so hard that it hurts.

Cover the entire area:

• each breast or side of the chest;
• around and over each nipple;
• up towards the collarbone; and
• into each underarm.

Notice any new lump, thickening or swelling that feels different from the surrounding tissue or from the same area on the other side.

Breasts can feel naturally lumpy or tender, particularly around a menstrual period. Familiarity over time can help you distinguish your usual pattern from a new change. If something concerns you, you do not need to wait for a particular point in your cycle before asking a healthcare professional.

Step 4: Pay attention to persistent discomfort

Breast pain is common and is often not caused by cancer. Hormonal changes, an unsupportive bra, exercise, muscle strain and some medicines can all contribute to discomfort.

Even so, pain in the breast or underarm that is new, localised or does not go away should be discussed with a healthcare professional. The important point is persistence and change from your normal, not trying to decide the cause yourself.

Step 5: Know when to get a change checked

Arrange a medical assessment if you notice a new or unusual change, including:

• a lump or swelling in the breast, chest, underarm or around the collarbone;
• a persistent change in breast size or shape;
• skin dimpling, puckering, redness or inflammation;
• a newly inverted nipple or another nipple change;
• unusual nipple discharge;
• a nipple rash or sore that does not settle; or
• persistent breast or underarm pain.

Most breast changes are not cancer. Still, it is better to have an unexplained change assessed promptly than to monitor it indefinitely or try to treat it with massage, skincare products or wellness devices.

What about deodorant, massage and lymphatic drainage?

Deodorant and antiperspirant have not been shown to cause breast cancer. If a product irritates your underarm skin, stop using it and choose a gentler alternative, but changing deodorant is not a method of preventing breast disease.

Likewise, breast or underarm massage should not be presented as a way to remove toxins, clear blocked lymph nodes or prevent cancer. Gentle touch during an awareness check is different from repeatedly manipulating an unexplained lump or swelling.

If you have had breast surgery, lymph-node surgery, radiotherapy or treatment for lymphoedema, follow the care instructions from your medical team before starting massage or using a wellness device near the area.

Does this replace a mammogram?

No. Breast awareness and breast screening have different roles.

Being familiar with your body can help you notice a change between screening appointments, but it cannot rule out breast cancer. Mammography recommendations differ by country, age, personal history and risk level. Follow the screening programme where you live and discuss your individual risk with a qualified healthcare professional.

People with a strong family history, a known high-risk genetic variant, previous breast cancer or certain previous chest treatments may need a different screening plan.

Make it a calm five-minute habit

You do not need to examine yourself every day or follow an elaborate ritual. Choose a regular time that is easy to remember, such as while getting dressed or showering, and use three simple words:

Touch. Look. Check.

Touch the breast, upper chest and underarm areas. Look for anything that has changed. Check a new or unusual finding with a healthcare professional.

The purpose is not to search anxiously for illness. It is to know your body well enough to recognise when something deserves attention.

5-min breast & underarm care routine

As part of your breast-care routine, you can also spend about 5 minutes gently caring for the breast, side-chest and underarm area. The video below demonstrates a simple routine using a adaptive microcurrent device, with gentle gliding movements around these often-overlooked areas. Think of it as a relaxing body-care practice to complement your regular self-checks – not as a replacement for them.

Video Credit: Jenna from Korea

This article provides general health education and does not replace medical assessment, screening or individual advice.