Sharon Stone wears face mask as she shares photo from hospital bed during mammogram appointment
Sharon Stone has been raising awareness about breast cancer screening by sharing a selfie from her hospital bed while attending a mammogram appointment.
The actress, 62, wore a face mask and sunglasses in the image, which she shared on Instagram, and used the accompanying caption to shout about the importance of getting your breasts checked.
“Getting my mammogram. Have you gotten yours?” she captioned the snapshot.
The Ratched star added a statistic that illustrated how important it was to attend mammogram screenings.
“An annual screening mammogram has decreased death rate of breast cancer by 40%,” she wrote.
Read more: Sarah Harding reveals she is undergoing breast cancer treatment
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Having shared her reason for being in hospital, many fans thanked the actress for promoting the importance of keeping on top of their breast cancer checks.
“Thank you for reminding us. Be well,” one user wrote.
“As a breast cancer survivor, thank you for getting one and making it public to remind people!” another commented.
Others shared their own experiences with breast cancer and reiterated the call to attend breast cancer screenings.
“12 year survivor here. Never miss them anymore,” one woman wrote. “One missed mammogram was the culprit for my not knowing I had cancer. My mother died of this horrible disease.
Watch: Carol McGiffin shares sympathy for Sarah Harding after breast cancer diagnosis.
“Thank you Sharon Stone for sharing and promoting this. To all going through the struggle of cancer my heart truly goes out to all of you.”
“I’m so glad you posted this,” another user commented. “On my mammogram results four years ago they found cancer in my right breast and luckily it was caught in time! Mammograms are so important.”
Read more: The potential cancer sign that many women are ignoring
#WearAMask I can hear you just fine. #StaySafe
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Breast cancer screening in the UK
According to the NHS about 1 in 8 women in the UK are diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime.
If it's detected early, treatment is more successful and there's a good chance of recovery, which is why attending screening for breast caner is so important.
Breast screening involves an X-ray test called a mammogram that can spot cancers when they’re too small to see or feel.
All women aged from 50 to their 71st birthday who are registered with a GP are automatically invited for breast cancer screening every 3 years.
But if you're worried about breast cancer symptoms, such as a lump or an area of thickened tissue in a breast, or you notice that your breasts look or feel different from what's normal for you, the NHS advises you do not wait to be offered screening, but see your GP straight away.
Recent research, released to mark Breast Cancer Awareness Month, revealed one in five women under 45 would be unlikely to visit a doctor if they noticed any unusual changes to their breasts.
With approximately 150 women diagnosed each day, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in the UK.
However, only 20% of women check their breasts less than once a year and 10% don’t check their breasts at all.
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According to Cancer Research UK, breast cancer survival has doubled over the past 40 years, with the survival rate now at 76%. Regular breast checks play a vital role in early detection.
Breast cancer usually presents itself in a number of ways, according to Coppafeel, symptoms include:
Changes in skin texture (including puckering and dimpling)
Swelling of the armpit and around the collarbone
Lumps and thickening around the breast
Constant or unusual pain in the breast or armpit
Nipple discharge
A sudden or unusual change in size or shape
Nipple inversion or nipples that change direction
A rash or crusting of the nipple or surrounding areas
