It is, however, an emotional emergency. All cancer has the ability to induce a feeling of dread, but somehow, breast cancer is the worst.

Perhaps this is because it is fairly common, and most of us know or have known people who have struggled with it, survived it, or lost their lives to it. We find it hard to ignore, yet harder still to think about.

We look at the relevance of the mind and emotions in the fight against cancer, at a personal level and beyond that as well.

Health behaviour

Health behaviour is a subject of great interest to psychologists and doctors. Even people who usually take good care of their health, by visiting the dentist, eating well and getting their cholesterol checked often baulk at these simple and relatively inexpensive exercises in early diagnosis of breast cancer.

They may rationalise that there is little use: "If I get it, I get it". This belief is irrational and may reflect a general sense of helplessness about cancer.

Perhaps because the media is so full of stories (often not very well founded or taken out of context) about substances in the environment which may cause or prevent cancer, people are getting the overall message that the health of our cells is something completely unpredictable and beyond control.

Nothing, however, could be further from the truth! There is a big difference between "getting it" and giving it time to spread; and "getting it" and getting rid of it quickly!

The difference can be measured in years, perhaps decades, of life, not to mention the quality of that life. So the first step in psychological care of the cancer patient is to get her to the people who can offer early treatment. Who needs help with this first, essential step?

That crucial first step

Studies have found that certain groups of women are more likely than others to delay reporting a suspicious lump to their doctor. Older age groups, who are more at risk in the first place, are Number One in the avoidance stakes.

It may be a generational thing: The older generation were raised not to complain or make a fuss. A small lump or change in the breast seems such an insignificant thing; it's easy to let a lifelong training to keep quiet about your problems prevent you from recognising that this particular small thing should not be ignored. Older women may have less interest generally in the outside of their bodies, including their breasts.

Society, including the women, tends to regard the female breast as a sex object, occasionally as something to do with babies, and it may not be easy to start thinking of it as the object of health concern, like our teeth or our bowels or our heart.

Those women who are pass their childbearing years, and who don't think of themselves as sexually interesting any more, may express this by not showing an interest in the condition of their own breasts, bracketing them in general category of "casualties of aging".

Furthermore, if a woman is no longer having menstrual cycles with regular breast changes and a natural cue to examine the breasts, it may be easier to simply forget about self-examination or fail to keep it up regularly.

Older age groups are not the only ones who rarely make a fuss. People who find it difficult to get adequate medical attention, are also not in the habit of reporting small changes in their bodies. If they have to take a whole day off work to queue at a clinic, what else can we expect?

In addition, they may fear the doctor or medical procedures; have been subject to conditioning not to care for themselves or pay attention to themselves; or be in family situations where they do not receive support or much respect as a woman. Many people these days don't have medical aid, or money for check-ups - so they only visit doctors when they are not able to cope with family responsibilities or work.

If their problem is cancer, that is way too late. Employers need to be sympathetic and supportive when their staff want time off for medical check-ups, and encourage them to go for check-ups. It makes sense: If someone on your staff or in your household has untreated cancer, they may end up costing you, the employer, much more in sick leave or in the event that they have to be boarded.

Denying reality

Some people have the kind of attitude or personality that is easily tricked into a state of denial, and they use denial as an habitual way of coping with fears and problems.

They may deny that they have a lump, thinking that perhaps it comes and goes, or avoid thinking about it.

They may admit that there is a lump in their breast but deny the significance of it, perhaps thinking that they've had lumps before that turned out to be nothing bad, or telling themselves that breast lumps are normal.

They are normal, but if you get to know the "landscape" of your own breast tissue, you'll know when something is new; and if you're in doubt, rationality says check it out.

'Denier types' may even accept that their problem could be dangerous and make a vague plan to do something about it (because they know they should), only they somehow never get round to carrying out that plan.

Such individuals are helped by anything that brings the reality of that lump or body change to the front of their awareness (and keeps it there). Hearing other people talk about breast cancer prevention, or sharing details about the check-up they had, might encourage the reluctant one to get moving.

Situations that encourage people to share, in a safe place, about their worries and to speak them out in words, can also help.

For instance, groups of female friends, church groups, or healing groups can open the way. Asking for prayer about the lump or "going forward" at a healing meeting, might be a first step. Even if it does not result in miraculous disappearance of the lump, the fact that she has taken that step empowers her to do the next logical thing and talk to her doctor.

Most breast lumps turn out to be benign, yet that is no reason to keep yours to yourself. If this is you, reading this, don't put that doctor's visit off any longer. There will never be a better moment to get this checked out and it will never get any easier than it is right now!

Anxiety and depression

People who experience anxiety and depression are also less likely to report a lump, and according to some research they may be more vulnerable to cancer as well. There is good research linking cancer and stress, or at least the progress of that cancer and the body's ability to fight it through the natural immune system.

It has been convincingly shown that psychological interventions aimed at reducing stress have helped women to fight their tumours. A strong immune system aids the body in slowing down tumour growth, and promotes better general health.

Furthermore, the same study also found that when women received training in relaxation, help with coping strategies, training in stress reduction, and "social support" (that is, a listening ear and being part of a caring group), the women were more able to tolerate their chemotherapy.

This is important, because patients often need dosages to be reduced due to side effects like severe nausea — and those with severe side effects are also more likely to halt the chemo treatment. If a patient can be helped to tolerate chemotherapy, she is more likely to get the maximum benefit from it.

It may well be that one of the main reasons why "alternative" treatments are so helpful for cancer patients is that they do address these emotional issues in a way that Western style "allopathic" medicine has often failed to do. It really makes a difference.