Liz, Yes there are many changes going on in your breasts when you are pregnant and yes they tend to be sore and lumpy. Let me briefly tell you about my story with breast checking and pregnancy.

When I was preg with my first bub in April 2003 my OB/Gyn did a breast check at my 1st appt when I was 9 weeks prg. She felt "something" that I hadn't noticed and asked me about it but I just thought they were sore and lumpy like all prg breasts. I had had a check by her in the Nov before when I had my Pap smear and nothing was there then. She decided to have it checked by US but told me it was "probably nothing". I wasn't worried at all. I had the US and it came back "inconclusive" so she referred me to a breast specialist to take a biopsy as I couldn't have a mammogram as I was prg. He too wasn't worried so I wasn't worried. The next day my world fell apart when I got the news the nothing to worry about lump was breast cancer!!!

I was then fast tracked into the best breast cancer multi-disciplinary team (I worked for a large pathology practice in Syd at the time) and given my options. I deperately wanted to keep my baby and start the chemo I needed after the baby was born but my Oncologist told me the tumour was very aggressive and there was a high possibilty I wouldn't be alive without treatment to see my baby born. So I terminated my precious baby at 11 weeks, had surgery, chemo and radiotherapy to save my life. I was the hardest decsion of my life to sacrifice my baby to save myself but I had no choice.

Life does however go on, I now have a gorgeous little boy and am expecting my little princess November 14. Next year will be 5 years for me (a milestone) and I feel strong, healthy and positive for a long and happy future.

So the moral of the story is yes check your breasts when you are pregnant. Don't ever assume any lump you might feel is just milk duct or a normal part of lumpy pregnant breasts. Breast cancer doesn't descriminate, it can touch any woman without warning, young, old, pregnant or breastfeeding, it doesn't care.

Please don't think I'm trying to be scarey or overly dramatic, I tell other women of my experience so that it might make other women more aware. If it makes a difference to just one woman in my whole lifetime then I've done the right thing by talking about it.

I was just 32 years young with no family history so an unlikely target, but there it is, it does and can happen when you least expect it.