Product - Breast Palpation Model

Description

The Breast Palpation Model is vastly superior to anything else one the market. The visual appearance of the skin and nipple, the palpable texture of the breast tissue and the underlying normal anatomical structures are practically indistinguishable from that of a living patient.

Two models are available:
- The first contains two lumps of the size and consistency most commonly detected in the breast.
- The second contains a typical "T1" Breast Cancer, which is designed to correspond both in location and size with a mammogram of an actual patient. Developed for University of Southern Illinois.

Breast Cancer is one of the major diseases affecting women. Most breast cancers appear as a lump in the breast which can be detected through the exercise of a clinical medical skill called "Palpation". Traditionally in medical schools this has been taught to health professionals (Doctors and Nurses) by hands-on experience with actual patients in the hospital, clinic or office. The availability of women willing to serve as learning tools for students is decreasing. The need for a good bench model has existed for some time but the products on the market are so inferior that they have not been widely used.

Doctors, nurses and trained volunteers teach self palpation or "Breast Self-Examination" (BSE) to members of the community by showing them how to examine their own breasts. Among those teaching this skill to the public there is a consensus that the teaching could be improved with a good model.

Benefits

Extreme realism of the model allows accurate teaching. The size of lumps correspond with those most commonly found. The model demonstrates the actual feel of the two most common types of benign (not cancerous) breast lumps detected in North American women. They are easily felt with light gentle pressure. The smaller one is located medial to the nipple (a 1.0 cm typical fibroadenoma which slips around inside its capsule). The large one is located lateral to the nipple (a 2.5 cm benign lump).