Breast Cancer Care launches Alexa skill to aid self-examinations

Breast Cancer Care has become the next charity to launch an Alexa skill, designed to guide women through self-examination and provide advice on how to check for breast cancer symptoms.

Earlier this week, the British Heart Foundation announced it was the first charity in the world to launch an Alexa skill, enabling people to donate money and items through any Alexa-enabled device.

Breast Cancer Care has now launched its new skill, called Take care of your breasts, using its app BECCA – an app which offers tips on coping with the long-term impact of breast cancer, covering issues such as diet, exercise, mental health and body image.

Using Alexa, women can now be guided through a self-examination through a step-by-step guide, which gives the user a series of prompts to direct them through the process.

The user can respond to questions with ‘yes’ or ‘no’ and Alexa will advise on whether or not the user should contact their GP based on the results.

Breast Cancer Care clinical nurse specialist, Addie Mitchell said: “We know a third of women in the UK aren't regularly checking their breasts, so having Alexa on hand to guide them will help empower many with the confidence to build this potentially lifesaving habit into their routine.”

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