Yes, we at Girl Guides take our lady-lumps very, very seriously.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and this means more than just wearing your pink ribbons. It's about educating people (men and women, alike) and getting the message that breast cancer is serious, but if detected early enough, it's curable.

It's time to face facts:

The incidence of breast cancer among South African women is on the rise - quickly becoming one of the most common cancers among women in our country -  it is the most prevalent cancer amongst white and Asian women and the second most common cancer among black and coloured women. Whilst one in eight women are affected by breast cancer, it's important to bear in mind:

• Early detection of the condition can lead to effective treatment and a positive prognosis: about 90% of patients live full lives for many years after diagnosis when breast cancer is detected at the early stages.
• Regular self-breast examination and regular mammograms are key to early detection.
• Presenting yourself early for treatment may result in more effective treatment, leading to a reduction in pain and suffering and a significant decrease in the loss of life.

Here's what you need to do:

1. Learn how to give yourself a breast examination. Do it regularly. Take it seriously. If you feel something, get it checked out. It's better safe, than sorry.
2. If you're over the age of 30, you need to be having annual mammograms.
3. Talk about it with your friends, sisters, mothers, aunts and loved ones. Have an open discussion about it. Find out about the prevalence of the disease in your family, so that you know if you need to be hyper-vigilant.
4. Educate yourself about it. Read about its prevention, the treatment and share this knowledge with others.

After all, that's what Breast Cancer Awareness month is about, isn't it?

Here's what we want to do:

1. We want to reward you, for helping to raise awareness around breast cancer. We have two pink Nokia C3 handsets* to give away, in honour of Breast Cancer Awareness month, in conjunction with Nokia Ringaz. The C3 comes with  a pouch and a bluetooth headset.

Here's how to win this hot-pink little number:

1. Go to the Girl Guides Facebook Page and Like it. Yes, like it with a capital L.
2. Leave us a comment on the facebook page answering the following question:

"What do your breasts mean to you, as a woman?"**

It's really that simple. Two winners will be selected randomly on Wednesday 27th of October.

*For every device sold, Nokia and AutoPage will be making a donation to the Breast Health Foundation.
** And yes, this compo is for the girls only. Sorry, boys. ;)