The fingers can be moved in several patterns to check the breast for abnormalities:
Circles: The fingers are moved in small circles around the breast, beginning at the nipple and gradually moving outward.
Wedge: The breast is envisioned as a pie divided into equal wedges, and the fingers are moved from the outer edge of the breast toward the nipple to palpate each wedge.
Lines: The fingers are moved up and down in vertical lines, going from the underarm area to down below the breast, and repeating the up-and-down motion until the entire breast and underarm area has been checked.