A few years ago, I was watching the television and I saw an advertisement for something called "Buddy Check." The information was brief and all I got out of it was it dealt with breast cancer. Of course the ASM doesn't know everything and there are times when we hear, see, or feel something and make ill-informed conclusions. In any case, I saw this commercial again and it provoked some interesting images.

Basically, the commercial says, breast cancer is preventable if caught in its early stages, so get a buddy and perform breast exams. Do you have any idea what this limited information does to the ASM mind? I pictured two…no, a group of women getting together once a year…no, actually every month. They would all gather for wine, cheese, pillow fights, and at the end of the night, yank out their knockers and begin fondling each other. This is serious masturbation material.

In any case, I had my annual physical a few months later. As my doctor was snapping off his rubber gloves, I asked him for more information about Buddy Check. He gave me a strange look and walked out of the room. I pursued him into the lobby area and inquired again. He politely informed me that the Buddy Check program was for women only. I was not sure why this bothered me, but I felt as if ASM's were being discriminated against. Of course, I can't imagine a bunch of guys gathering for beers and balls, but maybe there are some men who might benefit from a similar program.

Since I had not been satisfied with my physicians' response, I decided to investigate this program in my usual way. Yes, I asked random women at bars, school, and work for their insights concerning Buddy Check. I was unpleasantly surprised by the responses. Most women were unaware of the program. The ones, who claimed they knew about it, said they would feel uncomfortable asking a friend or family member for that kind of assistance. I was left more distraught, yet determined to discover the details of this process, but where would an ASM go to find that information? The Internet would be my gold mine.

After searching several websites and reviewing the material, I was finally able to satisfy my curiosity. The Buddy Check program is not what I had originally thought. This also disturbed me, because the women I had talked to believed the same thing. It is not a program where women inspect each other's breasts. Basically, it is two or more women who call, write, or simply remind each other to perform self-breast examinations. Notice the word, self. This slaughtered my twisted fantasy, but it made sense. All of us tend to forget about our health. We get caught up in bills, work, family, the stock market, car problems, and life in general. The Buddy Check program taps into a woman's network of friends and family to drop an unobtrusive reminder. To find out more about a program in your area, do a web search on "Buddy Check" and include your state.

For more information on the forms of cancer, prevention, treatment, donations or if you are seeking ways you can help, go to: http://www.cancer.org