Strictly Come Dancing star Amy Dowden has joined forces with Gemma Ainger to launch a new app called My Breast Friend.
The app’s mission is to help people check in with their bodies. Simple, supportive, and completely free, the app sends a monthly reminder to perform a self-check and lets users log any changes quickly and privately. The tone is warm, positive and stigma-free – because checking your boobs, chest or pecs shouldn’t feel scary or clinical.
My Breast Friend was created by Gemma Ainger, a marketing professional from Guernsey who was diagnosed with breast cancer at 42, after she noticed something unusual in the shower, although she rarely checked herself, felt healthy and had no family history.
Weeks later, Gemma was diagnosed with stage 3 invasive breast cancer that had already spread to her lymph nodes. During her surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy, and in remission, she put the energy that she had into creating something that could make a real difference and have a positive impact on lots of lives.
From Gemma’s experience, if she was checking regularly then perhaps she could have caught it sooner – trying to prevent others from being in a similar position was one of her main motivations when creating the app. My Breast Friend was designed to make monthly self-checks quick, easy, and completely normal, creating positive reinforcement around breast health, and embed a really important routine.
The app has been launched in collaboration with breast cancer survivor Amy Dowden MBE, star of BBC One’s Strictly Come Dancing. From her own diagnosis, Amy knows the importance of early detection of breast cancer and has since been using her public platform to promote this message.
Speaking about the app, Amy says: “When Gemma told me about her plans for My Breast Friend it was exactly what I had been looking for – something simple and positive people can do to remind them to check monthly, know their bodies, and act early. I immediately wanted to collaborate with her to make the app the best it can be and reach as many people as possible. I know how vital it is that breast cancer is detected early and if you’re not checking your chest then who is? It doesn’t matter how old you are, there’s no reason not to download this app, it could literally save your life.”
“It’s not about fear or cancer,” Gemma adds. “It’s about self-care, awareness and confidence. We should all know what’s normal for our own bodies and we should all be proactively looking after ourselves – it’s one of the simplest ways we can protect our health.
“I’m so excited to have Amy join me in launching My Breast Friend! Her breast cancer journey is similar to mine, and through first-hand experience coupled with so much enthusiasm and drive for breast health awareness, I truly believe that together, we can make a huge difference. We’re on a mission to make self-checks normal by turning the My Breast Friend reminders into a lifelong routine!”
The app was built with medical input from leading breast specialists, legal guidance from Appleby Global Law Firm, and the technical expertise of digital agency, Indulge Media, ensuring that it’s medically responsible, empowering and safe to use.
With 1 in 7 women likely to develop breast cancer in their lifetime and nearly half of women in the UK admitting they don’t check regularly, My Breast Friend aims to make self-exams as routine as brushing your teeth.
Gemma’s long-term goal is to bring My Breast Friend into schools, universities and workplaces, and to collaborate with health and lifestyle brands that share the same message – early detection saves lives. The app will also use anonymised data to track awareness trends and measure whether more people are checking regularly.
“Not all breast cancer can be spotted from a self-exam but wouldn’t you prefer to be in a position to know your normal and act fast? I see this as a superpower that we should all have. Starting in our twenties, if more people get into the habit of checking through their lifetime, we can catch more cases early, resulting in better, more positive outcomes” Gemma says. “That’s what this is all about – being proactive about breast health and feeling confident in spotting changes.”
My Breast Friend is available to download now on the App Store and Google Play. Check out the official website and Instagram pages for more information.
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