The popularity of big breasts is evidenced by current slang terms which stress large size and by the diversity of products manufactured and advertised (generally falsely) to increase breast size. Women who are influenced by cultural trends which emphasize the desirable breast profile tend to think that breasts come in two sizes: too small or too big. While small-breasted women might envy their D-cup sisters, women with big breasts have been known to complain about the attention their large breasts garner or about related or resultant physical problems (like shoulder or neck strain). Plastic surgery to increase or decrease size or otherwise alter the appearance of the breast is not infrequently resorted to. Such operations are not without their own risks, however; for example, in the early versions of silicone implants to enlarge breast size, the implants sometimes moved from the breast and caused problems. It must also be realized that sensation may sometimes be permanently lost if nerve endings are severed during surgery.

Although cultural attitudes may value one breast profile over another, women continue to have breasts that vary a great deal in size and appearance from one woman to the next. Often a woman’s two breasts, like her two feet or her facial profiles, will also vary in appearance, with the left breast usually being the larger of the two. As is the case with the genitals, the size of the breast is irrelevant to its capacity for sexual sensitivity. The areola is the most sensitive area, but breast response in general varies from individual to individual. In some women, small hairs grow in the cleavage between the breasts or around the areola.

Regular breast self-examination, in order for a woman to become familiar with her normal breast texture and thus be able to detect the appearance of unusual lumps or other changes, is an important element of preventive health care. A woman is less likely to be fearful about or avoid performing this procedure when she recognizes that self-detection (which usually means early detection) of possibly malignant changes depends on her familiarity with her own body.

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