Cassidy Cancer Center Articles

March is National Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month

Colon cancer is cancer of the large intestine (colon), the lower part of your digestive system. Rectal cancer is located in the last several inches of the colon. Together, they're often referred to as colorectal cancers. In the United States colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer diagnosed in men and women and the second leading cause of death from cancer.

Colorectal Cancer Risk Factors

It is not clear what causes colon cancer in most cases. Colon cancer usually starts from polyps in the colon or rectum. A polyp is a growth that shouldn’t be there. Over time, polyps can turn into cancer. Many risk factors can increase the likelihood of developing colon polyps.

1. People over the age of 50.
2. People with a family history of colon cancer and polyps.
3. African-American race have a greater risk of colon cancer.
4. Lifestyle choices also contribute to colon polyp development. People who smoke, drink excessive amounts of alcohol, eat fatty foods and are overweight are at increased risk, as are people who do not exercise.

Symptoms of Colorectal Cancer

Many people with colon cancer experience no symptoms in the early stages of the disease. Colon cancer can be present for several years before symptoms develop. When symptoms appear, they vary, depending on the cancer’s size and location in your large intestines. Some of the symptoms that might appear are:

1. Blood in your stool (bowel movement).
2. Persistent change in bowel habits.
3. Stomach pains that do not go away.
4. Losing weight and you do not know why.

If you have any of these symptoms, talk to your doctor. These signs and symptoms may be caused by something other than cancer. However, the only way to know what is causing them is to see your doctor.

Types of Screening Tests

Screening tests can find precancerous polyps, so that they can be removed before they turn into cancer. Screening tests can also find colorectal cancer early, when treatment works best. All have benefits and drawbacks to consider as you make your decision. You should talk to your physician about which one is right for you.

Fecal occult blood test is a test to check stool for blood. Small samples of stool are placed on special cards and returned to the doctor or laboratory for testing. Blood in the stool may be a sign of polyps or cancer.

Sigmoidoscopy is a procedure which utilizes a thin, tube like instrument to look inside the rectum and lower colon for polyps, abnormal areas, or cancer.

Colonoscopy is a procedure which utilizes a thin, tube-like instrument to look inside the rectum and entire colon for polyps, abnormal areas, or cancer.

When Should I Begin to Get Screened?

The most effective way to reduce your risk for colorectal cancer is to have regular screening tests beginning at age 50 and continue to be screened at regular intervals. However, you may need to be tested earlier than 50 or more often than other people if:

1. You or a close relative have had colorectal polyps or colorectal cancer.
2. You have inflammatory bowel disease.
3. You have genetic syndromes such as familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) or hereditary non-polyposis colorectal cancer.

Speak with your doctor about when you should begin screening and how often you should be screened. The bottom line is colorectal cancer is the second leading cancer killer in the United States, but it doesn’t have to be. If you’re 50 or older, talk with your doctor about getting screened.

Follow this link to take the Colon Cancer Risk Assessment from the National Cancer Institute

May is Melanoma Cancer Awareness Month

As the weather grows warmer, people’s thoughts turn to outdoor activities and enjoying the sunshine. The Cassidy Cancer Center is encouraging people when they are outside, whether they are spending a day at the beach or a few hours working in their yard, to be aware of the dangers of overexposure to the sun and to practice sun safety.

May is Melanoma Awareness Month; it’s a great time to increase public understanding of the disease, including its prevalence, approaches to screening and prevention, and treatment options. Although melanoma accounts for only 4 to 5 percent of all skin cancer cases, it causes most skin cancer-related deaths. However, if detected and treated in its earliest stages, melanoma is often curable. Skin cancer affects one in five Americans, and more than 1 million new cases are diagnosed each year. Of these cases, more than 65,000 are melanoma, a cancer that claims nearly 11,000 lives each year.

Melanoma begins in cancer cells called melanocytes. Melanocytes are the cells that make melanin, which gives skin its color. Melanin also protects the deeper layers of the skin from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet (UV) rays. When people spend time in the sunlight, the melanocytes make more melanin and cause the skin to tan. The exact cause of all melanomas isn't clear, but exposure to UV radiation, from sunlight or tanning bed lamps greatly increases your risk of developing melanoma.

Risk factors that may increase your risk for skin cancer are; having a fair complexion, history of sunburns, excessive sun exposures, presence of a large number of moles, a family history of melanoma, advanced age and compromised immune system. The first sign of melanoma is often a change in the size, shape, feel, or color of a mole. It can also appear as a new mole, which usually have a blacken area. A skin examination is often part of a routine checkup by a health care provider. People can also check their own skin for new growths or other changes. Changes in skin, such as a change in a mole, should be reported to the health care provider right away. The person maybe referred to a dermatologist who specializes in diseases of the skin.

Most public health information about melanoma stresses the ABCDE’s of Melanoma.

• A - Asymmetry – when half the mole does not match the other half.
• B – Border- when the borders of the mole are ragged irregular.
• C – Color – when the color of the mole varies throughout.
• D – Diameter – if the diameter of the mole is greater than 6 mm.
• E - Evolving – lesion that changes over time.

These guidelines are somewhat helpful, but the problem is that many normal moles are not completely symmetrical in their shape or color. This means that many spots, which seem to have one or more of the ABCDE’s are in fact just ordinary moles and not melanomas. Additionally, some melanomas do not fit this description but may still be spotted by your dermatologist.

The best way to prevent melanoma is to reduce the amount of time you spend in the sun. Use sunscreens (choose an SPF 15 or higher, put it on 30 minutes before going outside and follow product directions for reapplication). Finding shade and covering up; wear a shirt, hat and sunglasses to protect your skin and eyes from the harmful UV rays of the sun. Babies under six months of age should be completely shielded from direct sun exposure. Apply sunscreen to infants over six months of age, and teach older children to make applying sunscreen a regular habit before they go out to play. Avoiding the use of tanning beds or other artificial sunlight sources, tanning beds are not safe alternatives to the sun. When it comes to the early stages of the disease, the future is bright.

Most people with thin, localized melanomas are cured by appropriate surgery. Early detection still remains the best weapon in fighting skin cancer. More treatments are available for more advanced disease. The cure rates continue to rise. Research has produced a greater understanding of melanoma, leading to the development of new drugs. Melanoma patients have a life long risk of developing new melanomas. If a melanoma was thick or had spread to nearby lymph nodes before treatment, there might be a risk of recurrence or metastasis, whereby the original melanoma spreads to surrounding skin or other areas of the body. These risks make follow-up appointments with your dermatologist essential. The earlier melanoma is detected, the better the prognosis.

Breast Cancer Awareness

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women (excluding skin cancer), accounting for 32% of all cancers in women in the United States. In the United States, a woman has a 1 in 8 risk of developing breast cancer during her life time, with an increasing risk in each decade of life after age 40. The incidence of breast cancer has increased, but this is attributable to improved screening and detection. Although the overall incidence of breast cancer has increased, the mortality (death) rate from breast cancer has undergone a gradual decline. This decline in mortality is likely due to numerous factors, including earlier stage at diagnosis, advances in local therapy, and advances in systemic treatment of breast cancer.

read more about Breast Cancer Awareness

For more information on breast cancer
http://www.cancer.org/
http://www.komen.org/
http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/

Prostate Cancer

Cancer of the prostate is the most common cancer among American men and the second leading cause of cancer deaths in men, after lung cancer. Prostate cancer affects 1 in 6 men in the United States.

Prostate cancer does not usually produce any noticeable symptoms in its early stages; so many cases of prostate cancer aren’t detected until the cancer has spread beyond the prostate. For most men, prostate cancer is first detected during a routine screening such as a digital rectal exam or a blood test called prostate specific antigen test (PSA).

Early signs and symptoms of prostate cancer can include urinary problems such as frequent urination, difficulty starting or stopping stream, weak or interrupted flow, and blood in the urine. Having any of these symptoms does not mean you have cancer, but if you notice one or more of them for more than two weeks, you should see your doctor.

Knowing the risk factors for prostate cancer can help you determine when you want to begin prostate cancer screening. The main risk factors include;

• Age: After age 50, your chance of having prostate cancer increases. The American Cancer Society (ACS) recommends a yearly screening test beginning at age 50.
• Race: For reasons that are not clearly understood, African-American men are twice as likely as Caucasian men to develop prostate cancer.
• Family history: A family history of prostate cancer may increase a man’s risk of developing the disease, particularly if his father or brother were diagnosed with prostate cancer or if any relatives were younger than 60 at the time of diagnosis.

You can take actions to reduce your risk of developing prostate cancer by not smoking (or by stopping), exercising, eating a healthy diet, limiting high-fat or processed foods, and maintaining a healthy weight. You can't prevent prostate cancer, but the next best thing you can do to protect your health is to detect it early by getting regular check-ups with your physician.

Anyone’s life that has unexpectedly been interrupted by the devastating diagnosis of cancer, knows the importance of having a top-notch medical team navigating them through these tumultuous times.

For more information about Prostate Cancer http://www.cancer.org/