Issue link: http://viewer.e-digitaledition.com/i/549713
NEARLY ONE IN FIVE AMERICAN MEN WILL HAVE PROSTATE CANCER DURING HIS LIFETIME. DO YOU KNOW THE RISK FACTORS AND SYMPTOMS? LADIES, CELEBRATE BREAST CANCER AWARENESS MONTH THIS OCTOBER BY ENSURING YOU'RE UP-TO-DATE ON YOUR MAMMOGRAPHY SCREENING SCHEDULE. THE HOPEFUL NEWS: Breast cancer mortality rates have been decreasing for approximately 25 years, likely due, in part, to greater public awareness of the disease and more women getting screened, according to the American Cancer Society. Breast cancer, however, remains a formidable problem—when it comes to malignant disease, only lung cancer claims more women's lives. What increases your vulnerability to breast cancer? Unfortunately, the most significant risk factors are out of your control, including advancing age (typically, beyond age 55), genetic mutations, usually in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, and personal or family history of cancer. To detect breast cancer early, when it is easiest to treat, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends every-other- year mammograms from age 50 to 74. Screening guidelines, however, are not one-size-fits-all. "Every woman should have an open, honest discussion with her primary care provider regarding her breast cancer risk," says Georgia Smith, RN, OCN, Director of the Regional Cancer Center at HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital. "The ideal screening program is one designed just for you by the medical professional who knows you best." FALL INTO BREAST CANCER AWARENESS SPECIAL SCREENING FOR MEN ONLY SKIN CANCER is more common among men in the United States than prostate cancer, which affects the prostate gland in the male reproductive system. Sixty percent of prostate cancer cases are diagnosed after age 65. In addition to advancing age, family history of prostate cancer, inherited genetic mutations, obesity, and smoking may increase risk of the disease. African-Americans are more likely to have prostate cancer than other populations. Prostate cancer can cause a variety of urinary symptoms, but they often are not present early on. Signs include trouble initiating or sustaining urination, frequent or sudden urges to urinate, blood in the stream, pain during urination, and persistent back or pelvic discomfort. Your physician can determine whether symptoms result from prostate cancer or another condition. If cancer is the diagnosis, do not panic. "Many prostate cancers are slow-growing," says Georgia Smith, RN, OCN, Director of the Regional Cancer Center at HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital. "Sometimes, the best course of action is watching and waiting to see whether the disease progresses enough to require surgery, radiation or hormone therapy." You and your primary care provider (PCP) should decide whether prostate cancer screening is right for you. Need a PCP? Visit sacredhearteauclaire.org or stjoeschipfalls.com and click "Find a Provider." HSHS Sacred Heart is home to Tomosynthesis, an imaging technology that builds on the advances of digital mammography by taking multiple pictures from many angles, allowing radiologists to view three-dimensional images of the tissue from all sides. 1 3 S TJ O E S C H I P F A L L S . C O M