CBJ BALANCE Summer 2017

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Your Cancer Screening Roadmap Listen to body signs and get checked out BY CINDY HADISH Carla Vawter Carla Vawter – known in the Corridor as Carla Davis on the radio and as an on-field hostess at Cedar Rapids Kernels baseball games – spent years tanning as she worked in the public eye. “I had heard the dangers, but after many years of doing it, I had this, ‘it won’t happen to me’ mentality,” she said. “Several years later, I noticed I had a bump on my nose that wasn’t going away.” Ms. Vawter went to a pre-cancer screening, where several areas of concern were noted, followed by an appointment with a dermatologist. She was diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma on her back and arm, both of which were removed, and actinic keratoses – rough, scaly patches – on her face, which were frozen off with liquid nitrogen. Nonmelanoma skin cancer – the type Ms. Vawter had – is the most common cancer in the United States, but while early detection of the more deadly melanoma is less likely to cause death when treated early, health officials do not recommend regular skin cancer screenings for people not at high risk. Navigating cancer screening recommendations from various agencies can be confusing as not all are the same. The American Cancer Society, for example, offers guidelines that differ from other entities. Experts note that the best course of action is to watch your body for changes and discuss concerns with your doctor. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention offers the following cancer screening recommendations from the Preventive Services Task Force, a panel of national experts in prevention and evidence-based medicine. CBJ BREAST CANCER n A mammogram, an X-ray of the breast, is the best way to find breast cancer early, when it is easier to treat and before it is big enough to feel or cause symptoms. Having regular mammograms can lower the risk of dying from breast cancer. n Women who are 50-74 years old and at average risk for breast cancer should get a mammogram every two years. n Women ages 40-49 years old should talk to their doctor or other health care professionals about when to start and how often to get a mammogram and should weigh the benefits and risks of screening tests when deciding whether to begin getting mammograms at age 40. n Breast Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) uses magnets and radio waves to take pictures of the breast. MRI is used along with mammograms to screen women who are at high risk for getting breast cancer. Because breast MRIs may appear abnormal even when there is no cancer, it is not used for women at average risk. LUNG CANCER n Yearly lung cancer screening with low-dose computed tomography is recommended for people with a history of heavy smoking, who smoke now or have quit within the past 15 years and are between 55-80 years old. n Heavy smoking means smoking one pack a day for 30 years or two packs a day for 15 years. n Lung cancer screening has at least three risks: false-positive result that can lead to follow-up tests and surgeries that are not needed and may have more risks; cases of cancer that may never have caused a problem for the patient and radiation from repeated tests can cause cancer in otherwise healthy people. n Annual screenings can stop when the person turns 81, or has not smoked in 15 years, or develops a health problem that makes him or her unwilling or unable to have surgery if lung cancer is found. 18 CBJ BALANCE - FALL 2017
COLORECTAL (COLON) CANCER Adults ages 50-75 should be screened for colorectal cancer on an annual basis or up to once every 10 years, depending on which screening method is chosen. OVARIAN CANCER There is no evidence that any screening test reduces deaths from ovarian cancer. STOOL TESTS The fecal occult blood test and fecal immunochemical test are done once per year, using a test kit to obtain a small amount of stool that is checked at a lab. With a FIT-DNA test, an entire bowel movement is collected and sent to a lab to be checked for cancer cells and done once every one or three years. FLEXIBLE SIGMOIDOSCOPY The doctor puts a short, thin, flexible, lighted tube into your rectum to check for polyps or cancer inside the rectum and lower third of the colon; performed every five years, or every 10 years with a FIT every year. COLONOSCOPY The doctor uses a longer, thin, flexible, lighted tube to check for polyps or cancer inside the rectum and the entire colon and can find and remove most polyps and some cancers; performed every 10 years. COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY (CT) COLONOGRAPHY (VIRTUAL COLONOSCOPY) X-rays and computers are used to produce images of the entire colon, which are displayed on a computer screen for the doctor to analyze; performed every five years. n Adults ages 76-85 should ask their doctor if they should be screened. n People at an increased risk of developing colorectal cancer should talk to their doctors about when to begin screening, which test is right for them and how often to get tested. n Colorectal cancer almost always develops from precancerous polyps (abnormal growths) in the colon or rectum. Screening tests can find precancerous polyps, so they can be removed before they turn into cancer and can find colorectal cancer early, when treatment works best. CERVICAL CANCER n Women should start getting regular Pap tests at age 21. The Pap test, which screens for cervical cancer, is one of the most reliable and effective cancer screening tests available. n Women ages 21-65 should be screened with a Pap test every three years, or, for women ages 30-65, every five years with a Pap test in combination with human papillomavirus (HPV) testing. n The Pap test can find abnormal cells in the cervix that may turn into cancer. Pap tests also can find cervical cancer early, when the chance of being cured is very high. n The only cancer for which the Pap test screens is cervical cancer. It does not screen for ovarian, uterine, vaginal or vulvar cancers. So even if you have a Pap test regularly, if you notice any signs or symptoms that are unusual for you, see a doctor to find out why you’re having them. SKIN CANCER PROSTATE CANCER The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force has concluded that there is not enough evidence to recommend for or against routine screening (total-body examination by a clinician) to find skin cancers early for people who do not have a history of skin cancer and who do not have any suspicious moles or other spots. The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends against prostate specific antigen (PSA)-based screening for men who have no symptoms. CBJ BALANCE - FALL 2017 19
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Page 9 and 10: Immunotherapy uses the body’s own
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CBJ BALANCE Summer 2017

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