Are you a man and over 40? If yes, you must go for prostate cancer screening now. Also, women, from their teen are expected to engage in self-breast examination monthly and do mammogram once a year, to detect cancer early.
A consultant pathologist and lecturer at the Department of Pathology and Forensic Medicine, Lagos State University College of Medicine (LASUCOM), Dr. Soyemi Sunday gave the advice at the Public Lecture/Annual Dinner by Ivory League of Progress, a social club based in Lagos.
Soyemi said prostate cancer, or carcinoma of the prostate, is the development of cancer in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. It is the number one killer of black men.
“Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, some grow relatively quickly. The cancer cells may spread from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly the bones and lymph nodes. It may initially cause no symptoms, but in later stages it can lead to difficulty urinating, blood in the urine, or pain in the pelvis, back or when urinating. An ailment, benign prostatic hyperplasia, may produce similar symptoms.
Other late symptoms may include tiredness due to low level of red blood cells,” he said.
He listed factors that increase the risk of prostate cancer to include older age, a family history of the disease, and race.
Soyemi said: “About 99 percent of cases occur in those over the age of 50. Having a first-degree relative with the disease increases the risk between two to third fold. But if detected early, it can be treated. Then people can live with and die with it not die from it.”
Soyemi suggested that screening should start as ageing sets in.
“From age 50 for men who are at average risk of prostate cancer and are expected to live at least 10 more years. Age 45 for men at high risk of developing prostate cancer. This includes African Americans and men who have a first-degree relative (father, brother, or son) diagnosed with prostate cancer at an early age (younger than age 65). Age 40 for men at even higher risk (those with more than one first-degree relative who had prostate cancer at an early age). After this discussion, those men who want to be screened should be tested with the prostate-specific antigen blood test. Digital rectal exam may also be done as a part of screening. If, after this discussion, a man is unable to decide if testing is right for him, the screening decision can be made by the health care provider, who should take into account the patient’s general health preferences and values.Assuming no prostate cancer is found as a result of screening, the time between future screenings depends on the results of the prostate-specific antigen blood test.”
He continued: “Men who choose to be tested who have a prostate-specific antigen of less than 2.5 ng/mL may only need to be retested every two years. Screening should be done yearly for men whose PSA level is 2.5 ng/mL or higher. Because prostate cancer often grows slowly, men without symptoms of prostate cancer who do not have a 10-year life expectancy should not be offered testing since they are not likely to benefit. Overall health status, and not age alone, is important when making decisions about screening.’
For women, Soyemi said think pink, live green should be the mantra, “Think pink, Live green is a way of living that aims to help women reduce their risk of breast cancer or the disease coming back in survivors. It’s also a way for women living with advanced disease to make the healthiest choices possible. Good healthy lifestyle including exercise is recommended.”
Soyemi explained that the term “breast cancer” refers to a malignant tumor that has developed from cells in the breast. Usually breast cancer either begins in the cells of the lobules, which are the milk-producing glands, or the ducts, the passages that drain milk from the lobules to the nipple. Less commonly, breast cancer can begin in the stromal tissues, which include the fatty and fibrous connective tissues of the breast. Over time, cancer cells can invade nearby healthy breast tissue and make their way into the underarm lymph nodes, small organs that filter out foreign substances in the body. If cancer cells get into the lymph nodes, they then have a pathway into other parts of the body. The breast cancer’s stage refers to how far the cancer cells have spread beyond the original tumor.”
He advised that though studies have found that women have a 12 percent lifetime risk of developing breast cancer, “your individual risk may be higher or lower than that. Individual risk is affected by many different factors, such as family history, reproductive history, lifestyle, environment, and others. Self breast examination or mammogram screening is good way to be very sure in early detection.”
The reasons? He explained, “Initially, breast cancer may not cause any symptoms. A lump may be too small for you to feel or to cause any unusual changes you can notice on your own. Often, an abnormal area turns up on a screening mammogram (X-ray of the breast), which leads to further testing. In some cases, however, the first sign of breast cancer is a new lump or mass in the breast that you or your doctor can feel. A lump that is painless, hard, and has uneven edges is more likely to be cancer. But sometimes cancers can be tender, soft, and rounded. So it’s important to have anything unusual checked by your doctor.”
He said any of the following unusual changes in the breast can be a symptom of breast cancer; swelling of all or part of the breast, skin irritation or dimpling, breast pain, nipple pain or the nipple turning inward, redness, scaliness, or thickening of the nipple or breast skin, a nipple discharge other than breast milk or a lump in the underarm area.
“These changes also can be signs of less serious conditions that are not cancerous, such as an infection or a cyst. It’s important to get any breast changes checked out promptly by a doctor,’ he said.
