34 - CAPE GAZETTE, Friday, September 13 - September 19,1996
Cancer Watch
Men: prostate cancer screenings
essential for early detection
An estimated 244,000 American
men will get prostate cancer this
year and more than 40,000 men
will die from the disease.
The American Urological Asso-
ciation, Prostate Cancer Education
Council and the American Cancer
Society recommend that men
between the ages of 50 and 70
undergo an annual prostate evalu-
ation. Men who are part of popu-
lation groups with high rates of
prostate cancer, including African
Americans and those with family
history of the disease, should
begin these annual tests at age 40.
"Because men usually don't
show any symptoms of prostate
cancer until it's too late, the PSA
(Prostate Specific Antigen blood
test) and DRE (digital rectal
exam) are our most important
tools of early diagnosis," said E.
David Crawford, M.D., Prostate
Cancer Education Council chair-
man and associate director for
clinical activities at the University
of Colorado Cancer Center•
Crawford said refinements in
PSA testing that take age ranges
and yearly changes in PSAs into
consideration have made the test
more effective at detecting cancer.
"Once prostate cancer is detected,
determining how to treat it is a
complicated decision involving
many factors," said Crawford.
Among major considerations
when prostate cancer is diagnosed
are the age of the patient and the
stage of the disease. Men age 70
or older, for example, must weigh
their average life expectancy
against the complications that
could occur with any treatment.
For a 70-year-old man, these
risks range from a 50 percent
chance of impotence to a two per-
cent chance of incontinence after
either surgery or radiation therapy.
Because prostate cancer grows
men will develop prostate cancer
in their lifetime?
A•5 B. 10 C•31 D. 92
2. Prostate cancer rates are
% higher for black men
than white men.
A. 5% B• 40% C• 250 D. same
3. Prostate cancer is the __
leading cause of cancer deaths in
men.
A• tenth B. fifth C• second D• first
4. At what age should all men
begin having a yearly prostate
screening?
A. 65 B. 35 C•50 D. 40
5. At what age should black men
begin having a yearly prostate
screening?
A. 65 B. 35 C•50 D. 40
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slowly in older men, doctors will
frequently recommend not treating
the cancer, but will instead recom-
mend "watchful waiting."
Men in their 50s and 60s, on the
other hand, have a longer life
expectancy and must weigh the
potential complications of treat-
ment against the risk of doing
nothing. For example, a 50-year-
old man faces a 10 percent chance
of impotence and a less than one
percent chance of incontinence
after either surgery or radiation
therapy.
Prostate Cancer Awareness
Week is organized by the Prostate
Education Council, a consortium
of physicians, health educators
and prostate cancer patient advo-
cates dedicated to increasing
prostate cancer awareness among
men and the women in their lives.
Since 1989, when the first round
of mass screenings took place in
association with Prostate Cancer
Awareness Week, researchers
have noted the first signs of a turn-
around in the number of cases of
prostate cancer that are now
detected in the early and potential-
ly curable stages of the disease.
In recognition of Prostate Can-
cer Awareness Week, Sept. 23 to
29, Milford Memorial Hospital, in
conjunction with the American
Cancer Society, will hold free or
low-cost early detection of
prostate cancer screenings.
The exams will consist of a
DRE and a PSA, each of which
takes about one minute to per-
form. The combination of these
two tests is the most effective
method for detecting prostate can-
cer at an early stage, before it has
escaped the prostate gland.
Milford Memorial Hospital will
provide the exams at its Outpatient
Services Center on Friday, Sept.
27 from 3 to 6 p.m. and on Satur-
day, Sept. 28 from 9 a.m. until
noon.
In order to participate in the
screenings, men must be 50 and
older, or 40 and older if there is a
family history of prostate cancer
or are African American, who
have not had a PSA test in the past
12 months and who have not had
or are not currently being treated
for prostate cancer.
To schedule an exam, call
Heather at the American Cancer
Society, at 1 (800) 227-2345.
Leave a message and calls will be
returned within two days to set up
appointments. Appointments are
limited and available only on a
first come, fast served basis.
Cops to arrest
locals Sept. 19
The Keystone Cops will arrest
Cape Region residents at their
places of employment on Thurs-
day, Sept. 19 to support the Mus-
cular Dystrophy Association
(MDA).
Prisoners are expected to raise
$1,000 bail in order to be released
from the Atlantic Sands Hotel jail-
house. Prisoners' records will not
be wiped clean until the bail is
posted, but prisoners may solicit
friends and colleagues for contri-
butions for the bail. However, jail-
birds are restricted to only one
phone call. (Cellular phones will
be available.)
The round-up is sponsored by
Evergreen Tall Cedar Forest Lock-
up Day. To contribute bail money
or for more information, call Laura
Tenner, warden, at (410) 494-
7106.
MDA will use funds raised in its
ongoing commitment to research-
ing the disease and providing ser-
vices to those afflicted with MD.
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