Telling somebody that they have cancer is one of the hardest parts. Fortunately for a lot of cancers, there are things that you can do to catch them early.
Keep reading because we are going to go over what you need to do to screen for the most common cancer symptoms in women. And early signs of cancer in women.
In today’s article, we are going to go over the most common recommended screening tests that you should be doing to catch cancer early.
Early signs of cancer in women
Cancer is a broad word that encompasses a lot of different types of problems but the word is universal in its ability to cause fear and worry.
We all likely have either had or known somebody who has had some sort of cancer.
Doctors asked frequently if they could just run a test to see if somebody had it. Unfortunately, no test like this exists but certain cancers are more common and they have found that certain tests can help catch those early.
Different types of cancer in women and their early signs.
#1. Breast cancer
The first one we are going to talk about is Breast Cancer. This is the most common cancer in women there are over 266,000 women diagnosed with invasive breast cancer and over 40,000 deaths a year in the United States.
But the good news is, that we have found that early detection gives women the best chance to avoid dying from it.
The most effective screening method is the mammogram. There are varying recommendations that are given depending on what society you are listening to.
For simplicity, I’m going to go over the American Cancer Society’s recommendations but realize that there are some slight variations between different groups so talk to your doctor about what is best for you.
Overall, they recommend that Women between 40-44, should be given the option to start screening with a mammogram every year. Between 45-55, they recommend getting one every year.
Women 55 and older can switch to a mammogram every other year as long as they are otherwise healthy and expected to live at least 10 more years.
If you have a very strong family history, meaning you have sisters or a mother with breast cancer, or you have other genetic tendencies or other issues that make you at high risk then you should talk to your doctor about other options as some may benefit from getting a breast MRI instead.
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#2. Cervical cancer
The next cancer we are going to talk about is Cervical Cancer. Over 13,000 people were diagnosed with invasive cervical cancer in 2018 with over 4000 deaths but this is an easily preventable cancer with proper screening.
Cervical cancer is caused by a sexually transmitted virus called the Human Papilloma Virus. This is often referred to as HPV. The way we screen for cervical cancer is by performing a Pap Smear.
This is where you take a brush and take some samples of cells from the cervix to make sure they are not cancerous. How often you do this depends on your age. There are a few differing recommendations on this but most recommend that women start screening at age 21.
From the age of 21-29, they recommend doing a pap smear every 3 years. Now if you are between the age of 30-65 you have 3 options, you can do a pap smear every 3 years, or your doctor can do a pap and add a test for the HPV virus at the same time, which is good for 5 years, or you can just test for the HPV virus every 5 years.
Women over the age of 65 who have had 3 consecutive negative pap smears with two consecutive negative HPV tests should be able to stop screening.
And those who have had a total hysterectomy for non-cancerous reasons do not need to be screened.
There always can be some individual differences in recommendations so make sure you talk to your doctor about what is right for you.
#3. Colon cancer
The next one we are going to talk about is Colon Cancer. Colon Cancer can be deadly. It’s estimated that over 140,000 people are diagnosed every year with it and over 50,000 people die.
The problem with colon cancer is that most often it doesn’t have symptoms until it’s much more advanced.
The statistic that I just shared is good evidence of that. Out of the 140,000 people diagnosed with it, 1/3 are likely to die from it. That’s why it’s so important to do some sort of screening.
When we make recommendations for screening for colon cancer we need to divide people into risk categories. We divide patients into two categories:
High Risk and Average Risk.
High-risk patients are those who have certain genetic conditions and those with a strong family history. We consider a family history as 1st-degree relative-meaning parents and siblings who have been diagnosed with colon cancer.
If you fall in this category, then you should get a colonoscopy at least 10 years before when your family member was diagnosed with colon cancer or the age 45-50 whichever is earlier depending on what guidelines you are following.
If you find yourself in this category then you need to be talking to your doctor about when and how you should be screened.
For those who are in the average risk category, everybody else who doesn’t fit in the high-risk category recommendations has everybody starting to get screened at age 45.
Other societies recommend age 50 so check with your doctor and your insurance company to see what is right for you and what they will cover.
Screening can include testing your stool for blood every year, doing DNA testing on your stool every 3 years, CT Colonography every 5 years, doing a flexible sigmoidoscopy-where they examine the last half of your colon every 5 years, or getting a Colonoscopy where they examine your entire colon every 10 years.
All these tests are felt to be effective. There are certainly pros and cons to each so talk with your doctor about what age is best for you and what type of test is going to be best.
If you are over the age of 75, then you should discuss with your doctor, whether continued screening is going to be worthwhile.
So, if you are between the age of 45-50 and older or you have a family history of colon cancer you need to be asking your doctor about when and how they recommend you be screened.
#4. Lung cancer
One of the newer recommendations that have come out over the past few years is screening for lung cancer.
Those to whom this applies are current or prior smokers who have had at least a 30-pack-year history of smoking.
Now, what is a packed year you may ask?
Well, that’s a term that we use to describe the cumulative amount of smoking that a person has done. 30-pack-year history would be an average of a pack a day for 30 years.
So if you are smoking 2 packs a day if you do the math then it only takes you 15 years to have the same smoking exposure giving you a 30-pack-year history.
So if you have smoked for that long and are currently smoking or if you have quit within the past 15 years you would fall into this category.
Now if you are in this category and you are otherwise healthy and in the age range of 55 to 74 then it is recommended that you discuss the pros and cons of undergoing an annual low-dose CT scan once a year.
This is a fancy X-ray where they lay you on a table and run you through a scan to look for early evidence of changes in lung cancer. This isn’t for everybody and is not without its risks so it should be discussed with your doctor to see if it is appropriate for you.
Final words
So believe it or not, among all the cancers that are out there, those are the ones that we can do early screening for in women.
The problem is that we don’t have great tools to consistently and accurately go looking for them on everybody.
So the best advice I can give on catching other cancers early is to pay attention to your body. If something is changing in you, if you don’t feel right, if you have a pain or something else that isn’t going away or getting worse then go in and get it checked out.
Cancer certainly is not a diagnosis that anybody wants to fight. Nor is it a diagnosis that I look forward to giving. So by taking these simple steps to get appropriate screening and by paying attention to changes in your body, You can have the best chance of catching these cancers before they can cause a big problem.
If you haven’t already done them, get to your doctor now and get screened!
I hope that you found this to be helpful. If you did, make sure to share it with your friends. I wish you well in your health journey.