breast cancer

Know All Your Testing and Treatment Options

October is recognized as Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Although it seems that everyone is aware of breast cancer, many are not aware of the current options available for diagnosing and the subsequent treatment options based on a specific type of breast cancer detected. For example, molecular breast imaging (MBI) has been found to detect cancer 4x better in dense breast tissue than mammograms. Dense breast tissue does not affect just a small number of women. 50% of women have dense breast tissue whether you have been told by your medical provider or not.

http://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/video/new-breast-cancer-test-could-become-lifesaver-for-some-women-765199427772

There are many organizations dedicated to providing up-to-date breast cancer information, education, financial assistance, and emotional support. Inspiring survivor stories can be found in bookstores and online. One non-profit organization, BreastCancer.org, has an online member community that shares encouraging stories from diagnosis to complete remission. See below the current list of categories for topics. If you have a story to tell, share it with others – whether it be online or in a face-to-face conversation. Knowledge shared will help others to make informed decisions about improved diagnostic testing and more treatment options.

 

 

 

Liver and Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is recognized as Breast Cancer Awareness Month as well as Liver Cancer Awareness Month. It may not be a coincidence that Joan Lunden, journalist and TV host, courageously posed on the cover of this week’s People magazine showing her head without any hair. She has publicly shared her journey treating Stage 2 triple negative breast cancer on her personal web site. http://www.joanlunden.com/

Breast cancer is not lacking in awareness. Breast cancer receives the most research funding of all cancers. Latest documented figures show that in 2012, $602 million was allocated from the National Institute of Health (NIH) for breast cancer research. Breast cancer supposedly kills 40,000 a year in the U.S. On the other hand, lung cancer only received $314 million in research and approximately 159,000 die annually. Similarly, colon/rectal cancer received $256 million from the NIH and 50,000 deaths are expected annually. http://fundedresearch.cancer.gov/nciportfolio/search/funded?fy=PUB2012&type=site

Most types of cancer have charity organizations that also provide money for research to find a cure. For example, the Susan G. Komen organization has raised approximately $800 million for breast cancer research worldwide. This amount adds to the NIH arsenal of funding for research. They also provide financial/social grants to families affected by breast cancer. No doubt, they are a wonderful resource for individuals dealing with a breast cancer diagnosis.

October is also Liver Cancer Awareness Month. It will be interesting to see how much we hear about this specific cancer during the month of October. Unfortunately, the press on liver cancer may get drowned out by the press on breast cancer. The NIH allocated $64 million toward liver cancer research in 2012. There are approximately 23,000 deaths from liver cancer annually in the U.S. That is half of the breast cancer mortality rate but only about 1/10 of breast cancer NIH funding. If you are living with liver cancer in Colorado, you have access to the University of Colorado Health (formally University of Colorado Hospital). This is the location of the first liver transplant performed in the world in 1963. It is also the only National Cancer Institute designated center in the state. If you are unable to travel to UCH they provide a remote second opinion program that allows you to share results and treatment options with your local physician.

 

 

 

 

Switch to our mobile site