According to the American Cancer Society, cancer begins when abnormal cells in a part of the body start to grow out of control due to DNA damage.
No matter where a cancer may spread, it is always named for the place where it originated. People can be genetically predisposed to cancer, however environmental factors contribute to the numbers as well.
Unfortunately African-Americans have the highest death rate and shortest survival rate than any racial and ethnic group for most cancers. These disparities are linked to social and economic disparities more than biological differences associated with race.
The most commonly diagnosed cancers among Black men are prostate, lung and colon/rectum – for Black women, breast, lung and colon/rectum. Over 63,000 Blacks are expected to die from cancer this year.
Below is a brief look into lung, breast and prostate cancer. While different types of cancer can behave very differently, these three share a common thread – early detection can save lives.
Lung cancer
About lung cancer
Lung cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in one or both lungs. As they grow, the abnormal cells can form tumors and impede the function of the lung, which provides oxygen to the body via the blood.
There are two types of lung cancer: Non-small cell lung cancer and small cell lung cancer. Both are treated differently.
Risk factors
By far, the most important risk for lung cancer is smoking tobacco. Nearly 87 percent of all lung cancers in the United States are smoking-related. Quitting helps reduce that risk. Exposure to secondhand smoke also increases the risk of lung cancer.
Other risks include asbestos, radon, industrial substances, radiation exposure, air pollution, genetics and Tuberculosis.
Symptoms
Keep in mind abnormal feelings can actually be attributed to other causes, such as bronchitis. Signs and symptoms of lung cancer can take years to develop and they may not appear until the disease is advanced.
Some symptoms of lung cancer that are in the chest include: coughing, especially if it persists or becomes intense; pain in the chest, shoulder, or back unrelated to pain from coughing; a change in color or volume of sputum (mucus or phlegm); shortness of breath; changes in the voice or being hoarse; harsh sounds with each breath; recurrent lung problems, such as bronchitis or pneumonia; and coughing up phlegm or mucus, especially if it is tinged with blood. If the original lung cancer has spread, a person may feel symptoms in other places in the body.
Common places for lung cancer to spread include other parts of the lungs, lymph nodes, bones, brain, liver, and adrenal glands. Symptoms of lung cancer that may occur in the body include: loss of appetite or unexplained weight loss; fatigue; headaches, bone or joint pain; bone fractures not related to accidental injury; neurological symptoms, such as unsteady gait or memory loss; neck or facial swelling; general weakness; bleeding; blood clots; or coughing up blood.
Recommended screenings
There are two types of screenings for lung cancer: a chest x-ray and a Sputum cytology, a procedure in which a sample of sputum or mucus brought up from the lungs by coughing is viewed under a microscope to check for cancer cells. A new test called spiral CT scan is currently being studied in clinical trials.
Prevention
If you are at risk of developing lung cancer, the most important thing you can do is to quit smoking (if you smoke). Because environmental factors other than smoking can increase your risk of lung cancer, it is important to reduce or eliminate those factors.
Researchers are also looking into the use of chemoprevention agents, including certain vitamins, to see if they can help reduce a person’s risk of developing lung cancer and also to reduce the chance that the cancer will recur, or come back.
For more information, visit www.lungcancer.org and www.cancer.org.
Prostate cancer
About the prostate
The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system found below the bladder and in front of the rectum.
Some prostate cancers can grow and spread quickly, but most of them grow slowly.
Many doctors believe that prostate cancer begins with a pre-cancerous condition called prostatic intraepithelial neoplasia (PIN). PIN begins to appear in the prostates of some men as early as their 20s. Almost half of all men have PIN by the time they reach 50. In this condition, there are changes in how the prostate gland cells look, but the abnormal cells don’t look like they are growing into other parts of the prostate (like cancer cells would).
Risk factors
Prostate cancer is the most common non-skin cancer in America, affecting 1 in 6 men. The older you are, the more likely you are to be diagnosed with prostate cancer. Although only one in 10,000 men under age 40 will be diagnosed, the rate shoots up to one in 38 for ages 40 to 59, and one in 15 for ages 60 to 69. In fact, more than 65 percent of all prostate cancers are diagnosed in men over the age of 65.
But the roles of race and family history are important as well. African-American men are 61 percent more likely to develop prostate cancer compared with Caucasian men and are nearly 2.5 times as likely to die from the disease. Men with a single first-degree relative – father, brother or son – with a history of prostate cancer are twice as likely to develop the disease, while those with two or more relatives are nearly four times as likely to be diagnosed. The risk is even higher if the affected family members were diagnosed at a young age, with the highest risk seen in men whose family members were diagnosed before age 60.
In addition to age, genetics, social and environmental factors, particularly diet and lifestyle, nationality, infection, vasectomy or obesity likely have an effect as well.
Symptoms
Prostate cancer usually doesn’t produce any noticeable symptoms in its early stages; so many cases of prostate cancer aren’t detected until the cancer has spread beyond the prostate. For most men, prostate cancer is first detected during a routine screening such as a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test or a digital rectal exam (DRE).
Early signs and symptoms of prostate cancer can include urinary problems, caused when the prostate tumor presses on the bladder or on the tube that carries urine from the bladder (urethra). However, urinary symptoms are much more commonly caused by benign prostate problems, such as an enlarged prostate (benign prostatic hyperplasia) or prostate infections. Less than 5 percent of prostate cancer cases have urinary problems as the initial symptom.
When urinary signs and symptoms do occur, they can include: trouble urinating; starting and stopping while urinating; and decreased force in the stream of urine.
Cancer in your prostate or the area around the prostate can cause: blood in urine or semen.
Prostate cancer that has spread to the lymph nodes in the pelvis may cause: swelling in your legs and discomfort in the pelvic area.
Advanced prostate cancer that has spread to your bones can cause: bone pain that doesn’t go away; bone fractures; and compression of the spine.
Recommended screenings
During a digital rectal exam, the doctor or nurse inserts a lubricated, gloved finger into the lower part of the rectum to feel the prostate for lumps or anything else that seems unusual.
A prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test is a test that measures the level of PSA in the blood. PSA is a substance made mostly by the prostate that may be found in an increased amount in the blood of men who have prostate cancer.
Men should begin these tests at age 50; Black men, age 40.
Prevention
The ultimate goal of prostate cancer prevention strategies is to prevent men from developing the disease. Unfortunately, despite significant progress in research over the past 16 years, this goal has not yet been achieved. Both genetic and environmental risk factors for prostate cancer have been identified, but the evidence is not yet strong enough to be helpful to men currently at risk for developing prostate cancer.
By contrast, some success has been seen with strategies that can delay the development and progression of prostate cancer. In the meantime, diet and lifestyle modifications have been shown to reduce the risk of prostate cancer development and progression, and can help men with prostate cancer live longer and better lives.
For more information, visit www.prostatecancerfoundation.org, www.cancer.gov and www.mayoclinic.com.
Breast Cancer
About breast cancer
Many changes occur in your breasts during your lifetime. It’s important to understand which changes are normal and which are not.
About 85 percent of breast cancers begin in the mammary ducts, while about 15 percent arise in the milk ducts. Tumors in the breast tend to grow slowly. By the time a lump is large enough to feel, it may have been growing for as long as 10 years. However, some tumors can be aggressive, and grow much more rapidly.
Although breast cancer incidence is lower among African-American women, they have a 37 percent higher breast cancer death rate than Caucasian women. Breast cancer survival in African-American women has increased in recent decades; however, survival rates among Black women remain lower than among Caucasian women.
Although breast cancer is more common in women, it can also occur in men.
Risk factors
There are risk factors that can and cannot be changed. Factors that can’t be change include: gender; age; genetics; family history; height; bone density; women who work at night; personal history with cancer; race; dense breast tissue; and menstrual periods among others.
Factors that can be changed include: not having children or having them later in life; use of birth control pills; post-menopausal hormone therapy; not breastfeeding; alcohol consumption; being overweight or obesity; and lack of exercise.
Symptoms
According to Susan G. Komen for the Cure, due to the increased use of mammography, most women are diagnosed at very early stages of breast cancer, before symptoms appear. However, not all breast cancer is found through mammography. The most common symptoms of breast cancer are a change in the look or feel of the breast, a change in the look or feel of the nipple and nipple discharge. Other symptoms include: lumps, a hard knot or thickening; swelling, warmth, redness or darkening; change in the size or shape of the breast among others.
Recommended screenings
Although there has been some controversy regarding the age of women who should begin screening for breast cancer, there continues to be several methods used.
Women age 40 and older should have a mammogram every year and should keep on doing so for as long as they are in good health. A clinical breast exam is recommended for women in their 20s and 30s as part of a regular exam by a health expert, at least every three years.
The American Cancer Society doesn’t recommend self breast exams, however some experts believe it’s a chance for women to detect breast abnormality.
Women should report any changes in how their breasts look or feel to a health expert right away.
All women, especially those with a higher risk of breast cancer, should talk with their doctor about the best screening plan for them. This might mean starting mammograms when they are younger, having extra screening tests (such as an MRI), or having exams more often.
Prevention
You can lower your risk of breast cancer by changing those risk factors that can be changed. If you limit alcohol intake, exercise regularly, and maintain a healthy body weight, you are decreasing your risk of getting breast cancer. Women who choose to breast-feed for at least several months may also get an added benefit of reducing their breast cancer risk. Not using post-menopausal hormone therapy can help you avoid raising your risk.
Getting regular screening tests increases the chances that if you do develop breast cancer, it will be found early when it’s most treatable.
For more information, visit www.cancer.org and www.komen.org.
