Some residents have unequivocally stated that they would find more comfort in receiving a diagnosis of any other dreaded disease rather than any type of cancer. Of course, we have no control over whatever illnesses we contract during our existence on this earth, but the foregoing comment is often made when news is received that someone known to them has lost the battle with cancer.
There was a time when it seemed that breast cancer, in females, was recording the highest mortality rates for cancer deaths on island, followed by deaths from prostate cancer in men. Incidentally, statistics show that men have also been afflicted with and have died from breast cancer.
However, the realisation that people from all walks of life, and of all ages, are being diagnosed with other types of cancer, is a perfect opportunity for residents to educate themselves about the other types of this dreaded disease that are causing the demise of friends and loved ones. These include cancers of the lung, stomach, liver, pancreas, brain, bladder, throat, skin and just about every internal organ we can think of.
In order to spread the message of steps to take to prevent the deadly disease, the American Cancer Society (ACS) and similar organisations have allocated at least a day, a week, or a month to make people all over the world more aware of the prevalence of the types of cancers. Prevention and early detection are part and parcel of the awareness campaigns since early detection has been known to be one of the most effective methods of reducing fatalities.
The observances for month of November, according to the ACS, will highlight cancers of the lung and stomach. In January, the focus was on cervical cancer; World Cancer Day was February 4; and March was deemed Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month.
In April, attention was drawn to Testicular Cancer; May was the month for Brain Tumor Awareness, and Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention, and Cancer Research. June’s focus was on Men’s Health/Cancer Awareness, and National Cancer Survivors Day, which was observed on June 1.
Also, in the month of September, the spotlight is placed childhood cancers, leukemia, lymphoma, ovarian and pancreatic cancers.
Perhaps the most publicised observation is Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, dubbed “Pinktober”, with October 17 being designated National Mammography Day. Reportedly, the Susan G Komen for the Cure Foundation first handed out pink ribbons to participants in its race for breast cancer survivors in 1991, and the pink ribbon has since been widely adopted as the symbol for breast cancer awareness.
Cancer of the breast, according to the ACS, accounts for 16 per cent of the deaths from all cancers that affect women, and one woman in the United States is diagnosed with breast cancer every three minutes. For 2014, the ACS estimates that about 232,670 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in women, and that about 40,000 women will die from the disease. It also predicted that there will be about 2,360 new diagnoses of invasive breast cancer in men in 2014, but a man’s lifetime risk of breast cancer is about 1 in 1,000.
Local statistics regarding deaths from cancer was found in an online 2014 publication, Antigua/Barbuda Cancer Mortality Study, financed by Medpath Clinical Laboratory, found that 354 people (208 males and 146) females died from cancer between 2001−2005. Although the main causes were prostate and breast, respectively, the showed that members of both sexes also died from cancers of the liver, stomach, bowel, pancreas, bone, kidney, gall bladder and lung, among others.
It also found that “mortality rates were highest for sex-specific cancers, accounting for more than 50 per cent of cancer deaths.”
This past February, the oncologist at Mount St John’s Medical Centre, Dr Daoud Yakoub told OBSERVER media that the unit recorded between 8 to 10 new cancer cases each month.
This disclosure is surely a cause for concern, but there’s hope in Dr Yakoub’s prevention tip, which is that many of incidents of cancer can be addressed by a change in diet, and that cases of breast and colon cancer could be cut in half by diet modification.
“I found a lot of people are not aware of diet modification,” he said. “The low fat diet, low red meat, lots of vegetables and fruits: this is natural prevention of cancers.”
Reducing the risks for cancers and other chronic diseases boils down to adopting changes to our lifestyles. Simple adjustments included consuming a balanced diet, avoiding saturated fats, exercising regularly (at least 30 minutes daily), staying lean (as obesity is a precursor to many health problems), and getting adequate rest.
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