Medical experts available for March: Colorectal Cancer Awareness, safe sleep & SIDS, returning to sports after injury, sleep aids, and habits to avoid for your brain health

As you plan healthcare coverage for March, Ochsner Health has experts on standby to cover several topics. Are younger people getting colorectal cancer?: Colorectal cancer has always been a cause for concern among middle-aged and older men and women. However,…

New Study Shows Insurance Coverage Disruptions Affect Key Cancer Screenings for U.S. Adults

A new study by researchers at the American Cancer Society shows that adults in the United States with prior insurance coverage disruptions are significantly less likely to receive guideline-concordant and past-year cancer screening, compared to people with continuous coverage.

Cancer screenings have saved the U.S. at least $6.5 trillion, study estimates

Americans have gotten at least 12 million more years of life to live because of preventive cancer screenings they’ve gotten the past 25 years, a new study estimates. That adds up to at least $6.5 trillion in added economic impact, because of scans and tests that look for early signs of breast, colon, cervical and lung cancer in adults at the highest risk.

Breast cancer overdiagnosis common among older women

A study of more than 50,000 women found that continued breast cancer screening after age 70 was associated with a greater incidence of cancer that likely would not have caused symptoms in the patient’s lifetime. These findings suggest that overdiagnosis may be common among older women who are diagnosed with breast cancer after screening. The study is published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Penn Medicine to Offer Free Cancer Screenings, including 3D Mammograms with Siemens Healthineers, at June Community Events in and around West Philadelphia

As part of a continued focus on making cancer screenings more accessible to the greater Philadelphia community, Penn Medicine is providing free cancer screenings, no insurance required, including advanced 3D mammograms, in West Philadelphia this June.

UC San Diego Health Oncologist Addresses New Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has updated mammography screening guidelines for breast cancer detection to every other year beginning at age 40 instead of 50. This recommendation is based on new evidence of a rise in breast cancer…

Cervical cancer screening doubles when under-screened women are mailed testing kits

Researchers at the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health and UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center found mailing human papillomavirus (HPV) self-collection tests and offering assistance to book in-clinic screening appointments to under-screened, low-income women improved cervical cancer screening nearly two-fold compared to scheduling assistance alone.

HPV Self-Collection Kits Increase Screening Among Under-screened, Under-served Women in North Carolina

Five years ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) announced a global call to eliminate cervical cancer. Because nearly all cervical cancers are caused by an initial infection with oncogenic types of human papillomavirus (HPV), screening for the virus is critical to preventing and treating the disease.However, providing HPV screening only within clinical settings may limit access to screening for many under-served women across the United States and here, in North Carolina.

Large-Scale Study Led by Fred Hutch Finds New Genetic Risk Factors for Colorectal Cancer, Paving the Way for Better Screening, Prevention

A comprehensive analysis of more than 100,000 colorectal cancer (CRC) cases, led by researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle and 200 scientific collaborators worldwide, has identified more than 100 new genetic risk factors strongly linked with the disease.

Are older women being over-screened for cervical cancer?

Analysis showed that in 2019 more than 1.3 million women received cervical cancer screening-associated services, such as a Pap test, colposcopy and other cervical procedures, after age 65. While these services cost more than $83 million, the researchers concluded they were of “unclear clinical appropriateness.”

UAlbany Researchers Awarded $1.4M to Identify RNAs Linked to Cancer and Bacterial Infections

Researchers from The RNA Institute at the University at Albany have been awarded $1.4 million to investigate stress-induced RNA modifications and associated cell response. The focus of the study — “wobble uridines” in tRNA — could hold important clues for treating bacterial infections and detecting cancer.

Sylvester Game Changer Vehicle Among First in Nation to Offer Mobile Prostate Cancer Screening

Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine’s Game Changer vehicles, which bring health education and free screenings for many cancer types to South Florida communities in need, are for the first time offering prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening for prostate cancer.

Study Shows Older Age and Smoking Most Important Risk Factors for Developing Any Cancer

A new large study led by researchers at the American Cancer Society shows older age and smoking are the two most important risk factors associated with a relative and absolute five-year risk of developing any cancer. The findings also demonstrate that in addition to age and smoking history, clinicians should consider excess body fatness, family history of any cancer, and several other factors that may help patients determine if they may benefit from enhanced cancer screening or prevention interventions. The data was published today in the journal Cancer.

NCCN Publishes New Patient Guidelines for Breast Cancer Screening and Diagnosis Emphasizing Annual Mammograms for All Average-Risk Women Over 40

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) has published new NCCN Guidelines for Patients: Breast Cancer Screening and Diagnosis to help people understand their personal risk for breast cancer, when they should begin screening, and how often to screen—in order to detect cancer earlier, for more treatment options and better outcomes.

Loyola Medicine to Offer Free Cancer Screenings to Uninsured Women during See, Test and Treat® Event

On Saturday, August 14, 2021, qualified women who make an appointment can receive free cervical and breast cancer screenings as part of Loyola Medicine’s 6th annual See, Test and Treat® event. See, Test and Treat® will be held at the Loyola Outpatient Center, 2160 S. First Ave., Maywood, Illinois. Interested women are invited to call 708-216-7284 to verify eligibility and make an appointment.

From birth control to mammograms, many women missed out on preventive care for all of 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic knocked many women off schedule for important health appointments, a new study finds, and many didn’t get back on schedule even after clinics reopened. The effect may have been greatest in areas where such care is already likely falling behind experts’ recommendations.

Distance from hospital impacts cancer diagnosis, survival in young adults

Adolescents and young adults living in rural versus metropolitan U.S. counties and those living farther from the hospital where they were diagnosed are more likely to be detected at a later cancer stage, when it is generally less treatable and have lower survival rates compared with those living in metropolitan counties and closer to the reporting hospital, finds a new study from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.

Research News Tip Sheet: Story Ideas from Johns Hopkins Medicine

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Johns Hopkins Medicine Media Relations is focused on disseminating current, accurate and useful information to the public via the media. As part of that effort, we are distributing our “COVID-19 Tip Sheet: Story Ideas from Johns Hopkins” every other Wednesday.

The Greatest Gift for Mom: Health and Wellness

Now more than ever, we are reminded that health and wellness should always be a top priority. National Women’s Health Month and Mother’s Day, both celebrated in May, are important reminders that women can take control of their health by making feasible lifestyle choices and focusing on preventive care to lower the risk of certain cancers.