"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us."
Gandalf, The Fellowship of the Ring, J.R.R. Tolkien.
"If you wish to be happy, think not of what is to come nor of that which you have no control over but rather of the now and of that which you can change."
Oromis, Brisingr, Christopher Paolini.

Wednesday, April 30, 2008

Better late than never

I've been thinking of making a blog entry on this topic for weeks now. April is Cancer Control month.

Cancer has been very present in my mind over the last few months. My FIL was diagnosed with prostate cancer at the end of last year, and has had ongoing skin cancer issues for years. Luckily there was no metastasis, so he didn't need any treatment after the prostatectomy.

Last month my MIL was diagnosed with breast cancer. A lumpectomy removed the primary tumor, but there was metastasis to a lymph node. She is looking at a long sequence of treatment; chemotherapy, radiation and hormonal.

My father was diagnosed with Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinemia a few years ago. Unlike prostate or breast cancer, there is no surgical tumor removal possible for this rare cancer, but by making some significant lifestyle changes, he has managed to improve his blood tests extraordinarily.

Obviously, cancer is not completely understood, and there are risk factors outside our control. What can we do to prevent cancer? Here are a few major factors:

Maintain a healthy body weight. Cancer is yet another one of the health problems associated with being overweight. WeightWatchers is a great place to start.

Eliminate or reduce alcohol use. Women should drink no more than one drink per day, men no more than two. One study I came across linked consumption of 3 drinks per day to a breast cancer risk equal to that of smoking a pack of cigarettes a day or having a first-degree relative with breast cancer. 3 drinks a day sounds like a lot until you consider that for their purposes 4 oz of wine is considered one drink. There has been a lot of media attention lately on the health benefits of red wine, but it's much healthier overall to get those antioxidants from dark grapes or other food sources. AA has helped many people overcome drinking problems.

Don't smoke.

Avoid excessive sun exposure. Wear sunscreen and a hat, and avoid the midday sun.

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