Questioning cancer screenings for seniors, part 1

According to the Women’s Health Advisor published by Weill Cornell Medical College (Volume 18/ Number 12-December 2014), “Cancer remains the second most common cause of mortality in the U.S….”

In the year 2014, the American Cancer Society informed us that an estimated 1,665,540 new cases would be diagnosed with the projection of 585,720 deaths that year due to cancer.

How can a Sun Citian lower his or her risk of being one of those statistics?

Lifestyle measures, such as maintaining a normal weight, getting regular exercise, and eating healthy definitely helps. Avoiding tobacco is vital as well, but our publication warns not to overlook two critical risk factors: age and heredity.

This is where screening for breast, colon, prostate, and other cancers comes into play. While these tests have become a huge part of cancer prevention and treatment, many experts today are questioning whether the benefits of these exams have been overemphasized where seniors are concerned.

Dr. Elizabeth Leef Jacobson, assistant professor of medicine at Weill Cornell Medical college, explains that “Decades ago, it was believed that cancer’s spread and progression was aggressive and inevitable, and that a cancer diagnosis was a death sentence. We know (now) that it (cancer) behaves in different ways, depending on where in the body it occurs (some cancers are more aggressive and some are slow to spread).”

For instance, a colorectal polyp takes about 10 years to grow into a cancer.

Jacobson adds that “…screening for this cancer after about age 85 (some reports even indicate a much younger age) won’t result in an improvement in your health, since any cancer found likely wouldn’t cause symptoms during your remaining lifetime.”

She adds that colonoscopy risk factors, such as bleeding or a perforated bowel, are higher for frail seniors as well. In breast cancer screening, Jacobson warns that “An abnormal mammogram may be a false positive, which can lead to anxiety and unnecessary testing. Beyond these factors, if a cancer is found, treatment may cause serious side effects and detract from your quality of life, and you may not live long enough for it to have a lasting positive outcome.”

Along with hereditary risks, life expectancy should also be a key factor to consider for your screening decisions, especially if you are in your 70s or 80s.

“Even so, there is still great variability, depending on your health status and functional ability,” Jacobson said.

She concludes, “As a rule, an 80-year-old woman who is in good physical and mental health, exercises regularly, and eats healthfully has a longer life expectancy than a woman the same age who has several chronic health conditions, leads a sedentary life, and eats a poor diet. Consequently, the second woman may not benefit from continuing routine cancer screening tests.”

Coming in part 2: A Cancer Screenings Guide for Men and Women

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