I've had the pleasure to read and review the book "Outshine: An Ovarian Cancerr Memoir" by Karen Ingalls. I am very impressed with Karen's personal story, attention to detail and inspiration for others battling cancer. Karen expresses "this book is the result of my increased awareness that there is a great need for more information about ovarian cancer. Our mortality rate is 70%, compared to 15 % for breast cancer. A woman needs to know about the whispering symptoms of ovarian cancer and be encouraged to be her own advocate."
Summer will be here before we know it . I got to thinking about the sun and it's effects on our body especially our skin. It's important to take safe measures when going out in the sun. Time of day and sunscreen blockers all have an effect. Be sure when choosing a sun block you read the information carefully.
Although the sun is a good supplier of Vitamin D which is essential to bone growth it also can harm you if you have excessive UV exposure. It increases your risk of skin cancer.
Please refer back to my article on Melanoma to find out valuable information.
Good friends are like bras, supportive, never leave you hanging, make you look good and are always close to your heart. A good friend and a community health activisit is how many people describe Lilli Rey. When Lilli found out that San Mateo County's public hopsital was the only hospital in the Bay Area without digital mammography equipment, she became dedicated to improve the hospitals breast health facilities.
After donating a mammography machine in 2011, Lilli realized there was an opportunity to do more.
I haven't met one woman yet who looks forward with anticipation to her annual pap smear. Most of us schedule the check up to obtain birth control advice, have a breast exam, review all of our health concerns and discuss ways to stay healthy. We know from study after study that pap smears help detect abnormal cervical changes in the earliest stages before they become more ominous and lead to cervical cancer.
Women, like me, who have a family history of breast cancer worry more about breast cancer according to a new study. One of the best things that I did was to get tested for the BRCA 1 & 2 genes, which helped me have more information and less fear. Having information and then talking about it with my surgeon, breast specialist and gynecologist helped me feel more empowered.
I found out that because my mom tested positive for the BRCA gene, meant that my brothers should consider being tested so that they could understand their risk for pancreatic and prostate cancer, since they're related cancers.
I remember how difficult it was to ask my mother to be tested for the breast cancer gene. She had been diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer by that time and knew that her time was limited. She had breast cancer at age 32, one of her maternal aunts had died of breast cancer and she thought that her maternal grandmother died of ovarian cancer. I knew from my work in women's health that if she carried the BRCA genetic mutation that I had a 50/50 chance of also carrying it.
I was talking to 2 friends the other day, who both had double mastectomies for advanced breast cancer. Kim and Ellen (not their real names) had complete reconstruction and neither one had been able to save their nipples. They were both talking about how difficult it is to have one nipple that's horizontal and points straight ahead like a headlight, and the other that's off in it's own direction, like a wandering and wayward child.
Women who smoke start menopause earlier than women who don't. This was reported by Reuters from an article in the journal Menopause. There are many reasons why women who smoke should give it up, but this is more evidence that smoking can affect estrogen levels.
We know that smokers also have more hot flashes and night sweats and that smoking can induce a hot flash. We also know that smokers have more risks of many types of cancer. Quitting is difficult, and most smokers need at least 3 attempts before they're successful.
