Cancer and Women’s and Men’s Health
The American Cancer Society estimates that by the end of 2012, more than 226,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and more than 241,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer (American Cancer Society, 2012a; American Cancer Society 2012b). With such a prevalence of women’s and men’s cancers, patient education and preventive services are essential. In clinical settings, advanced practice nurses must assist physicians in educating patients on risk factors, preventive services, and for patients diagnosed with cancer, on potential drug treatments. The clinical implications of women’s and men’s cancer greatly depend on early detection, which is primarily achieved through preventive services. In this Assignment, you consider the short-term and long-term implications of cancer and drug treatments associated with women’s and men’s health, as well as appropriate preventive services.
To prepare:
- Select a type of cancer associated with women’s or men’s health such as breast, cervical, or ovarian cancer in women and prostate cancer in men.
- Locate and review articles examining the type of cancer you selected.
- Review the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force article in the Learning Resources. Think about available preventive services that providers might recommend for patients at risk of this type of cancer.
- Select two of the following factors: genetics, gender, ethnicity, age, or behavior. Reflect on how these factors might impact decisions related to preventive services.
- Consider drug treatment options for patients diagnosed with the type of cancer you selected including short-term and long-term implications of the treatments.
By Day 7
Write a 2- to 3- page paper that addresses the following:
- Describe available preventive services that providers might recommend for patients at risk of the type of cancer you selected.
- Explain how the factors you selected might impact decisions related to preventive services.
- Describe drug treatment options for patients diagnosed with the type of cancer you selected.
Student’s Name
Professor’s Name
Course
Date (day/month/year)
Diagnosing Cancer in Men and Women
Cancer and Women’s and Men’s Health
Cancer is a puzzling and frightening disease or set of diseases. Cancer has afflicted multicellular living being for more than 200 million years, and there is evidence of cancer among ancestors of modern humans going back well over a million years. Unlike infectious diseases, parasites, and many environmental diseases, cancer is not primarily caused by some entity that is foreign to our bodies. Cancer agents of destruction are human cells that have, as it were, slipped their reins, and have been recruited and, to some extent, transformed into pathological organisms or the building blocks of tumors (Daniel 778). Prostate cancer occurs in the prostate, which is a small walnut-shaped gland in males that produces the seminal fluid that nourishes and transports sperm, and it is one of the most common types of cancer. Changes in the DNA of a normal prostate cell mainly cause prostate cancer. Prostate cancer has no cure, but it is often treatable for quite some time. Most people outlive their prostate cancer, even those who have advanced disease. Prostate cancer grows slowly, and effective treatment options extend life even further. This essay aims to describe preventive services that providers might recommend for patients at risk of prostate cancer and explain how genetics and age impact decisions related to preventive services, and finally, the essay will describe treatment options for patients diagnosed with prostate cancer.
Preventive Services that Providers Might Recommend for Patients at Risk of Prostate Cancer
Men in western countries have much higher rates of prostate cancer than men in Asia, while no one can explain this phenomenon, experts suspect differences in eastern and western diets are to blame. Poor eating habits and diets heavily relying on fats and animal proteins can cause DNA damage and cancer (Marta and Grażyna 3), and to minimize the risk of cancer, it would be essential for one to incorporate a wide variety of produce, including plenty of leafy greens—cruciferous vegetables containing sulforaphane that may protect against cancer. Obesity can be a risk factor for developing more aggressive prostate cancer (Claire et al. 7). In general, losing weight and maintaining a healthy weight as one’s ages can help reduce the risk of cancer and many other health problems, and regular exercise is also essential in the prevention of prostate cancer as it can reduce inflammation and improve immune function hence preventing prostate cancer. Healthcare providers can also recommend that one to stop smoking and drink less, as this can lower the risks of prostate cancer. Finally, a health provider should recommend that one be sexually active, as men who have a higher frequency of ejaculation are up to two-third less likely to be diagnosed with prostate cancer. It is essential for one to understand the preventive measures in order to minimize the risks of cancer.
The Impact of Genetic on the Prevention of Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer seems to run in some families, which suggests that there may be an inherited or genetic factor in some cases where most prostate cancers occur in men without a family history of it having a father or brother with prostate cancer more than doubles a man’s risk of developing this disease and genetic changes can lead to cancer by altering how cells grow and spread. Most cancer-causing DNA changes occur in genes, which are sections of DNA that carry the instructions to make proteins or specialized RNA such as microRNA (Aslam et al. 262). Understanding genetic factors and genetic disorders is essential in learning more about promoting health and preventing disease. A small percentage of prostate cancers are hereditary and occur in families. These hereditary cancers are associated with inherited gene variants. Hereditary prostate cancers develop earlier in life than non-inherited cases. It is crucial for one to understand the impact of genetics on the prevention of prostate cancer so that we can minimize its complications.
The Impact of Age on the Prevention of Prostate Cancer
Prostate cancer risk rises with age, mainly after the age of 50. Older people diagnosed with prostate cancer face unique challenges, especially concerning the treatment of prostate cancer. When it comes to the preventive measure where one is required to stay sexually active, it would be difficult for the aged people as they may be unable to maintain this due to body complications and even their ages not allowing them. Also, some aged people may lack an improved diet as most live alone, so getting the recommended diet is an issue (Emily and Hannah 7). Older patients are more likely to have high-risk prostate cancer at diagnosis and less likely to receive local therapy. Indeed, the underuse of potentially curative local therapy among older men with high-risk disease may partly explain observed differences in cancer-specific survival across age strata.
Prostate Cancer Treatment Options
The treatment of prostate cancer can include a lot of treatment options. Some treatment options may include expectant management, which is normally recommended when doctors think prostate cancer is unlikely to grow quickly. The doctor can also recommend another option termed active surveillance, where one monitors prostate cancer by performing prostate-specific antigen tests and regular prostate biopsies and treating the cancer if it grows or causes symptoms (Mamello et al. 10). A surgery may also be done where a doctor removes the prostate, and the process is called a prostatectomy. A doctor also performs radiation therapy using high-energy rays to kill the cancer cells. There are two types of this therapy: external radiation therapy, where a machine outside the body directs radiation at the cancer cells. The other is internal radiation therapy, where radioactive seeds or pellets are surgically placed into or near the cancer to damage the cancer cells.
Conclusion
Cancer is a disease that occurs when cells divide uncontrollably and spread into surrounding tissues, and changes to DNA cause cancer, and most cancer-causing DNA changes occur in sections of DNA called genes. These changes are also called genetic changes. Preventive measures such as a healthy diet, regular exercising, and taking a variety of fruits are recommended by health providers in order to prevent the growth rate of prostate cancer hence minimizing death rates of prostate cancer. Factors like age and genetics can impact the preventive measures for prostate cancer as this type of cancer mainly occurs in older people aged 65 years and above, but some treatment options can be applied to fight against the complications of prostate cancer. It is essential to follow the recommended preventive options to minimize cases of prostate cancer.
Work Cited
Hausman, Daniel M. “What is cancer?” Perspectives in biology and medicine 62.4 (2019): 778-784.
Pernar, Claire H., et al. “The epidemiology of prostate cancer.” Cold Spring Harbor perspectives in medicine 8.12 (2018): a030361.
Sekhoacha, Mamello, et al. “Prostate Cancer Review: Genetics, Diagnosis, Treatment Options, and Alternative Approaches.” Molecules 27.17 (2022): 5730. https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules27175730
Shiraz, Aslam, et al. “The early detection of cervical cancer. The current and changing landscape of cervical disease detection.” Cytopathology 31.4 (2020): 258-270. https://doi.org/10.1111/cyt.12835
Whitelock, Emily, and Hannah Ensaff. “On your own: Older adults’ food choice and dietary habits.” Nutrients 10.4 (2018): 413. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu10040413
Włodarczyk, Marta, and Grażyna Nowicka. “Obesity, DNA damage, and development of obesity-related diseases.” International journal of molecular sciences 20.5 (2019): 1146. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms20051146
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