The Goderich Signal-Star, 2009-11-18, Page 16Page 16 - Goderich Signal -Star, Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Seminar teacheshow
to
fight cancer
that people, especially those 50 to 75, should
be screened for annually.
'The [FOBT] is the primary test for bowel
cancer," Neal said. "It has reduced the mortal-
ity rate in this age group."
The FOBT is a simple test that can be done
at home, mailed to a lab, and have the results
delivered either to the patient or a family doc-
tor. The kit is available through doctors.
"It's very simple and free," Neal said.
"There's no reason that people shouldn't have
the test done."
If the test comes back positive, it can lead
to early detection of pre -cancerous growths,
which can be removed to stop bowel cancer
from ever forming.
Neal then explained how to prevent and fight
cancer through diet, excercise, and healthy living.
"Vitamin D is being linked with cancer re-
sistance," Neal said. "And dietary changes are
definitely helping."
Vitamin D is important because of the lack
of sunlight that people who live in the north
suffer from.
"Vitamin D is a great way to fight back
against cancer," Neal explained. "3000 medi-
cal studies and 300 population studies point to
a lower risk of cancer with the proper amount
of vitamin D."
"It's safe and easy to take," Neal said. "It's
available in 1000 count tablets, which is
enough for a summer day. The dose should be
doubled for winter months."
Neal also added that tanning booths or beds
are not a viable alternative.
"Individuals who reported having "ever"
seen or used a tanning booth had a higher risk
of developing skin cancer than those that had
"never," Neal said, citing medical studies.
The Mediterranean diet is being toted as hav-
ing great results in reducing the risk of cancer.
"People in that area of the world don't eat
like we do, and they have much lower chances
of developing these cancers," Neal said. "And
people who migrate from areas closer to the
border and adopt our eating styles, also adopt
our cancer rates."
The Mediterranean diet has many fruits and
vegetables, and very little processed foods and
meats.
For more information, contact your health
care professional.
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signal-star staff
Fighting cancer is something that nearly
everyone has experienced, either themselves
or through a love one, and the best way to win
that fight is to throw the first punch.
"Prevention is really the key," Doctor Don
Neal says, "The focus shouldn't be on treat-
ment, [focus] should be on prevention and
early detection.
Neal ran a dinner and information seminar
recently that looked at prevention of all can-
cers, but also specifically dealt with cancers of
the dietary tract.
The main message was that living healthy
is the best way to stay healthy, and, while this
isn't news as far as general health goes, it is a
recent discovery in terms of cancer.
"Eating appropriately and exercising regu-
larly reduces cancer risk, pair that with simple
screening, and most people will have a far bet-
ter chance of not being affected by cancer,"
Neal said.
The seminar focused on two different tests
that are used when looking at dietary cancer.
"Two tests that look for prostate cancers are
the prostate specific antigen test [PSA] and
the digital rectal exam blood test," Neal said.
"And the Fecal Occult Blood Test [FOBT],
coupled with a colonoscopy can be used to de-
tect bowel cancer."
Neal started the seminars looking at prostate
cancer, as more men are affected by it than
most people realize.
"Prostate cancer is different than other
cancers," Neal said. "A significant portion of
men develop "slow-growing" prostate cancer,
which ultimately doesn't affect their longev-
ity."
Essentially, many men have could have
prostate cancer, not be aware of it, and not
have it effect their life at all.
"We're finding, with autopsies, that more
men than we know are affected by it," Neal
said.
Neal explained that the PSA test, while use-
ful, could be leading to more treatment than is
necessary due to false positives.
A PSA test looks for certain proteins in the
bloodstream that are excreted by the prostate,
a walnut -sized gland found in males. If the
gland is growing due to cancer, or aggrava-
tion, or any other cause, the protein levels will
be elevated.
"The problem is that, with false positives,
they can lead to unnecessary investigation
[surgery] as well as anxiety," Neal said.
Neal still suggests having the test done, pro-
vided that the patient knows what's going on,
and discusses it with their doctor..
Bowel cancer is another dietary tract cancer
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