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March Is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month: If You Are 50 Or Older, Time To Get Tested!
When colorectal cancer is detected early, illness and even death may be prevented. Yet it is the nation’s second leading cancer killer of both women and men in the U.S. For this reason, the Department of Health and Human Services has made March Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month in order to boost public awareness about the importance of screening for cancers of the colon and the rectum. Continue Reading Article
State Sen. Charles Fuschillo Hosts Free Pre-Colonoscopy Screenings With Meadowbrook Endoscopy Center
State Senator Charles Fuschillo(r) hosted, along with doctors of the Meadowbrook Endoscopy Center in Westbury, free pre-colonoscopy screenings for several dozen residents this past week at Unqua School in Massapequa. Standing with Fuschillo are Center Doctors (l.– r) Joshua. Rieders; MD; Omer K. Masood, MD; Sonya Ventour,MD; Jordan Rush,MD; Michael Barth, MD; Bradley Rieders,MD; Dean P. Pappas,MD. This is part of a series of community health initiatives for local residents sponsored by Senator Fuschillo within his district. Meadowbrook Endoscopy holds free pre-colonoscopy screenings throughout Nassau County and direct services at their facility in Westbury accepting Medicare, Medicaid, and most insurances. They also provide free services for those without health insurance.
Regular colonoscopies may cut colorectal cancer risk by 40 percent
40% of all colorectal cancers could be prevented if people underwent regular colonoscopy screenings, according to a new study from the Harvard School of Public Health. According to the National Cancer Institute, 102,480 people will be diagnosed with colon cancer in the U.S. this year, and another 40,340 will learn they have rectal cancer. About 50,830 people are expected to die from colorectal cancer this year, making it the second-leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. (Read Full Article)
Clues Found to Aspirin’s Benefit in Colon Cancer
Aspirin’s survival benefit in colon cancer correlated with the drug’s antiplatelet activity but was not associated with a common tumor mutation or an enzyme linked to cancer etiology and pathogenesis, an analysis of 1,000 tumor samples showed. Low-dose aspirin after colon cancer diagnosis was associated with 47% better survival in patients whose tumors expressed human leukocyte antigen class I (HLA-I, a marker of platelet activation and aggregation, in addition to immunologic activity). Aspirin use did not correlate with PI3KA mutation or expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2).