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Are you at risk for cancer?
November
21 ,
2007
"Well, no one in my family had cancer and everbody knows that cancer runs in families, right?"
I hear this all the time. I've been concerned about this myth, and a new survey released by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) has confirmed my fears.
It especially worries me when someone says, "well, do I really need an annual exam, pap smear and Mammogram? I mean I cancer doesn't run in my family."
According to ACOG, nearly two-thirds of women mistakenly believe having no family history of cancer means they have a low risk of developing the disease, and most do not know that oral contraceptive use is protective against ovarian and uterine cancer.
Among the highlights from the survey:
Two out of three women did not know that the vast majority of cancers occur in women with no family history of the disease. (The fact: only about 5% to 10% of breast cancers are hereditary, according to the American Cancer Society)
Only 11% of women knew that taking oral contraceptives is associated with a reduced risk of ovarian, uterine, and possibly colorectal cancer.
Only about half of the women surveyed felt they were doing enough to reduce their cancer risk, and 10% said they had done nothing to reduce their risk in the past year.
Most frightening: Almost one in three women (29%) reported that they did not see a health care provider on a regular basis and had not had a Pap test or mammogram during the previous year.
While it is true that having a family history of cancer is a risk factor, the fact is that most cancers occur in people with no family history of this disease at all. People without a family history cannot assume that they are not at risk.
So please be responsible, see your doctor regularly, and do discuss how you can prevent yourself from getting cancer, do discuss how to screen for early cancer, unfortunately, no woman is safe from this disease.
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