Are you at risk? - Use our self-surveys by selecting your area of interest.
Answer these four questions about colon cancer (these questions cover the risks you can't control). If you answer "yes" to more than one, you are at a higher- than-average risk level and would benefit by discussing your risks with your physician.
1. Are you over 50?
2. Did your mother, father, or a sibling have either benign polyps or colon cancer?
3. Do you have an inflammatory bowel disease such as Crohn's disease or colitis?
4. Are you tall? (Taller people have an increased risk, although the reasons for this are not clear.)
Here are some things you CAN control to help reduce risk:
- Reduce consumption of red meat (lamp, pork, beef, veal, venison). * Maintain a healthy weight. Overweight people have an even higher risk level.
- Drink no more than one alcoholic beverage per day.
- Take an aspirin a day (aspirin can slow the formation of polyps).
- Take a multivitamin that contains folic acid, which protects against cell damage.
- Exercise at least 30 minutes a day. Even moderate activity such as walking will help.
- Eat three or more servings of vegetables a day.
- Some studies show that birth control pills or hormone replacement therapy may reduce risk of colon cancer, but this should be discussed with your physician.
Answer the following questions to do a quick self-assessment for breast cancer risk (please note that this self-assessment is not a substitute for the advice of your physician. Regular checkups and mammograms are critical!):
1. Are you over 50?
2. Do you have a family history of breast cancer (mother, sister, grandmother, aunt)?
3. Have blood tests shown that you have inherited the BRCA1 or BRCA 2 gene mutation?
4. Racial background: White women are at greatest risk. African American women, however, have a higher risk early in life. If you are of central European descent, you have a higher likelihood of carrying the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutation).
5. Have you had previous breast cancer?
6. Menstrual changes: Did you begin menstruating at age 13 or earlier? Did you have your first child after the age of 30?
7. Did you go through menopause (cease menstruating) after age 55?
8. Did you receive any high-dose radiation therapy before the age of 30?
9. Are you tall? (For reasons that are not clear, tall women have increased risk.)
10. Do you drink? (According to research, one or more drinks per day tends to moderately increase risk.)
11. Are you overweight?
12. Do you have a sedentary lifestyle?
If you answered "yes" to any of the above questions, please discuss this indicator of increased risk with your family doctor or gynecologist. Some risk factors are more significant than others, such as family history or the possibility of carrying a mutated gene.
Here are some things you can do to help take control:
- Eat a balanced diet with 5 or more servings of fruit and vegetables per day.
- If you drink alcohol, talk with your doctor about whether or not you should reduce your consumption.
- If you are thinking about taking hormones of any kind, ask your doctor about your risk level.
- Avoid weight gain.
- Have a baseline mammogram at age 35 and annual mammograms after age 40.
- Perform monthly breast self-examination.
If you answer "yes" to any of these four basic prostate cancer risk questions, check with your physician on proper prevention and detection guidance.
1. Are you over 50?
2. Have any close male relatives (father, brother) had prostate cancer?
3. Are you African American? (While men of African American ethnicity have a slightly higher risk, men of other racial backgrounds should not minimize their own risk.)
4. Are you tall? (For reasons as yet unexplained, taller persons have slightly increased risk for various kinds of cancers.)
If you answered "yes" to any of the above questions, please discuss this indicator of increased risk with your family doctor or urologist. Some risk factors are more significant than others, such as family history and age.
- While many of the risk factors for prostate cancer are beyond our control, here are some things you can do to minimize your risk:
- Regular screening. Discuss this with your health care provider.
- Eat properly and limit fat intake. Research indicates that men who have a high-fat diet are more likely to develop prostate cancer.
- If you have had a vasectomy, be aware that research shows that men who have had this procedure are at a slightly higher risk for prostate cancer, usually about 20 years after the procedure. If you have a family history of prostate cancer, you should discuss the vasectomy idea with your doctor before undergoing the procedure.
Answer these four questions about lung cancer (these questions cover the risks you can't control). If you answer "yes" to more than one, you are at a higher- than-average risk level and would benefit by discussing your risks with your physician.
1. Do you smoke?
2. Do you live with a smoker and breathe secondhand smoke?
3. Have you previously had lung disease (not necessarily cancer)?
4. Are you over 50? This in itself is not a large risk factor but is made significant when combined with other risk factors.
5. Are you exposed at work or at home to toxins known to increase
lung cancer risk? A few examples: chemicals such as arsenic, vinyl chloride, nickel chromates, chloromethyl ethers, radioactive materials, or coal products.
If you answered "yes" to one or more of these five basic lung cancer risk questions, check with your physician on proper prevention and detection guidance.
- In the meantime, here are some things you can do to minimize risk:
- Stop smoking. Tobacco is directly related to 30% of all cancer deaths.
- Avoid secondhand smoke. A person living with a smoker has a much greater risk of developing lung cancer than persons living with non-smokers.
- Check your home for asbestos and radon. Consult your local building inspector or the state's Environmental Protection Agency office. Also, the National Safety Administration has a radon hotline, 1-800-767-7236.
- If you work with chemicals such as arsenic, vinyl chloride, nickel chromates, chloromethyl ethers, or coal products, talk to your doctor or see a lung specialist.
- Eat lots of fruits and vegetables. While it is not yet possible to single out foods that specifically protect against lung cancer, there is evidence that a number of vitamins and nutrients can lower overall risk.
TIP: Early Symptoms of lung cancer may include:
- frequent lung problems such as bronchitis or pneumonia
- hoarseness or wheezing
- loss of appetite or weight loss
- cough that does not go away
- chest pain that worsens when you take a deep breath, also, shortness of breath
- bloody sputum
Almost all skin cancers get their start in the epidermis, the outermost layer of skin which is exposed to light. Most skin cancers are directly related to exposure to sunlight. Skin cancers, however, are among the easiest to prevent. Take a look at the following five risk factors and enter your response:
Are you over 50? Risk increases with age but bear in mind that skin cancer frequently strikes persons under 30.
1. Do you have a family history of melanoma?
2. Are you light complected and tend to sunburn?
3. Are you male? Men are more likely to develop basal cell cancer and squamous cell cancer.
4. Do you have moles? Moles are actually small benign tumors and may become cancerous over time. Irregularly shaped moles of varying color shades are more suspicious than a simple round brown or tan mole.
If you answered "yes" to one or more of these five basic skin cancer risk questions, check with your dermatologist on proper prevention and detection guidance.
Here are some things you can do to minimize risk:
- Avoid exposure to sunlight, especially during the peak hours from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
- If you work outdoors or have outdoor hobbies, use sunscreen (SPF 15 or greater) or cover up during the peak hours, or try to work in the shade. Wearing long-sleeved shirts and a hat will help considerably.
- Regarding sunscreen, look for a product that contains both UV-A and UV-B protection. And throw out sunscreen that is more than one year old.
- Remember that the sun exposure you get while enjoying cold-weather activities (such as skiing, boarding, or snowmobiling) can be just as intense as sun exposure at the beach.
- Visit your dermatologist if you are concerned about a mole, rough patch, scaly area of the skin, or bump of any kind.
