Understanding Obesity's Link to Cancer and Screening Guidelines
School
Georgia State University**We aren't endorsed by this school
Course
NURS 3194
Subject
Nursing
Date
Dec 10, 2024
Pages
3
Uploaded by janabg
TOPIC 4Obesity is a physical condition in which unhealthy amount of body fat is distributed throughout the entire body. Sadly, an excess of body fat distribution can increase the risk of a wide range ofchronic conditions. Obesity is gaining epidemic proportions worldwide, and many types of researches link it to the risk of developing certain cancers such as breast and collateral cancer. Obese individuals are more likely to have an increase in inflammatory processes, as well as a change in the regulation of their hormonal status. Abnormal BMI correlates with an increased risk of colon cancer across both genders (Oh & Smith, 2019). While conducting their research, (Oh & Smith, 2019) found that a significant portion of colon cancers among men and women in Rhode Island are associated with unhealthy body weight and a high-fat diet, and those cancers have increased with the increasing percentage of obese people in the area.Researchers have explored that red meat, processed meat, and egg consumption were linked with higher risks of advanced prostate cancer. They also found that a vegetarian diet was associated with slightly lower cancer risk ("Diet & cancer research findings," n.d). Furthermore, the increased adipose tissue in the abdominal wall and the abdominal organ sites is related to the development of metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance, increased insulin levels, and insulin-like growth factor. Due to all these factors, more inflammatory molecules are released into the bloodstream, which links these active substances to be relevant to the higher risk of colon cancer in these individuals.References:Diet & cancer research findings. (n.d.). Retrieved October 14, 2019, from https://www.wcrf.org/int/research-we-fund/research-findings/diet-cancer-research-findings.OH, J., & SMITH, C. K. (2019). Cancers Associated with Overweight or Obesity among Rhode Island Adults, 1995-2016. Rhode Island Medical Journal, 102(4), 40–43. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=136211795&site=eds-live&scope=siteTOPIC 5Breast cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in women in the United States. Early detection decreases mortality for women affected by the disease. Today, the mammogram is still the most reliable tool for breast cancer screening. The guidelines for breast screening recommend women at the age of 40 to get their first mammogram. However, the benefits of young women getting tested and if those benefits outweigh the risks from getting a
mammogram at this age is controversial. ("Do Mammograms Save Lives - Mammography Debate"). Most women between the ages of 40-44 have dense breasts, which can put them at ahigher chance for false-positive mammogram results. Women who are known to be prone to higher risk factors such as black women, women of Jewish descent, and those with a family history need further consideration for earlier and more intensive screenings. The American College of Radiology suggests that all women should have a risk assessment done at the age of 30 to see if screening earlier than the age of 40 is needed ("New ACR and SBI Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines Call for Significant Changes to Screening Process," 2018). There are other alternatives to a mammogram, such as ultrasound, MRI, and molecular breast imaging. The different screening options could be an excellent way for younger women between the ages of 40-44 to get tested. Since the molecular breast imaging comes with its risks, it should be at the advice of the doctor and at the discretion of the patient to which test it should be used. With the advancement of medical technology and discoveries, these guidelines change so often based on new findings and needs.References:Do Mammograms Save Lives - Mammography Debate. (n.d.). Retrieved October 14, 2019, from https://ww5.komen.org/BreastCancer/TheMammographyDebate.htmlNew ACR and SBI Breast Cancer Screening Guidelines Call for Significant Changes to Screening Process. (2018, April 4). Retrieved October 15, 2019, from https://www.acr.org/Media-Center/ACR-News-Releases/2018/New-ACR-and-SBI-Breast-Cancer-Screening-Guidelines-Call-for-Significant-Changes-to-Screening-Process.Inflammation is the body's normal protective reaction to injury. It occurs when our white bloodcells fight to protect us from infection, such as bacteria or virus. Acute inflammation is an immune response that usually lasts only a few days, and it is generally helpful for healing, although it is often accompanied by unpleasant sensations such as swelling or soreness. This unpleasant sensation occurs when the immune system tries to protect the organs from infection and injury. Its purpose is to locate and eliminate the damaged tissue so that the body can begin to recover. On the contrary, if our immune system is not able to protect our body in its first line of defense, our organism can quickly go under an ‘out of control’ state, where a systemic inflammatory response to infection could have a fatal outcome if not caught on time. Sepsis can be mentioned as an example of such a condition where the inflammation caused by it can damage one's organs by depriving them of oxygen and nutrients.A pathogen means something that causes disease. Pathogens are mostly known to be bad such as bad bacteria, viruses, parasites and some types of fungi. Our immune system try to fight those pathogens by preventing them from entering our body, and when it does, it destroys them. Fortunately, there are hundreds of billions of good bacteria in our body as well, mostly in the gut, that help us. Those in the gut, for example, are vital for us to absorb food, and the
bacteria in the sexual organs of men and women fight off bad bacteria and protect us sexually transmitted diseases. Angela, you are right stating that pathogens can be part of our natural flora and aid in the proper operation of biological activities such as digestion. I was born in Bulgaria, and we strongly believe that the yogurt probiotics are the most beneficial living microorganisms that live in our digestive tract. These microorganisms help to correct the microflora in the gut and also to eliminate any harmful pathogens that can cause gastrointestinal and digestive problems.Chronic inflammation progresses silently and it presents a major threat to the health and longevity of many individuals. Yes, inflammation is considered a major contributor to most chronic diseases such as CVD, diabetes, malignancy, auto-immune disease, chronic hepatic and renal disease, etc. However, there are some effective ways to prevent chronic inflammation, for example yoga. Yoga and meditation are helpful in alleviating stress-induced inflammation and its harmful effects on the body. Some herbal supplements like ginger and turmeric are also believed to have anti-inflammatory effects however they need to be carefully used.