Women Over 50 More Likely to Develop Uterine Cancer
It is not known why some women develop uterine cancer, but scientific studies on what causes one woman to develop uterine cancer and another to not develop it are constantly ongoing. However, there are certain risk factors that are known put some women at a higher risk for developing uterine cancer. For those who develop uterine cancer, there are different treatment options, but most involve a hysterectomy. Unfortunately, despite the fact that it may cure (or at least help) a person's uterine cancer, a hysterectomy can affect a woman in both a physical and emotional way.
Risk Factors for Developing Uterine Cancer
There are about five factors that put you at a greater risk for developing uterine cancer. If you are a woman, and you're over the age of fifty, you are automatically at a higher risk of developing uterine cancer. Other factors include, undergoing hormone replacement therapy, being overweight, suffering from diabetes or high blood pressure, having a history of other types of cancer, of if you are Caucasian. Interestingly, if you are a woman who has never been pregnant or have never had a child, you are also at a higher risk of developing uterine cancer.
How is Uterine Cancer Treated?
Depending on the size of the cancerous tumor and the stage of the uterine cancer, different uterine cancer treatments are available. Your doctor will discuss all treatment options with you and will go over the possible side effects of each. In most cases, treatment for uterine cancer begins with surgery or a complete hysterectomy, which is a complete removal of the uterus. After surgery, it is possible that you may have to undergo additional treatments including, radiation, chemotherapy, and/or hormone therapy.
Hysterectomies are More than the Removal of the Uterus
When you undergo a hysterectomy, as a result of her having uterine cancer or for any other problem or disease related to the uterus, you must deal with both a physical recovery and an emotional recovery. The physical part of the recovery is a result of the pain that comes from having gone through surgery (although some hysterectomies do not require an incision). The emotional part of the recovery is usually due to you feeling depressed after the uterus is removed. Once it is removed, there is obviously no chance that you will ever be able to have another baby. This may not be a major factor to women who are at the greatest risk of developing uterine cancer because they are typically over the age of fifty. Nonetheless, it is always an emotional experience when a part of the body is removed due to cancer.
About the Author
Warren and Karen have been involved in the internet for a number of years and run several websites. They are most interested in providing opportunities for people to connect with information relating to business, health and creativity. Check out their Uterine Cancer blog for more information.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Tuesday, February 27, 2007
Gynecologic Cancer Second Opinion: Do I need one?
If you are already under the care of a board certified or fellowship trained board eligible gynecologic oncologist then whether or not you should get a second opinion depends upon your level of trust and personal interaction with your oncologist. Gynecologic oncologists receive 3-4 years of training after ObGyn residency, gaining extra surgical skills which put them into an elite category of highly skilled cancer surgeons. Physicians in this category are specifically trained for treatment of gynecologic cancers, including surgery, chemotherapy and integration of radiation therapy into a comprehensive treatment plan.
On the other hand if you have not seen a gynecologic oncologist, the prudent thing to do is to seek one out and obtain a second opinion from them!! Even if the recommended treatment for a presumed early cancer sounds reasonable to you, it would behoove you to obtain a second opinion. It may mean the difference between cure and no cure.
Almost all universities and academic centers, including NCI designated cancer centers, have gynecologic oncologists on staff. The links section on this site has several options. The main site which lists most of the board certified or eligible gynecologic oncologists in the US is the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists: www.sgo.org
Universities and academic centers are definitely NOT the only place to find qualified gyn oncologists. In fact, these centers have a mix of senior and junior faculty, some who have just recently completed their fellowship. While these junior faculty members are certainly well qualified to care for you and have support from the senior faculty, there are many gyn oncologists in private practice who have a wealth of experience and potentially a better skill set to take care of you. This is because some private practices have a high volume of patients, in some cases exceeding that found in academic referral centers. Therefore,some private practitioners have a greater experience base than academic practitioners. Finally, some private practices are involved in clinicial research, while many are not. If you seek an opinion which may involve research studies, first determine if the practitioner you are going to see is involved in such trials.
The final, and potentially most important, advice is that not all gyn oncologists are the same. Some have better surgical skills than others, some give chemotherapy while others refer to medical oncologists, practice philosophies differ, and as in any area....personalities differ. It is unfortunately impossible to determine who is best suited for your special needs, but a bit of "research" regarding your potential doctor is wise. A certain amount of information can be gleaned from the the Society of Gynecologic Oncologist's site and the National Practitioner's Data Bank NPDB, but personality and philosophy differences are more difficult to assess. Unfortunately, there is no overall performance card available like that used in baseball. Some information of this subjective kind is available in patient forums and chats.
Steven A. Vasilev MD,MBA,FACOG,FACS is a fellowship trained and board certified gynecologic oncologist, which means he is specially trained and certified to take care of women with gynecologic cancers using a broad spectrum of skills. He has practiced at academic as well as private centers, has been on the faculty of three universities and continues to be involved in research and education. You can visit http://www.gyncancerdoctor.com to learn more about screening, prevention and treatment of gynecologic cancers.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steven_Vasilev_MD
On the other hand if you have not seen a gynecologic oncologist, the prudent thing to do is to seek one out and obtain a second opinion from them!! Even if the recommended treatment for a presumed early cancer sounds reasonable to you, it would behoove you to obtain a second opinion. It may mean the difference between cure and no cure.
Almost all universities and academic centers, including NCI designated cancer centers, have gynecologic oncologists on staff. The links section on this site has several options. The main site which lists most of the board certified or eligible gynecologic oncologists in the US is the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists: www.sgo.org
Universities and academic centers are definitely NOT the only place to find qualified gyn oncologists. In fact, these centers have a mix of senior and junior faculty, some who have just recently completed their fellowship. While these junior faculty members are certainly well qualified to care for you and have support from the senior faculty, there are many gyn oncologists in private practice who have a wealth of experience and potentially a better skill set to take care of you. This is because some private practices have a high volume of patients, in some cases exceeding that found in academic referral centers. Therefore,some private practitioners have a greater experience base than academic practitioners. Finally, some private practices are involved in clinicial research, while many are not. If you seek an opinion which may involve research studies, first determine if the practitioner you are going to see is involved in such trials.
The final, and potentially most important, advice is that not all gyn oncologists are the same. Some have better surgical skills than others, some give chemotherapy while others refer to medical oncologists, practice philosophies differ, and as in any area....personalities differ. It is unfortunately impossible to determine who is best suited for your special needs, but a bit of "research" regarding your potential doctor is wise. A certain amount of information can be gleaned from the the Society of Gynecologic Oncologist's site and the National Practitioner's Data Bank NPDB, but personality and philosophy differences are more difficult to assess. Unfortunately, there is no overall performance card available like that used in baseball. Some information of this subjective kind is available in patient forums and chats.
Steven A. Vasilev MD,MBA,FACOG,FACS is a fellowship trained and board certified gynecologic oncologist, which means he is specially trained and certified to take care of women with gynecologic cancers using a broad spectrum of skills. He has practiced at academic as well as private centers, has been on the faculty of three universities and continues to be involved in research and education. You can visit http://www.gyncancerdoctor.com to learn more about screening, prevention and treatment of gynecologic cancers.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steven_Vasilev_MD
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