For both men and women, colorectal cancer is the third deadliest cancer there is. This is why it’s so important to get screened for it. As with all cancers, the earlier it’s found, the easier it is to fight off. So you need to know what to look for and what doctors do to screen for colorectal cancer. Here are the common signs and symptoms of colorectal cancer and the screening methods used to determine if you have it.

Signs and Symptoms of Colorectal Cancer

If you have any of these symptoms you should see your doctor.

* Constipation, diarrhea, or any change to the stool that lasts for more than a few days
* Rectal bleeding or blood in the stool
* Feeling like you have to have a bowel movement, but when you do go you are not feeling relieved
* Abdominal pain or cramping that is persistent. Gas or pain of any kind that doesn’t go away
* Weakness and fatigue
* Weight loss when you weren’t trying to lose weight

These symptoms can generally be explained away as other things such as a virus, infection, hemorrhoids, and inflammatory bowel disease. It’s important to see your doctor if these issues persist so these things can be ruled out.

There are often no early symptoms of colorectal cancer. Signs and symptoms may vary when it develops depending on where in the colon the cancer is located. You should be more concerned if you are over the age of 50 or have a family history.

Tests for Colorectal Cancer

If you present with any of the above symptoms, then your doctor will take a complete family history. He or she will feel your belly to see if he feels any masses. He might order some blood tests to see what exactly is going on, like a CBC (Complete Blood Count) to check for anemia, liver enzymes to check your liver function because colorectal cancer can spread to your liver, and tumor markers in someone who already has colorectal cancer or has had it.

If symptoms or the results of these tests suggests cancer, then further testing is recommended. This is usually a colonoscopy, but sometimes a sigmoidoscopy or an imaging test that uses a barium enema and a lower GI series. This helps doctors screen for polyps.

During a colonoscopy, if colorectal cancer is suspected the doctor will take a biopsy which is just a small piece of tissue that is removed for further examination under the microscope. In very rare cases, part of the colon may need to be surgically removed (a part less often used) to make the diagnosis.

Additionally, scans such as a CT scan might be performed. This is used more often to see if colon cancer has spread to other organs like the liver. It gives a detailed image of the soft tissues of the body.

An ultrasound might be performed to try to see tumors, but really all this would show is tumors in the liver, gallbladder, or pancreas. It cannot detect tumors in the colon. For that your doctor might recommend an endorectal ultrasound where a special transducer is inserted into the rectum. This way the doctor can see deep into the rectal wall to see where the cancer has spread, if at all, and it can look at the lymph nodes and nearby organs.

If you don’t have any symptoms of colorectal cancer but are of a certain age or have a family history, there are screening tests that can be done. Tests that find both colorectal polyps and cancer are perfect. This way if polyps are found they can be removed during the screening to help prevent them from turning into cancer. For less invasive screening, tests that check the stool can be used. However, this doesn’t find polyps.

The colonoscopy is the most common test performed to screen for polyps and cancer. However, the CT scan and the barium enema are used to screen for polyps and cancer as well.

To screen just for cancer, tests like the Fecal Occult Blood test is used. Fecal matter is screened for the occult blood which cannot be seen with the naked eye. If there is blood in the stool, a colonoscopy would need to be performed to determine where exactly the bleeding is coming from.

Check with your doctor to see what he recommends based on your symptoms or lack thereof and your family history. While colorectal cancer is the third leading deadly cancer, the development of tests and screenings has been increasing the survival rate.

Early detection of cancer leads to the best outcomes – especially in breast cancer. You can check your own breasts at home for lumps or abnormalities and call to your doctor’s attention concerns you may have so he or she can test further if need be. But do you know how to perform a home breast exam or how often to do it? Do you know what you’re looking for? Here’s what you need to know about home breast exams.

How to Perform a Home Breast Exam

There are five steps which you should take to do your monthly self-breast exams at home.

1. Look at yourself in the mirror. Keep your shoulders straight and arms at your hips. You want to check to make sure your breasts are the normal size and shape as usual with no visible deformities or swelling. If you see dimpling or puckering of the skin, a nipple which has changed position or is inverted, or a rash on the skin of your breasts, you want to make your doctor aware of these changes.

2. Now lift your arms over your head and look at your breasts in the mirror. Look for the same things as in #1.

3. Check to make sure there is no liquid coming out of your nipples (unless you’re nursing, of course). Otherwise any liquid – whether it be milky, clear, yellow, bloody, or watery – should be what you’re taking note of.

4. Now lay down and begin feeling your breasts. Use your right hand to feel your left breast and your left hand to feel your right breast. Keeping the fingers flat and together, move the first few pads of your fingers over your breast in a smooth firm fashion. Go in a circular motion around about the size of a quarter. Get the entire breast from top to bottom and side to side. Move from your collar bone to your belly and your arm pit to your cleavage.

Go in a pattern starting at your nipple and work your way out, making larger and larger circles. You could use a vertical method in rows like mowing the lawn, applying different amounts of pressure. Light pressure at the skin and tissue just underneath the breast, medium pressure for the tissue in the middle of the breast, and firmer pressure for the deep tissue at the back of the breast.

5. Now stand or sit up and feel your breasts. A good place to do this is in the shower. Use the same technique as in step 4; be sure to cover your entire breast using the same movements. You are feeling for any abnormalities or bumps in the breast tissue which are new.

You should perform these steps once a month, every month. It’s best done about a week after you have your menstrual period. This way your breasts are the least tender and swollen.

Remember, your breasts are always changing in small ways, but you want to be alerted to drastic changes that happen suddenly so you can contact your doctor. Don’t wait and tell yourself it’s nothing. Err on the side of caution and contact your doctor so they can determine what’s going on.

Remember, it’s your body and you know it best. If you find any new bumps or lumps, make sure your doctor hears about your concerns. Early detection is the best defense against breast cancer. So it’s important to know what you’re looking for.

Now go check your breasts!

Cervical cancer is one of those cancers that only women get. You will want to be screened to make sure you don’t have it. Here, you will learn about some of those screening methods and what to expect. Learn about what cervical cancer is, ways to help prevent yourself from getting it and what the survival rate of it is if you do get it.

What Is Cervical Cancer?

The cervix is the lower part of the uterus. Most cervical cancers begin in the cells that line the cervix. The normal cells of the cervix slowly develop into precancerous cells. It takes time for the precancerous cells to turn into cancerous cells, and this is why it’s so important to get regular screenings.

Screening for Cervical Cancer

There are two tests which are performed to screen for cervical cancer – a Pap smear and an HPV test. The Pap smear tests for precancerous cells. The HPV test looks for the human papillomavirus which can lead to cancer.

The Pap test is recommended for women ages 21-65. It is done right in your doctor or gynecologist’s office. A speculum (a metal or plastic instrument) is placed inside the vagina and used to widen it and then a few swabs are taken and tested in a lab to make sure they are not abnormal.

The HPV test is done similarly, but the lab will test for the human papillomavirus.

The new recommendations from the American College of Gynecology (ACOG) is to have a Pap smear performed every three years starting at the age of 21. If you are at higher risk, meaning you have had precancerous cells in a prior test, then your doctor will recommend more frequent screenings. The Pap test is the most accurate screening test there is for cervical cancer. It does not detect any other gynecological cancers, though, so for any abnormal symptoms you should see your doctor.

Aside from regular screenings, you want to make sure you’re doing all you can to prevent yourself from getting cervical cancer.

How to Prevent Cervical Cancer

Getting screened is the most important thing you can do in preventing cervical cancer. However, beyond that there are some other things you can do as well. Since HPV can cause cervical cancer, getting the HPV vaccine will help prevent you from getting cervical cancer. Beyond that, eating right, not smoking, not having lots of sexual partners and practicing safe sex (using condoms) will help prevent you from getting cervical cancer.

HPV is a sexually transmitted disease. And while HPV can live on both the male and female genitalia in areas which are not protected by a condom, using a condom has been shown to lower the chances of transmitting HPV and getting cervical cancer. All of these steps will help prevent you from getting cervical cancer.

Getting Cervical Cancer

In most instances it takes a few years for precancerous cells to turn into cancer cells, and most times that doesn’t even happen. This is why it’s important to have regular screenings so you can catch the cancer early, because that’s always your best chance.

There are many factors which will weigh in on your chances of survival with cervical cancer. These include:

* Type of cancer
* Stage of cancer
* Age and overall health
* If the cancer comes back after treatment

The further the cancer spreads outside of the cervix, the lower the chances of survival. So again, this is why screening is so very important to catch it early. It is completely reasonable to assume that you will survive five years or more after being diagnosed with cervical cancer.