January 18th, 2010 | Tags: , ,

We Know, It’s Confusing

New breast health guidelines have been released jointly by two different organizations, the American College of Radiology (ACR) and the Society of Breast Imaging (SBI), based on actual results and successes of beginning annual mammography screening at age 40.

They recommend that “annual screening should begin on women with an average risk of breast cancer at age 40 and women with a higher risk at age 30.” This negates the guidelines issued in November by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, but is based on a work in progress for nearly two years. The data gathered from this joint project also helps to determine how to screen women with different risk levels.

For example, women with a greater than 20 percent lifetime risk based on family history or who possess the BRCA gene mutation should seek annual MRI testing by age 30.  Women with an average risk of breast cancer should start screening at age 40and women with an elevated risk of breast cancer should begin getting mammograms by age 30.

The Charleston Breast Center’s Dr. Lisa Baron agrees, “Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in women and the second-leading cause of cancer-related deaths. I join my colleagues in disagreeing with their new recommendations for breast cancer screening. Widespread use of routine screening, along with treatment advances in recent years, has been credited with significant reductions in breast cancer mortality.”

Our recommendation: get your mammogram!

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January 14th, 2010 | Tags: ,

What to Expect at Your MRI

So you need to get a breast MRI. There is nothing to be afraid of if you know what to expect.

When you arrive for your appointment, a member of your health care team will give you a gown to wear and ask you to remove clothing and jewelry during the test. If you have trouble being in a small, confined space, let your referring physician know before your breast MRI. You may be prescribed a mild sedative.

A contrast agent (dye) may be injected into your veins through an intravenous (IV) line in your arm to enhance the appearance of tissues or blood vessels on the MRI pictures.

The MRI machine has a large, central opening. During the breast MRI, you lie face down on a padded scanning table. Your breasts fit into a hollow depression in the table, which contains coils that detect magnetic signals from the MRI machine. The entire table then slides into the opening of the machine.

The MRI machine creates a magnetic field around you, and radio waves are directed at your body. You won’t feel the magnetic field or radio waves, but you may hear loud tapping and thumping sounds coming from inside the machine. Because of this, you will be given earplugs to wear. During the test, the technologist monitors you from another room. You can speak to the technologist through a microphone. You’ll be instructed to breathe normally but to lie as still as possible. Your health care team member can provide you with a selection of music to help make you more comfortable and to help take your mind off the procedure. Our doctors at CBC try all these machines themselves to make sure they are as comfortable as possible for the patient.

The breast MRI appointment may take 30 minutes to one hour. Afterward a radiologist will review your results and get back with you within 48-72 hours to discuss their findings. See, nothing to it!

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January 11th, 2010 | Tags: ,

Breast MRI vs Mammogram

We recommend an annual mammogram every year after you turn 40 years old, but what is a breast MRI and why is it important?

A mammogram is an x-ray of your breast. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the breast — or breast MRI —uses a computer to combine multiple images taken of the breast tissue to generate a more detailed picture.

We usually perform a breast MRI when your doctor needs more information than a mammogram, ultrasound or clinical breast exam can provide. In certain situations, such as when a woman has a very high risk of breast cancer, breast MRI may be used as a screening tool for detecting breast cancer.  We also use an MRI to spot a possible implant rupture. Your doctor may recommend a breast MRI if:

  • You’ve been diagnosed with breast cancer and your doctor wants to determine the extent of the cancer
  • Your doctor finds a suspicious area on your mammogram
  • You or your doctor can feel a mass or other lump in your breast, but it’s not detectable on mammogram or ultrasound
  • Your doctor wants to monitor your opposite breast after you’ve been newly diagnosed or treated for breast cancer in the other breast
  • You have very dense breast tissue and your prior breast cancer wasn’t detected on mammogram

Charleston Breast Center even has a new “pink” MRI machine that has already detected cancers unseen by mammogram.

A breast MRI is most effective when used in addition to a mammogram or another breast-imaging test — not as a replacement for a mammogram. Although it’s a very sensitive test, breast MRI can still miss some breast cancers that a mammogram will detect. It’s just one more tool we use to keep you healthy.

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January 7th, 2010 | Tags: ,

You Are What You Eat II – The Recipes

Earlier this week we discussed a few of the best cancer fighting foods you should be incorporating into your diet. View post here. Why not try a few of our favorite good-for-you recipes?

Broccoli Salad

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: about 3/4 cup)

Ingredients

  • 4  cups  broccoli florets (about 1 head)
  • 1/4  cup  thinly vertically-sliced red onion
  • 1/4  cup  (1-inch thick) slices red bell pepper
  • 1/4  cup  raisins
  • 2 1/2  tablespoons  sliced almonds, toasted
  • 1/8  teaspoon  salt
  • 1/8  teaspoon  freshly-ground black pepper
  • 1  center-cut bacon slice, cooked and crumbled (drained)
  • 2  tablespoons  white wine vinegar
  • 2  tablespoons  sugar
  • 1 1/2  teaspoons  olive oil

Preparation

Combine first 8 ingredients in a large bowl. Combine vinegar, sugar and oil in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk to combine. Pour vinegar mixture over broccoli mixture; toss gently to coat.

Paulette M. Kwiatkowski, Maumee, OH, Cooking Light, AUGUST 2006

Salmon With Lemon-Mint Crust

Ingredients

  • 1 small lemon
  • 1 1/4 pounds salmon fillet, preferably wild
  • 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper, divided
  • 6 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1 slice whole-wheat or multigrain bread
  • 1 teaspoon chopped fresh mint or 1/2 teaspoon dried mint flakes
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1/16 teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 16 ounces prewashed baby spinach

Preparation

Preheat oven to 450°.  Zest lemon. Transfer the zest to a food processor. Cut lemon into 4 wedges; set aside. Sprinkle salmon with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.

Coarsely chop 1 garlic clove and add it to the food processor. Thinly slice remaining garlic and set it aside.

Tear the bread into chunks and add to the food processor along with mint, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Process until coarse crumbs form and transfer to a small bowl. Stir in 1 teaspoon oil and set aside.

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add salmon, skin-side up. Cook 3 minutes. Turn fish with spatula, pat crumbs over the surface, and transfer pan to the oven. Roast 5 minutes.

While salmon cooks, heat remaining tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add sliced garlic and red pepper flakes. Sauté one minute until garlic is lightly browned. Add spinach. Stir just until wilted, season with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and toss. Divide among four dishes. Divide salmon into four portions; place fish on spinach. Serve with lemon wedges.

www.Health.com

We’d love for you to post your favorite recipes.

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January 4th, 2010 | Tags: ,

You Are What You Eat

Everyone wants to lose weight and get healthy with the New Year. And we all know that more fruits and vegetables and less fatty meats are good for you. But what about foods that specifically help you fight breast cancer? Recent studies suggest the following:

Cruciferous vegetables, like broccoli, cabbage, bok choy and cauliflower contain potential cancer-fighting compounds called isothiocynates.

Fish, like salmon, tuna and trout are rich in omega-3s and are a healthier protein source than beef or pork.

Bell peppers and broccoli are full of flavenoids, a powerful, good-for-you antioxidant.

Kefir yogurt is a great source of vitamin D and healthy bacteria (probiotics).

Come back later this week for a few great cancer-fighting recipes.

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December 28th, 2009 |

5 Simple Things to Reduce Your Chance of Breast Cancer

There are a few simple things that we can do every day that will lessen our chances of getting breast cancer. Yes, they may make life a little less fun, but would you rather party hearty now, or live longer later?

1)      Drink less alcohol – A recent study showed the link between drinking and breast cancer was especially strong in the 70 percent of tumors known as hormone-sensitive. Just cut out a few drinks a week.

2)      Get moving – Exercise at least three times a week for a minimum of 20 minutes and get sweaty! It’s the more vigorous exercise that really helps your heart and cuts your cancer risk.

3)      Drop a few pounds – This is always on our to-do list anyway, and a study released in March 2008 by researchers at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston showed that obese and overweight women also had lower breast cancer survival rates and a greater chance of more aggressive disease than average-weight women.

4)      Check the girls – Do a monthly breast self exam. Start young and be vigilant. You might catch a lump before a mammogram does, and it’s a good idea to follow changes in your body.

5)      Get the mammogram – Catching a tumor early boosts your survival rate to 98 percent. Have a mammogram once a year after you hit the big 4-0.

These are small changes that anyone can make that aren’t expensive or time consuming, and could save your life. What one change are you going to make today?

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December 25th, 2009 | Tags: , ,

Rah Rah – Sis Boom Bah

It’s the holidays and in a lot of houses that means lots of football on TV! Here’s an inspirational story that may bring a smile to your face even if your team hasn’t scored a touchdown in three quarters.

In 2008, Mark Herzlich, a football player for Boston College, was named the ACC defensive player of the year. In early 2009 he was diagnosed with Ewing’s sarcoma, a malignant tumor most often found in bone or soft tissue in the leg.

Facing a rare and deadly form of cancer, Mark didn’t throw in the towel. Heck, he didn’t even slow down. Since his diagnosis, more than $167,000 has been raised or donated to various cancer-related causes in Mark’s name. He’s brought together the entire ACC football conference and again this year attended the title game, not as a player, but as an ambassador of hope.

After a very aggressive treatment that included radiation, surgery and chemotherapy, he is now cancer free and plans to return to the football field in 2010.

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December 21st, 2009 | Tags:

Celebrity Inspiration

It’s no secret that our culture is fascinated with celebrities. We blog about them, talk about them and wait for them to make news. We like to know that they are like us and make mistakes, wear bad outfits and drive too fast. Occasionally these men and women also share their battles, and they help us to be brave. 

Here are 20 celebrities who SURVIVED and THRIVED after having breast cancer:

Celebrity or not, it’s wonderful to know you CAN beat this disease!

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December 17th, 2009 | Tags: , ,

A Cancer Patient’s Wish List

When someone you know has begun the breast cancer battle, our first inclination is to ask “is there anything I can do?”, “please let me know how I can help” or a “just let me know if you need anything.”

Well we’re here to tell you – if the cost of treatment wasn’t expensive enough, there are also all sorts of accessories and items you need to get you through the battle.

The following list was developed by Sylvie Fortin to answer the burning question “what do you need?” It’s been care­fully researched to inc­lude all the dif­fe­rent help­ful items that will be needed when going through che­mo and has been adap­ted as a sug­ges­ted gift guide for peo­ple who don’t know what to buy for someone with breast can­cer, or any type of can­cer that requi­res che­mothe­rapy or radia­tion treatments.

  • Prosthetic breast form
  • Mastectomy swimsuit
  • A custom fit mastectomy shirt
  • Mastectomy bra
  • A fabulous wig for going out on the town
  • A regular wig for around the neighborhood
  • A headwrap scarf
  • A spunky full coverage hat
  • Wig hair care supply kit
  • A cozy sleep cap
  • A swim cap
  • A case of Ginger Ale
  • A case of water bottles
  • A bowl of hot and comforting soup
  • A luxury terrycloth bathrobe
  • A relaxation CD
  • An inspirational book
  • A soft blanket (for chemo treatment days)
  • Bed serving tray
  • A sleep mask
  • Soft cotton pajamas
  • Parking money for hospital trips
  • A scented aromatherapy candle
  • A pair of soft bootie socks
  • Hand sanitizer
  • One afternoon of maid service
  • A body massage
  • An afternoon at the spa
  • Vitamins and approved herbal remedies
  • Fresh flowers
  • Book light (for long nights of insomnia)
  • A pound of Starbucks coffee
  • Lots of fresh fruit
  • Self-tanning lotion
  • A bottle of hypoallergenic body lotion
  • A stick of medicated lip balm
  • A bag of homemade cookies

 

As you can see, there is a LOT you can do. Did we forget anything?

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December 14th, 2009 | Tags: , ,

Get Un-Busy

Everyone is overbooked these days. We schedule our kids after school and balance our social calendar and run all over town never quite checking everything off of our to-do lists — especially during the holiday season! There’s never enough time to get everything done and every person taken care of. Busy, busy, busy.

If you look up busy in Webster’s, definition No. 4 says, “Full of distracting detail.” What is the busyness of your life distracting you from? Are you using a hectic schedule to give you permission to avoid doing things that are necessary but not fun? Like getting your teeth cleaned? Or getting a mammogram?

A friend of mine always schedules her mammogram on or near her birthday for three reasons:
1) It’s a date that she will always remember.
2) There’s usually lots of other fun things going on to reward herself with when she is finished.
3) Her health is a gift to herself.

So slow down, get un-busy and make an annual date with yourself. You are SO worth it.

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