Prostate Cancer

Paper Summary:

This paper looks at how the trend today is to order cancer screening tests based on age or on risks factors. It examines how a recent report made by the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center says that these tests may not be the best for seniors or elderly persons since they suffer unnecessarily from discovering early cancer and undergoing surgery or another invasive treatments. It discusses some of these issues as related to prostate cancer, which is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer among American men.

From the Paper:

"Further weight was added by the finding of still another research team, led by Dr. William Black. The team findings concluded that, while early cancer detection generally benefits the patient, it is altogether different when the patient is a senior. Screening patients who are 75 years old or older for breast, colon or cervical cancer may add only a few days to his or her life, according to the team leader, Dr. Black. Dr. Black's group found out from statistics that these screenings are valuable only to those who are 70 years old or younger (Reuters Health 2000). He suggested that a limit be established as to when to stop getting a screening to complement the limit as when to begin getting one."

More papers on Prostate Cancer:

• Analytical Essay # 123885 : "Capsaisin and Prostate Cancer"
• Term Paper # 125786 : "Prostate Cancer Prevention"
• Article Review # 122241 : "Article Review - Pomegranate Juice and Prostate Cancer"
• Essay # 74296 : "Biochemistry and Prostate Cancer"

APA Citation:

MLA Citation: