Why screening tests are important?
Remember that old saying, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure”? Getting checked early help you to stop diseases like cancer, diabetes and osteoporosis in the very beginning, when they are easier to treat. Screening tests can spot illnesses even before you have symptoms!
Which screening tests you need depends on your age, family history, your own health history and other risk factors.
Breast cancer
The earlier you find breast cancer, the better your chance of a cure. Small breast cancers are less likely to spread to lymp nodes and vital organs like the lungs and brain. If you are in your 20s or 30s, your health care provider should perform a breast exam as part of your regular check up every one to three years.
Screening with mammography?
Mammograms are low dose x-rays that can often find a lump before you ever feel it, though normal results don’t completely rule out cancer. While you are in your 40s, you should have a mammogram every year. Then between ages 50 and 74, switch to every other year. The higher risks you are, the more frequent examinations should be done.
Cervical cancer
With regular PAP smears, cervical cancer is easy to prevent. The cervix is a narrow passageway between the uterus and the vagina. PAP smears find abnormal cells on the cervix, which can be removed before they ever turn into cancer. The main cause of cervical cancer is the Human Papillomavirus (HPV).
How to screen cervical cancer?
During Pap smear, your doctor scrapes some cells off your cervix and sends them to a lab for analysis. A common recommendation is that you should get your 1st Pap smear by age 21, and every 2 years after that.
Vaccines for cervical cancer?
Vaccines can protect women under 26 from several strains of HPV. But the vaccines don’t protect against all the cancer-causing strains of HPV. So routine Pap smears are still important. To add more, not all cervical cancers start with HPV.
In Malaysia, the Ministry of Health (MOH) offers a free vaccine against HPV to the secondary school girls and teenagers.
Osteoporosis and fractured bone
Osteoporosis is a state when a person’s bones are weak and fragile. After menopause, women start to lose more bone mass, but men get osteoporosis too. The 1st symptom is often a painful break after even a minor fall, blow or sudden twist.
What is DXA (dual energy x-ray absorptiometry)?
It is a special type of x-ray which can measure bone strength and find osteoporosis before breaks happen. It can also help predict the risk of future breaks. This screening is recommended for all women age 65 and above.
High blood pressure
As you get older, your risk of high lood pressure increases, especially if you are overweight or have certain bad health habits. High blood pressure can cause life-threatening heart attacks or strokes without any warning!
So working with your doctor to control it can save your life Insha’Allah. Lowering your blood pressure can also prevent long-term dangers like heart disease and kidney failure.
How to screen high blood pressure?
Blood pressure readings include two numbers.
The first (systolic) is the pressure of your blood when your heart beats. The second (diastolic) is the pressure between beats. Normal blood pressure is 140/90. In between is prehypertension, a sort of warning stage.
If your blood pressure is within normal range, you may annually check your blood pressure. If your blood pressure is in prehypertensive or hypertensive level, of course you need to see the health care provider more frequent.
Cholesterol levels
High cholesterol can cause plaque to clog your arteries (seen here in orange). Plaque can build up for many years without symptoms, eventually causing a heart attack or stroke. High blood pressure, diabetes and smoking can all cause plaque to build up too. It’s a condition called hardening of the arteries or atherosclerosis. Lifestyle changes and medications can lower your risk.
How to check your cholesterol level?
To get your cholesterol checked, you need to fast for 6 hours. Then you’ll take a blood test that measures total cholesterol, LDL “bad” cholesterol, HDL “good” cholesterol, and triglycerides (blood fat).
If you are in your 40’s or earlier and you are a smoker or have any other risk factors), better to do check up at least once a year.
Type 2 Diabetes
50% of diabetic patients in Malaysia do not know that they are diabetics! It is due to no pronounced symptom.
Diabetes can cause heart attack or kidney disease, stroke, blindness from damage to the blood vessels of the retina and other serious problems. You can control diabetes with diet, exercise, weight loss and medication, especially when you find it early.
Screening for diabetes?
You’ll have to fast for 6-8 hours before having your blood tested for diabetes.
| Fasting | Random |
Venous plasma glucose (mmol/L) | </= 7.0mmol/L | >/= 11.1mmol/L |
Human immunodeficiency Virus
HIV is the virus that causes AIDS. It’s spread through sharing blood or body fluids with an infected person, such as through unprotected sex or dirty needles. Pregnant women with HIV can pass the infection to their babies. There is still no cure or vaccine, but early treatment with anti –HIV medications can help the immune system fight the virus.
HIV screening tests?
HIV patients can be symptom-free many years. The only way to find out if you have the virus is blood tests. The ELISA or EIA test looks for antibodies to HIV. If you get a positive result, you’ll need a second test to confirm the results.
How to prevent HIV?
Most newly infected people test positive around two months after eing exposed to the virus. But in rare cases, it may take up to 6 months to develop HIV antibodies. Use a condom during sexual intercourse to avoid getting or passing on HIV or other STDs. If you have HIV and are pregnant, talk with your doctor about reducing the risk to your unborn child.
Colorectal cancer
Colorectal cancer is the second most common cause of death after lung cancer. Most colon cancers come from polyps (abnormal masses) that grow on the inner lining of the large intestine. The polyps may or may not be cancerous. If they are, the cancer can spread to other parts of the body. Removing polyps early, before they become cancerous, can prevent it completely.
Screening for colorectal cancer?
A colonoscopy is a common test for colorectal cancer. While you’re mildly sedated, a doctor inserts a small flexible tube equipped with a camera into your colon. If she finds a polyp, she can remove it right then.
So, what are you waiting for? Ask your doctor about screenings now! =)
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