Your mother was right, you know: Prevention is the best cure.
Visiting your doctor for regular checkups, preventive screenings and immunizations – along with exercise and eating a healthy diet – can be the most effective way for women to stay healthy and free from debilitating diseases.
Are you at higher risk for cervical cancer, breast cancer or heart disease? Family history, environmental exposure, age and ethnicity all affect your personal risk levels. Your doctor can help you determine your risk levels and recommend appropriate care.
But the first step is up to you. Schedule an appointment with your doctor and work with your doctor to decide when you need screenings and immunizations, share your family history, discuss your concerns, and ask questions. You owe it to yourself to make good choices and be a smart health care consumer.
"There's a reason why health plans like HMSA cover preventive screenings," says Faith Carlin, M.D., of the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Women's Health at the University of Hawaii John A. Burns School of Medicine. "They know patients will do better, have less pain and suffering, and less need for advanced care."
As women age, they need to be aware of the recommended guidelines for cancer screenings, including mammograms and clinical breast exams for detecting breast cancer, colon cancer screenings, and Pap smears and human papilloma virus (HPV) screens for detecting cervical cancer. Heart disease is the number one killer of women, so knowing blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and blood sugar levels for diabetes, will help ensure appropriate treatment. Other checks include those for teeth, eyes, skin, and bone-mineral density.
And don't forget immunizations: influenza every year, shingles for older adults, tetanus every 10 years, and hepatitis. The newly approved Gardasil vaccine, to prevent most forms of HPV and cervical cancer, is now a standard childhood immunization for girls.
A few vaccines, such as varicella (for chickenpox) and rubella (for German measles), are not safe in pregnancy, according to Janet Burlingame, M.D., assistant professor and program director of the Obstetrics/Gynecology Residency Program at the UH medical school. And, the infections themselves are very dangerous to both a mother and her unborn child. So, "it's important to review your vaccination status both before and during pregnancy with your doctor," Burlingame says.
The number of tests and immunizations may discourage some patients from getting regular screenings. But consider this: survival rates for some diseases, like cancer, are much higher if they are detected early.
"Knowing you are at higher risk may cause you to make tough decisions, but will help you live longer," says Carlin. "If patients do their homework by going for routine screening exams, we will know if you have cancer or heart disease earlier – when the disease is much more treatable and potentially curable, when treatments are not as difficult for patients to tolerate."
Adds Lori Kamemoto, M.D., an obstetrician/gynecologist at UH, "Prevention and early detection of possible health problems is one of the most important messages I convey to my patients. They're so important in maintaining a healthy and happy lifestyle – a good choice for all women!"
Visit hmsa.com for the current schedule of recommended screenings and guidelines for women, men and children.
