Prostate Cancer: Health essay

Topic 

Prostate Cancer: Health essay

Instructions 

  • Select a type of cancer associated with women’s or men’s health such as breast, cervical, or ovarian cancer in women and prostate cancer in men.
  • Locate and review articles examining the type of cancer you selected.
  • Review the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force article in the Learning Resources. Think about available preventive services that providers might recommend for patients at risk of this type of cancer.
  • Select two of the following factors: genetics, gender, ethnicity, age, or behavior. Reflect on how these factors might impact decisions related to preventive services.
  • Consider drug treatment options for patients diagnosed with the type of cancer you selected including short-term and long-term implications of the treatments.

Write a 2- to 3- page paper that addresses the following:

  • Describe available preventive services that providers might recommend for patients at risk of the type of cancer you selected.
  • Explain how the factors you selected might impact decisions related to preventive services.
  • Describe drug treatment options for patients diagnosed with the type of cancer you selected. Explain the short-term and long-term implications of these treatments.

Answer Preview

African American males are more at risk of developing prostate cancer than any other ethnicity. The reasons for this disparity are not so clear but scientists attribute it to nutrition, lifestyle and family cancer history among others. Research has shown that when cancer is detected early, the chances of survival are much higher. Most Blacks have been averse to screening and this may explain the fact that most continue to get affected by prostate cancer. A research done to investigate what screening means for African American men, revealed that the few that get screened is because they had access to information on the importance of getting checked, they were influenced by family and they trusted their personal healthcare providers. In the research it emerged for most African Americans, getting screened is not a simple decision (DeAntoni et. al. 2006).

As it is most Africans Americans are unable to get screened due to financial constraints, limited access to education, limited access to information about cancer and the importance of getting tested. Moreover, the absence of a level or equal healthcare programs in America makes the African Americans distrustful of doctors and nurses (Evans et. al. 2015).

On the age factor, information about screening is three fold. All the men above the age of 50 are at risk of getting prostate cancer and thus all those of that age ought to be sensitized on the importance of getting screened. In addition, all the men in the high risk group such as the African Americans should be encouraged to go for screening even as early as at age 45 years old. The last group that is encouraged to get screened as early as at 40 years old are individuals from a family that has a history of prostate cancer.

Word Count: 1100