This blog looks into the essence of cancer screening as a measure of dealing with the cancer disease and some of the challenges involved in this vital health process.
There is no doubt to the fact that Kenya and whole world is trying hard to find an effective one time solution to the deadly disease of cancer. This is evident in the number of medics and health experts who are working hard day and night trying to find a lasting solution to this disease. These dedicated health experts are taking every step, measure and approach to help reduce the number of cancer fatalities in the country.
Unfortunately, the cooperation from the citizen’s side has not been inspiring lately. It appears there are people who are yet to realize that fighting cancer as a disease successfully requires the combined input of both the health personnel and an individual’s personal initiative. Doing simple things like going for cancer screening can help establish if one has cancer cells in them or not. Such data is very vital as it forms the cornerstone of the Kenyan government efforts to battle and manage the cancer menace.
Though not scientifically proven, many cancer physicians argue that early cancer detection and subsequent adoption of the right medication like chemotherapy can greatly mitigate cancer fatalities across the country. This is why every player in the health sector is strongly calling for early cancer diagnosis and the commencement of treatment almost right away as a way of fighting this deadly dragon.
The intentions of the calls to have people go for cancer screening is to help detect cancer cells in people early enough and commence appropriate treatment immediately which in turn will reduce the cancer fatality rate in the country. These efforts have however hit dead ends in some places owing to the fact that many Kenyans deliberately refuse to go for cancer screening as urged for reasons well known to them. As a result some of these people fail to discover cancer cells in their bodies early enough to commence early treatment of the disease and combat it effectively. This has in turn resulted in some cancer fatalities which could have easily been avoided by a simple cancer screening process. This disturbing detail is one of the reasons why the Kenyan government continues to invest in cancer awareness programs like using media houses to urge people to go for cancer screening as a measure of dealing with cancer.
What is Cancer Screening?
Cancer screening refers to the process of carrying out both physical and laboratory cancer examinations on the body of anyone who seeks this service. The aim of these processes is to discover any cancer cells or tissues early enough and map out an effective treatment plan for the victims. Unlike cancer testing, people who go for cancer screening do not exhibit any signs of cancer or other associated conditions. These are normally perfectly healthy people who only seek to establish if they have any cancer cells in them or not. Remember, cancer cells start out small then develop over time. This means that it might not be possible to notice cancer cells in people when these cells are still in their infant stages relying on visible signs alone. This is why cancer screening is recommended to everyone as it can reveal cancer cells in the body when they are still very young and easy to combat.
Therefore, people should not wait until they see some cancer signs before going for cancer screening or even testing. In fact, there are some severe types of cancer that don’t show any signs until they get to very advanced stages. This means that by the time patients are seeing some of the signs associated with them, the disease is already so grown and spread to a point of even resisting any preferred treatment. This reaffirms the essence of early cancer detection which is greatly enabled by cancer screening.
Types of Cancer Screening
Cancer screening procedures can be carried out using different methods depending on where the person interested the screening goes for the screening, the cost of the screening process and the accuracy levels of the same. Notably, there are some people who deliberately avoid going for cancer screening for the fears of being confronted by the unwanted cancer reality. These are the people who tend to think of cancer screening process as an indication of cancer cells in their bodies even when none is confirmed. It is important to note that this is not always the case and in many cases, this belief is often empowered by some damaging myths spread by some people about cancer as a disease.
Cancer screening is more of a precautionary measure which doctors recommend to everyone who cares about their health. In fact, if a doctor or any medical practitioner recommends a cancer screening session for you do not panic as there is nothing wrong with you or your health at the point of the recommendation.
What the doctor or the practitioners are attempting to do is running a series of tests to ascertain that you are okay, free of any cancer cells or any such risk. However, should cancer cells be found in your body during the screening process which happens sometimes then that will even be better and here is how. Early cancer detection as said above will help you commence treatment early enough putting you in a proper position of fighting this disease successfully.
This reason in particular underscores the essence of cancer screening procedures and the big difference that can make in the life of anyone. It might surprise you to know that so many people have successfully fought off cancer simply because they went for early cancer screening, detected the disease on time and commenced treatment which gave them an advantage in dealing with this disease.
Similarly, there are other people who have lost their battles with cancer because they simply did not go for the cancer screening process when they were supposed to. As a direct consequence, they missed out on an opportunity to discover the cancer cells in them on time which spoiled their chances of fighting of the disease successfully through proper and timely treatment. That said, here are some common cancer screening procedures you are likely to encounter in a medical establishment in Kenya.
1: Physical Examination and a Person’s History:
This is the most common cancer screening procedure across the country. Medics in local clinics all the way to level 5 health establishments use this method. It involves physically examining the body to check for any health signs, any diseases that might be consistent with some cancers and other things which might appear unusual in the body. The screening method can extend further to an individual’s past health history and the treatments taken by the person.
This is the most common cancer screening procedure across the country. Medics in local clinics all the way to level 5 health establishments use this method. It involves physically examining the body to check for any health signs, any diseases that might be consistent with some cancers and other things which might appear unusual in the body. The screening method can extend further to an individual’s past health history and the treatments taken by the person.
2: Laboratory Screening Tests:
This is another cancer screening method that is mostly preferred by top medical establishments. This screening method goes above and beyond to try and accurately determine if someone has cancer cells in them or not. In many cases, this is the screening method that has discovered cancer cells in patients allowing them an opportunity to start early treatment and mitigation to manage the disease well.
This is another cancer screening method that is mostly preferred by top medical establishments. This screening method goes above and beyond to try and accurately determine if someone has cancer cells in them or not. In many cases, this is the screening method that has discovered cancer cells in patients allowing them an opportunity to start early treatment and mitigation to manage the disease well.
3: Genetic Test Screening:
Genetic testing is a cancer screening method that is carried out in the laboratory analyzing body tissues and genes. The motive of this particular screening method is to look and identify any notable changes in a person’s chromosomes and genes. Any changes in these areas if noticed could be an indication of the presence of cancer or other serious health conditions in the body.
Genetic testing is a cancer screening method that is carried out in the laboratory analyzing body tissues and genes. The motive of this particular screening method is to look and identify any notable changes in a person’s chromosomes and genes. Any changes in these areas if noticed could be an indication of the presence of cancer or other serious health conditions in the body.
Those are the three main cancer screening methods available in Kenya. There could be some others used in other medical facilities but those ones mostly fall within the three categories discussed above. Unfortunately, there are some isolated cases where some cancer cells escape the screening process often going undetected. In such cases, the patients involved may only discover the cells in their bodies late on which as shown above might result in some serious health consequences.
To deal with this issue, regular cancer screening is advised as one screening alone can sometimes fail to detect cancer cells in the human body. Medical experts recommend cancer screening at least twice in a year using different cancer screening methods so as to significantly reduce the chances of any cancer cells hiding in the body going undetected.
Cancer Screening Comes With Some Health Risks
Cancer screening might seem like the silver bullet in the fight against cancer from the outside. However, that might not be the case if other factors like the shortcomings of these processes are considered. For instance, cancers screening especially the extreme screening methods come with some downsides like the risks the screening procedures possess to the body.
One of these risks is the health issues occasioned by this very procedure which includes but not limited to bleeding, a common cancer screening side effect that is very common especially with laboratory cancer screening tests. Colon cancer screening in particular is very notorious for this kind of cancer side effect which has in some cases turned out to be catastrophic.
False Positive and Negative Cancer Screening Results
One of the greatest limitations of cancer screening process is the considerable possibility of false positive and negative results. These outcomes are so common especially in health Kenyan health centers that lack advanced cancer screening machines and equipment. It is so common these days to have someone screened and found to have cancer cells in them when in fact they have none. Or, some tests confirm the absence of cancer cells in the body when there are actually cancers cells in the same body and not just that but the cells are multiplying rapidly begging for any intervention.
These two scenarios perfectly capture some of the shortcomings of cancer screening procedures. These shortcomings have the capability of inflicting serious consequences on affected victims. Take the case of a false positive cancer screening for instance, some people might not see any problem with it given that there are no cancer cells in the body even though the cancer screening test are showing a different thing. However, that might only be the case if no treatment is administered to combat the falls cancer cells. If any treatment like chemotherapy is administered then it could result in some serious health consequences on the victims.
Just in case you did not know, one of the side effects of cancer treatments is the very cancer disease. Some cancer treatment processes like chemotherapy sessions are confirmed to have cancer as a side effect. This explains why some cancer patients succumb to death shortly after being put on chemo. Therefore, introducing such treatment into the body of anyone with no cancer cells can put the affected person at a very great risk of developing cancer.
In the other case of a misdiagnosis where someone has cancer but the screening mechanisms fail to detect it, the consequences can be grave. Here, the person will continue to develop cancer cells without knowing growing so much and making its way to the dreaded advanced cancer stages. In such cases, the cancer symptoms in the affected patients may only manifest later on at advanced stages when it is too late leaving the patient with a huge burden of fighting of the disease in its deadly stages.
Therefore, in as much as experts and organizations continue to call for cancer screening as a measure of mitigating cancer as a disease, the integrity of the screening process must also be checked to ensure that it is up to the right standards limiting or preventing altogether any damaging errors that may occur during the screening procedure.
The Importance of Cancer Screening in Life Planning
The idea of having cancer is something that everyone must consider now for the simple reason that it can happen to anyone. Times have changed and cancer has become the world’s new reality meaning people have to live with it whether they like or not.
Cancer screening is very important as if well carried out can detect cancer in the body of an individual early enough. From here, the patient in question can sit down with their doctors or physicians and have an extensive discussion regarding how to move on with life amid their new condition. Depending on the outcome of the screening process and the severity of the whatever cancer the screening process reveals, doctors will always give proper guidelines on how to carry on with life.
Sadly, some types of cancer like leukemia are so severe that if detected in a patient it might almost mean a half death sentence. Such extreme cancer illnesses do not respond to medication due to their ability to change their genetic makeup over and over again often limiting applicable treatment options. In some extreme cases of such types of cancer, doctors are able to tell just how long the patient they are dealing with might have to live and pass this painful information to them if they think that is important.
Nonetheless, screening is very important as its outcomes can form the basis of a very important discussion about a person’s way of life and what measures they can take from the time of screening which includes decisions taken and the lifestyle adopted.
Who Needs Cancer Screening?
The answer to this question is very simple and is EVERYONE. There are no exceptions regarding who should go for cancer screening. Everyone can and should go for cancer screening any time. There are even efforts from the government to have everyone go for cancer screening and get their screening results soon as it is possible. Doing so will boost the efforts to manage cancer by having accurate data of who is suffering from cancer and the appropriate treatment methods for the victims.
Therefore, if you have not yet gone for your cancer screening then this is the time for you to do so. Head over to any health facility near you and get your screening done. Most cancer screening processes do not take much time and are even free in some hospitals across the country. The government is rolling out further cancer initiatives which encompass the areas of free cancer screening which forms part a raft of measures taken to battle and manage the cancer nightmare.
Conclusion
Cancer screening is one of the measures that are certified as a key weapon in the fight against cancer. Screening has helped discover cancer cells in so many people early enough helping them commence treatment for this malady at the right time. This has in turn granted the victims a big chance in this vital fight. Therefore, everyone must take seriously the calls by the government and other health experts and go for cancer screening for their own good.
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