When will a cancer investigation be required

German Cancer Aid informs about cancer screening

24/08/2012

The Federal Government is planning a significant improvement in cancer screening. For example, the Federal Cabinet has recently passed a bill to expand statutory benefits, for example, for the prevention of cervical cancer or colon cancer. In fact, many Germans are not aware of when they should go to cancer screening and what services it takes over the health insurance.

The German Cancer Aid has therefore published five leaflets providing comprehensive information on cancer screening. Among other things, the "benefits and possible risks of the early detection procedures and the recommendations of the experts of the German Cancer Aid" are presented here, according to the current press release of the non-profit organization. Corresponding information booklets are offered for colorectal cancer, cervical cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer and skin cancer. Interested parties can read here which cancer screening is actually important for them and at which age this should be best performed.

To weigh the benefits and risks of cancer screening
According to the German Cancer Aid, nearly 490,000 people in Germany are diagnosed with cancer each year, just under 220,000 died of cancer in 2010. The aim of the statutory cancer screening tests is to detect tumors in the earliest possible stages of development, as breast, colon, skin, cervix and prostate cancers are usually well curable if they are discovered at an early stage. In addition, "early stages of cancer can be treated more gently than stages in which secondary tumors have already developed," explain the experts of the German Cancer Aid. However, early detection examinations should also be viewed critically, since they can have disadvantages or risks. When considering the individual benefits and risks of cancer screening, the leaflets of the German Cancer Aid provide guidance.

Mammography as a reliable early detection method for breast cancer
Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, with around 60,000 new cases every year. About 17,000 patients die each year as a result of breast cancer. From the age of 50, the risk of breast cancer increases significantly, reports the German Cancer Aid. The average age of onset is 64 years. Around 6.5 percent of women between the ages of 50 and 69 are affected in this country. The simplest form of check-up is here the so-called palpation, on the one hand carried out independently at home, on the other hand once an year from the age of 30 years even when the health insurance companies pay by a physician. Physicians can also explain to patients how home self-examination should be best performed. Although the palpation does not cause any side effects or pain, but the sole palpation has also "no effect on mortality from breast cancer," the statement in the leaflet of the German Cancer Aid. Frequently, this "early detection method leads to false-positive and false-negative findings." As a basis for further investigations, the palpation nevertheless makes sense.

Women between the ages of 50 and 69 will be offered a mammography every two years by the health insurances, with the help of an X-ray examination of the breast, even the smallest tumors can be found that could not be touched by hand. "International, large-scale studies have shown that mortality from breast cancer can actually be reduced through the mammography screening program," reports the German Cancer Aid. However, the examination may be slightly painful, since the chest is pressed between two plates for X-rays. In addition, every X-ray examination involves a radiation exposure of the organism.

Cervical cancer screening from the age of 20 years
At cervix cancer: nationwide, about 5,500 women a year, 1,500 die from the consequences. The average age of the patients is 52 years at the first diagnosis. "The highest disease rates are between the 40th and 59th year of life," reports the German Cancer Aid. In most cases, cervical cancer is caused by infection with Human Papilloma Virus (HPV). Thus, persistent HPV infections can trigger cell changes, which in the worst case lead to the development of tumors. According to a statement by the German Cancer Aid, "on average, it takes ten years for a cell change to develop from an HPV infection, and another ten years to become a cervix cancer." For women over the age of 20, annual swab examinations (PAP Test) of the cervix, the costs of which the health insurance companies pay. With the help of the PAP test, pathological cell changes are to be detected, which may require surgical removal. In addition, a so-called HPV test can detect possible infections with the main cause of cervical cancer, but the costs must be borne by the patients themselves.

Skin cancer screening without side effects and risks
In the information leaflet on the topic of skin cancer, the German Cancer Aid reports that in this country about 195,000 people develop new skin cancers every year and about 3,000 die from the consequences. The most common form is the so-called "white" (or light) skin cancer, which rarely forms metastases and is therefore almost always curable. Far more dangerous but also rarer is the so-called "black" skin cancer (malignant melanoma), which begins to form metastases even in the early stages. The mean age of the patients at first diagnosis is 64 years for men and 58 years for women. However, the number of young patients has increased significantly in recent years, according to the German Cancer Aid. The preventive check-up - the skin cancer screening - is offered by the statutory health insurance to all women and men from the age of 35 years. Every two years, they can have their entire body surface examined for signs of melanoma. "Your doctor does not need any instruments for the examination, just a bright light and his trained eye," reports the German Cancer Aid.

Pain does not arise in the skin cancer screening and there are no known side effects. However, there is a possibility "that the screening detects and treats a skin cancer that may not have burdened you in your further life," reports the German Cancer Aid. In such cases, there is talk of "overdiagnosis", whereby the persons affected not only have to endure the psychological stress of a cancer diagnosis, but under certain circumstances an unnecessary operation scar may arise.

Prostate cancer mainly affects older men
Prostate cancer is according to the German Cancer Aid, the most common cancer in men and occurs on average from about the age of 69 years on. Approximately 64,000 men die in Germany every year, around 12,000 die as a result of prostate cancer. In recent years, the number of new cases has risen significantly, with two main factors being blamed for this: demographic trends with an increasing proportion of older men and women Increased supply of so-called PSA tests. Prostate cancer screening is offered to all men over the age of 45, with the genitals, lymph nodes in the groin, and prostate gland scanned. In addition, according to the Cancer Aid, a PSA test is carried out in which a blood sample "the prostate-specific antigen, a protein that is exclusively from the prostate and is elevated in different situations", is recorded. This PSA-assisted early detection and subsequent treatment of prostate cancer is in principle able to reduce the mortality from prostate cancer, but there is also the risk of overdiagnosis and corresponding overtreatment.

Colonoscopy for the early detection of colorectal cancer
Colorectal cancer affects about 73,000 people a year in Germany. 26,300 patients die as a result. While men's average age of onset is 69 years, colorectal cancer usually affects women only six years later. There may be a hereditary predisposition to the occurrence of colon cancer. About a seventh of the cancer affects the intestine. Women and men are offered a test for hidden blood in stools when they reach the age of 50. From the age of 55, persons with statutory health insurance are entitled to a first colonoscopy, which can be repeated after ten years. Instead of colonoscopy (colonoscopy) every two years, a test for hidden blood in the stool done. Before a colonoscopy, the complete colon cleansing is required, which some people find quite unpleasant. In the worst case, the colonoscopy or the simultaneous removal of intestinal polyps can lead to bleeding, which must be treated in hospital. However, this is extremely rare. Overall, the experts of the German Cancer Aid assume that the colonoscopies and the blotter test can be the life of many colon cancer patients saved. (Fp)

Read about:
Bills to improve cancer screening
Important checkups for men
Screening for Breast Cancer Mammography Benefits
Mammography for breast cancer screening often wrong
Mammography Screening Lowers Breast Cancer Death Rate