What health screenings to schedule this year?
Making plans for what you want to accomplish in the new year? Don’t forget to plan for your wellness. Call your doctor and get your annual wellness appointments on the books.
After checking your blood pressure, weight and other important health metrics, your doctor will let you know what additional screenings you might need based on your age, overall health and family history.
Start by reaching out to your Hoag primary care physician (PCP). Don’t have one? Here’s a great resource for finding one.
“Health screenings save lives every day,” said Dr. Shayan Senaati, D.O., a family medicine specialist at the Hoag Medical Group. This is the perfect time of year to get those visits scheduled and take control of your health.”
These are some of the screenings that your physician may recommend:
Skin cancer screening
Now is also a good time to schedule an annual skin check to look for early signs of skin cancer. In this simple exam, a physician will examine the body and look for any new moles, as well as any changes in color, shape or size of existing moles. They’ll look for rashes and also look for areas that might need monitoring.
Orange County has a higher skin cancer rate than California as a whole. To strike back, Hoag is the only hospital on the West Coast to offer Vectra WB360 3D Total Body Photographic Imaging.
This walk-through machine has 92 cameras that flash simultaneously to capture a patient’s entire skin surface in less than one second. The system allows dermatologists at the Hoag Dermatologic Oncology program to detect skin cancer at the earliest, most treatable stage, while avoiding unnecessary skin biopsies.
Colonoscopy
Real talk: This isn’t anyone’s favorite screening. But colonoscopies are a safe and effective way of discovering changes in the lining of the large intestines that, if left unaddressed, could lead to cancer. In fact, a polyp can take 10 to 15 years to develop into cancer.
So, discovering and removing one now could prevent cancer from ever taking hold. For that reason, people ages 45 and older who are at average risk of developing colon cancer should undergo a colonoscopy every 10 years.
“Colon cancer rates are increasing among younger people world-wide,” said Dr. Antonio Alcantar, M.D., a family medicine specialist at Hoag Medical Group. “This sobering development underscores the importance of scheduling regular colonoscopies.”
Pap smear
This vital test screens for precancerous cells that could lead to cervical cancer – and fittingly, January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month. More than 4,000 U.S. women die annually from cervical cancer.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists recommend women ages 21 to 29 years have a Pap smear every three years.
Women who are 30 to 65 years old can:
- have a Pap test every three years; or
- have an HPV test – which tests for a sexually transmitted infection called human papillomavirus that can cause cervical, vaginal, and vulvar cancers – and a Pap smear every five years; or
- have an HPV test solo every five years.
Finally, woman who are older than age 65 can stop undergoing Pap smears if they meet the following criteria: They’ve never had abnormal cervical cells or cervical cancer and they’ve had two or three consecutive negative screening tests in a row, depending on which test.
“I cannot emphasize enough the importance of scheduling regular Pap smears,” said Dr. Donna Dorriz, a Hoag Medical Group family medicine specialist. “Though a simple exam, they are not always the most comfortable – but that brief moment could save your life.”
Mammogram
Self-exam is an important step in maintaining breast health, but annual mammogram remain the gold standard for the prevention and early detection of breast cancer. Orange County has one of the highest rates of breast cancer in the state, so if you’re over 40 and you’re overdue for your mammogram, now is the time to schedule one. Depending on your health insurance, you may need to see your primary care provider before scheduling a mammogram.
“I hope people take the time to take care of themselves, and that means scheduling wellness visits and important screenings,” Dr. Dorriz said. “We like to care for others, but it’s important to take care of our own health, too.”
To schedule your wellness check, call your doctor or find a Hoag physician.
