In recognition of National Cancer Prevention Month the Hirshberg Foundation is sharing important educational resources and steps you can take to live a healthier life. The goals of prevention are to help you and your loved ones remain cancer-free and to empower our community with the resources to keep you healthy. This month we will provide resources including a prevention worksheet, share the facts about risk factors, genetics, and the role of nutrition and exercise in your prevention plan. Pancreatic cancer prevention and awareness, especially for high-risk individuals, should be a priority for every family impacted by this disease. February 4th is also World Cancer Day, a reminder for all of us to raise awareness in our community, make an appointment for a cancer screening or genetic testing, and start a new healthy living plan.
Your cancer prevention plan can become a year-round effort, however, as you start to check off your new year resolutions, this is the perfect time for a health check-in. Although pancreatic cancer remains the 3rd leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S., taking steps to improve your health today can reduce your risk of being diagnosed. The key components to pancreatic cancer prevention include:
Know the inherited risk factors
Specific communities are disproportionately at higher risk for pancreatic cancer, learn whether you are in one of these groups.
Avoid the modifiable risk factors (obesity and smoking)
Choosing a nutritious diet, reducing stress and quitting habits including smoking and excessive drinking can extend your life.
Learn about pancreatic cancer testing and surveillance
Testing or surveillance may also be clinically recommended in instances such as a new diagnosis of a pancreas cyst or lesion.
Seek genetic counseling
Meeting with a genetic counselor can help you determine your level of risk and how to tackle challenges.
In addition to personal pre-emptive steps you can take in your everyday life, the Foundation’s Seed Grant Program continues to fund critical research and with the aim of pancreatic cancer prevention as well as therapeutics, diagnosis, immunology, and cancer biology. Thanks to these research projects, we are making strides forward everyday. Recently, the the 5-year survival rate for pancreatic cancer has increased to 12% putting it on an upward trajectory for the second year in a row. This news from the ACS (American Cancer Society) Cancer Facts & Figures Report gives survivors and families some additional hope as they navigate a diagnosis. We are headed in the right direction, but it is just as important that individual remain pro-active in our day-to-day lives.
Learn more about how to support our efforts and raise funds for cancer prevention.