Prostate Cancer Concerns about Screening in Early Detection - Research Paper Example

Prostate Cancer Concerns about Screening in Early Detection Introduction Prostate cancer is only found in men and constitutes by far the commonest form of cancer in men across the borders. The reason why the cancer affects men only is due to the fact that it affects the prostate gland that is only found in the male reproductive system. This form of cancer is malignant and can spread to other parts of the body if early detection and intervention are not facilitated in time to arrest the tumor. Spreading to other tissues usually happens at an advanced stage, creating an intervention opportunity for patients who seek medical attention. Generally, about nine in ten cases of the cancer are dormant and lack of marked disturbances largely prevents patients from seeking medical care. In these dormant cases, patients can go for several decades without major difficulties which make it clinically unimportant. However, the cancer eventually manifests itself in old age at least to some level of clinical development. According to the University of Maryland Medical Center (2011), if not detected and intervention implemented at an early stage, prostate cancer spreads to other tissues though blood and other body fluids such as lymph. Despite the possibility of easily spreading to other parts of the body, the cancer does not necessarily present as a potent cancer as other cancers. The main difference it has with other forms of cancers is its relative slower growth. While cancer is ordinarily supposed to grow quickly and uncontrollably, prostate cancer is a slow growing form of malignant tumor. However lenient this caner seems by its slow growth, it is a major cause of death in many men especially in old age. Prostate cancer catches up with the old and severely affects their health to such an extent that they finally succumb. As a death cause, prostate cancer is presented by its spread to other vital organs in advanced stages, which could otherwise be stopped if diagnosed at initial stages of development. 2. What pertinent issues to the delivery of healthcare are raised by this topic? Some of the issues that screening in early detection for prostate cancer presents include the issue of awareness of the impact of the cancer on health. According to Masson and Moffat (2003, p19), the decision making process becomes difficult for men to undergo relevant screening and the subsequent intervention becomes equally difficult. For many men, it is a remote reality that a condition without symptoms at one stage of their lives could become an issue of urgency and possible therapy. According to the authors, men seem to brush off the involved risks due to the apparent lack of symptoms, which poses as a serious threat to health in case the disease becomes symptomatic or even spreads to other parts of the body. According to Masson and Moffat (2003, p20), it is usually difficult to generalize the impact of prostate cancer since its impact can be ranked on both extremes, with a skewed distribution that favors asymptomatic end. In view of this fact, the amount of damage that the unscreened cases have on patients seems to be overshadowed by the low severity of the screened cases. Overall impact on health tends to be surrounded by uncertainties, since men would rather ignorantly stay with the disease regardless of its ultimate effects. 3. The Government’s Involvement in Dealing with Prostrate Cancer Cancer awareness has been top of government’s action plan as a long term intervention strategy. This has been informed on the premise that individual’s awareness of their health responsibility could assist the government achieve early screening and hence treatment of prostate cancer. Just like in other cancer programs that the government funds, prostate cancer research and treatment have been streamlined due to the adverse impact it can make on men’s health. Some of such programs that get support from the government include the American Foundation for Urologic Disease, the National Prostate Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Society (AFUD, n.d). The US government has also deployed resources through other agencies to avail useful data on the situation of prostate cancer across the population. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) which falls under the ministry of Health and Human Services is dedicated to protecting public health and safety. According to the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (2007), annual statistics regarding the American population suffering from prostate cancer can be availed for proper planning and decision making. One of the major diseases that the agency seeks to fight is prostrate cancer. In the year 2007, CDC was capable of collecting and analyzing data revealing the statistics of the population with prostate cancer. The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) is one of the government agencies that deal with cancer. The agency is responsible for providing cancer screening guidelines. The agency is also responsible for evaluating information concerning the effectiveness and utility of cancer screening. The Food and Drug Administration Agency is yet another organization that is engaged by the federal government in dealing with prostrate cancer. The organization is specifically charged with the responsibility of regulating and supervising the issuance and administration of all almost all kinds of medical products and services. 4. Sources Citing a government report on prostate cancer screening, MedicineNet.com (2011) indicates that screening for prostate cancer means testing for the presence of the cancer before someone has symptoms. It is reported that chances of making successful treatment against the disease are considerably raised when the disease is detected early in its development. This makes treatment easier since at an early stage, cancer is not spread to other tissues which make it difficult to treat. Screening information that patients need to have before recommendation is that doctors do not imply that one is having a condition by instructing them to have it tested on them. According to Denis and Ramon (2007) those who agree to partake in screening procedures are usually conscious of their health status. According to the authors, when performing research work involving prostate cancer patients, selection must be done in a randomized manner to eliminate bias. The bias is brought about by the fact that most volunteers may be having some trigger which makes them suspicious of suffering from the disease. A fair representation should be done by selecting a sample such that the participants ought to have little influence over their decision. Prostate cancer ranks second after lung cancer in causing death in men. Despite the adverse effects of the cancer, its only solution seems to lie with early screening which most men neglect. The author state that the apparent neglect can be traced to the low immediate benefits of screening. The author relates this lack of acceptance to the general practices that are used to treat the disease and coincidentally screening is not one of them, which poses a big threat in the fight against prostate cancer. 5. Identify and discuss the position of a current policy of a State and a Federal Administrative Agency related to this topic; The state of Utah has a policy for the screening and treatment of people suffering from prostate cancer that is commonly referred to as the Prostate Cancer Special Group License Plate (Utahpolicy.com, 2011). In this state legislation policy, awareness will be created through identification of patients and other special plate members. Although there is more than one target in the policy, it is one of the best awareness organizations done by a state. Whereas it appears there is need for a comprehensive policy directing on screening procedures, one major federal policy commonly adopted is the application of Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA). Patients are protected by law to the extent that this screening technique can only be used on them if they agree (Klein et al, 2001). This policy is adopted from the medical principle of nonmaleficence. Legislation passed in the Congress making it mandatory for men to undergo an annual test for prostate cancer was later rejected on the premise of interference on the principle of nonmaleficence. Informed consent was the best policy formulated by all professional stakeholders in assisting patients to get protection from potential risk of the screening procedure. 6. Identify one current bill being considered regarding this topic; One of the current prostate cancer legislations in the USA is the S.3775 Prostate Cancer Act of 2010. The provisions of the Act entail creation of better policy frameworks for research on prostate cancer. Screening tests projects will benefit from the application of this Act since various forms of prostate cancers will be funded under the Act (Medical News, 2010). By facilitating research and development programs for prostate cancer, screening will be enhanced hence a better surveillance technique. 7. What should happen in the Healthcare Domain related to Prostrate Cancer Prostate cancer screening will have to be approached in a more comprehensive manner if its effects are to be controlled. Since early detection holds the determining stage of prostate cancer intervention, maximizing the surveillance of the disease can be enhanced through screening. Tests that are patient friendly can be developed and recommended at every medical procedure that men undertake. Health and lifestyle topics should be incorporated in the cancer awareness forums since diet and lifestyles affect individuals’ vulnerability and response to cancer (Banes et al, 2001). According to the authors, screening is not enough without advocacy for the appropriate feeding and carcinogens exposure patterns. The environment in which cancer patients live in will determine the overall impact of the disease. Interaction with contributing or risk factors will certainly increase the chances of contracting cancer. The authors report that since genetic factors are involved in the development of the disease, their conditioning will equally be important in its control. References News-medical.net (2010) “PCF Applauds New Prostate Cancer Legislation,” Medical News. Retrieved from: http://www.news-medical.net/news/20100917/PCF-applauds-new-prostate-cancer-legislation.aspx Medicine net (2011) “Prostate Cancer Screening,” MedicineNet.com, Retrieved from: http://www.medicinenet.com/prostate_cancer_screening/article.htm Utah policy (2011) “Prostate Cancer Special Group License Plate,” utahpolicy.com. Retrieved from: http://utahpolicy.com/bills/2011/sb/0313 AFUD (n.d) “The Prostate Cancer Resource Guide,” AFUD. Retrieved from: http://www.prostatepointers.org/afud/intro.html Banes, S., Brawley, O. W., & Pames, H. (2001) “The Future of Prostate Cancer Prevention,” Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 952(1):142-152 CDC (2007) “Prostate Cancer Statistics,” Retrieved from: http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/prostate/statistics/ Denis, L. & Ramon, J. (2007) Prostate cancer, Berlin, Germany: Springer-Verlag Heidelberg Klein, E. A., Resnick, M. I. & Thomson, I. M. eds (2001) Prostate cancer screening, vol. 1. Totowa, NJ: Humana Press Masson, M. & Moffat, L. (2003) Prostate cancer: the facts. New York, NY: Oxford University Press UoML 2011 “Prostate Cancer- Highlights,” University of Maryland Medical Center. Retrieved from: http://www.umm.edu/patiented/articles/prostate_cancer_000033.htm Read More