Mailed Invites May Boost Colon Cancer Screening Rates: Study

A targeted mailing campaign improved colorectal cancer screening rates among uninsured people, a new study reveals.

The researchers also found that encouraging people to use an at-home noninvasive screening test, such as a fecal immunochemical test (FIT), might be a better way to increase screening rates than promoting the more time-consuming and invasive colonoscopy.

The study included nearly 6,000 uninsured patients, aged 54 to 64, in a safety-net health system. The participants, who had not had a recent colorectal cancer screening, were mailed invitations to either complete a free FIT that was mailed to them and could be returned to the lab at no cost, or to schedule a free colonoscopy.

The mailing campaign resulted in a threefold increase in the use of FIT and a twofold increase in colonoscopies, compared with the usual care approach for colorectal cancer screenings, according to the study published online Aug. 5 in the journal JAMA Internal Medicine.

The findings suggest that large-scale public health efforts to increase colorectal cancer screening may be more successful if noninvasive tests are offered over colonoscopy, said study leader Dr. Samir Gupta, an associate professor of clinical medicine and gastroenterologist at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and Veterans Affairs San Diego Healthcare System.

"Physicians shouldn't necessarily assume that use of colonoscopies is the best and only way to reduce colon cancer rates," Gupta said in a university news release. "What we should ask is, what type of screening is most acceptable to underserved populations? This is because the best predictor of colorectal cancer screening outcomes may be getting any test, rather than which test is done," he explained.

But study senior author Celette Sugg Skinner, an associate director of population research and cancer control for the Simmons Cancer Center at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, pointed out that "the question to be studied further is whether superior participation can be maintained in the FIT group, because the test must be repeated every year, and how adherence rates will impact overall screening effectiveness and cost."

SOURCE: University of California, San Diego, news release, Aug. 5, 2013.

It would be really good if everyone of us could get a free colonoscopy, Colon cancer is one of the most common cancer, and according to what i know Japan is the only country which has able to make colonoscopy a part of general medical check-up for each and every citizen. :) 

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Childhood Abuse Linked to Later Thyroid Problems for Women

Stress hormone in 'fight-or-flight' reaction may be involved, researcher suggests

Women who suffered physical abuse during childhood are at increased risk for thyroid problems, according to a new study.

"We found a significant association with thyroid disorders for women who were abused during childhood," lead author Esme Fuller Thomson, professor and chair at the University of Toronto's Faculty of Social Work, said in a university news release.

"We originally thought the link would be explained by factors such as daily stress, smoking or alcohol abuse -- characteristics associated with both childhood physical abuse and thyroid disorders -- but even after adjusting for 14 potential explanatory factors, women who had been physically abused in childhood had 40 percent higher odds of thyroid disorders than their non-abused peers," Fuller Thomson said.

Researchers analyzed data from about 13,000 Canadian adults. More than 1,000 of the women reported being physically abused before they turned 18 and about 900 said they had been diagnosed with a thyroid disorder.

The study was published online July 29 in the Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma.

Long-term effects of childhood physical abuse on the thyroid "may be due to the way early traumas change the way an individual reacts to stress throughout life," study co-author Loriena Yancura, an associate professor in the family and consumer sciences department at the University of Hawaii, said in the news release.

"One important avenue for future research is to investigate potential dysfunctions in the production of the 'fight-or-flight' hormone, cortisol, among survivors of abuse," she added.

SOURCE: University of Toronto, news release, July 29, 2013

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Health Tip: Know Risk Factors for Gout

Gout is characterized by a buildup of uric acid in the body, leading to swollen, painful joints.

The U.S. National Institute on Aging mentions these common risk factors for gout:

• Being male.
• Having a family history of gout.
• Being overweight.
• Eating a poor diet.
• Drinking alcohol.
• Having too much uric acid in the blood, a condition called hyperuricemia. :)

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Temporary Tattoos May Put You at Risk

Spring break is on the way, or maybe summer vacation. Time to pack your swim suit, hit the beach, and perhaps indulge in a little harmless fun. What about getting a temporary tattoo to mark the occasion? Who could it hurt to get a temporary tattoo?

It could hurt you, if you actually get one. Temporary tattoos typically last from three days to several weeks, depending on the product used for coloring and the condition of the skin. Unlike permanent tattoos, which are injected into the skin, temporary tattoos marketed as "henna" are applied to the skin's surface.

However, "just because a tattoo is temporary it doesn't mean that it is risk free," says Linda Katz, M.D., M.P.H., director of FDA's Office of Cosmetics and Colors. Some consumers report reactions that may be severe and long outlast the temporary tattoos themselves.

MedWatch, FDA's safety information and adverse event (bad side effects) reporting program, has received reports of serious and long-lasting reactions that consumers had not bargained for after getting temporary tattoos. Reported problems include redness, blisters, raised red weeping lesions, loss of pigmentation, increased sensitivity to sunlight, and even permanent scarring.

Some reactions have led people to seek medical care, including visits to hospital emergency rooms. Reactions may occur immediately after a person gets a temporary tattoo, or even up to two or three weeks later.

Not Necessarily Safe

You may be familiar with henna, a reddish-brown coloring made from a flowering plant that grows in tropical and subtropical regions of Africa and Asia. Since the Bronze Age, people have used dried henna, ground into a paste, to dye skin, hair, fingernails, leather, silk and wool. This decoration—sometimes also known as mehndi—is still used today around the world to decorate the skin in cultural festivals and celebrations.

However, today so-called "black henna" is often used in place of traditional henna. Inks marketed as black henna may be a mix of henna with other ingredients, or may really be hair dye alone. The reason for adding other ingredients is to create a tattoo that is darker and longer lasting, but use of black henna is potentially harmful.

That's because the extra ingredient used to blacken henna is often a coal-tar hair dye containing p-phenylenediamine (PPD), an ingredient that can cause dangerous skin reactions in some people. Sometimes, the artist may use a PPD-containing hair dye alone. Either way, there's no telling who will be affected. By law, PPD is not permitted in cosmetics intended to be applied to the skin.

You may see "black henna" used in places such as temporary tattoo kiosks at beaches, boardwalks, and other holiday destinations, as well as in some ethnic or specialty shops. While states have jurisdiction over professional practices such as tattooing and cosmetology, that oversight differs from state to state. Some states have laws and regulations for temporary tattooing, while others don't. So, depending on where you are, it's possible no one is checking to make sure the artist is following safe practices or even knows what may be harmful to consumers.

A number of consumers have learned the risks the hard way, reporting significant bad reactions shortly after the application of black henna temporary tattoos.

• The parents of a 5-year-old girl reported that she developed severe reddening on her forearm about two weeks after receiving a black henna temporary tattoo. "What we thought would be a little harmless fun ended up becoming more like a nightmare for us," the father says. "My hope is that by telling people about our experience, I can help prevent this from happening to some other unsuspecting kids and parents."
• The mother of a 17-year-old girl agrees. "At first I was a little upset she got the tattoo without telling me," she says. "But when it became red and itchy and later began to blister and the blisters filled with fluid, I was beside myself." She explains that as a nurse, she's used to seeing all manner of injuries, "but when it's your own child, it's pretty scary," she says.
• And another mother, whose teenager had no reaction to red henna tattoos, describes the skin on her daughter's back as looking "the way a burn victim looks, all blistered and raw" after a black henna tattoo was applied there. She says that according to her daughter's doctor, the teenager will have scarring for life.

SOURCE- FDA ( FDA's Consumer Update page)

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