Men’s Health Issues: A cut, a shave and some good advice

Birgit Bogler, MPApresentation to

Barbers International ConventionOctober 16, 2006

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Overview

• Barbers as trusted peer educators

• Skin cancer and the big myth

• Prostate cancer and the bigger myth

• Colorectal cancer and the biggest myth

Why am I here?

• Barbers can be trusted peer educators– Brother-to-Brother project (HIV risk reduction)– Centers for Disease Control

• Early detection of cancer• University of Alabama at Birmingham• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

The Big Myth

• Myth: only fair-skinned people get skin cancer

Fact

Skin Cancer

• Three major types– Basal cell carcinoma– Squamous cell carcinoma– Malignant melanoma

• Sun exposure responsible for 90%• Most common cancer in U.S.

– 1.2 million basal & squamous cell carcinomas– 60,000 melanomas

• Almost 10,000 Americans die each year

Quick Anatomy

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Basal Cell

• Chronic overexposure to the sun– Face, ears, neck, scalp, shoulders and back

• When not treated quickly, difficult to eliminate– Scars and disfigurement

• Low rate of metastasis

Basal Cell

An open sore A reddish patch

*chest, shoulders,arms, or legs

A shiny bump

*persistent, non-healing sore is early sign

Basal Cell

A pink growthA scar-like area

*White, yellow or waxy with uneven borders*Can indicate aggressivetumor

Basal Cell

• No one best method to treat– Cryosurgery, topical chemo, laser, radiation

• Almost all treatments in doctor’s office

• Most need only local anesthetic

• Cure rates 85-99%

Squamous Cell

• Chronic overexposure to the sun– All places exposed to sun– Rim of ear and lower lip especially vulnerable

• When not treated quickly, harder to treat– Scars and disfigurement

Squamous Cell

• 96-97% remain localized

• Those that spread can be fatal– SCC found on lip, ear, nose have high risk for

metastases– In persons with weakened immune systems

Squamous Cell

A wart-like growth

A scaly-red patch

A scaly-red patch

An elevated growth with a central depression*can rapidly grow

Squamous Cell

• No one best method to treat– Cryosurgery, topical chemo, laser, radiation

• Almost all treatments in doctor’s office

• Most need only local anesthetic

• Cure rates 85-99%

Melanoma

• Most serious form of skin cancer– Causes the most skin cancer deaths

• If found early nearly 100% curable– If not, high chance of metastases– Can be hard to treat

Melanoma

• Malignant tumor in the melanocytes– Cells that produce pigment for skin, hair, eyes– Cells heavily concentrated in moles

• Melanoma is usually brown but can be pink, red or purple

• Increased risk– Sun exposure and tanning beds– Lots of moles– Fairer skin – but darker skin is no protection– Personal history of skin cancer or lymphoma– Weakened immune system

Melanoma ABCDs

Asymmetry Border

Color Diameter

Melanoma

• Thin, localized melanomas are surgically removed– Most done in doctor’s office using local

anesthesia

• For more advanced disease, treatment varies– Melanoma can spread to lymph nodes and

organs

• Cure rates continue to rise

The bigger myth

• Prostate cancer is solely an older (65+) man’s disease

Prostate Screening

• FACT: the risk of developing prostate cancer increases beginning at age 40– African American men have a 60% higher

incidence rate and 2-fold higher mortality rate

• PSA testing is more sensitive than digital rectal exam for detecting prostate cancer

Talk about PSA

• There are considerations:– There is no normal PSA level

• The higher the PSA the more likely cancer is present

– PSA alone cannot distinguish between cancer and benign prostate conditions

– One abnormal PSA does not necessarily indicate the need for further diagnostic tests

• Benign prostate enlargement, inflammation, infection, age and race can elevate PSA

Encouragement

• Encourage men to get a PSA– African American men 45-70 years old– Men 45-70 years old with a first degree

relative with prostate cancer– All men 50-70 years old

The biggest myth

• There is nothing I can do about getting colorectal cancer

Colorectal Cancer

• FACT: colon cancer can almost always be prevented– Colon cancer can almost always be cured if found

early

• About 25% of people 50 and older have colon polyps

• More than 90% of colon cancer is found in people 50 and older– People of African American or Ashkenazi Jewish

ancestry are at increased risk

Colonoscopy

• Encourage men to consider screening colonoscopy– Only test that can prevent colon cancer– Usually painless– Usually needed once every 10 years

• There are other colon cancer tests– Not as effective as colonoscopy– Any test is better than none

• Barbers can help increase rates of screening for highly curable cancers

• Barbers can help decrease rates of mortality from highly curable cancers

• Barbers can help reduce health disparities in mortality from highly curable cancers

• Barbers can help save lives!

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Thank you