Go red for your heart

The Mobile County Health Department is encouraging women to take part in Wear Red Day on Friday, Feb. 5. By wearing something red, such as a red dress, a red shirt, or red lipstick, women can show support of Go Red for Women, the American Heart Association’s program to build awareness of heart disease and other cardiovascular diseases among women.

According to Dr. Bert Eichold, Health Officer, only 1 in 5 women believes that heart disease is the greatest threat to her health. In fact, he says, it is the No. 1 killer of women over the age 20.

Mamografia aos 40?

Há longos anos, que as mulheres são aconselhadas a realizarem mamografias, a partir dos 40 anos. Isto, porque a prevenção na saúde, é a melhor forma de ter melhor saúde e gastar menos recursos.

Um estudo realizado pelo The Lancet, publicado aqui, vem-nos dizer que não é bem assim:

• The Department of Health-backed study, involving 160,000 women, found yearly screening made no impact on breast cancer deaths in this age group.
• In the study, funded by Cancer Research UK, a third of the women received annual screening invitations at the age of 40 and two-thirds only the usual three-yearly screening invite at the age of 50
• From their findings, the researchers estimate screening from age 40 could save four lives for every 10,000 women screened.
• But the benefit of screening women in their 40s needs to be balanced against possible negative considerations. For example screening at younger ages would increase a woman's radiation exposure, which can contribute to breast cancer risk.

É difícil tomar uma decisão sensata, face a estudos realizados em tempos diferentes, com resultados diferentes.