{"id":15113,"date":"2018-03-28T09:08:59","date_gmt":"2018-03-28T15:08:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?p=15113"},"modified":"2024-08-05T13:16:13","modified_gmt":"2024-08-05T19:16:13","slug":"health-screenings-save-lives-and-suffering","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/health-screenings-save-lives-and-suffering\/","title":{"rendered":"Health screenings save lives and suffering"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>

There\u2019s a saying: A stitch in time saves nine. That kind of thinking applies to health care, too.<\/p>\n

\"A
Dr. Sabine Shaffer<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A health screening can uncover a problem that might easily be treated, if it\u2019s caught early on, said Dr. Sabine Shaffer<\/a>, who practices internal medicine and pediatrics at the UCHealth Primary Care Clinic – Chapel Hills<\/a> in Colorado Springs.<\/p>\n

She likes to see patients from childhood to adulthood and into their golden years, she said. She appreciates having that long-term perspective on their health care.<\/p>\n

A graduate of the University of Colorado Medical School, Dr. Shaffer has done stints in other countries but calls Colorado home.<\/p>\n

On her profile, she notes that she\u2019s \u201cinterested in helping people with preventive health, women\u2019s health (and) helping people stay active and keep their quality of life.\u201d<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s where health screenings come in.<\/p>\n

Although health screenings don\u2019t always tell the whole story \u2013 \u201cnothing is ever perfect,\u201d she said, they do offer perspective.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is some benefit to following people over time. That\u2019s why having an annual physical is so important,\u201d she said. For example, \u201cbeing able to compare a mammogram from two years ago to the present one helps us pick up on things a little quicker. You get an extra edge by having some history to compare it to.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not everything is obvious, so comparing current conditions with past health screenings \u201ccan help with diagnosis,\u201d she said. \u201cThat\u2019s why preventive care means coming in to see your doctor every year. \u201c<\/p>\n

Which health screenings are particularly effective in identifying health issues?<\/p>\n

Pap smears<\/h2>\n

\u201cI think the biggest one we do for younger women is the pap smear,\u201d she said. The test, which detects cervical cancer, is particularly effective.\u00a0 \u201cThe way cervical cancer behaves, if you\u2019ve kept up with your pap smears, you\u2019re going to catch it in time.\u00a0 The regimen now is pretty good and generally we can catch it before it\u2019s something you can die from.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some health screenings, like pap smears, are somewhat unpleasant, so people tend to put them off.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s human nature\u201d she said. \u201cI do that too!\u201d<\/p>\n

There are some very accurate health screenings for many fairly common diseases, such as diabetes, colon cancer and breast cancer, she said.<\/p>\n

Colonoscopies<\/h2>\n

\u201cColonoscopies are good at detecting problems,\u201d she said. \u201cIf you catch it early, the treatment can be quite successful. If you wait till you have symptoms, it\u2019s really too late \u2026 you\u2019re in a whole different treatment category.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mammograms<\/h2>\n

Mammograms have become a lot more accurate in recent years, she added.\u00a0 \u201cEarly detection is key to treatment and survival.\u201d<\/p>\n

About half the women who are diagnosed with breast cancer caught it because of a routine health screening, she said.<\/p>\n

In recent years, some insurance companies have fought to eliminate what they deemed \u201cunnecessary\u201d health screenings, but Shaffer finds that most companies will approve a screening if the doctor thinks there is a viable reason for doing it.<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes you have to go to bat for a patient if they fall outside the norm, but if you have a good reason, most will comply,\u201d she said. \u201cIf you get routine blood work more than once a year, for example, they might fight it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Most companies today seem to consider it a useful tool for prevention, she added.<\/p>\n

Again, the annual checkup is the time to consider which health screenings are important for each patient.<\/p>\n

Other health screenings<\/h2>\n

\"Female<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you check things like blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose levels and such and keep track of them over time, you may detect a problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

Take the bone density test, for example.<\/p>\n

The standard recommendation is that patients be given a bone density test at about age 65, \u201cbut by the time you\u2019re 65, you\u2019re dealing with the results of not taking good care of your bones. There is some benefit in screening sooner, especially if you have family history of osteoporosis<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other considerations<\/h2>\n

Family history is really important, she said. Patients need to let their primary care physician know about family health histories. And physicians need to ask questions like \u201cHow old were your parents when they died? What did they die from? Do you have diabetes (or other disease) in your family?\u201d<\/p>\n

Lifestyle factors in, too.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor smokers, there\u2019s a whole different set of concerns, especially in males, when they turn 50, they need to be screened for aortic aneurysms and also for lung cancer. All smokers who have smoked for 22 years or more also need to get a high-resolution CT scan by age 55, checking for lung cancer, she added.<\/p>\n

Genetic testing<\/h2>\n

How does she feel about health screenings that tell a woman if she will be prone to getting breast cancer?<\/p>\n

\u201cI think that\u2019s got to be done on a case-by-case basis\u201d she said. \u201cIf there\u2019s a pretty significant family history, it might be worth knowing. If you have no family history, do we really want to test for it?\u201d<\/p>\n

That, and other genetic tests, should be a topic of conversation with your personal physician, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou know yourself best and hopefully you can work with a physician who can help you figure out what you need.\u00a0 Maybe you\u2019re just nervous about a certain disease.\u201d<\/p>\n

She sees genetic testing as having more of a role in preventive medicine in the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think there are a lot of doctors who, in 10 or 20 years, will use genetic testing not just to predict which diseases you might get, but also what medications might work best for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

The best way to stay healthy is to establish yourself with a health care provider you see on a regular basis, she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cTalk about what risks you have as part of your annual visit,\u201d she said.\u00a0 Prevention \u201cis the majority of what I do. It helps to find things earlier, when you can actually do something about it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There\u2019s a saying: A stitch in time saves nine. That kind of thinking applies to health care, too. A health screening can uncover a problem that might easily be treated, if it\u2019s caught early on, said Dr. Sabine Shaffer, who practices internal medicine and pediatrics at the UCHealth Primary Care Clinic – Chapel Hills in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":18419,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[708,28,749,988,3089,47,1046,82,4097,351,9187,9171,212],"class_list":["post-15113","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-healthy-living","tag-adults-65-plus","tag-cancer-care-oncology","tag-dermatology","tag-diabetes-endocrinology-care","tag-employer-solutions","tag-genetic-testing-and-counseling","tag-health-screening","tag-heart-and-vascular-care-cardiology","tag-preventive-care","tag-primary-care","tag-readysetco","tag-senior-care","tag-womens-care"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHealth screenings save lives and suffering - UCHealth Today<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Health screenings can uncover problems that might easily be treated, if caught early on. 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