June is Men’s Health Month: Here’s Why It’s Important To Speak About Your Health

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, men in the United States, on average, die five years earlier than women. Additionally, men die at higher rates compared to women from three leading causes of death: heart disease, cancer, and unintentional injuries.

June is Men’s Health Month, with the goal to raise awareness about men’s health and to encourage men to speak about their health with family members and medical professionals. Open conversations are key to early detection and understanding family medical history. Additionally, having dialogue can lead to implementing healthy choices such as exercising and diet.

Men can be reluctant to openly discuss prostate health with others. Some may think it’s a sign of toughness to not complain, or some may be scared to give the issue thought, as for fear of making it real. Other men may not want to talk about their health because it was never discussed in their families while they grew up.

What’s for certain is the stigma needs to change and the conversation needs to happen. Talk about it. Start the conversation about family cancer history. Over 50% of prostate cancer is linked to genetic factors. Men with a strong family history of prostate cancer, as well as breast, ovarian, and other cancers may be at increased risk for prostate cancer.

This June, Swedish CyberKnife is promoting Men’s Health Month by encouraging men to speak about their health with family members and medical professionals. Conditions such as prostate cancer can run in the family. Adequately knowing your family history and communicating to your doctor can lead to earlier screening, detection, and increase number of treatment options. While men cannot change their major risk factors—age, race, and family history of the disease–there are things they can do to take charge of their prostate health. Talk to your doctor about screening for prostate cancer and when you should begin.

If diagnosed with prostate cancer, several treatment options exist depending on the grade and stage of your cancer. Proven to be one of the most effective methods to safely treat prostate cancer non-invasively is Swedish CyberKnife, located in Seattle. The CyberKnife System is the only radiation delivery system directly mounted on a robot to deliver the radiation therapy. The CyberKnife’ s advanced technology allows it to track tumors anywhere in the body, even while the tumor moves. Before delivering the radiation beam, the CyberKnife verifies the exact tumor position then adjusts the robot to precisely target the tumor. Tracking the tumor’s movement — and delivery of radiation with that movement — helps to maximize treatment effectiveness, while minimizing dose to surrounding tissues, which can help reduce the incidence of side effects.

Five short treatment sessions are all it takes, with each session lasting less than an hour, leading to a low disruption on your daily schedule and a quicker return to your everyday life. Compared with other treatment options, Swedish CyberKnife patients report a better quality of life both during and after treatment. Published Swedish CyberKnife results show excellent cancer control rates at 10 years.

This June during Men’s Health Month and the months after, men must place an emphasis on having conversations about their health with family members and medical professionals. Break the stigma, fear, and discomfort as that conversation can be not only life changing, but lifesaving.

To learn more about CyberKnife for prostate cancer go to Swedish.org/Cyberknifeprostate. Or call 206-320-7187. Treat prostate cancer with Swedish CyberKnife.