Description

How Asian culture can increase the risk for cancer in men and how Gastric cancer was caught early in a patient thanks to genetic counseling

Transcript

Helping Doctors Beat Cancer Part 5/7 Jennifer Whitney: Many cancers in fact about a third are caused by lifestyle and they’re preventable. Poor diet, obesity, smoking and excessive drinking are believed to be risk factors. Some cultures are more difficult to reach. Moon Chen: What we’re finding is that smoking is very common among Asian males in Asia, very uncommon in females in Asia but the problem is that when they migrate to the United States it appears that a reversal of the trends are occurring. Jennifer Whitney: May Ying Ly works with the Sacramento Asian-American Cancer Awareness Research and Training Program. Currently, cancer is the number one cause of death for Asian-Americans that’s partly due to a lack of screening. May Ying Ly: Cervical cancer is the leading cancer death among women. Jennifer Whitney: Raising awareness and linking people to cancer screenings is a good first step and an important one, 46-year-old Gloria Smith is probably alive because of an astute genetic counselor. She and her mom Joyce will be forever grateful. Female: I think you can feel quite confident that your father and your brother both carried the same mutation as you and that would explain the gastric cancer in your family. Jennifer Whitney: Gloria already had been diagnosed and treated for lobular breast cancer. She told Maude Blundell of the Center Cancer Center that both her dad and brother died at stomach cancer at a young age. Maude Blundell: I think having seen her brother die and having seen her father die of gastric cancer for her she decided that’s not the place that I want to be and I think that’s worked that really well for her and I’m just glad to see how well she is doing and certainly support for the right decision for her. Gloria Smith: I was thinking dad I’m not ready to see you yet. I was thinking I just don’t want to die, I don’t want to die. Jennifer Whitney: Maude was aware of research that linked lobular breast and gastric cancer. She told Gloria who then requested genetic testing. Gloria: I have 2% chances that I have of getting stomach cancer. Jennifer Whitney: Gloria decided to have a gastrectomy. Gloria: The whole stomach has been removed. Maude Blundell: The decision to have a gastrectomy was not an easy decision to make. In her situation, there are some cancers, gastric cancer being one and ovarian cancer being another example that we don’t have good screening for these cancers unfortunately. Jennifer Whitney: Gloria’s mom has been with her daughter throughout this ordeal. The concern now is for Gloria’s brothers and sisters. Joyce Costa: Just pray to God that nothing ever happens to anybody else in my family.