Practical Matters

Viruses like the flu and the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 can be particularly dangerous for people with cancer. Older patients, those who have received bone marrow transplants and those receiving chemotherapy are especially at risk of becoming seriously ill since their immune systems are already weakened.

Alena Williams, MSW, a Michigan Medicine health educator, tobacco treatment specialist and clinical group facilitator at the Cancer Support Community of Greater Ann Arbor explains why quitting tobacco is so important to the health of patients and survivors.

A cancer diagnosis presents a variety of challenges, not the least of which are financial challenges. Social Security Disability Insurance, a benefit payment that you can receive when a disability renders you unable to work, could be an option for you to consider. Disability benefits provide a safety net when a medical condition such as cancer prevents people living with cancer from working.

A simple activity most of us do without much thought -- and yet something most of us could stand to do more of -- walking offers a host of vital health benefits. And it doesn't take much to get started.

While it is not clear how nutrition and physical activity may relate to ovarian cancer risk, there is strong evidence that a few basic lifestyle changes can reduce the risk of breast and endometrial cancers. The strongest risk factor for both is being overweight or obese. Researchers think that as fat mass increases, estrogen levels do too, so lifestyle changes that focus on achieving and maintaining a healthy weight are key to decreasing a person’s risk of endometrial and breast cancers.

Each year there are more new cases of skin cancer1 than the combined incidence of cancers of the breast, prostate, lung and colon. Kelly B. Cha, M.D., Ph.D., a Michigan Medicine dermatologist and skin cancer expert, answers questions about how to best detect and prevent skin cancer.

Cigarette smoking in the United States has decreased 34% since 2000. However, the rate of cigar smoking has increased 124% in that same timeframe. Cigar culture is huge, and marketing over the last decade and a half has increased the popularity. There are cigar bars, shops, magazines and even cigar festivals. Cigars come in many shapes and sizes: robusto, Churchill, Corona, cigarillos, and cheroots to name a few.

Men face a very high risk of lung cancer. It is the third leading cause of death, right behind prostate and colon cancer. Overall, lung cancer is also the third most common cancer and the leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. The best thing a man -- or anyone -- can do to reduce this risk is to quit smoking or never start.

One of the most common cancers in women, cervical cancer begins in the tissues of the cervix – an area that connects the vagina to the uterus in women.