• Cancer

    Living With Cancer: Emotional and psychological considerations before genetic testing for breast cancer risk

a graphic illustrating the concept of genetic testing for breast cancer

Genetic testing for breast cancer risk: Emotional and psychological considerations
Genetic testing can estimate your personal relative risk of developing certain types of cancer, but what affect might the results have on you and your loved ones emotionally and psychologically? If you're thinking about getting a genetic test to find out if you have a mutation in one of the breast cancer susceptibility genes — BRCA1 or BRCA2 — here are some things to consider.

Is photodynamic therapy an effective treatment for lung cancer?
Photodynamic therapy may play a limited role in lung cancer treatment — generally complementing, rather than replacing, other forms of treatment. Specifically, it may be an option for treating superficial non-small cell lung cancers that haven't spread beyond the lungs and those that are in areas easily reached with the tools used during the treatment. Learn more from Dr. Timothy Moynihan, an emeritus Mayo Clinic medical oncologist.

Split-dose colonocopy preparation
Is a colonoscopy on your calendar? If so, ask your health care provider whether you can drink the preparation solution over two days. The most common reason for poor colonoscopy preparation is people's distaste for having to drink large quantities of bowel-cleaning solution. To make the process more tolerable, many health care providers recommend splitting the dose: taking the recommended amount the night before the exam and the remainder in the morning before the test. Learn more from Dr. Michael Picco, a Mayo Clinic gastroenterologist.