Is Cancer Research the Key to Women’s Health?

Doctors work hard each day to detect, diagnose, and treat disease. Behind the scenes, medical researchers are finding ways to improve disease detection, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.

Cancer research is a prime example. This area involves exactly that: understanding how cancer works to develop better tests, treatments, and preventive measures.¹

There are several types of cancer research. For example, the American Cancer Society (ACS) conducts laboratory tests and clinical trials, or studies that test new cancer treatments. The ACS also studies health providers / health systems and social / environmental factors that influence our health.²

Researchers gain important information from these studies, and the opportunity to improve the lives of future cancer patients.

But, the benefits don’t stop there: Cancer research positively impacts other areas of healthcare – including women’s health.

Let’s look at a few examples.

You might not know her name, but you or someone you love has probably benefitted from the work of American pathologist Elizabeth Stern. Her groundbreaking research paved the way for preventing, diagnosing, and treating cervical cancer.

Stern developed a 100-point scale to identify and rank the progression of cervical cancer, which helped doctors to detect and treat the disease sooner.³

Still, Stern didn’t stop there. She wanted to make these advances available to all.

In 1977, Stern published a study on cervical cancer cases in Los Angeles. The results were revealing: Low-income communities, which were largely Black and Hispanic, had the highest numbers of the disease.

Stern then trained area health workers to recruit patients to attend free health clinics. With free transportation and childcare, the women’s needs were made clear. They called for clinics in their neighborhoods, flexible operating hours, education on health screenings and procedures, and female nurses / doctors to conduct these tests.

Today – due in no small part to Stern’s work – the Los Angeles County Department of Health has 17 different locations providing free or low-cost women’s health care.⁴

Cancer research helps to answer important questions about infections, viruses, and other women’s health conditions.

For example, some strains of the human papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually transmitted infection, can cause cervical cancer. Research also shows a connection between a stomach bacterium (Helicobacter pylori) and ulcers and gastric cancer.⁸

The scientists behind the COVID-19 vaccines have also drawn upon the knowledge gained from cancer research. Over the past few decades, cancer researchers have further learned how the body’s immune system fights cancer cells – giving rise to the exciting fields of immunotherapy and immune-oncology.

This research is part of the important work to end the current pandemic and find ways to prevent or fight another one.⁹

Make an easy decision today by making time for your mammogram (and encourage other women in your life to do the same!).

All women over 40 need breast screenings. This also applies if you have a family history of breast cancer or have noticed changes to your breasts.

Earlier mammograms may be indicated for patients with first-degree relatives with breast or ovarian cancer, to start approximately 10 years prior to age of diagnosis in that first-degree relative.

Precision Imaging Centers powered by HALO Diagnostics offers these breast screenings at our four Florida locations in Jacksonville, Jacksonville Beach, Fleming Island, and St. Augustine.

Call us at (904) 996-8100 to book your mammogram or schedule your screening online.