If you could get a test that could prevent cancer from developing, would you say no? Unfortunately, too many Americans are doing exactly that. By not following recommendations for a colonoscopy, they’re missing out on a life-saving opportunity.

Shorter radiation treatment for early stage breast cancer is increasing in popularity, but is it right for you? The procedure recently made headlines because a study indicated it results in more mastectomies later on.

People who develop cancer and people who have cancer often wonder what effect stress has on the disease. Does it cause cancer? Does it affect the ability to beat the disease? Does it lead to recurrence?

It was Valentine's Day, and I really should have been out walking the dogs to the tune of “You Light Up My Life.” But instead, I couldn’t get Kelly Clarkson’s latest hit out of my head. It all started a few days earlier, when we got a quote from an insurance company for health insurance for my husband and me.

A new study released on Jan. 23 claims that the drug dutasteride may prevent the growth of prostate cancer in men, and possibly even be used as a way to protect men from prostate cancer.

As I think about what this new year may bring, my wish for all of you is to be brave and have courage in whatever challenges or difficulties you may face.

November was a very challenging month this year for me—full of momentous occasions and emotional highs and lows, but, as always, there was a life lesson.

It's October and three years since I finished my radiation therapy for breast cancer. Not a day goes by that I don't think about how lucky I am that my cancer was found in one of the earliest stages and that I have been cancer-free for three years.

Since the first observance of Breast Cancer Awareness Month in 1985, we've made great strides in saving lives through improved detection and treatment. Much of the success has been attributed to mammography—and an important physicians' group recently reinforced the test's role in early detection.

It seems as though another screening controversy is brewing following the October 6, 2011 announcement from the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force. Members of the task force are now recommending against the routine use of the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test to screen healthy men for prostate cancer.

Steve Jobs didn’t just innovate; he inspired. People listened to his ideas, embraced his creations and developed them further. Even his competitors were beneficiaries.

At the end of a recent newscast, Andrea Mitchell announced that she is one of the one in eight women diagnosed with breast cancer. She used her celebrity status to call attention to the need for early detection and talked about her luck in having an excellent prognosis and family, friends and coworkers who are very supportive. She mentioned that early detection can lead to a cure.

A couple of falls on a 7-mile hike, adjusting to the limitations of congestive heart failure, and a celebration for an ovarian cancer survivor. There are many reasons to go through life looking at the glass half full instead of focusing on the empty half.

So you overdid it on the first day of your beach vacation and got a bad sunburn. What should you do? The best treatment is cool (not ice cold) soaks or compresses, followed by a soothing aloe vera gel or an ointment such as Aquaphor.

To save you the suspense of reading to end of this article, I'll simply tell you right up front: There is no magic food or supplement that has consistently been found to prevent cancer. As a medical oncologist, I am happy to tell you that there is still plenty of good news.

I lost my mother a year ago this month, and it was a huge loss for our family. She was definitely the “glue,” and now we are working at what had been a very natural and effortless bond. Those of us who depended on her for her sage advice and quiet strength are a bit lost at times.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently revived the debate over cell phones and cancer when an advisory panel concluded that cell phones are “possibly carcinogenic.” The key word is “possibly.”

My parents didn't worry about bruising their children's egos or stunting their creativity. That lesson came in handy when I had back-to-back health issues recently.

What if cancer patients could know before they began treatment whether their cancers would likely respond to a particular therapy? That's the significance of molecular testing.

Of the many things about cancer that can make you bitter, I felt losing my innocence most keenly. Until I was diagnosed, I had never contemplated my mortality.