Health Beat - Fall 2016 - 7


Does This
Count as
Cancer?
The American Cancer Society estimates that 60,290 cases of DCIS, or
"stage 0 breast cancer," were diagnosed in 2015. Is ductal carcinoma in
situ, or DCIS, really breast cancer?
DCIS is noninvasive. In situ means
in place, a nod to the fact that it is confined to milk ducts and has not-and
may never-spread. Many physicians
call DCIS the earliest form of cancer.
Some say it's not cancer at all.
"Up until the mid-1980s, every
pathology textbook had DCIS as
a precancerous condition. It's like
cervical carcinoma in situ, which
we call a bad Pap smear," says Otis
Brawley, MD, chief medical officer
for the American Cancer Society.
"That changed in the mid-1990s,
when the American College of
Surgeons started referring to DCIS
as a stage 0 cancer. All of a sudden, in
1995, we had 60,000 additional breast
cancers in the U.S." Brawley adds that
it's important for women who receive
a diagnosis of DCIS to consider their
treatment options and not be scared
into a snap decision.

Photo by Thinkstock

THOSE SMOKES
ADD UP FAST
If you smoke but think
you've "got it under control,"
the number of cigarettes
you're smoking over time
might surprise you. Visit
cancer.org and search for
"cigarette calculator"
for a quick tally.

FOR cancer news, tips and trends, follow twitter.com/americancancer

7

http://www.cancer.org http://www.twitter.com/americancancer

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Health Beat - Fall 2016