KNBN NewsCenter1
April is Esophageal Cancer Awareness Month
We’ve all probably experienced the occasional heart burn, but when does a common annoyance become a health issue? Esophageal cancer is increasing at a faster rate than any other cancer in the United States.
April 21, 2021
Esophagus Cancer
Dr. Nathan Jaqua, Gastroenterologist at the Rapid City Medical Center, says, “One of the reasons it’s so deadly is that it typically doesn’t show symptoms until it progresses and it’s pretty late. So about one in five people that are diagnosed with esophageal cancer will survive because typically it’s diagnosed at a late stage.”
KNBN NewsCenter1
March is Colon Cancer Awareness Month
In the United States, colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths in men and in women. And while there is no cure, it is one of few cancers that can be prevented with timely screening.
March 10, 2021
RAPID CITY, S.D. The current recommendation from the American Cancer Society and the United States Preventive Services Task force is for healthy people with no signs or symptoms and no family history of colon cancer is to begin screening at age 45 with a colonoscopy.
Dr. Nathan Jaqua, MD, Gastroenterologist at the Rapid City Medical Center, says, “It is really the gold standard, it not only detects it, but it treats it at the same time. We take out the polyp as soon as we see it and spare you surgery or chemotherapy or complications in the future.”