Increase in Cancer diagnoses indicates better awareness

The number of Iowans who are diagnosed with cancer this year is expected to rise, but officials with the American Cancer Society say, in a way, that’s a good thing. Kerry Finnegan, a spokeswoman for the A-C-S chapter in Des Moines, says more people are finding cancer early — and they’re beating it. The number of Iowans who are expected to be diagnosed with cancer this year is 15-thousand-910, while the number of Iowans who are expected to die of cancer this year is six-thousand-610. Finnegan says those two numbers are going in opposite directions, which is what the Cancer Society wants to hear. More people are being diagnosed but less people are dying, which Finnegan attributes to more awareness of screenings and the importance of early detection. She says the earlier cancer is discovered and diagnosed, the greater the chances for a full recovery. In Iowa, there are three major forms of cancer to worry about. About 23-hundred Iowa women will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year, 18-hundred Iowa men and women will be hit with lung cancer this year and about 17-hundred will be diagnosed with colorectal cancer. Those are the top cancers which Finnegan says Iowans need to talk about with their doctors and have a screening done. For more information, call 800 A-C-S 2345 or surf to “www.cancer.org”.