Recently, I volunteered for the 15-40 Connection at the Dew Tour in Boston. We had a booth in the Dew Tour Festival Village. For those of you who don’t know, the Dew Tour is a professional skateboarding event that travels all over the country with different sponsors. I spoke to at least 500 people there over two days, and guess what the number one question I was asked was. “What’s the catch?”
Rachel and Steve at the Dew Tour
When I told people that they could win a 2 carat diamond ring, iPad, iPod touch, flip video camera, or Nintendo Wii just by signing up for Rock the Doc, people just flat out didn’t believe me. “What do you mean all you have to do is get a check-up?” They thought I was trying to sell them something or based on some reactions, going to use their information for evil and mayhem. It was incredible to watch the change in their perceptions as I described what the 15-40 Connection actually does and that we are simply trying to get people to go to the doctor. Many thought it was too good to be true.
These days we are always on the lookout for the scam, the catch, or the plot behind the scenes. I want people my age to have the same caution concerning their health. Many of us take our health, both mind and body, for granted, and don’t consider it as needing to be taken care of. And because of this, cancer survival rates for our age group have NOT improved since 1975 – many of us weren’t even born then! And yes – teenagers and twenty and thirty-somethings do get cancer. There are 70,000 new cases in the US each year. That’s why we have Rock the Doc as an added incentive to take care of you and a way to improve survival rates. Not to mention it can help you look better, feel better and be confident in the knowledge that we ARE healthy.
I met one survivor at the Dew Tour who had been my age (21) when she was first diagnosed. She had no history of cancer in her family and only slight symptoms. Talk about a wakeup call! Standing before me was a woman who had been just like me one day and then had to put her life on hold to face a struggle I can only imagine. But she did it and is alive thanks to early detection.
I know all the excuses in the book for not going to the doctor because I or some of my friends (ahem) have used them. We are all too busy; or why go to the doctor when I can look it up on WebMD; or the doctor couldn’t figure out what was wrong so I am not going to waste my time at another appointment; or I am just being a baby it will get better on its own. I am not accepting those excuses from myself anymore because if I don’t think my health is a priority, who will? Catching cancer can be as subtle as recognizing a change like I use to be awake and fine on 7 hours of sleep, now I feel sluggish. Would you be able to recognize when that is happening to you and that you should go get checked? I have my whole life ahead of me and I want to make sure I am around to experience it.
There is no catch in registering for Rock the Doc or taking the time to advocate for your health, but there could be a deadly one in not.
by Diane Stokes, Guest Blogger for the 15-40 Connection
If you could take a pill that would help you look younger and reduce your risk of developing cancer later in life, would you? It sounds good, almost too good. But there is a medicine you can take—exercise! I know to some the “exercise pill” feels like one of those really big pills that is hard to swallow but many scientific studies show that exercise and eating well will help you look younger and live longer. No anti-aging cream can compete with that!
Taking the exercise pill four to five times a week doesn’t come easy for everyone. As the founder of FitBricks, I have conducted exercise training programs for athletes of all ages (and yes anyone that participates in a training program for an athletic event is an “athlete”). Many of these “athletes” go from zero exercise to completing a triathlon in one summer. By the end of the summer, they look better, feel better, and are generally living a healthier lifestyle.
This season, FitBricks and 15-40 Connection has a great group of people embarking on an 11-week training program to complete a sprint distance triathlon. In some cases, this will be an athlete’s first triathlon. From couch to triathlon in 11 weeks…it can be done.
College-age students love our summer training program because they learn how to exercise correctly and to fuel their bodies with “good” food choices. This helps them limit gorging on unhealthy options, as most college students do.
By the end of the summer, the FitBricks 15-40 Connection triathlon team will not only look and feel better, but will have also worked to raise funds to help the 15-40 Connection build public awareness about the gap in cancer survival rates for teens and young adults. It’s a gap we can help close. Live healthy and check yourself. If you notice changes in your health– see a medical professional. Early detection for cancer and other disease makes a difference.
Learn more about triathlon training and healthy living at www.FitBricks.com.
The American Cancer Society also offers the following healthy lifestyle recommendations to help you look your best and age more slowly*:
Maintain a healthy weight throughout life.
- Balance calorie intake with physical activity.
- Avoid excessive weight gain throughout life.
- Achieve and maintain a healthy weight if currently overweight or obese.
Eat a healthy diet, with an emphasis on plant sources.
- Choose foods and drinks in amounts that help achieve and maintain a healthy weight.
- Eat 5 or more servings of a variety of vegetables and fruits each day.
- Choose whole grains over processed (refined) grains.
- Limit intake of processed and red meats.
If you drink alcoholic beverages, limit your intake.
- Drink no more than 1 drink per day for women or 2 per day for men.
Adopt a physically active lifestyle.
- Adults: Engage in at least 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous physical activity, above usual activities, on 5 or more days of the week; 45 to 60 minutes of intentional physical activity are preferable.
- Children and adolescents: Engage in at least 60 minutes per day of moderate to vigorous physical activity at least 5 days per week.
*The guidelines were developed by the American Cancer Society 2006 Nutrition and Physical Activity Guidelines Advisory Committee and approved by the American Cancer Society National Board of Directors on May 19, 2006. The full article, written for heath care professionals, is published in the September/October 2006 issue of CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, and is available for free online at: http://caonline.amcancersoc.org/content/vol56/issue5/.
Bio
Diane Stokes
Founder, Oncology Rehab Partners
www.OncRehab.com
Owner, FitBricks
www.FitBricks.com
USA Triathlon and USA Cycling Certified Coach
Heartzones Certified Triathlon Coach and Certified Personal Trainer
By Jarrod Barthe, Cancer Survivor
My story is about advocating for your health, taking immediate action when something just doesn’t feel right with your body and not letting it go when the answer is not immediately apparent. It begins when I was 31 years old. I was doing great for an average guy my age. I had a nice apartment, worked as the marketing & design director for a thriving company, was dating a terrific woman, was driving the car I always wanted and was preparing to go back to school to earn an MBA. I was healthy and active, mountain biking and snowboarding seasonally and going out at regularly to restaurants, bars and live shows. I hardly ever got sick, always had plenty of energy, and was living my life as if it would go on like that forever.
As the months passed, I began to notice strange things with my health. I had some very bad migraine headaches; a dizzy spell in a restaurant that left me on the floor unconscious for several minutes; incremental weight gain and small skin rashes and sores in my armpits coming and going. I attributed most of this to stress and the fact that my roommate had recently obtained a cat (to which I’m allergic).
My energy level, especially after work, was not the same as normal. When I got home, I had to hit the couch and couldn’t do much more. I was taking more and more over-the-counter herbal remedies, vitamins, and energy boosters thinking they would help me. I started to think that perhaps I was becoming a hypochondriac. I began to suspect everything including that perhaps I had contracted HIV or some other disease. I can’t explain how strange I felt and couldn’t put my finger on what was wrong.
Seven months after I first started feeling different, I made an appointment with my Primary Care Physician. I told him about my symptoms and that I had a cat living in my house. He suggested removing the cat immediately. In looking at my chart we realized I had not had a regular checkup in some time. (I had been feeling healthy and scheduling a check-up “just because” was not something that ever crossed my mind at the time.) So, we scheduled another appointment to get a full checkup in a few weeks.
By the time of the next doctor’s appointment, I was more concerned with my health. I was having trouble breathing at night and the skin rashes were more frequent. We discussed my lack of energy and focus, and at one point my doctor ran his fingernail down my back and within 30 seconds a large red line appeared where his nail had touched my skin. I broke out in the same type of hives that I had been having frequently but with no apparent cause. He suggested we do some blood tests including tests for the AIDS virus as well as schedule an appointment with an immunology specialist. In the meantime he told me to take Benadryl to keep the symptoms at bay. I ended up eating those like candy!
The appointment with the immunology specialist yielded nothing unusual except for an abnormally high reading on anything that included cat dander (dust includes cat dander). Taking this information home with me, I told my roommate it was either me or the cat. Unfortunately, the cat won and I moved out. There was no follow up appointment suggested by the doctor beyond me moving.
The first few days of being away from my apartment I felt somewhat better and was encouraged that the cat was in fact the cause of my symptoms and that I would be on the road to feeling great again. However, even after having all my clothes washed and dry cleaned the symptoms persisted and I began to feel even worse. At this point I really began to suffer emotionally as I struggled with the symptoms.
I developed a severe pain in my lower abdomen and thought maybe I had pulled something during the move. After a week of pain that would not go away with Ibuprofen, I scheduled another appointment with a doctor and was referred to a surgeon when it could not be determined what was wrong with me.
The surgeon did some tests, including x-rays and CT scans and told me that they needed to do an invasive biopsy right away to see what was going on. When I asked about what he thought it might be he listed off about a dozen things most of which I had no idea what they were. They never mentioned cancer.
Obviously, the news of having surgery was really frightening. The surgeon wanted to make a 4-5 inch incision into my stomach within the week! I couldn’t believe it and I wasn’t sure if I needed such an invasive surgery – couldn’t this be done with a needle? It was time for a second opinion. My mother began calling surgeons in Boston and got me an appointment with one of the top doctors at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
He looked at my x-rays and CT results for 30 seconds and said “you have a mass in your abdomen the size of my fist.” When I asked him what he thought it was, he listed off a bunch of things including Cat Scratch Fever (It should be noted that cat scratch disease can closely resemble lymphoma due to swollen lymph nodes.) At this point I still never thought about cancer and no one had uttered the word.
I was feeling very sick and in some way was looking forward to the surgery so that I could find out the answer to this mystery. I could not stand up straight, had pain in my lower back and neck, my arms were sore, I had trouble breathing at night and sleeping, I had rashes and hives coming and going all the time. I had digestive trouble, couldn’t make love, couldn’t exercise, and I had very little energy.
The surgery proved that I was not a hypochondriac. I did not have Cat Scratch Fever, or a hernia, or diverticulitis. I had a progressive cancer in my lymphatic system that would need radiation and chemotherapy treatment immediately.
It was tough news to hear but I felt relieved that I was not crazy and that I finally knew what I was up against. I knew something was very wrong with me and I was right! It took multiple doctors and tests before anyone mentioned the possibility of the “c” word to me. My hope is that with more awareness – from patients AND the medical community – we can identify cancer symptoms earlier and get 15-40 year olds to go the doctor regularly “just because” it can save your life.
by Jim Coghlin, Sr., Founder of the 15-40 Connection
Time and health are two of the most precious gifts we are given. Why don’t we recognize and appreciate them until they are taken away from us? At that point, the value of what we have lost becomes crystal clear.
We can hold on to both gifts longer by taking a simple step – getting a physical exam. Protect and nurture your health. If more people do this, it will save lives. It’s that simple.
So why aren’t more people going to the doctor regularly? Teens and young adults are the worst offenders. The fact that cancer survival rate improvements have lagged significantly behind older and younger patients is a testament to that fact. Cancer in young adults is found at later stages. Later stage cancers are more difficult to treat. Those of us who have battled cancer or watched others fight cancer can appreciate this fact.
OK, so going to the doc makes some people nervous, some feel self-conscious, while others just don’t make it a priority. For those who are nervous or self-conscious – know that doctors and health care providers see many, many patients. Things you may be embarrassed about are no big deal to them. They’ve seen or discussed so many things that can be embarrassing to the patient. Sometimes they even forget that the patient might be embarrassed. For those who don’t make going to the doctor a priority – make it a priority before your health leaves you no choice.
And now you have another incentive – the 15-40 Connection’s Rock the Doc campaign. It’s simple! It’s exciting! Enter to win at www.15-40.org/rockthedoc. Your reward may be a $25,000, two-carat diamond ring, or an iPad, or another great prize…but best of all you’ve taken a step to protect your health. You’ve become aware and now you’re a step ahead.
Bring a Rock the Doc physical exam form with you for your doc to sign. Help them understand the importance of considering cancer in young adults. The awareness you create could change a life…for the better.
Spread the word. Rock your doc. Help improve young adult cancer survival rates. Enter Rock the Doc today!
by Teddy Mitropoulos, Student Voice for the 15-40 Connection
The first time I really encountered cancer was in 6th grade. I was 12 years old and way too young. My grandmother was diagnosed with thymus cancer and the doctors did a major operation to get rid of the cancer. It worked miraculously and my grandmother was cancer free until my freshman year in high school when the cancer came back and spread around her body. She passed away that spring.
It has been five years since then and two of my dad’s closest friends have been diagnosed with cancer. One did not make it. My high school advisor, teacher and mentor, Mr. Goodband, was diagnosed in the spring of 2007. He passed away this March. Each of these people played a significant role in my life and their battle with cancer left me powerless. I never felt that I could do anything significant to help, until now. The 15-40 Connection has given me an opportunity to honor them by making others aware that cancer happens to young people like me – and the ones we love – and we have to become more aware and take action.
Sadly, I do not think kids my age – high school kids – believe they can make a difference. I try to tell my friends that it doesn’t matter how old you are; it only takes one voice to make a change. Something as simple as becoming a fan of The 15-40 Connection on Facebook makes a difference ($1 will be donated to raising cancer awareness for every new Facebook fan The 15-40 Connection receives through June 1).
You only get one life so you better take care of it. And this is my goal: I want my friends to understand how serious this disease can be. I want them to know that they can make a difference even if it’s asking a friend, brother, sister, cousin, uncle, mom or dad: “When was the last time you went to the doctor?”
The amazing thing about Mr. Goodband was that everyone had a story about him. Even if you never had a full conversation with him, just passing him in the hallway left an impression. Most importantly, Mr. Goodband believed in me. Some days he even believed in me more than I did myself. He knew how well I could do in school. He convinced me to keep on working at everything I did. He tried to inscribe in me his “don’t complain” stubborn work ethic, and it worked.
Now it’s my turn. I AM going to be stubborn about cancer awareness. I’m going to leave an impression. So tell me, when was the last time you went to the doctor?
by Dr. Karen Albritton, Medical Advisor for the 15-40 Connection
Many people have mixed feelings about the Health Care Reform Bill. No, it’s not perfect (when was the last time you made something that was? My last batch of brownies was kind of dry…). There will need to be adjustments as things play out, and many other changes to medical practice that weren’t even addressed, but it’s a start. And for young adults, there are some MAJOR advances.
To highlight a few:
- All U.S. citizens and legal residents will be required to have health coverage. This means a more level playing field for young adults, who won’t delay seeking care for lack of insurance. How will this happen?
- Young adults will be able to stay on their parents insurance until they are age 26 (unless they can get their own coverage through work or school). Given that young adults age 19-29 are the most uninsured and underinsured population in the U.S. (Schwartz & Schwartz, 2010), and this clearly impacts their seeking care, this is BIG.
- Health insurers cannot deny coverage or charge more to people based on their health status, including pre-existing conditions (say… CANCER?). They also will not be able to impose annual or lifetime limits on coverage.
- There will be “Health Benefit Exchanges” and income-based subsidies to increase options to those previously unable to afford or acquire coverage.
To emphasize just how important having insurance is, read Survivor winner and health advocate Ethan Zohn’s recent blog post about how having health insurance saved his life during his battle with cancer: http://www.tonic.com/article/health-care-cancer-survivor-president-obama-ethan-zohn/
- There will be an increased focus on disease prevention and health promotion. Included is creation of a website that allows individuals to create a personalized prevention plan. Also, Medicaid and health plans will be required to cover preventive services rated A or B by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.
- A bill that had been working its way through Congress got swept into the overall Reform Bill. Called the EARLY Act for “Education and Awareness Requires Learning Young,” it appropriates $9 million a year for 5 years to create:
- A public health campaign to teach young women that breast cancer can and does occur in young women, but more importantly to help them establish good breast health habits to follow as they mature;
- An education campaign to increase awareness among health care providers that breast cancer occurs in young women and knowledge of the risk factors for breast cancer in young women; and
- Support services for young women with breast cancer.
Sounds like they read the 15-40 connection website, huh?
Of course, breast cancer is just one cancer that young adults need to be aware of. For a full list of the most common young adult cancers, check out: http://www.15-40.org/ya-cancers.html
Other helpful and informative reading includes:
A summary of the bill: http://www.kff.org/healthreform/upload/finalhcr.pdf
The whole bill (all 978 pages!) http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h3590/text
Info about EARLY Act http://wassermanschultz.house.gov/earlyact/index.shtml
by Sandy Denesowicz, Cancer Survivor
Does anyone else think it’s crazy that cancer is such a ridiculous epidemic that we need to have a “Young Adult Cancer Awareness” week? Well, we do, and it’s next week: April 5-12.
Every time I heard the statistic, “1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer,” I thought to myself, I know eight women, which one of us will be affected? Not me!
How long have we heard that as women, we should check our breasts once a month? Yet another thing that went in one ear and out the other. I was one of those people who didn’t think cancer could happen to them. Guess what? I was diagnosed at the ripe old age of 28 with stage IV breast cancer. Yep, ridiculous!
The thing is, cancer had never had an impact on my life before this – no family history, no other health issues and I didn’t even know anyone who had cancer. You don’t need all those things to have cancer. No one is immune to it. I always knew what it was..I guess? In the past two years, I have learned more than I care to know about this ugly disease.
My advice? Be proactive and aware! Go see your doctor, develop a trusting relationship and ask questions when you have them! One of the biggest lessons I have learned is YOU ARE YOUR OWN ADVOCATE!
Cancer has a new face. It’s not what you think. Seventy thousand young adults like me are diagnosed with cancer every year. We don’t know what causes cancer but we do know that if you catch it early, it makes a difference.
by Tricia Laursen, Director of the 15-40 Connection
With our 10K Facebook Fan Challenge underway, I wanted to share with you what motivated our donor to challenge us. In one word - Awareness.
When people learn that there has been hardly any improvement in cancer survival rates for 15 to 40 year-olds since 1975, they are shocked. It’s a hidden fact. Most people don’t associate cancer with young adults yet it is this group’s #1 cause of disease related death. There are nearly 8 times more young adults diagnosed with cancer every year than pediatric patients.
To put it another way, of the 102 million young adults in the US, 70,000 will be diagnosed with cancer each year. That translates into a 1 in 58 chance of developing cancer during those years. That is scary!
An anonymous donor recognized the deep need for cancer awareness and recently challenged The 15-40 Connection to rally young people where they hang out most — Facebook. The $10,000/10,000 Fan Facebook challenge is intended to help make people aware that young adults do get cancer and that awareness is a great step forward.
Awareness leads to a greater focus on health and early detection. Cancer symptoms can be subtle and that gives us the opportunity to minimize them. Awareness makes you think twice. Thinking twice before ignoring changes in your health can saves lives. This is what motivates our donor. So please, fan the 15-40 Connection on Facebook and post a message on your wall or send a message directly asking your friends to do the same. Tell them why it’s important and make them AWARE.
For inspiration and further motivation, read this article about a brave teen’s battle with cancer ( http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/mar/14/id-have-my-dress-a-date-and-my-hair/ <http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/mar/14/id-have-my-dress-a-date-and-my-hair/> ). Cancer treatment is brutal. Young adults have strength and courage and with early detection they have a very good chance at beating cancer.
Be Aware. Act if you notice a change. Self-advocate if your health care provider declares you healthy and you still have that feeling that something is wrong.
What else can we do to make teens and young adults become more aware? Tell us! We want to hear from you.
by Jim Coghlin, Sr., Founder of the 15-40 Connection
After focusing on Adolescent & Young Adult (AYA) cancer research fundraising for three years, I recognized that a critical ingredient in our path to success was missing from the recipe. The ingredient: AWARENESS.
At that point I retained a person to scour all of the cancer-related websites to see if “awareness” organizations existed and we could not find one. So I spoke with my family, and we decided to make a major commitment of time, talent, and treasure to create the 15-40 Connection to focus on “awareness” that cancer is the #1 disease-related cause of death in 15 to 40 year olds and to promote early detection through advocacy and action.
You see, there has been little improvement in adolescent and young adult cancer survival rates for 35 years and this awareness ingredient is, I believe, a major cause of this unfortunate fact.
Warren Buffett, one of Americas most esteemed businessmen and philanthropists captured it best through a chapter in his book, The Snowball. The chapter is called “The Genie.” Basically, Warren shares that he met up with a genie who, for Warren’s 16th birthday, was going to give him a car of his choice. When Warren asked the genie, “What’s the hitch?” The genie shared, “This is the only car you are ever going to get, so it has to last a lifetime.” Warren goes on to share that, under these circumstances, he would read the manual five times, keep it garaged, repair any dent or scratch to keep it from rusting, and he would baby the car for his lifetime. And then he makes his point: He tells students who are visiting him that The Genie story relates directly to your mind and body. You only get one mind and one body so it has to last a lifetime. It is easy to let it ride for many years, but if you don’t take care of your mind and body, there will be a wreck 40 or so years later just like what would happen to the car. So, in echoing Warren’s words, it is through the 15-40 Connection that we are striving to create awareness that “it is what you do right now, today, that determines how your mind and body will operate 10-20-30 years from now.”
It is clear to us at the 15-40 Connection that this problem can be solved! Awareness, Action, and Advocacy can make a difference. Lives can be saved and the impact of cancer can be lessened. 70,000 AYAs are diagnosed with cancer each year – 8x more than pediatric patients.
Please use this Blog to SHOUT OUT – talk to us, talk to your peers, share ideas and share stories.
Thank you.
Each year, the American Cancer Society estimates the number of new cancer cases and deaths expected in the United States in the current year and compiles the most recent data on cancer incidence, mortality, and survival based on incidence data from the National Cancer Institute, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries and mortality data from the National Center for Health Statistics.
Incidence and death rates are standardized by age to the 2000 United States standard million population. A total of 1,479,350 new cancer cases and 562,340 deaths from cancer are projected to occur in the United States in 2009. Overall cancer incidence rates decreased in the most recent time period in both men (1.8% per year from 2001 to 2005) and women (0.6% per year from 1998 to 2005), largely because of decreases in the three major cancer sites in men (lung, prostate, and colon and rectum [colorectum]) and in two major cancer sites in women (breast and colorectum). Overall cancer death rates decreased in men by 19.2% between 1990 and 2005, with decreases in lung (37%), prostate (24%), and colorectal (17%) cancer rates accounting for nearly 80% of the total decrease. Among women, overall cancer death rates between 1991 and 2005 decreased by 11.4%, with decreases in breast (37%) and colorectal (24%) cancer rates accounting for 60% of the total decrease.
The reduction in the overall cancer death rates has resulted in the avoidance of about 650,000 deaths from cancer over the 15-year period. This report also examines cancer incidence, mortality, and survival by site, sex, race/ethnicity, education, geographic area, and calendar year.
Although progress has been made in reducing incidence and mortality rates and improving survival, cancer still accounts for more deaths than heart disease in persons younger than 85 years of age. Further progress can be accelerated by applying existing cancer control knowledge across all segments of the population and by supporting new discoveries in cancer prevention, early detection, and treatment. CA Cancer J Clin 2009. © 2009 American Cancer Society, Inc.
