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What is Cancer Prognosis & What Should You Know About It?

February 28, 2023

If you have cancer or someone in your family has the disease, you will have many questions about the chances of survival. The estimation of how the disease will take form for the patient is referred to as prognosis. So, what exactly is cancer prognosis, and what are the things you should know about it? At Ardynn, we would like to shed light on this topic. What is Cancer Prognosis? A cancer prognosis provides you an insight into your disease whether it can be cured and what you can expect in the future. Such a prognosis answers the following questions: How likely your cancer is to get cured? What are your chances of having a full recovery? How many years you are likely to live if your cancer doesn’t get cured? Factors Affecting Prognosis There are many factors that affect a cancer prognosis. They include: Cancer type you have and its location in your body Cancer stage, which indicates its size and the body parts it has spread to Cancer grade, which indicates the level of abnormality of the cancer cells. It provides insights into how quickly your cancer is likely to develop and spread. Your age and health How

What are the Most Common Cancer Risk Factors?

February 8, 2023

Cancer is basically caused when changes take place in a cell’s DNA. These changes are also referred to as mutations, and they can cause the affected cells to grow without any control. These cells are then known as cancerous cells and can then invade body tissues or crowd out the healthy cells. There are many causes of cancer, with the common ones including infections, frequent contact with cancer-causing substances, radiation, and even genetics. If you know the risk factors associated with cancer, it is possible to prevent this disease in many scenarios. At Ardynn, we would like to provide helpful insights into the most common cancer-causing risk factors so that you can avoid this disease to the best of your abilities. Common Cancer Risk Factors It is not possible to tell with accuracy why one individual develops cancer while another one doesn’t. Still, research shows that some risk factors increase the chances of someone developing this disease. Here is a list o the most suspected and studied cancer risk factors that you should know of. While some of these factors are available, others aren’t. It is recommended to avoid exposure to avoidable factors to lower your chances of developing cancers.

The Benefits of Shared Decision-Making

January 5, 2023

Making the most informed treatment decisions is vital for new patients and their families. Shared decision-making allows patients to have a say in their treatment methods while also allowing healthcare professionals to provide the best individualized treatment possible. Because nobody knows a patient better than themselves, allowing patients a voice in their care can change their outlook on their treatment journey. By creating a collaborative environment, patients are encouraged to ask cultivated questions to fully understand their treatment. The treatment team benefits from making educational tools and resources accessible to patients and allowing them the opportunity to better understand their diagnosis and treatment because it leads patients to be more receptive to the information the team provides. As a result, the patient also benefits, as doctors are more likely to provide additional information to high-participation patients. Giving patients access to all treatment options and allowing them time to process their diagnosis can help them better understand how to best move forward. Shared decision-making empowers patients in the following ways: Reduces counseling time and increases satisfaction with the consultation process. 3 Improves clinical outcomes quality of life. 3, 4 Increases patient and physician satisfaction throughout treatment. Patients better understand the risks and potential outcomes of treatment. 4 Decreased

Sweden Leads The Way In Monitoring Low-Risk Prostate Cancer Through Active Surveillance

December 5, 2022

On November 17th, specialists from the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Michigan discussed their methods for achieving very high levels of active monitoring during a webinar hosted by the Active Surveillance Coalition. Although active surveillance has been shown to prevent prostate cancer overtreatment, most nations still neglect it. According to American models, cost-effective prostate cancer screening requires more widespread active monitoring. Facts About Prostate Cancer Men throughout the world get prostate cancer. With 1.3 million new cases and 358,989 deaths annually, it is the second most common male malignancy after lung cancer. The American Cancer Society predicts that there will be 268,000 cases of prostate cancer diagnosed in the United States in 2022, an increase of 20,000 cases from 2021. Men with low-risk prostate cancer were often treated aggressively with radiation or surgery until recently (over the past decade). Both are effective in curing low-risk prostate cancer but come with substantial risks, including urinary issues and erectile dysfunction that can last a lifetime- it’s where Active Surveillance (AS) comes in. What is Active Surveillance For Prostate Cancer? Active surveillance is a treatment option for low-grade, slowly developing prostate cancer patients. This entails keeping an

Impact of Race & Ethnicity on Cancer Treatment and Outcomes

November 15, 2022

African American patients are more comfortable working with providers of the same race. Still, only about 3% of US oncologists are Black, reducing participation during medical visits. Providers believed African American care could be improved by increasing cultural sensitivity through education and training initiatives and increasing staff diversity. A recent study indicated a need to develop new to increase awareness of EOL care options for underrepresented minorities. This is underscored by the fact that prognostic estimates and treatment decision-making in cancer care are primarily based on clinical trials and statistics published by the National Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Society. Both data sets suffer from low participation by ethnic and racial minorities, even though members of these groups generally experience disproportionately higher mortality rates relative to the entire US population. The lack of widespread participation in clinical trials thus leads to problems in the scientific quality of the research, generalizability of the results, and speed of scientific discovery. What can we do about it? Ardynn empowers newly diagnosed cancer patients with information tailored to their unique characteristics, clinical condition, and goals for care. Ardynn combines personalized, high-tech analytics based on millions of real-world patients with the human touch of board-certified cancer support professionals

Leveraging Real-World Evidence to Support Patient-Centric Care

November 1, 2022

A cancer diagnosis is terrifying, and treatment choices are complex, with profound impacts on finances and quality of life. There are usually several treatment options presented to patients, depending on the patient’s age, other medical conditions, and the severity of the disease. All treatments are associated with their benefits and tradeoffs. As a result, physicians are faced with the challenge of foretelling the future and recommending appropriate treatments to each patient. Leaving patients to make difficult and emotional choices about survival, treatment, quality of life, and cost. Every patient is unique, yet our current system comprises treatment protocols based on research conducted on a select group of participants. Existing clinical standards do not adequately address questions like, “What is the right treatment for me, given my risk factors?” As a result, patients are often recommended treatments with no clinical benefit. The impact of these unnecessary treatments and procedures is a high cost to the patients and the system. Consequently, a critical goal in healthcare is to create strategies to stop treating patients with therapies that generate little or no clinical benefit and focus on determining which treatment is right for each patient. Personalization is the future of healthcare. Outcomes

5 Common Myths About Breast Cancer

October 30, 2022

October is breast cancer awareness month. This month more than 22,000 people in the U.S. will receive a breast cancer diagnosis. Breast cancer is the second most diagnosed cancer in American women, yet many still have misconceptions about the disease. Let’s separate some common myths from facts. Myth #1: Breast cancer only affects women. The truth is anyone with breast tissue can develop breast cancer. While men make up less than 1% of breast cancer diagnoses in the U.S., there are still more than 2,000 male breast cancer cases diagnosed yearly in the U.S. Myth #2: If you have the BRCA gene, you are more likely to get cancer. Everyone has the BRCA genes, which aid in fighting breast cancer. Some have mutated or broken BRCA1 and/or BRCA2 genes, which do not function properly and allow breast cancer cells to develop and take hold, making people with BRCA gene mutations more likely to develop breast cancer in their lifetimes. Myth #3: Breast cancer runs in families, and I don’t have to worry if I don’t have a family history. While having a family history of breast or ovarian cancers does increase your risk, more than 60% of

All About Breast Cancer

October 10, 2022

October is breast cancer awareness month. About one in eight women will develop breast cancer during her life. Breast cancer is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers in American women, second only to skin cancer, but it can also affect men. This month, nearly 22,000 people in the U.S. will receive a breast cancer diagnosis. Risk factors for Breast Cancer There are preventable and non-preventable risk factors for breast cancer. The major non-preventable risk factors for breast cancer are age, sex, race, a family history of breast or ovarian cancers, and genetic mutations. As you age, your risk of developing cancer increases. Most breast cancers are diagnosed in women over the age of 50. However, breast cancer diagnosed under 45 is possible and more common in black women. Genetics also plays a factor. If you have a family history of breast or ovarian cancer, you are more likely to develop breast cancer at some point in your life. Another risk factor is genetic mutations. The Breast Cancer Gene BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations are two genetic mutations linked to an increased risk of developing breast cancer. However, there are many misconceptions about the BRCA genes. Despite

What is Comorbidity?

September 15, 2022

Comorbidity can be summed up in a simple question: “In addition to cancer, what else is wrong with you?” A comorbidity is an existing and unrelated diagnosis at the time of a cancer diagnosis. Common comorbidities include heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, and obesity. Nearly 30 such comorbid conditions occur frequently enough and contribute to treatment decision-making and prognosis enough to warrant consideration at the time of a cancer diagnosis. Physicians have recognized the importance of comorbidity for many years. Several tools have been developed to aid in collecting comorbid health conditions at the time of diagnosis. For example, using the Adult Comorbidity Examination-27 (ACE-27) to capture comorbid health is quite easy. Comorbidity is an important factor for patients with cancer. Surprisingly, coexisting medical conditions can contribute heavily to prognosis. It is also an important factor in proper treatment selection for at least 70% of adults with newly diagnosed cancers. Comorbidity is a crucial component for women with breast cancer because the overall survival rate is good, just as it is for men with prostate cancer. Among men with prostate cancer, for instance, comorbidity is far and away more important than tumor size or spread, the usual factors doctors look for.

The Benefits of Shared Decision-Making

September 1, 2022

Shared decision-making and value-based care are emerging approaches to obtaining additional value from patient care. Shared decision-making is the process of interacting with patients who wish to be involved in arriving at an informed, values-based choice among two or more medically reasonable alternatives. It attempts to stimulate collaborative discussion between physicians and patients to better align the pursued outcomes with the patient’s needs. Values-based care is care that is sensitive to the individual preferences and values of the patient. It is based on the idea that, to maximize effectiveness and efficiency, funds ought to be allocated so that they create the most value for the patient. A significant medical diagnosis is a terrifying experience. Treatment choices are complex, with profound implications on finances and quality of life. There are often several different treatment options depending on the age of the patient, overall health. Often, alternative treatment options are available, as well. Every option has trade-offs such as survival, side effects, and cost. As a result, no treatment recommendation is right for every patient, making recommendations difficult for physicians. Patients are left to make the difficult personal and emotional choices about survival, treatment choices, quality of life, and cost. Every person

Ardynn Blog

What is Cancer Prognosis & What Should You Know About It?

What are the Most Common Cancer Risk Factors?

The Benefits of Shared Decision-Making

Sweden Leads The Way In Monitoring Low-Risk Prostate Cancer Through Active Surveillance

Impact of Race & Ethnicity on Cancer Treatment and Outcomes

Leveraging Real-World Evidence to Support Patient-Centric Care

5 Common Myths About Breast Cancer

All About Breast Cancer

What is Comorbidity?

The Benefits of Shared Decision-Making

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