U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH NIH News
National Institute on Aging (NIA) <http://www.nia.nih.gov/>
For Immediate Release: Wednesday, February 24, 2010
CONTACT:
Stephanie Dailey, NIA, 301-496-1752, <e-mail:nianews3@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Kathy Cravedi, NLM, 301-496-6308, <e-mail:kcravedi@xxxxxxxxxxx>
INFORMATION ON LIFE AFTER CANCER NOW AVAILABLE ON NIHSENIORHEALTH.GOV
Older adults who have survived cancer can find out what to expect once treatment ends in Life after Cancer, the newest topic on NIHSenior Health (www.nihseniorhealth.gov/lifeaftercancer/toc.html).
Visitors to the site will learn about managing follow-up care, physical and emotional changes, and relationships with family and friends. The topic also addresses how a person's age and health status can affect recovery and survival. This is important information for older adults who make up about 60 percent of cancer survivors and whose cancer treatments may have been complicated by other aging-related health conditions.
NIHSeniorHealth is a health and wellness Web site geared to the needs of older adults. It was developed by the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the National Library of Medicine (NLM), both part of the National Institutes of Health.
Although many people are living longer following cancer due to better diagnostic tests and treatments, life after cancer can bring its own challenges. "Many cancer survivors look forward to returning to a normal life after treatment ends, but for some, this can be a stressful period," said Julia Rowland, Ph.D., director of the Office of Cancer Survivorship at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), which developed the topic. "Understanding what to expect after cancer treatment can help survivors and their families plan for follow-up care, make positive lifestyle changes, and consider important health-related decisions."
Older Americans are increasingly turning to the Internet for health information. In fact, over 70 percent of online seniors look for health and medical information when they go on the Web. NIHSeniorHealth (www.nihseniorhealth.gov), which is based on the latest research on cognition and aging, features short, easy-to-read segments of information that can be accessed in a number of formats, including various large-print type sizes, open-captioned videos and an audio version. Additional topics coming soon to the site include periodontal disease, dry eye, and collecting your family health history.
NCI leads the National Cancer Program and the NIH effort to dramatically reduce the burden of cancer and improve the lives of cancer patients and their families through research into prevention and cancer biology, the development of new interventions, and the training and mentoring of new researchers. For more information, visit the Web site at <www.cancer.gov>.
The NLM is the world's largest library of the health sciences and collects, organizes and makes available biomedical science information to scientists, health professionals and the public. For more information, visit the Web site at <www.nlm.nih.gov>.
The NIA leads the federal effort supporting and conducting research on aging and the medical, social and behavioral issues of older people. For more information on research and aging, go to <www.nia.nih.gov>.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) -- The Nation's Medical Research Agency -- includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting basic, clinical and translational medical research, and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit <www.nih.gov>.
##
This NIH News Release is available online at:
<http://www.nih.gov/news/health/feb2010/nia-24.htm>.
To subscribe (or unsubscribe) from this list, go to
<http://service.govdelivery.com/service/subscribe.html?code=USNIH_1>.
