Free Colorectal Cancer Screenings Offered Saturday, March 19
Mar 8, 2011
March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month and SUNY Downstate Medical Center will offer free colorectal cancer screenings on Saturday, March 19, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at its Endoscopy Center, 760 Parkside Avenue, between New York and Nostrand Avenues.
Colorectal cancer is among the most common causes of cancer-related deaths, but it is also highly preventable. If diagnosed early, it often can be cured completely. Risk factors for colorectal cancer include being age 50 or older; African-American or Ashkenazi Jewish; a family history of cancer; a personal history of cancer or polyps; smoking; diabetes; and obesity. However, the most common symptom of colorectal cancer is no symptom at all.
Blood pressure and diabetes screenings will also be available. The event is sponsored by University Physicians of Brooklyn; University Hospital of Brooklyn; the Center for Community Health Promotion and Wellness; and the Division of Gastroenterology and Hematology. Refreshments will be served. Those wishing more information may call 718-282-7234.
###
About SUNY Downstate Medical Center
SUNY Downstate Medical Center, founded in 1860, was the first medical school in the United States to bring teaching out of the lecture hall and to the patient’s bedside. A center of innovation and excellence in research and clinical service delivery, SUNY Downstate Medical Center comprises a College of Medicine, College of Nursing, School of Health Professions, a School of Graduate Studies, School of Public Health, University Hospital of Brooklyn, and a multifaceted biotechnology initiative including the Downstate Biotechnology Incubator and BioBAT for early-stage and more mature companies, respectively.
SUNY Downstate ranks twelfth nationally in the number of alumni who are on the faculty of American medical schools. More physicians practicing in New York City have graduated from SUNY Downstate than from any other medical school.