New Year’s Resolution: Talk to My Family

Yeah I know what you must be thinking: How dysfunctional is Amy Brunson’s family when her New Year’s resolution is to talk to them. Well I am not only making the art of conversation my major 2012 goal, I am also making it Stop Colon Cancer Now’s resolution and hopefully it will find its way onto your list.

Ok, now that I have your attention, let me share a part of my resolution I left off.

My New Year’s Resolution: Talk to my family about their colon health.

Now doesn’t that resolution make a little more sense, even though it’s not as exciting? Butt seriously (Don’t you just love it when the name of this blog fits perfectly into place?), I wonder every day how many cases of colon cancer could have been prevented if a father, grandmother or sibling would have shared their own personal history of polyps or even cancer.

I know a lot of you are thinking if my mom or granddad had colon cancer they would tell me. Trust me, I believe you, and I think the very same thing about my own family, but unless you are in business of preventing colon cancer, like me, a lot of people don’t know that they should share with their family the fact that a doctor took out polyps before they turned cancerous. According to the National Colorectal Cancer Roundtable (NCCRT), if you have a first degree relative diagnosed with polyps (or colon cancer) before the age of 60, you may be at a higher risk of developing colon cancer and should talk to your doctor about getting a colonoscopy before the recommended age of 50.

Now, before any of you start down the path of “it doesn’t matter if my folks or siblings had polyps,  you can’t prevent cancer” – let me give you a big ‘ol WHAMMY – ‘cause you’re wrong! If caught early enough, during a colonoscopy a gastroenterologist can remove polyps before they become cancerous.  Colon cancer is one cancer you have a really great shot at preventing.

So now that you know how important it is to know your family’s colon health, the next question is how do you bring it up in conversation.  You could just say, “Hey mom! How are you doing? How’s the weather? Have you ever been checked for colon cancer?” That might be a little jarring, however.  Perhaps segue with a discussion about a high fiber recipe you just found. Or you could stick a whoopie cushion on your dad’s chair and start the conversation that way!

At the end of the day its family and you should be able to say anything to your family. But, if you are still unsure about how to bring up the topic of polyps and colon cancer at the dinner table and even unsure about what to do with that information once you’ve received it, then go to family PLZ.

family PLZ (http://familyplz.org) is a website created by NCCRT to help you and I navigate the seas of what might seem like uncomfortable conversation topics about colon cancer and colonoscopies. In all honesty though, talking about colon cancer shouldn’t be any more uncomfortable than talking about the weather and it’s definitely more important.

So join me and Stop Colon Cancer Now in making your 2012 resolution about talking to your family about their colon health and history. You can start today by just asking your mom, dad, brother or sister.