Dr. Lisa Chaney Lasher can be described as many things. She is a graduate of Murray State University and the University of Louisville School of Medicine. She is a board certified Obstetrician and Gynecologist. She serves as the Director of Lourdes Women's Services. She is a mother. She is a breast cancer survivor. Most of these attributes were planned accomplishments. The latter, however, she never planned to have as an item on her life resume.

One in eight women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer during her lifetime. Every year in America 211,000 women and 1,700 men are diagnosed with breast cancer. It is the most common cancer in American women aside from skin cancer. Dr. Lasher explained that breast cancer is a disease that does not follow the book which is one of the most frustrating attributes of the disease. Age increases the likelihood of being diagnosed with breast cancer. Family history plays little role, however. Only 10 to 20 percent of the women diagnosed each year have a family history of breast cancer.

In recent years there have been new advancements in Breast Cancer (BRCA) testing which can be used to empower women to be proactive in preparing for and reducing their risk of developing breast cancer. The BRCA testing can identify family types with genetic mutations and provide the patient with information on their risk of developing breast cancer. Patients whose test reveal they are at significant risk for breast cancer can then be empowered to take steps to prevent the onset of the disease by taking actions like removal of the ovaries and other forms of preventative surgeries.

Sadly, most breast cancer patients are not BRCA carriers therefore early detection remains the best defense at early diagnosis and treatment. The US Government Task Force announced this week that it is suggesting new parameters for a woman's use of routine mammograms as early detection of breast cancer. This task force calls for women to wait to begin annual mammograms until the age of fifty contrary to the American Cancer Society's recommendation for annual mammograms beginning at age forty. The task force's recommendation is based on a cost containment issue and there is fear among the healthcare community as to how this will affect insurance and Medicare coverage for patients between the ages of forty and fifty. Currently one in sixty-eight women between the ages of forty and fifty are diagnosed with breast cancer. Without mammogram screenings during this decade, women will be subject to a lack of early detection and prevention thus their cancer will be harder to treat potentially decreasing the survival rate for this age group.

It is important to note that the American Cancer Society does not support the task force's recommendations. Since 1989 the risk of death from breast cancer has declined by 29% in part due to early detection. There is a 99 - 100% survival rate for women whose cancer is detected early by mammograms.

Technology has also been a factor in the increase in survival rates among women diagnosed with breast cancer. Mammography is now in digital form offering enhanced views of breast tissue not to mention increased comfort for the patient. Ultrasounds are now also used to scan for breast cancer. Some breast lumps are cystic and the use of ultrasounds help physicians to determine if these cysts are solid or benign.

Lourdes Hospital is the first hospital in the region to purchase a breast MRI. Often when cancer is detected in one breast, there is concern about the condition of the opposite side. Breast MRIs provide an 18% increase in the ability of the physician to locate problems with the other breast. In addition, a breast MRI is able to detect lumps that are less than five millimeters in size. Lumps this size are difficult to detect with a standard mammogram. There are drawbacks and reasons why breast MRIs are not used in replace of a standard mammogram. These tests require sixty to ninety minutes to administer and are much more costly than a standard mammogram. They also must be administered at a specific time in a woman's menstrual cycle for a truly accurate read making them less flexible than a mammogram.

Dr. Lasher was pleased to announce today that the Lourdes Women Center will hold its grand opening in January 2010 of a project that is five years in the making. The center is pleased to offer patients with a nurse navigator to provide services to women the day that a lump is detected up until their diagnosis. This center was modeled after some of the largest breast cancer centers in the United States and will provide women of Western Kentucky a single location to coordinate their treatments at a location that is close to home should a breast cancer diagnosis be made. The center will link together the services of the American Cancer Society, Kentucky Cancer Society and the Purchase District Health Department in an effort to provide comprehensive patient and family care services prior to diagnosis as well as quality of live services post diagnosis. The center is currently looking for volunteers. Rotarians interested in participating should contact Dr. Lasher's office at (270) 538-5700

Gear Teeth	Amy Clevidence
Invocation	John Williams Jr
Song Leader	John Williams Jr.
Four Way Test	Robert Alexander
Family of Rotary	Tim Thomas
Program	Phil McIntosh

BIRTHDAYS