HealthWays
3
Mammograms
Save Lives.
TheWomen’s Imaging
Center at ValleyCare o ers
digital mammography as well as
3D ultrasound for breast imaging
and is conveniently located at
5725W. Las Positas Blvd.
in Pleasanton. ValleyCare
also o ers digital
mammography at its
Livermore campus,
1133 E. Stanley Blvd.
Do yourself a favor
and schedule an
appointment today.
Call
925 734 3376
.
GET ONE!
Screening Paid Off
A
Carole Murray
of Livermore
Scott Gregerson
CEO
ValleyCare Health System–
Pleasanton
5555–5575 and 5725
W. Las Positas Blvd.
Pleasanton, CA 94588
ValleyCare Health System–
Livermore
1111–1133 E. Stanley Blvd.
Livermore, CA 94550
ValleyCare Health System–
Dublin
4000 Dublin Blvd., Suite 150
Dublin, CA 94568
The mission of ValleyCare Health System is to assume the leadership role for the
health of the communities of the Tri-Valley.
ValleyCare Health System:
925-847-3000
,
HealthWays
is published three times a year by the Marketing and Public Relations Department
for friends of ValleyCare Health System. Information in
HealthWays
comes from a wide range
of medical experts. If you have concerns or questions about speci c content that may affect your
health, please contact your health care provider. Models may be used in illustrations.
Copyright © 2014
CUT30625
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If you are looking for help or support in managing your diabetes, the ValleyCare
Diabetes and Nutrition Education Center can help in all phases of diabetes management.
Visit
valleycare.com
or call
925 416 6710
today.
DIABETES
Spotlight
on Eyes andTeeth
A new class begins the second
Wednesday of each month at ValleyCare Diabetes
and Nutrition Education Center,
5725W. Las Positas Blvd., Suite 220, Pleasanton.
The three-session class meets over the course of
two months for a total of 7.5 hours. Registration and
a physician referral are required. For session dates,
call
925 416 6710
.
Sign Up for Living Well
With Diabetes Class
I
magine struggling to read this sentence
because the words are blurry or you’re seeing
double. Or picture chewing your dinner and
suddenly feeling one of your teeth begin to
wiggle.
Diabetes complications like these would
probably prompt a call to your doctor or dentist.
But you don’t have to wait for a loose tooth or a
loss of vision before you act—you can take steps
right now to keep your eyes and teeth healthy.
WHAT’S AT STAKE
Uncontrolled diabetes can damage eyes and
teeth.
High blood sugar and high blood pressure
can harm tiny blood vessels in the eye and cause
problems such as glaucoma and retinopathy.
High blood sugar also aids the growth of bacteria
in the mouth, which can lead to gum disease.
The best way to prevent these kinds of
problems is to keep your blood glucose and
blood pressure under control, according to the
American Diabetes Association.
That means sticking to your diabetes
management plan, which may include making
changes to your diet and exercise habits and
taking medication.
FOCUS ON EYES
In addition, the National Institutes of Health
recommends:
Seeing an eye doctor once a year. Ask him or her
to check for signs of cataracts and glaucoma.
If you’re pregnant and have diabetes, seeing
an eye doctor during your rst trimester.
If you notice changes in your vision,
call your eye doctor.
CHEW ON THIS
To help protect your oral health:
Floss at least daily. Gently oss between teeth
with a sawing motion, scraping from bottom
to top.
Brush after every meal and snack. Use a soft
brush, and move in small, circular motions.
Be sure to get the front, back and top of every
tooth.
See your dentist twice a year, and make sure he
or she knows you have diabetes.
Take care of oral health problems right away.
woman’s risk for breast cancer increases with age. That’s why experts
recommend a mammogram every one to two years for women age 40 and up.
Mammograms save lives by helping doctors nd cancer in its earliest
stages, many times before a lump can be felt. Early detection is key
because the sooner treatment begins, the better the chances for survival.
If you’re a woman with dense breasts, you may want to consider 3D breast
ultrasound in addition to regular mammograms. Women with dense breast tissue
have ve times the risk of breast cancer. Three-dimensional ultrasound is an excellent
tool for imaging patients with dense breast tissue. It has the unique ability to outline
structures within the dense tissue. Mammograms are still the gold standard and
3D ultrasound should be used in conjunction with mammography.
Carole Murray of Livermore knows firsthand
the value of regular screening mammograms.
After having one nearly every year since the
age of 40, Murray, now 72, learned this past
spring that her screening mammogram
showed a suspicious mass.
Cancer Patient
NurseNavigator
An ultrasound and biopsy did indeed
show it was cancer. Being in good health
most of her life, Murray was kind of
in shock.“Thank goodness for Sherry
LaSalle, who just came alongside me
and was so wonderful,”says Murray. LaSalle is a
registered nurse and certified cancer patient nurse navigator for ValleyCare.
She helps cancer patients“navigate”the sometimes stressful and confusing path of cancer
diagnoses and treatment.
Breast Brachytherapy
Because it was caught early, the tumor was very small, and it was surgically removed.
Afterwards, Murray underwent breast brachytherapy. Breast brachytherapy is radiation
treatment where a tiny catheter is placed in the breast through which radiation seeds are
inserted. This formof radiation allows fine tuning of the delivery of the radiation to the area so
that healthy tissue is spared. Because the radiation is targeted, the timeframe for treatment is
also reduced from a traditional six weeks to only five days. Murray says,“It went well
and the doctors, technicians and everyone at theValleyCare Cancer Center really did
a great job in taking care of me, fromexplaining the procedure to their compassion.”
CleanBill of Health
Murray says she has been given a clean bill of health and is amazed at how
efficient, professional and caring everyone was.“I am impressed with how fast
and smooth it all went. Everyone did an amazing job and with such a caring
attitude,”she says.
NowMurray shares her experience and encourages her friends to
get their mammograms.“Some of my friends tell me they don’t get
mammograms anymore, that they’re too old,”she says.“I tell them
our bodies don’t stop growing things. Get your mammogram!”
