Its well known that because most people with schizophrenia also smoke and are overweight - they are at increased risk of cancer.
This new study looks at ways to increase cancer screening so that people can catch the cancer earlier and thus prevent premature death.
The warning here is be sure to ask your doctor for added cancer screening if you are a smoker or overweight.
BACKGROUND:
Adults with severe mental illness (i.e. schizophrenia or other related psychotic disorders and bipolar disorder) can be at greater risk of cancer than those without severe mental illness (SMI). Early detection of cancer through screening is effective in improving patient outcomes including death. However, people with SMI are less likely than others to take up available cancer screening.
CONCLUSIONS:
A comprehensive search showed that currently there is no RCT evidence for any method of encouraging cancer screening uptake in people with SMI. No specific approach can therefore be recommended. High-quality, large-scale RCTs are needed urgently to help address the disparity between people with SMI and others in cancer screening uptake.
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