 Get Check-Ups During National Women's Health Week May 08, 2003
Murkowski, in advance of National Women's Health Week (May 11-18) and National Women's Check-Up Day (Monday, May 12), urged Alaskans to take steps to get medical examinations. "One of the most important steps women can take for better health is simply to get regular check-ups and ask their health care providers about screenings for everything from heart disease and diabetes to cancer and other diseases. "Many of the leading causes of death for women, such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes, can be successfully prevented or treated, if caught early. It is important that women have routine health exams and to take advantage of all the health services that are available in Alaska," said Murkowski, who noted that Alaska Natives, especially, are statistically more susceptible to diabetes and breast cancer than other American women. National Women's Health Week, coordinated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, kicks off this Sunday, Mother's Day. The Department urges women to get medical check-ups that include blood tests to check for everything from diabetes and high cholesterol - an indicator of potential heart disease - to pap tests and mammograms to help detect breast and cervical cancer; and a host of other tests to detect everything from hearing loss to sexually transmitted diseases. "Given the cost and logistic problems for health care in rural Alaska, there is no place where early detection of disease is more important than in Alaska. National Women's Health Week is just a convenient reminder of how important health screenings," said Murkowski. She noted that a great deal
of information on women's health issues is available by calling
toll free 1-800-994-woman (9662), or 1-888/220-5446 or on the
National Women's Health Information
Center website.
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