Why is prevention so important?

I firmly believe that when you see a doctor regularly, your health improves. An annual wellness exam is all about preventing illness. Seeing your doctor once a year gives the opportunity to talk about your specific family history and helps in assessing your risk for cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, and various cancers. In that visit, you will be offered important preventative measures, like age-appropriate cancer screenings and vaccinations.

I feel fine. Why should I go to the doctor every year?
You might feel fine, but you already may have some diseases or conditions; you’re just not symptomatic yet. These can be detected early by U.S. Preventative Task Force (USPSTF) recommended screening tests.

March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month. What can I do to prevent colon cancer?
The gold standard for colon cancer screening is a colonoscopy. Starting at age 50, men and women should schedule a colonoscopy screening. If you have a family history of colon cancer, the screenings start as early as 40.

Are there other options besides a colonoscopy?
Let’s be honest, most patients don’t want a colonoscopy. While it remains the best screening tool for colon cancer, there are other options approved by the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA) such as FIT, FOBT, Cologuard, or Stool-DNA test, flexible sigmoidoscopy, or CT colonography. The AGA highly recommends getting one of the other tests for colorectal cancer screening in specific intervals if you do not want to get a colonoscopy.

Can annual exams and screenings really make a difference?
I believe 100 percent that the earlier you detect and start treatment of any condition, the better your outcome is going to be.

Gnanambal Manivel, M.D. is board-certified in Internal Medicine. She moved to Florida in 2018 to practice medicine. She firmly believes in educating her patients about a healthy lifestyle and welcomes you to her new location at 5741 Bee Ridge Road in Sarasota.

About Dr. Gnanambal Manivel

• Board Certified in Internal Medicine
• Internal Medicine Residency at Western Reserve Health Education, Trumbull Regional Medical Center, Warren, Ohio
• Focus on wellness and prevention, chronic disease management

Contact
Millennium Physician Group
5741 Bee Ridge Road, Suite 250, Sarasota, FL 34233
(941) 552-8808
millenniumphysician.com