LISA BASHORE, PhD, APRN, CPNP-PC, CPON

HEALTHY HABITS OR WHAT we call lifestyle choices including regular medical care can keep you healthy and potentially decrease the impact or even prevent you from developing late effects of cancer treatment. Adult cancers are often linked to lifestyle choices, and you have control over lifestyles choices you make that keep you healthy. The most important ones include:

• Eat a healthy diet

• Engage in physical activity (exercise)

• Maintain a healthy body weight (not too thin or overweight)

• Do not smoke or vape

• Avoid alcohol

• Attend all recommended follow-up healthcare examinations and testing

• Update childhood vaccines missed during treatment or re-immunizations needed after radiation or chemotherapy according to Centers for Disease Control guidelines (www.cdc.gov/vaccines); including Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine to avoid related cancers to HPV (www.cdc.gov/hpv).

Getting regular healthcare exams from your physician who knows your cancer history and receiving early treatment for any late-effects of your cancer is crucial to maintaining your health.

Other choices not related to cancer risk but help keep one healthy and safe are: wearing bike or motorcycle helmets, wearing seat belts, calling a cab (or other paid driver) instead of getting into a car with a drunk driver, not texting while driving, and practicing safe sex (abstain from sex or use condoms).

Some aspects of life you may have little or no control (such as the genes you inherited from your parents), but healthy life-style choices are under your control. This chapter focuses on health-protective choices such as medical follow-up, diet, and exercise and health-risk behaviors such as overexposure to sun, smoking, drinking alcohol, and exposure to sexually-transmitted illnesses.