While men and women undergo many similar medical exams during a full body checkup, some exams are exclusively for men and others just for women. Because of that, men and women each have their health screening packages. But what is the difference between the two, and how important are they? Here are the differences in health screening for men and women.
Health Screen Exams for Men
Prostate cancer screening.
Doctors perform a prostate-specific antigen test or PSA if a man needs prostate cancer screening during his health screening for men. PSA is a substance made by the prostate, and higher levels of this substance often indicate the presence of prostate cancer.
Testicular exam
While many doctors recommend doing testicular cancer tests at home, they still need to test a patient again during a health screening for men. During this test, doctors check the testicles for lumps or masses that might result in testicular cancer.
Health Screen Exams for Women
Pap smear.
The pap smear is a test to look for cervical cancer in women. A doctor can combine the pap smear with another test to detect HPV or human papillomavirus. To complete the test, a doctor collects cells from a woman’s cervix at the top of her vagina. The doctors then analyse these cells to check if they’re cancerous. Since a woman only needs a pap smear once every few years, they are often in women health screening packages.
Mammogram.
A well-known medical exam for women, the mammogram takes an x-ray image of the breasts. It’s efficient for detecting breast cancers early and even capturing cancers that could have manifested into a tumour years later. Note that mammogram tests use a small dose of radiation to capture the image, so it may not be for everyone.
Breast exam.
A doctor conducts a breast exam through ultrasound, using ultrasound imaging to capture images of the woman’s breast. Breast exams are helpful when a mammogram has caught something unusual, so doctors often order them together during women health screening tests for a clearer picture of the breasts’ health. The difference is that while mammograms use radiation, breast exams don’t, so they’re usually much safer.
All tests exclusive to women or men during a health screening exist to check for complications within their genitals. Therefore, you should avoid missing these tests during your health screening, as they can catch life-threatening diseases like cancer.
Do you need a full body checkup? Sunway Medical Centre has health screening packages for both men and women, from the essentials to a complete health overview. Visit their website to book a health screening today.
