In the Spotlight
Be Smart: Get Screened
Stay on top of your good health with screenings and immunizations
As you get older, you're at greater risk for certain illnesses and diseases. While you can't stop aging, you can detect and prevent illnesses and diseases early on. Screenings can help find them so they can be more successfully treated.
Most screenings are based on age, sex, health, and family history. Mammograms and prostate exams are just two options you may have heard about that can screen for cancer, but there are many different recommended screenings for both women and men.
Learn about recommended screenings and immunizations in this video and talk with your health care provider about which ones are right for you.
Learn about screenings
From vaccinations to getting your blood pressure checked to a mental health evaluation for PTSD and exams for different types of cancer, getting screened can mean living a healthier life.
My HealtheVet has two screening tools available to registered users online. The depression screening and the PTSD screening are a series of simple questions you can answer to help you decide if you should discuss further screens or tests with your health care provider. Only you can see the results.
You can learn about types of cancer and the recommended screenings via the Veterans Health Library, where they have many resources available to Veterans. You will also find a rich library of information on prevention and wellness from VA's National Center for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention.
Remember: Don't forget to get your flu shot this year. Veterans enrolled in VA health care can get a free flu shot at a VA health care facility starting in mid-September. Check with your health care team in a Secure Message (sign in required) about getting your flu shot.
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Read More
Mammogram for Breast cancer (Veterans Health Library)
Pap Test for Cervical cancer (Veterans Health Library)
Colonoscopy and other tests for Colorectal cancer (Veterans Health Library)
Updated July 26, 2021