Preventive healthcare is an approach to medical care that focuses on preventing diseases before they occur and detecting diseases early, as opposed to treating diseases after symptoms have developed. Preventive healthcare is particularly important for those at risk of silent conditions - in which the disease has reached an advanced state before the development of any symptoms - to allow intervention while the disease is still in its early and more treatable stages.
This article will explain what preventive healthcare is and how the different levels of preventive healthcare (primary to tertiary) achieve their goals of improving individual health and well-being. We will also explore why preventive healthcare is so important and how features of preventive healthcare, such as routine check-ups and health risk assessments, can save both lives and money by minimizing the need for intensive treatments and hospitalizations.
Preventive healthcare plans are important in maintaining long-term health and quality of life through avoiding the development of diseases, through early detection (and therefore intervention when issues are most treatable), and through the promotion of general health.
Preventive healthcare is a proactive approach to health that is designed to put in measures to prevent diseases before they occur and to detect diseases early - when at their most treatable. These measures to maintain optimal health can include:
The primary goals of preventive healthcare are to reduce the risk of disease, to identify health problems before symptoms develop or early in their development, and to manage existing medical conditions to control disease progression and prevent complications. Early diagnosis allows for early intervention, and early intervention is key to preventing a disease from progressing to the point where it is more difficult to treat successfully. Early intervention is also important for improved overall quality of life as symptoms are prevented from progressing to the point of serious impact.
There are three main levels of preventive healthcare:
Primary
Secondary
Tertiary
When cancer is diagnosed at the earliest stages of its progression, treatments are more likely to be successful, and survival rates are significantly improved. The WHO estimates that 30-50 percent of all cancer cases could be prevented through early detection and intervention. For example, if breast cancer is diagnosed early at stage 1, the 5-year survival rate is 97.9 percent. However, if diagnosed late at stage 4, the survival rate is only 26.2 percent.
Similar trends in survival are seen in many other cancers, including lung cancer, where a stage 1 diagnosis results in 57 percent of people surviving for 5 years or more, but a stage 4 diagnosis causes this to decrease to only 3 percent. Catching specific cancers early involves screening methods such as mammograms, pap smears, and colonoscopies.
Heart disease (including stroke) is the leading cause of death in the US. Fortunately, preventive screenings exist for monitoring heart health, including screening for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes. Early detection of risk factors such as these allows for early interventions, such as lifestyle changes and medication, to prevent their development into heart disease and to decrease the risk of a severe outcome.
Advanced imaging technologies, such as MRI, PET, and CT scans, are critical for the early diagnosis of health issues - potentially even before the development of symptoms. These technologies provide detailed images of internal body structures, allowing irregularities to be identified and diagnosed.
Companies such as Ezra offer full-body scans that can screen for irregularities early and provide further information for preventive care. Ezra provides full-body MRI scans that screen for cancer and other abnormalities in up to 13 organs, allowing for early diagnosis and, therefore, improved treatment success.
Silent conditions are so-called because they may not have any symptoms or their symptoms may not be apparent until the disease is advanced. Regular screenings offer the opportunity to identify these silent conditions before they result in serious health issues. Examples of such silent conditions include hypertension, diabetes, and some cancers such as pancreatic cancer. Early diagnosis of these silent conditions through regular check-ups can result in better disease outcomes.
Personalized preventive care involves tailoring disease prevention approaches to an individual’s specific risks and characteristics. Healthcare providers will work with individuals to determine risk factors, including age, family history, lifestyle, medical history, and genetic predispositions based on the individual’s genetic profile.
A personalized preventive care plan can then be put in place - this may include recommended screenings and interventions such as lifestyle modifications. This type of care improves risk prediction, leads to earlier detection, and allows for early intervention to increase the likelihood of successful treatments.
In addition to improving disease prognosis, preventive healthcare can also reduce total healthcare costs. The Institute of Medicine estimates that the US spends an extra $55 billion annually due to missed disease prevention opportunities. As discussed above, preventive healthcare provides opportunities for early diagnosis and intervention. However, later diagnosis can result in more expensive treatments and an increased need for hospitalization.
For example, the use of heart disease screenings (such as for hypertension) can identify individuals who would benefit from lifestyle alterations and medication. Early interventions based on these screenings may prevent the development of the disease into a life-threatening cardiovascular event, such as a stroke or heart attack, which would require hospitalizations and potentially major operations. The cost per hospitalization of a sudden cardiac arrest in the US was estimated at $24,500 in 2018, even before any secondary complications or follow-up treatments.
Preventive healthcare is essential for long-term health maintenance and has the potential to save lives through the early detection (and therefore early treatment) of serious diseases such as cancers, heart disease, and stroke. Regular screenings and check-ups - including those using advanced imaging techniques such as the MRI scans carried out by Ezra - enable individuals to take proactive steps to decrease their chances of developing serious diseases or further disease complications.
Individuals should aim to personalize their preventive healthcare by keeping informed on recommended screenings based on their age and risk factors. Putting a preventive healthcare plan into action will help to improve your health outcomes and long-term quality of life.
If you want to be proactive about your health and start preventive healthcare for yourself, why not book an Ezra full-body MRI? Our annual scan catches potential cancer earlier, leveraging AI through the screening process to make it more efficient, affordable, and faster.
