May is Skin Cancer Awareness Month, a good time to shine light on the disease and the importance of prevention and screening. With more than 5 million cases diagnosed each year, skin cancer is the most prevalent cancer in the U.S. It’s also one of the most preventable.

May is Arthritis Awareness Month, a time to draw attention to the painful joint condition that affects close to 60 million in the U.S. Jesse Reisner, DO, a rheumatologist at South Shore Medical Center, answers questions about arthritis causes, symptoms and treatments.

September is Gynecologic Cancer Awareness Month, a good time to shine a light on the disease and the importance of routine screening and early detection. Katelyn McGovern Dorney, MD, answers questions about gynecologic cancer screening and prevention.

January is Cervical Cancer Awareness Month, a good time to shine a light on the disease and the importance of regular screening in its prevention. While once the most common cause of cancer death for women, cervical cancer death rates have decreased significantly with greater use of the Pap test, which can find changes in the cervix before cancer develops or detect it early when it is easier to treat.

Also known as alpha-gal allergy or red meat allergy, alpha-gal syndrome is on the rise in Massachusetts, particularly on Cape Cod, Nantucket, and Martha’s Vineyard, where lone star ticks have expanded and become established.

While there has been a decline in colorectal cancer death rates in older adults for several decades, in people under age 50, colorectal cancer death rates have been on the rise since the mid-2000s, increasing by 2.4% annually. Mandeep Saund, MD, discusses risk factors, symptoms, treatments and the importance of screening in the prevention and early detection of colorectal cancer.