TO YOUR HEALTH BOOKS.

Byline: - Staff and Wire Reports

Unlike a previous book by NBC's chief medical correspondent Dr. Bob Arnot, his latest effort, ``The Prostate Cancer Protection Book,'' gets mostly high marks from health experts, though they caution it shouldn't be considered gospel.

Arnot's earlier book, ``The Breast Cancer Prevention Diet,'' roused a controversy, mostly because of its title, which critics felt implied that breast cancer could be prevented.

As Arnot said recently, ``The book wasn't criticized, it was attacked.''

This time, however, Dr. Harmon Eyre, chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society, says Arnot has opted for a more appropriate title by changing prevention to protection.

Though Arnot stands by his title for the breast cancer book, he says he couldn't use prevention this time because so many men already have incipient prostate cancer and it can't be prevented.

Most men already have it by the time they hit middle age, Arnot says. He cites autopsies showing that 25 percent of men in their 30s, and 40 percent of men in their 50s had signs of prostate cancer.

``Should these latent cancers waken from their dormant state and become clinical cancers, the consequences could be disastrous,'' Arnot writes. The book's message is that men need to take action because prostate cancer is a time bomb.

Eyre says while it's true that one-sixth of all men will ultimately develop or be diagnosed with prostate cancer, only 3 percent of men will die from it. Eyre warns that overstatement could lead to unnecessary testing or overly aggressive therapies.

The book cites studies and includes discussions of controversial topics like prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing and herbal remedies. The book describes dozens of food choices, reflecting Arnot's belief in the importance of nutrition to prevent illness.

Booklets

The American Institute for Cancer Research is offering free information about prostate cancer and how to prevent it in the form of a brochure, ``Diet, Nutrition and Prostate Cancer.'' The brochure includes simple dietary guidelines and information on research, screening and treatment.

To request this brochure, call the Institute toll-free at [phone], or write to AICR Publications Department, 1759 R St. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20009.

Beginning this month, more than 700,000 elderly Americans will learn that their HMO plans no longer are covered under Medicare. A new AARP publication, ``What to Do If Your Medicare Managed Care Plan Leaves,'' covers the basics in terms of what options are available and how to decide which option is best.

For a free copy of the publication, call AARP toll-free at 1-877-276-5950 or go to www.aarp.org/ and under Feature Finder select Health and Wellness.