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Asbestos

6 March, 2010 (22:54) | Cancer, Cancer Treatment | By: admin

There is a worldwide campaign against the use of asbestos, and laws have been laid banning its production. Asbestos was named after the Greek word for indestructible. A great reason why asbestos is such a deadly mineral is its indestructibility. Asbestos was used as a cheap and stable ingredient of construction that was resilient to corrosion, heat, fire etc. Chrysotile is the most popular form although Crocidolite and Amosite are used too.

Asbestos is a stable mineral which was used for lot many purposes before its potential risk was discovered. It is used along with concrete for ceilings, as a thermal insulation layer, and also as fire retardant, because of the nature of its particles which are not easily affected by heat, or pressure.

Asbestos is dangerous because the particles of asbestos could live on and on for a long time. Through demotion of buildings, renovation etc, asbestos fibers can be released in air and might find their way into water resources too. These particles are extremely small, sometimes 700 times smaller than human air, which makes them extremely difficult targets for cleansing. This particulate matter finds its way into the body where it causes numerous health issues. Most of the asbestos particles can enter the human system through inhalation or ingestion.

Asbestos has been deemed as a category 1 carcinogen, and most people with prolonged exposure to this deadly mineral have been seen to develop cancer in the long term. The asbestos particles are very durable, and do not evaporate in heat or dissolve in liquids. Hence these particles cannot be easily destroyed and hence remain in the human system once they enter it causing irreparable damage.

People exposed to asbestos debris have a high chance of developing lung cancer, and the survival rate is rather low over a one to five year period. Asbestos fibers that are breathed also injure the delicate lining of the lungs and other internal organs. The scar tissues due to abrasion caused by asbestos fibers also known as pleural plaques result in asbestosis. Mesothelioma is another cancer caused by breathing in air with high asbestos content. This develops from Mesothelium which is a protective lining of most of the internal organs.

Even family members, who wash clothes of the person exposed to asbestos, are susceptible to this form of cancer. This cancer could develop, in some cases, years after a worker has stopped working at construction sites. This fact is what makes asbestos exposure all the more dangerous.

The law prohibits hiring workers for asbestos removal or renovation, without proper certification or approval. There are special contractors, who specialize in dealing with asbestos and only they should be hired for the task. Removing asbestos while destroying older buildings is hence done very careful after lot of wetting. This ensures that the asbestos powder is not dry and released in the air as small particles. Instead, the wet asbestos and concrete particles could be collected in polythenes that can be later sealed and disposed off. The disposal of asbestos too needs special permissions.

Tips to Prevent Breast Cancer

3 March, 2010 (22:21) | Breast Cancer | By: admin

Breast cancer is one of the leading killer cancers for women. Normally people know that it is only women that are susceptible to this. But did you know that there are many cases where men have also gotten this type of cancer? As this is very common form of cancer so each person needs to educate themselves about prevention of breast cancer. There is no definite way to prevent breast cancer but you can do much to reduce your risk of developing it significantly. Especially women should concentrate on keeping breast health through healthy diet and exercise to prevent breast cancer.
Following are the few tips to lower your chances of breast cancer:

  1. Daily physical activity is very essential. It is not only important for overall health; it also can reduce the risk of breast cancer.
  2. You should maintain your body weight. The main reason to significantly increase breast cancer risk is basically weight gain in midlife.
  3. Women who gain weight in mature age are at a higher risk for than women who have been overweight since babyhood.
  4. Women who breastfeed their offspring may have a somewhat lower risk of developing breast cancer.
  5. It is essential to regular intake of natural vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. You should take eat as many fruits and vegetables as possible. It helps to reduce the risk of breast cancer.

Usually, a woman who had cancer in one breast has more chances of developing cancer in the opposite breast. It is preferable to follow a healthy living style to be secure from the return of breast cancer.
These are some tips if you follow these than these will definitely increase your chances to prevent breast cancer.

Prostate Cancer Diagnosis

2 March, 2010 (15:09) | Prostate cancer | By: Health news

So you have just being diagnosed with prostate cancer and you think it’s the end for you? If yes, you are absolutely wrong. It might have been the end for you several years ago, but not today when so many people are now surviving the condition all over the world. This article explains why prostate cancer is no longer a killer disease and reveals what you can do to ensure you are among the many survivors of the condition.

You see, the major reason lots of people died from this condition in the past had to do with the fact that medical science hadn’t advanced as far as it has today. Apart from the treatment, even diagnosis was not as easy in the past as it is nowadays. Today, with the many highly effective ways of testing for and treating prostate cancer, there are now lots more survivors than was the case several years ago.

Instead of thinking your world has come to an end because of this condition, you should be positive and committed to finding a solution. Talk to your doctors for the best treatment option available to you. Don’t rush into going for surgery until and unless that’s the best and most effective solution available to you. Also, it’s important for you to do your own research into the different treatments available so that you can have a firmer understanding of what is best for you or not.

In all, you should be strong willed and determined to survive the condition, despite your diagnosis. I have heard that some people who have died from the condition died not just because of the cancerous tumors but because they had lost all hopes deep within them. You see, I believe strongly that no matter how powerful any drug or treatment is for cancer, if you don’t have the confidence and commitment to survive, it won’t help.

As you have seen from this article, diagnosis of prostate cancer or even any other cancer for that matter doesn’t translate to an automatic death sentence. Lots of people have survived and continue to survive cancer. If such people can survive, you can as well.

Symptoms and Prognosis of Pancreatic Cancer

22 February, 2010 (12:21) | Cancer, Cancer Treatment | By: admin

The pancreas does some very important functions for the body. This organ produces enzymes that helps the small intestines with digestion and absorbing nutrients. The pancreas also has the important function of producing insulin. This is why you really need to make sure if you have any family history or any of the risk factors of pancreatic cancer to have it regularly checked. Most of the time with pancreatic cancer it will start out with absolutely no symptoms at all. This means that by the time anyone really notices that they have any pancreatic cancer symptoms, the cancer may be in more advanced stages.

The symptoms, after the cancer has become more advanced, may cause one to believe that it is just a simple stomach virus or other digestive problem. You may develop pain near the stomach. Some people may experience extreme tiredness and being weak which will also possibly make you think it is just some kind of virus. Some may experience insomnia which is a common problem for people even if they do not have pancreatic cancer. Some people will experience weight loss. While others may have jaundice. Jaundice is when you have a yellowing color of your skin and the whites of your eyes will turn a yellowish color. Unfortunately, these symptoms may not even be noticed until you are in some of the more advanced stages of the disease. Anyone who has been experiencing any kind of discomfort in their abdomen or upper back or have had any of these symptoms need to be checked out by a doctor to be properly diagnosed. The earlier pancreatic cancer is diagnosed the greater chance you have at surviving it. Often even if you do have pancreatic cancer treated, there is always that chance that you may have a recurrence which may mean that if will be more severe.

The prognosis of pancreatic cancer is often very unfavorable no matter if it is caught in the early stages or in the more advanced stages. This is due to how rapidly it will spread to different parts of the body before you will even notice a problem. This is what makes pancreatic cancer so life threatening to people. If the cancer has spread, then many people do not make it for more than one year after diagnosis. If it has not spread to other organs then there is a higher rate of survival if it is treated promptly.

Deal With Stress When You Have Cancer

27 January, 2010 (04:38) | Cancer | By: admin

It is the diagnosis that nobody wants to hear. Despite all the advancements the field of medical science has made especially in the treatment and cure of cancer, cancer as a diagnosis is dreaded by all people alike. Cancers are of many kinds and they affect many parts of the body. Some cancers are found predominantly in women while others like prostate cancer are exclusively found in men.

Cancer can be extremely stress inducing. Stress is a state of physical or mental unrest. Stress is the condition when you find things not going your way and worrying and anxiously pondering over the situation again and again adds to the tension. Any illness can lead to stress and also stress can lead to many other illnesses like diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, depression and even cancer.

Cancer has become very much treatable today and there are many individuals who have survived the once fatal disease. Having cancer can cause people to become depressed due to the thoughts of death and mortality which become very active in their subconscious.

Depression if not checked can lead to further stress. Another stressful thought caused by cancer is the thought of the mounting medical bills. Chemotherapy and radiation sessions are not inexpensive. Add this to the hospital, medication and doctor’s costs and you have a huge medical bill in front of you. Your medical insurance many not cover all of these expenses and it could all lead to a drain on your finances. Worrying about depleting finances can lead to stress and other negative conditions.

It is important to keep a check on stress because untreated stress can lead to many other health complications. There are ways to tackle the stress which an illness brings on. It is important to stay in a positive frame of mind and in a cheerful demeanor. It is definitely not easy when one is undergoing treatment for a possibly fatal disease but at least that effort should be made. The treatment of cancer or any other life threatening condition becomes faster and quicker when a positive attitude is maintained.

In order to stay in a positive mind frame one can join a cancer group where patients with cancer or cancer survivors meet and speak about their battles or victories. These real life stories can be inspiring and can give one the determination and courage to go through the treatment. Another way to beat the stress is to read awe inspiring books about people who have beat the odds and come out victorious.

Taking the effort to make those little lifestyle changes while undergoing treatment for cancer can make the recovery faster and smoother. You can change your diet and increase the intake of fresh fruits, leafy green vegetables, and mineral and protein rich foods and anti oxidants rich foods like green tea for instance. The body becomes strongest and gains immunity which in turn is good for the treatment of cancer.

No matter what kind of cancer one has acquired, treatment and cure are not impossible if every sincere effort is taken along with constant prayers to God.

Cutaneous Lymphoma

22 January, 2010 (20:51) | Leukemia-Lymphoma-Cancer | By: admin

Cutaneous lymphoma is a type of Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma involving the lymphocytes within the skin, specifically T-cells and B-Cells. This is a rare type of Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma where the tumor growths are seen mostly as numerous lumps beneath the skin’s surface and not in just a lymph node.

The lumps formed beneath the skin cutaneous lymphoma are due to a collection of the malignant cells in the skin. In an attempt to purge the system of the mutated cells, the body pushes the clustered malignant cells towards the surface of the skin. The most common type of cutaneous lymphoma is the cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. The disease manifests itself in several stages:

  • Pre-tumor stage – the skin is presented with raised, red patches that appear on the breasts or buttocks and somewhat mimics the appearance of other skin conditions such as eczema or psoriasis. ?>
  • Plaque stage – the patches are now irregularly shaped and can appear anywhere in the body. Hair loss in the affected skin area is also noted, and can be permanent if the condition is not treated.
  • Tumor stage – the incidence of people progressing to this stag is quite small. The plaques can now form lumps and even ulcerate. Lymph nodes are also affected. The liver, lungs, and spleen is also at risk of being affected by the cutaneous lymphoma, but the cases are quite rare.
  • Sezary syndrome – this is when the malignancy has spread and covers a large skin area. The malignant cells have also metastasized in the blood stream. Some patients have no plaques or tumors, but the entire integumentary system may be swollen, red and sore (l’homme rouge). The skin can also manifest desquamation or peeling off of skin.

Cutaneous lymphoma of T-cell origin is treated through a specific or a combination of treatment modalities that can range from topical or local to systemic. PUVA treatment is a combination of psoralen and UVA. After taking psoralen, the patient enters an enclosed room where rays of UVA is applied on the skin. However, extra care must be given for it is known that exposure to UV rays can predispose a person to skin cancer. Radiation therapy and chemotherapy is also done to help cure cutaneous lymphoma.

Cutaneous lymphoma can be hard to deal with for it can cause some severe changes in your appearance. A support group can help you combat the disease both in its physical and psychological aspects. Talk to your friends and family during hard times, and ask your doctor to refer you to a cancer support group to help you understand and cope with the effects of cutaneous lymphoma.

Cancers Psychological Impact

21 January, 2010 (04:11) | Cancer, Cancer Treatment | By: admin

Cancer is, as we know, a life changing experience for the cancer sufferer, their friends and families. Cancer and cancer treatment both have instead drastic psychological and physiologic effectuates on the diseased person. Knowing of these effectuates earlier treatment may give you a head start and a adventure to mentally prepare yourself, just a little, for what is to come. This info may also helper you weigh up the odds, on whether you prefer to go through with treatment or not.

Physiological Effects of Cancer

  • Sexual Dysfunction: a few cancer patients and sub sisters may know a level of sexual dysfunction. This can occur to both male person and female person and there are ways around them.
  • Chronic Pain: The cancer patient may experience consistent, chronic pain later prolonged cancer treatment.
  • Infertility: Both male and female patients and survivors may experience infertility.
  • Constant Fatigue: Patients and sub sisters may feel like they’re constantly tired and don’t have the motivation or energy to total easy, daily tasks.
  • Numbness: Numbness is caused by a condition called Neuropathy. The numbness is common in the patient’s hands and feet.
  • Osteoporosis: Is a condition which causes your bones to get really fragile and weak.
  • Incontinence: Uncontrollable urination is effectuating a few patients may know.
  • Multiple Cancers: it’s possible to get a 2nd cancer, other than the one diagnosed for. It’s better to find this out through with your doctor, as soon as possible.
  • Hair Loss: Hair loss is basic during the treatment of cancer. Whenever this is a problem, consult with your doctor on ways to deal with the hair loss.
  • Ostomies: An Ostomy is a surgical opening, with a pipe linking to a bag on the outside of the body.


Psychological Effects of Cancer

  • Stress: A high ranking of stress is often attributed to cancer and can be common fallout.
  • Low Confidence: Due to the physical and mental changes cancer and cancer treatment can have on the patients it can often result in down self esteem and self confidence.
  • Depression: Depression is generally found in cancer patients and sub sisters. This could be attributed to the physical effects of the cancer treatment.


Whenever you see these side effects in either yourself or a dearest, later operation, please alert your doctor so that they can give advice on what steps to take next. If you’ve found out that you’ve cancer, or someone you know is named with cancer, try to help them understand fully what they’re up against before they’ve start the treatment. Get your doctor to explain everything in particular, the pros and cons and everything middle so that you can be mentally prepared for what is ahead.

Fear getting cancer? You are not lonely. The fear of cancer is one of the biggest long run anxieties plaguing modern man. A United Kingdom nonprofit survey has newly demonstrated that more than 15% of United Kingdom citizens consider the fear of cancer to be their biggest fear. In several persons, this fear can result in such that debilitating panic that it interferes with normal life. Has not cancer caused sufficiency pain already, to those who have it and their grieving friends and relatives? It’s a real tragedy that, in addition to the devastating effects of the disease itself, cancer must cause this second order anxiety among people who do not even have it.

Cancer Anxiety Can Hurt Your Life

several of those who live their lives dreading this fearful disease are embarrassed about their fearful state. These victims of phobia headache that their anxieties are not legitimate even though they cause them important pain, After all, what’s to be afraid of? Does not their imaginary suffering do ill service to real victims of the disease?

However, cancer phobia is a critical problem in one’s own right. This sort of terror can seriously interfere with a sufferer’s medical health. Those who fear cancer routinely reject to see medical health care provider or clinics, out of irrational dread of catching the disease or because they dread the prospect of being diagnosed.

Prevent Prostate Cancer

19 January, 2010 (18:38) | Prostate cancer | By: admin

Prostate cancer is a disease in which malignant cells form in the tissues of the prostate. This cancer type only affects men and it is the most common cancer in older men. Although it is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in men but most men diagnosed with prostate cancer do not die of it. Cancer is mostly a very slow growing disease and usually people are unable to feel its presence in early ages. This disease is curable if detected early before it has spread to other organs of the body. As the age grows, risk of prostate increases.

Mostly men having age of 65 or more suffer from this disease. But in Asian countries its greater ratio is in men having age of 50 or more. This cancer type can be very serious and life threatening if it is large, advanced, or appears at a younger age.

There are usually no specific symptoms of prostate cancer during the early stages. Most men at this stage do not observe any symptom at all. When symptoms do exist, they may be excessive urination, hard to start urinating, painful urinating, blood in the urine, leg weakness, etc. No one knows exactly the reason but cancer is very common in African-American and Latino men especially those who eat a high-fat diet. Native American and Asian men have the lowest chances of getting prostate cancer.

There is no sure way to avoid this cancer type. However, regular exercise and having a low-fat diet rich in fruits, vegetables and fish can reduce the risk of this disease. The digital rectal exams and the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test may be used to screen men who do not have any symptoms of prostate cancer. However, many experts are uncertain whether routine digital rectal exams or PSA tests are appropriate for all men.

The treatment of prostate cancer is different for each individual. You should work together with your health care professional to ensure the long-term benefit from treatment. You should have knowledge about all possible treatment so that you and your doctor can pick the option best suited to you. Your age, family history, ethnic background, weight, overall health and other medical situation, and the characteristics of the disease are all important factors to consider in making treatment decisions.

  • When to Call a Health Professional
  1. If you have symptoms like excessive urination, hard to start urinating, painful urinating, blood in the urine, leg weakness, etc.
  2. If you feel severe bone pain.