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Tag: radiation therapy

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.

Colon Cancer Surgery Side Effects

10 January, 2010 (04:55) | Cancer | By: admin

It begins with the uninhibited expansion of epithelial cells that line the inner surface of the colon. The colon in most mammals is the final portion of the gastrointestinal tract. Its chief task is to get hold of water and other materials from solid waste products before these are eliminated from the body.

It has been established that majority of colon cancer cases begun with polyps which are hyperplastic masses. But these small balloon structures may undergo a succession of alterations into pre-tumorigenic (e.g. Tubular adenoma) and finally tumorous metastatic (e.g. Colorectal adenocarcinoma) growth.

For many years, colorectal cancer still remains as one of most regularly diagnosed cancers throughout the world with hundred of thousands of newly diagnosed cases each year. The elevated cancer incidence is often accompanied by high mortality rates. Colon cancer is among the leading cause of cancer deaths worldwide.

There are a variety of risk factors linked to the dvelopment of colorectal cancer. Age being one of them. Cancer risk rises proportionally with age. And males constitute a higher risk group than females. A further group at great risk of getting colon cancer are people with personal or family history of Hereditary genetic mutations (HNPCC: Hereditary nonpolyposis colon cancer or FAP: Familial adenomatous polyposis). People with inflammatory bowel disease have greater risks of developing colon cancer as well.

Further major risk factors included

  • obesity
  • extreme consumption of red meat
  • elevated fat diet
  • diet low in calcium, vitamin D, selenium and folate
  • inadequate uptake of vegetables and fruits,
  • inadequate exercise
  • smoking
  • aging of the immune system

Conversely, studies have found that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin and ibuprofen, estrogen-containing medications and cholesterol reducing drugs may protect against colon cancer.

These drugs are however not endorsed at this point in time as alternative prevention.

While several symptoms may indicate the presence of this cancer, many of these symptoms are not unique to colon malignancy and are in fact, quite analogous to other ordinary illnesses and diseases. These symptoms may possibly appear suddenly or may grow little by little over a period of time. Symptoms include bowel movement alterations; continuous diarrhea; constipation; total bowel blockage (with extreme pain); bloody stools; sudden or chronic abdominal cramping and pain, just to name a few.

Surgical intervention is still the most effectual treatment if the tumor have not become invasive and metastasize. This is done by eliminating the tumor along with a portion of normal colonic tissues and adjacent lymph nodes.

Other types of treatments also include chemotherapy, radiation therapy and immunotherapy. Individual or combinatorial therapies may take place depending on patient’s physical condition and stage of disease.

Types of Mesothelioma Treatment & Symptoms

22 November, 2009 (11:08) | Mesothelioma | By: admin

Mesothelioma is a serious disease that mainly affects those who have been exposed to asbestos. At the early stage, it is very difficult to identify mesothelioma disease, this disease only identified only when its symptoms appear. This can be more to whom those are not aware of its symptoms.

Mesothelioma can affect important parts of body such as organs, including the heart, abdomen and lungs. This disease can cause cancer of these parts if proper treatment is not taken on time. Malignant tumor is one of such mesothelioma disease which can obstruct body’s normal functioning. As a result, pleural mesothelioma might cause a tumor to obstruct the air passage causing difficulty breathing. Pleural mesothelioma might cause fluid to build in the lungs which not only makes it hard to breathe but can also cause significant chest pain.

If any symptom of mesothelioma is found in you then it is necessary to check up yourself to a doctor to be sure. A doctor has a number of tools to correctly diagnose mesothelioma or determine if your symptoms are due to another condition. In the diagnosis stage of mesothelioma, your doctor will start by examining the affected area with a MRI, CT-scan or even just an X-ray. If mesothelioma is found after the preliminary treatment, a medical oncologist will then perform a biopsy to make sure. A biopsy is performed in order to collect a small tissue-sample which does involve minor surgery.

There are two major factors on which mesothelioma treatmentis dependent: where the cancer is located and how far it has progressed. The types of mesothelioma treatment can, generally, be classified into the three categories of surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy.

  • Surgery for mesothelioma involves removing all or part of the affected organs along with the lining that surrounds them.
  • Radiation therapy is another common treatment for mesothelioma. The cancer is exposed to radiation either from a machine that radiates high-energy rays or from radioactive materials that are encased and inserted next to cancerous tissue in order to shrink it. This is often combined with chemotherapy. When treating mesothelioma, chemotherapy is generally administered by way of an IV. However, researchers are looking into the effectiveness of injecting directly into the affected area.
  • Chemotherapy is almost never the sole treatment for mesothelioma. Instead, it is often combined with both radiation therapy and surgery to help control the cancerous cells from multiplying and spreading. Treatment that combines chemotherapy, radiation and surgery is called tri-modality therapy and is the most effective, as well as the most invasive, care available today for those who suffer from mesothelioma.

Leukemia – Causes Symptoms and Treatment

30 October, 2009 (04:18) | Leukemia-Lymphoma-Cancer | By: admin

There are some diseases that occur without much of the fault of the sufferers. One of the most horrible diseases is Cancer and among Cancer if there is anything that is quite dangerous, it is the Leukemia. It is the Cancer of the blood or bone marrow. Its quite dangerous and difficult to cure.

There are two main types of Leukemia, the Acute and the Chronic. When the immature blood gets weight age in the body and it is increased more than the mature blood, it gets converted into Leukemia. In this type an immediate treatment is must as if the blood gets circulated in majority of the parts of body, it becomes difficult to handle the situation and that results into the blocking of bone marrow to produce healthy blood cells. So, the curing should be deadly faster. Also the lymphocytes Leukemia and myelogenous Leukemia are also the other types of this disease.

Leukemia Symptoms are difficult to find outer as it is totally internal process. If in any of the reports it is found to have the damage of bone marrow or even the lack of platelets can be the reason of this cancer. Other symptom can be the suppressing or dysfunctional behavior of White Cells in Blood without any reason. Leukemia prevents the immune system so if there are complains of frequent infections or even the tonsils, sores in mouth are felt, diarrhea, pneumonia or even the opportunistic infections are felt than there are bright chances of converting the diseases into Leukemia.

  • Causes of Leukemia

There are no visible reasons of Leukemia as such but still artificial ionizing radiation, different type of viruses that cause the blood platelets balancing problem and also the smoking or tobacco habit is the reason of this disease to occur to certain extent.

There are some of the people in whom the maternal-fatal transmission has become the reason for the Leukemia occurrence. Also some of the people are found to have the genetic predisposition as the reason of this disease to happen.

  • Treatment of Leukemia

The treatment is difficult yet not impossible as some of the medication treatment are required to get cured and beside this there are also the radiation therapy and bone marrow transplantation are the treatments of this diseases. But still nothing gives guarantee as the diagnosis has no outer symptoms and the stage in which the diseases are approached is also important.

So, have the best treatment and better curing of the diseases that is quite difficult to handle, Leukemia.