Life After Multiple Sclerosis ~ An MS Patient Goes Public!

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MS (Multiple Sclerosis) is a dread disease diagnosis decree whereby victims are given a SLOW DEATH sentence. The jury, made up of medical doctors or a panel of specialists, examines the body of evidence. It’s your body, with its tingling hands, impaired mobility, pain, and abnormal responses to their expensive tests. Once they hand down the verdict, you are told “There is no escape.” Just as there is no known cause, millions of once healthy men and women are expected to accept the fact that there is no known cure. To me, it was the equivalent of having a somber judge say, “May God have mercy on your soul!”

MS,Multiple Sclerosis,dread disease,body of evidence,tingling hands,impaired mobility,pain,abnormal responses,expensive tests,Why FSBO,FSBO,For Sale By Owners,Get rid of stress,stop working,In denial

About the author, MS, and Why FSBO (in his own words):

I retired from real estate in SW Washington, but only when I could no longer walk. Over three years previous, the doctors had said I needed to “Get rid of stress and stop working.” In denial, I was slow to accept Multiple Sclerosis. Who, after all, would embrace a diagnosis of the dread disease of no known cause, and for which there was no cure? I continued to operate my own real estate company, increasing the number of experienced agents who required less hands-on supervision.

Putting renters in my house, I moved closer to my office, using a handicapped scooter to get back and forth on those days when I didn’t have appointments set up to ‘List’ or ‘Show’ homes. I refused to give up driving because one leg still worked, most of the time.

In hidden panic, I began to make more hasty decisions. On a week that required my personal intervention on behalf of two of my agent’s real estate transactions, I decided to sell my company. For a coffee cup, I traded my principle share of the real estate corporation to my new partner (another hasty decision), just to get out. I had no problem obtaining an Associate Broker position with one of the major corporations.

When it became apparent, even to me, that I could no longer provide the level of service I expected my clients to have, I took the Social Security Disability option. Gritting my teeth, while the mandatory waiting period ticked away, I tried to decide what to do with the remaining years of my life. Although I had once owned art stores, even taught oil painting, always the optimist, even I could not paint a portrait of future prosperity. I think they had a special on despair at the time, and I considered trading in my depression on it. At 53 years of age, with a pre-teen daughter yet to raise, and an ex-wife who couldn’t work, life looked pretty bleak.

A good friend suggested that I write a book. As I had published two poetry books twenty-five years before, I considered the possibility. In an attempt to overcome personal depression, I decided to write about making better choices. I chose a novel format because it allowed the freedom to develop hypothetical scenarios, involving fictional characters, while forcing awareness of real dangers. I wanted to make a compelling case for right choices, not just in marketing ones home, but in all aspects of life.

I’ve made a lot of mistakes. Most of us do. We live in troubled, unpredictable times. People must contend with changing economic issues, employment disruptions, family problems, health upsets, crime, and consequences. Through awareness, we can perhaps gain clarity when, standing flat-footed over home plate, the curve ball comes while we were expecting a fast pitch.

For Sale By Owners: FSBO www.FSBONovel.com is a novel about people. Not perfect people. It begs the question, “What would For Sale By Owners do if they knew they were really buying trouble?” As former real estate broker, I am qualified to shed some light on this often un-addressed area of concern. Most agents are reluctant to tell people just how dangerous it is to open their doors to strangers.

Understandably, people who must sell homes do not want to pay brokerage fees, if they can avoid it. It is, absolutely their right to sell their homes themselves. But all too often, the man says, “We can sell it ourselves, Honey,” pops a FOR SALE BY OWNER sign in the yard, and goes off to his work. His wife then places an ad in the local newspaper, answers the phone, and sets appointments for the supposedly interested buyers to come see their home for sale. The danger is minimized.

I’ve had client wives tell me they had prayed that no one would call. Then, peeking out the curtains, they had decided not to answer the door. My father once told me, “Son, all crooks have honest faces.” What dad meant is that you can’t tell, by looking at someone, what their real intentions are.

If an effort to be professional, most agents do not wish to alarm or alienate home sellers who might list with them, later. I have no such vested interest.

Even real estate agents recognize they are placing themselves at risk when showing houses. Every year, many are abducted, robbed, murdered, and raped in this country. The National Association Of Realtors constantly warns agents to vigilant, careful whom they work with. Many Realtors?will no longer do “Open Houses” because it is simply too dangerous. The commission reward of marketing a home this manner, to them, is not in proportion to the risk. Yes, I am passionate about the problem. My book doesn’t mince words. The serial rapist adds an eerie element, gives a fractured face to one possible perpetrator.

The diverse cast of characters, each with their own perspective, is largely unaware that they even have problems. Each is imperfect. All are preoccupied with their own survival. Maybe, through increased awareness, there is hope for us all?

Most Common Types of Cancer Found in Men

Cancer affects men and women, but there are some cancers which affect men more than women. Also, many times these cancers are more deadly in men than they are in women. Men can lower their risk of getting these varying types of cancer by avoiding smoking and receiving screening tests at an earlier age.

Here are ten cancers which commonly affect men.

1. Prostate cancer – This is the most common cancer diagnosed in men. Prostate cancer is found more commonly in African-American men than any other racial or ethnic group. It is unknown why it affects African-American men more. It is recommended that you talk to your doctor about screening options for prostate cancer, though, generally at around the age of 50.

2. Lung cancer – This is the number one cancer that kills men. Again, more African-American men are affected by lung cancer than any other racial or ethnic group. A large majority of instances of lung cancer arise from smoking. The best way to prevent lung cancer is to never start smoking at all, but to quit immediately if you do smoke.

3. Colorectal cancer – This is the third most common cancer found in men. It affects all ethnic groups and men and women about the same. It is found most often in people age fifty and older. Screening for colorectal cancer is of utmost importance in finding and treating this cancer and saving men and women.

4. Bladder cancer – This is much more common in men than in women, three times more likely in fact. Caucasian men have a higher chance of getting bladder cancer than any other ethnic or racial group. It generally affects men over the age of sixty. The older you are, the greater your chances of getting bladder cancer.

5. Skin cancer – This is more prevalent in men past the age of forty in the United States. However, before the age of forty it’s found more in women.

6. Non-Hodgkin lymphoma – This is a cancer which attacks the lymph nodes. It is more common in men than in women, especially white men. It mostly affects adults with a compromised immune system like from HIV. There are forms which can affect children as well. Certain types of Non-Hodgkin lymphoma can be found in women more than men for an unknown reason.

7. Kidney cancer – Men are twice as likely as women to get kidney cancer. However, it is still amongst the top ten cancers women get as well. This is a cancer that generally is not seen by men or women until later in life, after age 64 and usually not before age 45.

8. Throat or mouth cancer – Cancers of the mouth are twice as common in men as they are in women. This can be caused from smoking and even from oral sex.

9. Leukemia – This is only slightly more prevalent in men than it is in women. It also affects Caucasians more than any other race. It’s a cancer of the blood which affects older people more often than it does younger people.

10. Pancreatic cancer – Another cancer that affects only slightly more men more than it does women. This cancer has been slowly increasing over the last ten years or so. It’s also more common in African-Americans than Caucasians.

So if you’re a man, these are the cancers you have to most worry about. Many of them can be prevented with simply lifestyle changes like not smoking and eating a healthy diet. Screenings go a long way to saving your life when diagnosed with any of these cancers.

Ovarian Cancer & Hysterectomies – Becoming Informed About Your Options

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A hysterectomy is not often a procedure that needs to be performed urgently, except in the case of cancer. Therefore, a woman considering the procedure should take time to investigate all her options, including other possible treatments. There are now new treatments for conditions that previously would have required a hysterectomy. Women advised to have a hysterectomy for a non-cancerous condition before being offered more conservative treatments may find it beneficial to seek a second opinion.

breast,cancer,hormones,women,health,medical,hrt,ovarian,estrogen

A hysterectomy is not often a procedure that needs to be performed urgently, except in the case of cancer. Therefore, a woman considering the procedure should take time to investigate all her options, including other possible treatments. There are now new treatments for conditions that previously would have required a hysterectomy. Women advised to have a hysterectomy for a non-cancerous condition before being offered more conservative treatments may find it beneficial to seek a second opinion.

Deciding whether to have a hysterectomy can be a difficult and emotional process. By becoming informed about the procedure, women can confidently discuss available options, concerns and wishes with their doctor, and make a decision that is right for them.

If you, too, have been questioning the necessity of a surgery for fibroids, prolapse, incontinence or any “cele” repairs, you will be reassured to know you have every right in doing so. The decision to undergo surgery of any kind is often difficult, so it is often useful to explore other alternatives before moving forward. Women, especially around the time of menopause, are too often advised to have major gynecological surgery for minor conditions that can be significantly improved with natural alternatives

Every 10 minutes, 12 hysterectomies are performed in the United States. That is over 600,000 per year, of which only 10% are due to cancer. This surgery most often does not correct the diagnosed problem and instead results in new afflictions. And, argues Dr. Stanley West, author of The Hysterectomy Hoax, nine out of ten hysterectomies are unnecessary.

We need to ask ?How have these surgeries impacted the quality of life for women?” Nowhere in the gynecological literature did the study address the number of women for whom sex had become painful or impossible. Nowhere were there studies to track the number of marriages that failed or were severely compromised as a result of these post-surgical complications or alcoholism or drug addiction resulting from debilitating chronic pain.

Women who have been hysterectomized experience a myriad of negative side effects, including chronic pain and fatigue, depression, and pain during sex. These are only a fraction of the long list of unwanted symptoms reported by women after surgery.

So, if you decide, or have already decided, that surgery is not an option, you are probably asking yourself, “Now what?” I have asked myself this same question. But, I will tell you, there is no quick fix. As women we must understand our bodies to care for them in a positive way.

The more I review this subject the stronger I feel about informing women before they make this important decision. Prevention is the key and hormone balance is the answer.

For the most part those who are encouraged to have their uterus’s removed are likely suffering from estrogen excess which is explained well by Dr. John Lee.

Balancing hormones involves working on a few fronts using simple strategies.

1. Evaluate your hormones using a saliva test – determine what is happening in your body – ask your self the question – are you estrogen dominant? Use a saliva test to find the answer.

2. Optimize your diet by lowering your insulin levels. Over 2/3 of North Americans are overweight. This extra weight increases insulin levels causing estrogen dominance to increase. EAT 40/30/30

3. If the saliva test shows the need, use a natural progesterone cream in the process of rebalancing your hormonal system

4. Exercise to reduce excess estrogen and to eliminate toxins

5. Drink more water

6. Supplement with wisdom using our hormone balancing program of fiber, indoles, efa, multi – fruit & veggi essence, calcium

Vitamins and Supplements vs. the Doctor

Medical doctors have very strong opinions about the value of vitamins and supplements. Some of them view vitamins and supplements as helpful with preventing illness. Others see them as a new way to practice alternative medicine. Then there are those who discourage their use entirely, except for taking a standard multivitamin.

This leaves the patient in an awkward situation. This is because if a person is serious about finding an alternative to traditional western medicine, a doctor can’t help them. Doctors can’t prescribe vitamins and supplements like they would medication. In fact, they can’t even recommend that you take them. The vitamin and supplement industry isn’t regulated like the drug industry, so if a doctor tells you to take vitamin C for a cold, it is really just an informal suggestion and not a prescription.

Talking to a doctor puts them in an awkward position as well. Whether they believe in the healing powers of vitamins and supplements or not, if you come to them with a medical condition, they have a legal obligation to prescribe the correct medication to remedy your situation. If not, they open themselves up to all kinds of malpractice suits. Even when doctors do get creative and try to prescribe an alternative drug or treatment that they know will heal someone, the insurance companies will refuse payment.

This leaves patients who want to explore alternative treatments for illnesses off on their own. However, there is alternative help if you want to try options other than traditional medicine. While a doctor can’t recommend a heavy vitamin regimen, he can give you tests to monitor your progress. If you decide to treat an illness with vitamins or supplements, it takes a lot longer to slow down or regulate a medical condition than with traditional medicine. For example, it can take up to two years to lower high cholesterol using only vitamins and supplements. As long as you get regular tests from a doctor, you can monitor your progress.

Always tell your doctor what vitamins you are using and how much you are taking. He may not like it, but unless he has a valid medical reason why you can’t take them, he’ll have to understand. If he doesn’t, then find another doctor. Alternatively, you can also talk to your pharmacist about what you are taking and what you hope to accomplish. They can be very helpful in assisting you with choosing the right vitamins and supplements and check to make sure that any vitamins you are taking don’t conflict with your current medication.

You can also go to a holistic practitioner if you are looking to remedy a minor situation or are looking for preventative medicine. Holistic practitioners are licensed professionals who can recommend more specific vitamins and supplements and more radical forms of alternative treatments. The vitamins and supplements they will recommend will be more organic and potent, so make sure to follow their directions specifically and seek medical attention immediately if you experience any side effects or other symptoms. Holistic practitioners are caring knowledgeable professionals, but unfortunately they still aren’t substitutes for doctors.

This is the right way to go about using the healing power of vitamins and supplements to help prevent or cure a serious illness. If you suspect you have a medical condition, you should never try to heal it by yourself by using vitamins and supplements. Not only is this dangerous, it can also be life threatening. Vitamins and supplements are mainly used to prevent illnesses and promote overall strengthening of the body. They are not to be used as a substitute for medical drugs or treatment. Even when they are, they are used under a doctor’s supervision, usually in addition to more traditional medicines. Taking vitamins and hoping they will cure an illness is not ever recommended by anyone. If you want to use vitamins and suppliants to cure illnesses, it is much better to go to a doctor who believes in their incredible and natural ability to heal.

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How To Find Out If You Have Skin Cancer

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The process of detecting skin cancer, the most common form of cancer in the United States, can be practiced with a monthly self examination combined with a yearly visit to your doctor. Early detection is key because, if diagnosed soon enough, skin cancer is almost always curable.

There are three main types of skin cancer, all of which are visible if you know what to look for. Melanoma, one of the main forms of skin cancer, is the deadliest. This disease is the most diffic…

skin cancer, cancer, disease

The process of detecting skin cancer, the most common form of cancer in the United States, can be practiced with a monthly self examination combined with a yearly visit to your doctor. Early detection is key because, if diagnosed soon enough, skin cancer is almost always curable.

There are three main types of skin cancer, all of which are visible if you know what to look for. Melanoma, one of the main forms of skin cancer, is the deadliest. This disease is the most difficult to stop after it has spread throughout the body, which is why early detection and treatment are crucial. Skin cancer, of any kind, can usually be treated with success in it’s early stages.

As individuals, everyone has freckles, birthmarks and moles. These are a part of you and you are used to seeing them, but you may not notice slight changes right away and that’s what you need to be watching for. Any change in a mole’s shape, edges, size or color should be checked by a physician. If a mole becomes larger than that of a pencil eraser or if it’s color is multiple shades of brown rather than a solid color, these are both potential warning signs of skin cancer. A mole’s border should be well defined and, if that is no longer the case, notify your doctor. In addition, any sore that will not heal or a mole that grows larger at a rapid speed should be tested immediately.

Deciding to seek medical attention is difficult. For this reason, it’s best to choose a physician that you are comfortable with, such as a family doctor. He/she can examine your skin and refer you to a dermatologist if needed. The presence of skin cancer is determined by removing all, or part, of the questionable area and testing it with a microscope. Surgery is often utilized in the removal of ski cancer and, if done in the early stages, can be a very quick process. There will likely be a scar, but the physician may be able to completely remove all cancerous cells with only a very small incision.

If the cancer has spread, or is very large in the defined area, additional surgery may be required. In that case, chemotherapy or radiation treatments may be ordered to ensure the cancer is completely removed. Your physician will be able to answer all questions that you may have and should do so without reserve. When meeting with a doctor, ask for an explanation of all treatment options, including their likelihood for success in your particular case. Deciding to seek medical attention is a big step and one that a patient must be mentally prepared for.

This article should not be construed as professional medical advice. If you, or someone that you know, is concerned about the possibility of cancer, you should seek medical attention immediately. A medical doctor can discuss various options, prevention and treatment possibilities should the presence of cancer be detected. A series of tests may be conducted in order to confirm, or rule out, any such diagnosis and can only be done by a medical doctor.

Need tip! Here you go.

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We collect and provide tips to help people doing things better. Welcome to our site read or publish the tip you need or found.

tip,need tip,help, aid, assist, crutch, facilitate, lend a hand, support

A tip(idea) is an image existing or formed in the mind. The human capacity to contemplate tip(idea)s is associated with the capacity for reason, self-reflection, and the ability to acquire and apply intellect. Ideas give rise to concepts, which are the basis for any kind of knowledge whether science or philosophy.
However, in a popular sense, an tip(idea) can arise even when there is no serious reflection, for example, when we talk about the tip(idea) of a person or a place.
This source goes on to say that given the fact that the human mind in mature life is in possession of such universal tip(idea)s, or concepts, the question arises: How have they been attained? Plato conceives them to be an inheritance through reminiscence from a previous state of existence.
Sundry Christian philosophers of ultra-spiritualist tendencies have described them as innate, planted in the soul at its creation by a Diety. Empiricists and Materialists have endeavoured to explain all our intellectual tip(idea)s as refined products of our sensuous faculties.
For a fuller account and criticism of the various theories we must refer the reader to any of the Catholic textbooks on psychology. We can give here but the briefest outline of the doctrine usually taught in the Catholic schools of philosophy. Man has a double set of cognitive faculties sensuous and intellectual.
All knowledge starts from sensuous experience. There are no innate tips(ideas). External objects stimulate the senses and effect a modification of the sensuous faculties which results in a sensuous percipient act, a sensation or perception by which the mind becomes cognizant of the concrete individual object, e.g., some sensible quality of the thing acting on the sense. But, because sense and intellect are powers of the same soul, the latter is now wakened, as it were, into activity, and lays hold of its own proper object in the sensuous presentation. The object is the essence, or nature of the thing, omitting its individualizing conditions.
The act by which the intellect thus apprehends the abstract essence, when viewed as a modification of the intellect, was called by the Schoolmen species intelligibilis; when viewed as the realization or utterance of the thought of the object to itself by the intellect, they termed it the verbum mentale. In this first stage it prescinds alike from universality and individuality.
But the intellect does not stop there. It recognizes its object as capable of indefinite multiplication. In other words it generalizes the abstract essence and thereby constitutes it a reflex or formally universal concept, or tip(idea). By comparison, reflection, and generalization, the elaboration of the tip(idea) is continued until we attain to the distinct and precise concepts, or tip(idea)s, which accurate science demands.

Vitamin C as a Supplement to Prevent Illness

Vitamin C supplements are probably the best way to prevent common illnesses like colds and the flu. However, what most people don’t know is that Vitamin C supplements can also help with other serious illnesses like cancer, lung disease and heart disease. In fact, new studies from many of the leading medical institutions in the world continually indicate that Vitamin C, even in low doses, can give your life expectancy a major boost.

Most people may think that they get enough Vitamin C from the foods that they eat like vegetables and fruits, but they don’t. In fact, one quarter of Americans don’t get the recommended daily amount of 60 milligrams of Vitamin C that their cells need to perform basic bodily functions. The National Cancer Center urges people to eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables daily, which would supply from 200 to 300 milligrams of Vitamin C; but only 9% of the American population accomplishes this. So, there are millions of people who are leaving themselves open to the possibility of illnesses that could be prevented by Vitamin C supplements.

Vitamin C supplements are potent, water-soluble antioxidants that trap and disarm free radicals in the watery part of your body’s tissue. Vitamin C supplements also work to help replenish Vitamin E and help enzymes to destroy other free radicals in your system. Free radicals are the toxic molecules that eat away at healthy cells and turn them defective, which over time can cause more serious diseases like cancer.

Over one hundred and twenty studies show that Vitamin C supplements work as a form of immunization against cancer. It was found that people who consistently took Vitamin C supplements were only half as likely to develop cancer as those who didn’t. Vitamin C supplements were found to be particularly effective on cancers of the stomach, esophagus, pancreas, cervix, rectum, and breast. To effectively prevent cancer, doctors in one study recommended taking 2,000 to 3,000 milligrams of Vitamin C supplements per day. This is far above the suggested daily dose recommended by the National Cancer Center, so anyone attempting this kind of regimen should talk to their doctor first.

Vitamin C supplements taken on a daily basis can prevent other kinds of conditions like heart disease. The correct doses can suppress high blood pressure, raise good-type HDL cholesterol, clean deposits form artery walls, and reduce the chances of heart-attack-inducing vascular spasms. Vitamin C supplements taken on a regular basis can also reduce breathing problems like asthma, prevent periodontal disease, and improve the immune system.

Improving the immune system is the first thing that comes to mind for most people when they think about taking Vitamin C supplements. Of course Vitamin C supplements do a great job of this, in addition to working on all of the other maladies they prevent. The way that Vitamin C supplements work with your immune system is to gear up your body to fight infectious bacteria and viruses. Vitamin C supplements do this by boosting the white blood cells and raising the body’s level of antioxidants. Taking 500 milligrams of Vitamin C supplements per day during flu and cold season may prevent or at least lessen the likelihood of being ill during this time.

Vitamin C supplements work on so many levels to prevent disease. Although Vitamin C may be plentiful in the foods that you eat, it’s really the supplements that put you over the top when it comes to preventing disease and increasing the length and quality of life. In fact, Vitamin C supplements have been shown to help people who take them live about 6.3 years longer.

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Abdominal Chemo Increases Ovarian Cancer Survival Rate

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A large clinical test shows that giving chemotherapy directly into the stomach, as well as into a vein, can improve survival of women with advanced ovarian cancer by about sixteen months. The results of the study, which pop up in this week’s issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, prompted the National Cancer Institute to issue a statement supporting doctors to employ this plan of attack for appropriate patients.

cancer

A large clinical test shows that giving chemotherapy directly into the stomach, as well as into a vein, can improve survival of women with advanced ovarian cancer by about sixteen months. The results of the study, which pop up in this week’s issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, prompted the National Cancer Institute to issue a statement supporting doctors to employ this plan of attack for appropriate patients.

Why is this new treatment reigmine so important? Ovarian cancer is the fourth greatest reason of cancer demises in women, affecting more than 22,000 women and killing more than 16,000 in 2005. Although this disease is super treatable when saw ahead of time, virtually all cases are not noticed until they have dispersed beyond the ovaries. Because so many ovarian cancer patients are diagnosed at a later stage, it is crucial to find ways to better treatments for further progressed disease.

What is already known about ovarian cancer? virtually all women with advanced ovarian cancer get chemotherapy after surgery to get rid of the tumor. That chemotherapy is usually given into a vein and moves through the bloodstream to reach tumor cells in the stomach. Doctors have also experimented with rendering the chemotherapy straight into the abdomen through a catheter, a system called intraperitoneal (IP) chemotherapy. Eight clinical trials of this approach have been done, and most showed a gain to IP chemotherapy. But this technique is not widely wore, according to the study’s author, Deborah Armstrong, MD.

“There has been a prejudice against IP therapy in ovarian cancer because it’s an old idea, it requires skill and experience for the surgery and for the chemotherapy, and it’s additional complicated than IV chemotherapy,” said Armstrong, who is a medical oncologist and associate professor at the John Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center in Baltimore.

How this study was done: Women with stage III ovarian cancer were randomly assigned to get either standard chemotherapy in a vein (210 women), or a combination of chemotherapy in a vein and IP chemotherapy (205 women). The women had already had surgery that successfully removed all or most of the tumor; none had tumors remaining that were larger than 1 cm in diameter. All the women were treated with the same drugs, cisplatin and paclitaxel. Six cycles of chemotherapy were planned for both groups.

What was found? Women who had IP chemo operated long without their cancer coming back and lived longest overall. Women who had traditional chemotherapy in a vein survived about 4 years after treatment, while those who got chemotherapy in the stomach as well as a vein stomach an median of nearly 5 ?years after treatment.

That improvement is “one of the largest benefits ever observed for a new therapy in gynecologic oncology,” based on data from Stephen A. Cannistra, MD, who composed an editorial published with the study. He is a professor at Harvard Medical School and managing director of the division of gynecologic medical oncology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

Nonetheless, the IP treatment was very much more difficult on the patients. Women who had this treatment had many additional terrible or life-threatening side effects, including low white blood cell counts, infection, tiredness, and anguish. Many side effects were associated to the catheters that must be introduced into the stomach to deliver the chemotherapy. These problems were so serious that fewer than half of the women designated to undergo IP chemotherapy finished all six designed treatment cycles. That makes the survival advance that good deal supplementary noteworthy, Cannistra composed.

Women who got IP therapy also reported significantly worse caliber of life during and just after treatment. By one year out, nonetheless, both groups described similar quality of life.

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Cancer Therapies Right On Target

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With today’s new advancements in prevention, detection and treatment, a diagnosis of cancer no longer necessarily means facing a terminal disease.

Cancer Therapies Right On Target

Cancer has always been synonymous with loss and fear. With today’s new advancements in prevention, detection and treatment, a diagnosis of cancer no longer necessarily means facing a terminal disease. Rather, as new advances provide more treatment options, cancer increasingly takes on the shape of a chronic condition.

Recently, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) announced that leading cancer organizations report that Americans’ risk of dying from cancer continues to decline, indicating that progress in prevention, early detection, and newer treatments appear to be helping in the fight against this disease.

The next revolution in cancer therapy will likely find its roots in the ongoing Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), a pilot project initiated by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI). Scientists have begun to discover that numerous genes play a role in cancer, but they have only uncovered a small portion of these genes. The Cancer Genome Atlas is aimed at helping to accelerate the understanding of the genetic make-up of cancer. Researchers hope that a better understanding of how cancer develops and spreads, will lead to new tests to detect cancer in its early, most treatable stages; new therapies to target cancer; and, ultimately, new strategies to prevent cancer.

Understanding of the genetic basis for cancer has already allowed researchers to develop the first drugs that target faulty genes, which are making a difference in the lives of patients. Just ask Bob Ferber. In July of 1999, the Los Angeles attorney was diagnosed with Philadelphia chromosome-positive (Ph+) chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), a malignant cancer of the bone marrow and blood.

Ferber tried many futile attempts at treatment before entering a clinical trial for a drug now called Gleevec (imatinib mesylate) tablets to help fight his disease. Gleevec, approved by the FDA in 2001, is one of the first “targeted therapies” and works by turning off the specific cause of Ph+ CML, something The Cancer Genome Atlas hopes to make possible for many more cancers. Within months, Ferber’s white blood cell counts were within normal range and his disease was in remission.

“My CML diagnosis was a real scare. But, I’m grateful now. I’m grateful for every new day I have.”

Sadly, not everyone’s story is as positive as Ferber’s. Hopefully, with the continued advancement of cancer awareness and research, preventative treatment and The Cancer Genome Atlas, cancer patients will one day be able to breathe a sigh of relief and agree with Ferber when he says, “Every time I challenge this cancer, emotionally or physically-and survive-that’s a victory for me.”

Researchers have developed the first cancer-fighting drugs that target faulty genes.

Note to Editors: About Gleevec Tablets: Gleevec (imatinib mesylate) tablets are indicated for the treatment of newly diagnosed adult patients with Philadelphia chromosome−positive (Ph+) chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) in chronic phase. Follow-up is limited. Gleevec tablets are also indicated for the treatment of patients with Ph+ CML in blast crisis, in accelerated phase or in chronic phase after failure of interferon-alpha (IFN-a) therapy.

Important Safety Information1: Severe (NCI Grades 3/4) neutropenia (3%−48%), anemia (<1%−42%), thrombocytopenia (<1%−33%), hemorrhage (1%−19%), fluid retention (<1%−8%) (eg, pleural effusion, pulmonary edema, and ascites) and superficial edema (1%−6%), musculoskeletal pain (1%−9%), and hepatotoxicity (3%−8%) were reported among Gleevec?recipients. Patients should be weighed and monitored regularly for signs and symptoms of edema, which can be serious or life-threatening. There have also been reports, including fatalities, of cardiac tamponade, cerebral edema, increased intracranial pressure, papilledema, and gastrointestinal perforation. Bullous dermatologic reactions (eg, erythema multiforme and Stevens-Johnson syndrome) have also been reported. In some cases, the reaction recurred upon rechallenge. Several foreign postmarketing cases note a resolution or improvement of bullous reaction following dose reduction with or without supportive care. Dose adjustments may be necessary due to hepatotoxicity, other nonhematologic adverse events, or hematologic adverse events. Therapy with Gleevec was discontinued for adverse events in 3% to 5% of patients. Patients with severe hepatic impairment should be treated at a starting dose of 300mg/day and should be closely monitored. Gleevec is metabolized by the CYP3A4 isoenzyme and is an inhibitor of CYP3A4, CYP2D6, and CYP2C9. Dosage of Gleevec Tablets should increase by at least 50% and clinical response should be carefully monitored in patients receiving Gleevec Tablets with a potent CYP3A4 inducer such as rifampin or phenytoin. Examples of commonly used drugs that may significantly interact with Gleevec include acetaminophen, warfarin, erythromycin, and phenytoin. Please see enclosed full prescribing information for other potential drug interactions. For daily dosing of 800mg and above, dosing should be accomplished using the 400mg tablets to reduce exposure to iron. Use of Gleevec Tablets is contraindicated in patients with hypersensitivity to imatinib or to any other component of Gleevec Tablets. Women of childbearing potential should be advised to avoid becoming pregnant while taking Gleevec Tablets. Because of the potential for serious adverse reactions in nursing infants, women should be advised to avoid breast-feeding while taking Gleevec Tablets.

Common Side Effects of Gleevec Tablets1: The majority of the approximately 1700 adult patients who received Gleevec in clinical studies experienced adverse events at some time, but most were mild to moderate in severity. The most frequently reported adverse events were superficial edema (58%−81%), nausea (47%−74%), diarrhea (39%−70%), muscle cramps (28%−62%), vomiting (21%−58%), rash (36%−53%), fatigue (30%−53%), musculoskeletal pain (30%−49%), and abdominal pain (30%−40%).* Supportive care may help management of most mild-to-moderate adverse events so that prescribed dose can be maintained whenever possible. Gleevec tablets should be taken with food and a large glass of water to minimize gastrointestinal (GI) irritation. Gleevec tablets should not be taken with grapefruit juice.

1 Gleevec?(imatinib mesylate) tablets prescribing information. East Hanover, NJ: Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation; 2005.

* Numbers indicate the range of percentages in 4 studies among adult patients with Ph+ CML in blast crisis, accelerated phase, and chronic phase.

Staying Motivated to Exercise

Exercise is always a do-it-yourself venture. No other person and no machine can do it for you. Hence, it is important to have those motivating factors so that a person who is into exercise in order to lose weight will hang about.

This is what people who are overweight should learn to understand. However, even if it so easy to set for instructions and easy to follow, this is not the same case for almost 35% of Americans who are unable to prevent being overweight.

Of course, once we are overweight, we usually want to trim down for a whole lot of reasons, some related to physical condition and fitness, while others would want to enhance their physique and appearance. And it is never too late to be fit.

In the past 50 to 75 years, physical activity has become the exception rather than the rule, both at home and on the job. People tend to drive where others once walked. People tend to flick a switch and machines do the hauling, lifting, pushing, and pulling for them.

However, people who try to lose weight tend to believe that weight gain is likely to happen if they will not take forward-looking steps to stop it.

The point here is that health experts believe that people lose their way, especially when it comes to dieting. They tend to go back to their old eating habits even after they learn to enjoy low-fat eating. They tend to return to sedentary ways even though they enjoy exercising.

But despite the momentum toward weight gain, you can stop it from happening, experts say. And there are plenty of good reasons to avoid excess pounds, reasons that go beyond vanity or social appearance. There are many reasons in order to keep you motivated to exercise and stay healthy for the rest of your life.

Ways to Lose Big

1. Have an explicit goal

A simple statement like, “I want to lose some weight,” is an ambiguous and an indefinite statement. It will not the least motivate you to start doing exercises right away.

What is important is to be precise on your goals. It would be better if you will set some detailed amount of pounds that you really want to lose. Envisage yourself what you will look like after reaching your desired weight. Doing this will inspire you to lose weight. In fact, maybe even more than what you have planned in mind. The idea is to use that figure to assist you to remain resilient and dedicated.

2. Develop a strategy

Strength of will does not work alone! To lose weight and stay with it, your strategy must comprise of both exercise and diet, and not either of the two.

Try to start motivating yourself by throwing away your clothes that have bigger sizes. This will put you in a situation where you only have your sexy clothes and that you have to make a choice by staying motivated to exercise or not wear any clothes at all. Which do you prefer?

3. Make out little, calculable measures

Put into practice actions that will suit your lifestyle. This means you have to implement moves that you and you alone will benefit from it and not somebody else.

The idea here is to opt for a more positive and attainable goal and not just to shun away from being plump and chubby.

4. Produce monitoring that has an important effect

It would be better to have somebody willing to take note of your progress or development. This will inspire you to keep on doing what you have started. Having somebody to listen to your achievements is definitely a better prize than just achieving your goal alone.

Besides, having an extra hand to support you and cheer for you when things start to fall short. It is that simple way of hearing somebody believing on what you do is one of the greatest motivations to keep you exercising for more.

5. Construct a vigorous, sensible timeline

What do you plan to achieve in a year? Try to suit your objectives to your calendar, and do not look forward to see the results in just a snap.

The bottom line is that in order to stay motivated to exercise entails a lot of hard work, which is contrary to what most people tend to think. The main idea is to let people change their lifestyle because it is only through this way that they will absolutely change their weight…for the better.