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Are Showers Harmful to Your Health?
The last thing you would think about when you are taking a nice, refreshing shower is, "Am I jeopardizing my health"? Chlorine is used by many municipalities to disinfect their water supply. Unfortunalely, according to many health experts,...
Cancer And Weight Gain
We hear it all the time...lose weight for your health. Few
people however, realize the extent to which this is critical to
their physical well-being and ultimately their life expectancy.
In January 2003, the Journal of the American Medical...
Eating your way to a healthy body !!
Did you know that there are hidden medicinal powers in some common Spring/Summer fruits? Here are just a few for starters.
Grape - Rich in antioxidant, anticancer compounds. Red grapes, (but not white or green grapes) are high in antioxidant...
Health Hazards Of Obesity
Obesity, a worldwide phenomenon, today has surged to become one
of the most deadly enemies of mankind, afflicting mostly the
rich and the affluent. Obese in simple terms means excess body
weight, usually in the absence of an underlying disease,...
How Toxic Is Your Home?
We like to think of our homes as being a safe place to be--a refuge from a dangerous world. Yet some of the exposures that you have day-to-day that are most hazardous to your health and the health of your family happen right at home. The good news...
Join a Support Group and Reduce Your Stress Levels
When you are facing a particularly difficult time in your life, whether it's because you're struggling with an addiction, or perhaps because someone you love is an addict, or if you are finding life hard because you have just been diagnosed with a...
Quit Smoking -- Alosing Battle ?
Quitting was never easy. "I had a hard time,"I told Dr Holmes,
the community health consultant serving in Springville."I was
tense, finding difficulty to sleep and I broke out in sudden
cold sweats.
Fortunately, this is temporary and passed...
Surviving Radiation the Wise Woman Way
Whether you are worried about the radiation from dental x-rays, a mammogram, or fallout, here are some Wise Woman Ways to help you stay healthy.
We are adapted to survive mild exposures to radiation. After all, the sun is a kind of...
TAKE BACK YOUR LIFE 2
In part one of this series, titled “Take Back Your Life”; we discussed the importance of proper cell function as it relates to wellness. Here in part 2, we will discuss why it is important to feed the organs of your endocrine system to further...
What Is Good Health
There is no universally agreed definition of health. Its meaning has changed through the ages and in different cultures. The term derives from the Anglo-Saxon word "haelth," meaning safe, sound or whole. In medieval times "haelthing" meant...
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Breast Cancer For Beginners
Introduction
Because of the social changes, which has brought increased number of workingwoman and hence delayed childbearing, there has been a steep rise in the number of breast cancer patients in the last few decades. But as the incidence of the patients has risen so has raised the modality of treatments and the success rates. Also scientists have devised methods by which the cancer can be detected in an early stage and it has been convincingly proved that early detection and treatment bears a better prognosis than the later stage.
Myths
There are many myths attached to breast cancer. Some think that any lump in breast is a breast cancer but to the contrary most of them are benign. Similarly it was a popular belief earlier that breast-feeding decreases one’s risk of the cancer but that has been now found to be untrue. Some say that mammography makes the breast cancer widespread but it’s not true. Similarly there are many other myths, which need to be cleared in mind of the general mass for the proper detection and management of the tumor.
Early detection
Breast cancer can be detected in an early stage if women are taught to self-examine their breast. In case of detection of any breast lump or of any slightest suspicion, mammography should be done to rule out any tumor. Mammography is a good tool to diagnose this type of cancer.
Statistics
The incidence of breast cancer is increasing at an alarming rate. It is said that every 2-3 minutes one American woman is diagnosed a breast cancer.
Cause
Although the cause is not fully understood but it is hypothesized that there are various factors such as genetic and environmental. The environmental factors are increased age, obesity, smoking and having the first child at late age.
Diagnosis
The findings that denote a cancer are single, non-tender and firm to hard mass with ill-defined margins. This can be later confirmed by mammography and
biopsy. After the cancer has been diagnosed staging is done to find out the best treatment option as well as the prognosis.
Management
The management of breast cancer rests basically on two things. The first is the treatment and second is the counseling. The treatment can further be divided into three: medical, radiation, and surgery. The medical treatment consists of drugs such as tamoxifen, which is an anti estrogen, aromatase inhibitors such as aminoglutethimide and monoclonal antibodies such as trastuzumab. But similar to other drugs they have their own side effects profile. The side effects associated with tamoxifen are increased vaginal bleeding, endometrial cancer and cataracts. The aromatase inhibitors have the side effects of leg cramps, jaundice and weight gain while the monoclonal antibodies may cause sterility or certain birth abnormalities.
Generally the radiation and surgery are the modalities, which are needed for the treatment to ward off the body of the cancerous growth.
Counseling
This is one of the most important parts of the treatment both before and after the surgery. The patients are to be taught that this is only another disease, which has treatment available, and persons can lead a normal life after that.
Latest research
Latest research is being done on both the surgery and the medicine. For the surgery, surgeons are trying to find out the best way of surgery so that post surgery the patients have minimal disabilities. Similar medicines with lesser side effects are being researched.
About the Author: Mansi gupta writes about breast cancer topics. Learn more at http://www.breastcancerassistance.com .
Source: www.isnare.com
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