Lead Exposure on the Rise Despite Decline in Poisoning Cases

Leaded gasoline and lead paint are gone, but other sources are keeping the danger high

By Mark Fischetti

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BOSTON—Exposure to lead—so toxic—is a problem of the past, right? Wrong. Since the U.S. took lead out of gasoline in 1976 and banned lead paint in 1978, most health scientists, regulators and the public have considered the problem largely solved. But ongoing testing shows that even though the average concentration of lead in the American bloodstream has dropped by a factor of 10 since the late 1970s, the levels are still two orders of magnitude higher than natural human levels, which have been determined by studying skeletal remains of native Americans dating to before the industrial revolution.

Equally problematic, recent health studies have shown that exposure levels previously thought to be “safe” were too high. Scientists from various disciplines are advising the Environmental Protection Agency and health departments to lower the concentration deemed acceptable in the bloodstream, which today averages 1.3 micrograms per deciliter but can be much higher for many individuals. The change is warranted because the latest set of long-term tests done over decades has revealed that many of the health complications from lead arise even at low exposures. Higher levels are not necessary to instigate damage to the body or brain, Joel Schwartz of the Harvard School of Public Health told a somewhat surprised crowd on Feb. 16 here at the annual American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) meeting. Excessive lead exposure correlates with a host of ills, including impaired cognition, attention deficit disorder and lower academic test scores for children, psychiatric disorders, and increased blood pressure, hypertension and arrhythmia.

Lead is also increasingly implicated in dementia in the elderly. As we age, our bones demineralize and release calcium (which is why calcium supplements are often recommended, especially for women). “But the bones also release lead,” which accumulates in our skeletons over a lifetime, Schwartz said. “We don’t know if the brain can adapt to the higher levels” of lead in the bloodstream, he said, calling for new research to find out.

The ramifications of lead exposure are financial as well, costing the U.S. about $209 billion a year, said Jessica Reyes, an economist at Amherst College. The bill includes everything from direct medical costs to a heightened need for special education classes and incarcerations for violent crime, which also correlates with higher lead exposure.

The ongoing trouble with lead exposure is not to be confused with lead poisoning, which has dropped significantly in developed countries, including the U.S. The latter condition is caused by acute exposure at high concentrations, which can occur from eating lead paint chips. But all the other problems “are more like chronic diseases that build over time,” said A. Russell Flegal of the University of California, Santa Cruz. “We need to start thinking about the risks in that way.”

Lead is still prevalent in our environment for many reasons. Because lead does not degrade, heavy emissions from the past accumulate in soil. Winds, especially during drought—like that afflicting the Midwest for the past year or so—kick it up as dust, and runoff from heavy rains and flooding can re-suspend the particles in the atmosphere. Trees take up soil particles, too, but when forests burn in wildfires, as has been occurring more frequently worldwide with global warming in recent years, that lead is released back into the air. Fires also release lead from old houses and buildings coated with lead paint that was applied prior to the U.S. ban. Lead smelting and refining is still an enormous industry worldwide, sending more of the metal into the environment. Aviation gas used in planes still contains lead.

Researchers Home in on Biological Ways to Restore Hearing [Excerpt]

In the section of “Shouting Won’t Help” excerpted here, journalist Katherine Bouton surveys cutting-edge research into biological ways to reverse the “sensioneural” hearing loss that she and millions of others suffer, caused by impaired function of the inner ear

By Katherine Bouton

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Editor’s Note: Excerpted from Shouting Won’t Help: Why I—and 50 Million Other Americans—Can’t Hear You, by Katherine Bouton, published by Sarah Crichton Books, an imprint of Farrar, Straus and Giroux, LLC. Copyright © 2013 Katherine Bouton. All rights reserved.

“You’ll never be deaf,” Dr. Hoffman said to me years ago. At the time, I thought he meant I’d never lose all my hearing. But what I know now is that technology would take over when my ears no longer worked. Through a cochlear implant, I would continue to hear long after my ears ceased to function.

Research holds the promise that the kind of hearing loss I have may someday be reversible, returning the ear to close to its original pristine condition. Probably not soon and not for me, but most researchers think that within a decade they may have the tools that will eventually allow doctors to stop the progression of sensorineural hearing loss, including age-related hearing loss. Putting those tools into practice will take much longer. (Gene therapy, for people whose hearing loss has a genetic basis, will probably come sooner, possibly in the next decade.) The best guesses for hair cell regeneration—for the much larger group of people whose sensorineural loss is caused by noise or ototoxins or age—range anywhere from twenty to fifty years.

Until recently, scientists focused on the development of devices that would take the place of normal hearing: hearing aids and cochlear implants. The pharmaceutical industry, usually so quick to jump on the opportunity to medicalize a chronic age-related condition—dry eyes and wrinkles, trouble sleeping, lagging sexual function, bladder control, memory loss—has not paid much attention to age-related hearing loss, in terms either of prevention or cure. There are no FDA-approved drugs for the treatment of hearing loss. Demographics alone would suggest they are missing a big opportunity.

In October 2011, the Hearing Health Foundation (formerly the Deafness Research Foundation) held a symposium in New York to kick off its new campaign, called the Hearing Restoration Project, an ambitious program that had enlisted, at that point, fourteen researchers from ten major hearing & loss research centers in the United States. This consortium will share findings, with the goal of developing a biological cure for hearing loss in the next ten years. With a fund-raising target of $50 million, or $5 million a year, the Hearing Restoration Project will tackle the problem of hearing loss with the aim of curing it, not treating it.

The funding is relatively small right now, but there is hope that the foundation will be able to raise more in future years. Individual consortium members may currently receive somewhere between 5 to 20 percent of a laboratory’s annual bud get from the Hearing Health Foundation. But the collaborative nature of the venture is unusual. (A similar consortium exists for the study of myelin diseases—a factor in multiple sclerosis as well as hereditary neurodegenerative diseases.) Under its previous name, the Deafness Research Foundation, funding was limited to early career support to researchers. They’ve now added the Hearing Regeneration Program.

The symposium, titled “The Promise of Cell Regeneration,” brought together leading researchers in the field of hearing loss. Dr. George A. Gates, an M.D. and the scientific director of the Hearing Restoration Project, chaired the program. The speakers included Sujana Chandrasekhar, an M.D. and director of New York Otology, who talked from a clinical perspective about the current state of hearing loss research. Ed Rubel, from the University of Washington, discussed the history of hair cell regeneration research and his current work on regenerating hair cells through pharmaceutical applications. Stefan Heller discussed his lab’s announcement in May of 2010 of the first successful attempt at generating mammalian hair cells (of mice) in a laboratory setting from stem cell transplants. Andy Groves, from Baylor, discussed the many still-existing hurdles to hair cell regeneration in humans. Unable to attend was Douglas Cotanche, currently working at Harvard on noise-induced hearing loss in military personnel.

Rare Sumatran Tiger Cub Born at San Francisco Zoo

A Sumatran tiger gave birth to an apparently healthy cub at the San Francisco Zoo over the weekend in a rare boost to the critically endangered subspecies, zookeepers said on Thursday.

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By Laila Kearney

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A Sumatran tiger gave birth to an apparently healthy cub at the San Francisco Zoo over the weekend in a rare boost to the critically endangered subspecies, zookeepers said on Thursday.

There are estimated to be as few as 400 Sumatran tigers in the wild, and zookeepers were monitoring the pair in the zoo's secluded Lion House via webcam to allow the 9-year-old mother, named Leanne, and baby to bond with little human interference.

"All signs seem to be positive so far," said Corinne MacDonald, San Francisco Zoo curator of carnivores and primates.

"Mom and cub are bonding," she said, adding the cub appeared to be healthy and was active and eating a lot.

The unnamed cub was the first tiger born at the San Francisco Zoo since 2008, when Leanne delivered a litter of three males. The cubs were transferred to zoos across the United States. Before 2008, the zoo had not had a tiger birth in 30 years.

Zoo staff will not know the gender of the newborn until its first examination at least two weeks from now.

"These births are definitely rare," said Dr. Tara Harris, a tiger specialist with the North American accrediting group Association of Zoos and Aquariums. About 75 Sumatran tigers are in captivity in North America and give birth to two to four litters a year, she added.

The cub, which will stay at the zoo for a year and a half before zookeepers decide whether to transfer it, was fathered by a 6-year-old tiger named Larry, who was temporarily transferred from the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans for breeding.

Leanne was one of a handful of tigers worldwide to receive prenatal sonograms and exams while awake. Captive tigers are generally put under during the pregnancy exams, which can be dangerous to the mammals.

"It's so much better for these animals not to have to be sedated. Many animals have adverse reactions to the anesthesia, which can be worse than the actual procedure," MacDonald said.

In the wild, Sumatran tigers - the smallest of six tiger subspecies - are found only on the Indonesian island of Sumatra in lowland and mountain forests. Habitat destruction and poaching are the main reasons for the tigers' endangerment.

(Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Peter Cooney)

Right-Handedness as Common Among Apes as Humans

A propensity for right-handedness is not a uniquely human trait but one shared by great apes, according to new research by Gillian Forrester, a cognitive psychologist at the University of Westminster.

Three-Year Olds Know Better

A study finds that three-year old children know a lot more than we might give them credit for. Christie Nicholson reports

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Next time a three-year old tells you what to do you might want to listen. Because three-year olds can recognize when we adults are doing something counterproductive and are keen to help us find a better way. That’s according to new research in the journal Developmental Psychology (PDF.)

Scientists had 58 three-year olds examine several functional and non-functional objects. Like a real phone and a toy phone, or a working marker and a dried-up marker.

Then the researcher would say something like, “I need to make a phone call, can you get me the phone.” Sometimes they’d point to the real phone and other times point to the toy phone. The children would consistently bring over the functional item, regardless of whether the researcher pointed to it or asked specifically for it. In contrast, when they were told the item would just be thrown out, they’d bring either the non-functional or functional object. And in the case when any object would do, such as something that could act as a paperweight, the children brought either the fake one or the real one.

Ultimately the children focused on the end goal and deliberately choose the best item, as opposed to what was instructed of them. A good reminder for us adults.

Natural Gas Well Has Leak beneath Floor of U.S. Gulf

Natural gas from a well being drilled by Apache Corporation in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico has flowed underground, leading U.S.

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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Natural gas from a well being drilled by Apache Corporation in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico has flowed underground, leading U.S. regulators to order the company to prepare to drill a relief well to control the flow if necessary, the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said.

Apache shut in the well on February 5 after it had a "kick" upon encountering a zone of "abnormally pressured" natural gas while drilling, the company said in a statement on its website.

A kick commonly refers to a temporary loss of control over the well due to higher than anticipated pressures being encountered while drilling, leading to fluids or gas flowing into the well.

Non-essential personnel have been evacuated from the Ensco Plc drilling rig Ensco 87 and no gas or oil has leaked into the Gulf of Mexico, Apache said.

The incident occurred in shallow waters in Main Pass block 295, approximately 50 miles east of Venice, Louisiana.

Apache is moving another rig it has under contract owned by drilling firm Rowan Companies Plc to the site to drill a relief well if necessary to stop the gas from flowing underground.

A relief well is typically used to stop an uncontrolled flow of gas or fluids from a well when other methods fail.

(Editing by Vicki Allen)

Biotech Company Run by High Schoolers Developing a "Flying Syringe"

Provita, a company staffed entirely by kids under 18, is working on a project (with funding from the Gates Foundation) to use mosquitoes to help carry important vaccines

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By Ariel Schwartz

Provita, a company staffed entirely by kids under 18, is working on a project (with funding from the Gates Foundation) to use mosquitoes to help carry important vaccines.

Joshua Meier, CEO of biotechnology company Provita Pharmaceuticals, spends about 20 hours a week on research projects in the various labs at his disposal. In January, the company gave a presentation to the FDA on its work with the flying syringe, a tool that uses mosquitoes as a vector to deliver vaccines to those who need them. Provita has also submitted a grant idea to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. But you might not recognize Meier as a CEO if you saw him walking down the street--he's 16. In fact, everyone on the 15-plus person Provita team, from research and development workers to finance officers, is in high school.

Provita was founded in 2008, before Meier--a junior and a finalist in the 2012 Google Science Fair--entered high school at the Bergen County Academies, a group of seven magnet high school programs that each hone in on different subjects, including a program focused on science and technology (where Meier is a student), a business and finance program, and a medical science and technology program. Provita emerged when some of the science-focused kids decided to collaborate with the business-minded students on a business plan competition for their research.

The company's first product, Coagula, aims to decrease the number of injections that patients with hemophilia and von Willebrand disease have to endure. "Hemopheliacs have uncontrolled bleeding, and they to have to take coagulants to make their blood thicker. The problem with treatment is that they have to take it several time a week, and there issues of infection and having transfusions all the time," explains Meier. "We came up with new method, so instead of taking treatment] a few times a week, you do it once every few months. We're still working on that."

The Provita team certainly has enough equipment at its disposal, including a stem cell lab and a microbiology lab at the school. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City has even indicated interest in helping with future development.

Meier in the school's stem cell lab. More recently, Provita has started working on the flying syringe. That project is still in the very early stages. "We can't really culture mosquitoes in the lab at our high school because that's dangerous, but we a have research advisor and ideas planned out, and the next step is making a partnership, contacting other places that do have animal facilities," says Meier.

The first goal: to genetically engineer mosquitoes so that they can produce and deliver a vaccine (via their saliva) for West Nile Virus. The mosquitoes, Meier explains, will be sterilized to prevent any out-of-control problems. It's a new twist on research being done elsewhere to breed sterile mosquitoes in malaria-infested areas.

Meier hopes to keep up with Provita's research after he graduates, but "most of the hard work will stay in the high school," he says. That's partially because the school has some control of Provita's intellectual property since much of it was developed on campus (one huge benefit of that: the school district pays for all of Provita's research).

In any case, says Meier, "it's not like we're out here to get a profit. We're doing this because most of us want to start our own companies or go into research. We're here as an educational experience."

Copyright 2013 by Fast Company. Reprinted with permission.

Laikipia Plateau: What is a Mesopredator?

As I’ve mentioned before, my research in Kenya is focused primarily on the effects of rainfall on mesopredator populations, and how these effects may differ in places from which apex carnivores have largely been extirpated.  This begs a critical question: what is a mesopredator, anyway?

The answer is not as simple as one might think. The term “mesopredator” has often been used to describe carnivores of small or intermediate body size, such as foxes or coyotes, in contrast to large “apex” carnivores such as bears and lions. Although this component of the definition is important, it is not always ideal.

Size-based classifications are relative terms. A particular species may be “intermediate” in size in one community and yet the largest in another community, if apex carnivores have been extirpated or were never present there at all. Defining mesopredators only by size means that community composition will determining how a species is classified, even if its behaviors and ecological traits are not functional for those of a larger predator.

For example, due to the nearly complete removal of wolves and grizzly bears from most of the United States, and the common persecution of black bears in non-protected areas, the coyote is the largest carnivore found across most populated areas of the country. The coyote, however, has a very different social structure, reproductive rate, diet breadth, and home range size than the wolf. Even though the coyote is now the “top dog” in terms of size, it is not the ecological equivalent of the historical apex predator.

Along the same lines, even the modern wolf may not be the functional equivalent of a more distant apex predator, the dire wolf. Thus, a more ecologically- and functionally-based definition is needed in order to fully understand the relative roles that large carnivores and mesopredators play in their ecological communities.

Many mammals considered to be “mesopredators” are fairly omnivorous, and this can be an additional (although not an exclusive) criterion. Nature tends to defy our attempts to cram organisms into neatly delineated boxes, and definitions are rarely absolute. Numerous species in the taxonomic order Carnivora actually have broad diets that include many food sources beyond just meat. For example, a 500-pound grizzly bear may have a more omnivorous diet than a 500-gram weasel, and a panda bear—in the same carnivoran family as the grizzly, Ursidae—consumes no meat at all.  What is the true carnivore here?

Strictly speaking, all mammals in the order Carnivora are “carnivorans,” while only those with primarily meat-based diets can correctly be called “carnivores.” This is one reason the term “mesopredator” is often preferred over “mesocarnivore” for omnivorous carnivorans of small- to intermediate body size. In other words, mesopredators are not “little-large carnivores”: they don’t simply play the same roles at smaller scales. The dietary criterion for defining a mesopredator isn’t perfect, but it can help clarify some cases by taking into account the difference between taxonomic and ecological “carnivores,” especially in context of food webs and community dynamics.

One root of the misconception that mesopredators can simply “become” apex predators after declines of larger carnivores is that the majority of mesopredator release studies have been done in North America and Europe. These regions are occupied by limited numbers of carnivoran species, and there are often relatively modest differences in body size between apex carnivores and mesopredators.

While in some cases a coyote may not be a poor ecological approximation for a wolf (although never a perfect substitute), the situation is much different for a lion and a mongoose in Kenya, or a jaguar and a coati in Ecuador. In contrast to North American and European systems, there has been relatively little research done on mesopredator release in ecosystems such as the savannas of East Africa, where up to ten large carnivores and literally dozens of mesopredators may coexist.  More complex communities have much more intricate interaction networks, producing range of ecological ramifications: broader or more evenly filled community niche space, variations in diet breadth for each species, or increased functional redundancy. Future work on species-rich tropical assemblages should yield new and interesting insights into these dynamics.

There is an additional issue challenging our attempts to define the term “mesopredator”: taxonomic bias. Although the earliest descriptions of mesopredator release effects involved coral reef invertebrates (Paine 1969) and arthropod-lizard interactions (Pacala and Roughgarden 1984), the vast majority of mesopredator release studies have exclusively looked at mammalian predators. In the few studies that have shed those taxonomic blinders, significant dietary overlap (Farias and Jaksíc 2007), predation pressures (Roemer et al. 2002), and indirect effects (Mezquida et al. 2006) have been observed among mammalian and avian predators. A significant amount of the mesopredator literature, however, still disregards the fact that raptors and other vertebrate predator populations exist and compete wit mammalian mesopredators, leaving out a key “plot line” in the story of food web interactions.

In a nutshell, the answer to “what is a mesopredator”  is being refined and made more scientific as time goes on. In some cases size is clearly important, such as for many of the smaller cats. Even given the same degree of carnivory, a small bobcat could not inherit the ecological role of a puma by consuming the same assortment of large prey. Diet breadth, however, is indeed another important dimension in many communities. I plan to account for some often-neglected aspects of mesopredator ecology in my own research by including avian predator counts in my population surveys, as well as by quantifying diet breadth (degree of omnivory) with stable isotope analysis, rather than relying on the broad, qualitative dietary classifications that are sometimes applied to omnivores.

You may be wondering what drew me to mesopredators in the first place. First, these species tend to be extremely understudied in tropical countries, and in many places we still lack baseline data on their diversity, abundance, social structure, and foraging behavior. Mesopredators can’t exactly match lions and leopards for majesty in nature documentaries, and they tend to carry reputations as “pests.

This means that mesopredators don’t garner as much public interest—which, sadly, sometimes translates to a dearth of available research funds. As such, even some mesopredators of conservation concern haven’t received the same attention as “sexier” species such as pandas and cheetahs, in either the media or in scientific spheres. There are many discoveries waiting to be made about these animals, and the exploratory aspect of mesopredator ecology is especially intriguing for me.

Second, mesopredators are often highly interlinked within their food webs. They are often omnivorous, consuming a broader array of prey items than do larger predators. In addition, mesopredators they also serve dual roles as both consumers of smaller animals and potential prey of larger carnivores.

This puts a mesopredator a sort of “hub” position within its food web. Simplified, three-level conceptualizations of food chains overlook this dynamic. Fortunately, more complex complicated food web models have long been used by ecologists and are now gaining traction in the public awareness.

For example, the lion’s diet consists largely a handful of ungulate species, while the white-tailed mongoose utilizes dozens of diverse food sources. This is an important difference for several reasons. If apex predators experience severe declines and mesopredator populations expand as a result—a key phenomenon for my research known as “mesopredator release”—the mesopredators cannot simply take over the role of the extirpated apex species, even if they are now the largest predators in the community. Their diets, social structures, and habitat needs will be quite different, and it can’t be assumed that they will simply keep the ecological seat warm for apex predators until their populations can be restored.

Finally, mesopredators’ relatively small sizes and broad food options allow them to achieve higher population densities than their larger, more strictly carnivorous counterparts. All of these factors together mean that changes in mesopredator population dynamics can ripple widely throughout an entire ecological community. It has been estimated that over 95% of the world’s ecosystems have experienced declines in large carnivore populations (Ritchie & Johnson 2009), and it essential to gain a better understanding of how this will affect mesopredators and the dozens of species with which they interact.

My mesopredator trapping efforts should be kicking into high gear this week, and I hope to report back to you soon with news about how that goes!

Images: Wolf, by Cephas at Wikimedia commons. Other images copyright by author.

Previously in this series:

Laikipia Plateau: mesopredators in Kenya
Laikipia Plateau: I have arrived
Laikipia Plateau: First Scouting Session

Benefits of Robotic Surgery in Kidney Cancer

Similar to the other main part of the body, sometimes kidneys may create cancer. In adults, renal cell carcinoma (renal adenocarcinoma), which start out in the cells that streak the minor pipes inside the kidneys. It is the most common type of kidney cancer. Young children are more likely to develop a kind of kidney cancer called Wilms' tumor.

Kidney cancer is cancer that initiates in the kidneys. Kidneys are two bean-shaped organs, each about the size of the fist. They are positioned behind your abdominal organs, with one kidney on each side of your spine. Every year, kidney cancer is diagnosed in about 190,000 people worldwide. Kidney cancer is somewhat more communal in men as comparing to women and it is regularly identified in between the ages of 50 to 70 years. It is necessary to understand that with initial judgment and proper treatment, kidney cancer can be preserved. In fact if it found early, the survival rate of the cancer range is from 79 to 100 percent. A kidney tumor is an irregular growth in the kidney. Tumors may be benevolent or malevolent (cancerous). The most popular kidney mass is a fluid-filled area called a cyst. Simple cysts are benevolent, don’t convert into cancer and mostly do not need follow-up care. Dense kidney tumors can be benevolent, but are cancerous more than 90 percent of the time.

Radical Nephrectomy

Radical Nephrectomy is the whole deduction of the pretentious unit with the nearby tissue. This contains the fat, adrenal gland, lymph nodes and Gerota’s fascia. It is presently the gold standard for exclusion of kidney tumors. This treatment can be done through robotic, laparoscopic or by an open procedure. Now a day the mainstream of renal tumors can be removed either robotically or laparoscopically by using slight incisions and camera’s to visualize and remove the kidney complete. The similar kidney specimen can also be removed with the open procedure. The long-standing cancer control outcomes are also no difference between the open and robotic or laparoscopic procedures.

Signs and Symptoms of Kidney Cancer

Tactlessly, initial kidney cancers do not mostly cause any signs or symptoms, but larger ones might. Some of the possible signs and symptoms of kidney cancer are following:

• Blood in the urine (hematuria)
• Low back pain on one side (not caused by injury)
• Weight loss not caused by dieting
• Fever not caused by an infection and doesn't go away after few weeks
• Anemia (low red blood cell counts)
• Fatigue (tiredness)
• A mass (lump) on the side or lower back

All these symptoms may be caused by cancer, but sometimes they are caused by other diseases also. If you face any of these symptoms in your life, consult a doctor at a time so that the cause can be treated, if needed.

da Vinci® Surgery for Kidney Cancer (Partial Nephrectomy)

Let’s discuss about the Robotic Kidney Surgery - Future of Nephrectomy:

The da Vinci Surgical System uses state-of-the-art technology to help your doctor offer the gold standard treatment, where stated and also do a more accurate operation. If the doctor is talented to preserve your healthy, operative kidney tissue then this can support to avert upcoming kidney disease and even dialysis. This process is completed by using the da Vinci Si Robotic Surgical System, a state-of-the-art surgical platform. Through overwhelming the bounds of both traditional and laparoscopic surgery, da Vinci Si is altering the experience of surgery for people around the world.

How Robotic Kidney Surgery Works:

Kidney surgery is usually executed as an open surgery. It needs a large incision and perhaps removal of a rib, which causes greater pain. Additional method, conventional laparoscopy is less offensive but bounds the surgeon’s adroitness, conception and control linked to open surgery. While performing a robotic kidney surgery, the surgeon take a sits at a comfort and controls the actions of miniature instruments and a small camera on the end of robotic arms implanted over numerous small incisions in the body. The robot cannot be planned, programmed nor can it make decisions on its own. It is under the complete control of the surgeon all the times.

Kidney Cancer - Statistical Information

• Men are at upper risk of getting kidney cancer than females.
• African Americans are diagnosed more commonly.
• Approximately 1 in 75 people will have kidney cancer in their lifetime.
• 50% to 80% of kidney cancer patients are diagnosed parenthetically without any clinical symptoms.

Benefits of Robotic Kidney Surgery

The wounding edge da Vinci® Surgical System has transformed kidney cancer treatment. Benefits of this minimally invasive surgery are for both - The Patients and The Doctors. For patients it is beneficial in fast recovery and it enables doctors in precision of surgery. Robotic Surgery offers many possible benefits to the patient, including:

• Faster arrival of bowel function after surgery: Excellent clinical results and cancer control
• Short hospital stay - Reduced hospital stay (one day in healthy patients)
• Less postoperative pain: This kind of surgery permits the surgeon to make very little incisions to entree the area that is being operated on. As a result, the patient will experience less discomfort and pain which means faster recuperation.
• Quick return to normal activity and work
• Smaller incisions, less damaging, and faster curing
• Less blood loss
• Precise tumor exclusion and kidney renovation
• Excellent chances of conserving the kidney, in certain operations

Center for Robotic Surgery (CRS) is the Super Specialty Urology Hospital in India. It is an initiative of Muljibhai Patel Urological Hospital (MPUH), popularly known as 'Nadiad Kidney Hospital'. We are the first hospital in India devoted entirely to Nephrology and Urology including Robotic Kidney Surgery, Prostate Cancer, Bladder Treatment and more. CRS â€"MPUH use da Vinci® Surgical System for all Urology treatment.

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Contribution of TK Presented at the BMT Tandem Meetings

MolMed S.p.A. (MLM.MI) announces the results of the contribution given by its investigational cell-based therapy TK to the treatment of haematologic malignancies through bone marrow transplantation from partially matched donors, presented at the Blood & Marrow Transplantation (BMT) Tandem Meetings, the combined annual meeting of the Center for International Blood & Marrow Transplant Research (CIBMTR) and the American Society of Blood & Marrow Transplantation (ASBMT), taking place in Salt Lake City (UT, U.S.).

The study concerns the overall intention to treat (ITT) analysis of 611 patients with high-risk haematologic malignancies (61% acute leukaemia) treated with bone marrow transplant from a healthy donor in a single centre, the San Raffaele Scientific Institute of Milan, in the past 8 years. The aim of the study was to assess the impact of transplants from partially compatible family donors (haplo-identical transplants), which were systematically offered to patients lacking a fully compatible donor, thus making the transplant option available to the largest number of patients within the time requested by disease progression.

In this patient population, which includes four treatment protocols conducted in parallel, the approach involving the use of TK cells produced by MolMed was previously tested in a Phase II trial (TK007) in patients with haematologic malignancies and currently in a pivotal Phase III trial (TK008) reserved for patients with high-risk acute leukaemia.

As of today, bone marrow transplantation from a matched donor represents the standard treatment option for patients suffering from acute leukaemia, however only about 50% of patients have a fully matched donor available in the family or in the volunteer donor registry. The analysis presented at the BMT Tandem Meetings reveals that, in this large patient population, results of transplants from partially matched (haploidentical) family donors are fully comparable in terms of overall survival and disease-free survival to those obtained with transplants from fully matched donors. These results are of particular relevance in light of the fact that this type of transplant is available for almost all patients: over 80% of the intention to treat population actually received a transplant. The contribution of TK to this patient population will continue through the centre's participation in the randomized multicentre Phase III trial. Data available on the first 14 treated patients of this trial confirm the efficacy and safety profile of TK cells already observed in 123 patients treated in the Phase II and other previous studies.

MolMed is conducting an international pivotal randomised Phase III trial for high-risk leukaemia patients undergoing bone marrow transplants from haplo-identical family donors, ongoing in Europe and the United States. Moreover, based on cumulative efficacy and safety data and on the Orphan Drug designation related to the incidence of leukaemia, the Company expects to file a request for Conditional Marketing Authorisation of TK to the European Authority in mid-2013.

FROM GENES TO THERAPY

** About TK

TK is a cell therapy product, based on the use of genetically engineered donor T cells administered to patients after haematopoietic stem cell transplants in order to improve anti-leukaemic activity of the graft and to accelerate immune reconstitution. The onset of reactions mediated by such lymphocytes against healthy tissues of the patients - known as Graft-versus-Host Disease (GvHD) - has been reported so far in 28 patients and has always been rapidly and completely controlled thanks to the TK technology, without posttransplant immune-suppression. No adverse events correlated to the use of TK cells were ever reported in these studies.

** About Phase III trial TK008

TK008 is a pivotal randomised Phase III trial in adult patients affected by high-risk leukaemia undergoing transplant of haematopoietic stem cells collected from partially compatible (haplo-identical) family donors.

The trial design has disease-free survival as the primary end-point - which includes both transplant-related mortality and disease relapse - evaluated on a patient population of 170 patients. The trial will compare the outcome of haplo-transplants with or without TK add-backs, with a 3:1 randomisation ratio in favour of the TK arm. Secondary end-points include overall survival, reduction of transplant-related mortality, safety and patients' quality of life. With the aim to provide additional clinical benefit to patients and to significantly increase the potential participation of centres in the trial, the Company implemented in 2012 two important changes in the protocol design of Phase III trial TK008. The first consists in broadening the enrolment criteria to include patients in leukaemic relapse, in addition to those in disease remission; the second change provides for the introduction of a further treatment option in the control arm, based on the use of an unmanipulated transplant followed by cyclophosphamide administration during the post-transplantation period.

This press release is written in compliance with public disclosure obligations established by CONSOB (Italian securities & exchange commission) resolution no. 11971 of 14 May 1999, as subsequently amended.

About MolMed

MolMed S.p.A. is a biotechnology company focused on research, development and clinical validation of novel anticancer therapies. MolMed's pipeline includes two antitumour therapeutics in clinical development: TK, a cell-based therapy enabling bone marrow transplants from partially compatible donors, in absence of post-transplant immune-suppression, in Phase III in high-risk acute leukaemia; NGR-hTNF, a novel vascular targeting agent, in Phase III in malignant pleural mesothelioma and in Phase II in six more indications: colorectal, lung (small-cell and non-small-cell), liver and ovarian cancer, and soft tissue sarcomas. MolMed also offers top-level expertise in cell and gene therapy to third parties to develop, conduct and validate projects from preclinical to Phase III trials, including scale-up and cGMP production of clinical-grade viral vectors, and manufacturing of patient-specific genetically engineered cells. MolMed is headquartered at the San Raffaele Biomedical Science Park in Milan, Italy. The Company's shares are listed on the main market (MTA) of the Milan Stock Exchange. (Ticker Reuters: MLMD.MI)

SOURCE: MolMed

MolMed S.p.A. is a biotechnology company focused on research, development and clinical validation of novel anti-tumour therapies. MolMed’s pipeline includes two novel therapeutics both in Phase III trials. MolMed’s shares are listed on the Milan Stock Exchange, at the Standard segment (class I) of the MTA managed by Italiana. (Ticker Reuters: MLMD.MI).

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Caring For Cancer Patients - Oncology Nurses

Unlike other nursing jobs that are generic in nature, oncology nurse jobs Australia have specific responsibilities - that of providing and supervising care of patients who have been diagnosed with cancer. It is the responsibility of the oncology nurse to monitor the condition of the patient, administer the prescribed medication, develop protocols on symptom management and also develop care plans.

Oncology nurses are a direct witness to much of the suffering caused by a nearly incurable ailment like cancer and the job can be quite stressful. However the long term relationship that the nurses develop with the patient and the members of the family offsets this stress a little. The duties encompassed in the oncology nurse jobs Australia extends beyond just the patient care. It also includes educating the patient and their family members, consultation, researcher and management. They need to work with physicians and a host of other healthcare team members and ensure that the patients get the highest quality in medical care.

There are different types of cancer that can affect a person and each individual patient needs a different type of care plan. It is the duty of the nurse to develop individualized treatment plans. Unlike other ailments like heart or kidney cancer is not limited to any particular organ or part of the body; it can start anywhere and spread to any part of the body. Hence oncology nurses have to collaborate with multidisciplinary medical team and share their knowledge and expertise. They should be able to distinguish and handle health issues related to cancer.

There is continuous research going on in the field of cancer treatment. It is important for an oncology nurse to keep themselves up-to-date on cancer research, learn about the improved treatment protocols so that they can provide better care to the cancer patients. Cancer can have a tell-tale effect on not just the patient but the family members too and hence it is important to educate the patient as well as their family members regarding the treatment, the outcomes of the treatment in terms of both result and side effects and encourage them to foster a positive outlook and keep up the morale.

Oncology nurse jobs Australia is definitely on the rise and it gives registered nurses a great opportunity to prove their mettle as they serve humanity with compassion and kindness. Australia like most other nations is also understaffed as far as nursing department is concerned and hence good compensation, extra benefits, overtime and double shifts are quite common.

Randy Ortan write content related to job recruitment in medical sector. Many people get benefits by his content related to oncology nurse jobs Australia.

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Kathy Giusti

It is difficult for someone who is going through a tough time to help someone else who is in need. Most often, he would think to himself, “How am I going to help that person if I’m suffering myself?” Amazingly, there are some people who think very differently from most of us. People like Kathy Giusti, who did not stay at the side lines and watch the world pass by as she sulked down from her disease, have made a great impact in the lives of many.

Kathy Giusti is the founder of the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, a charitable organization that is devoted to helping patients suffering from multiple myeloma a currently-incurable blood cancer that threatens over fifty thousand people in the United States alone every year.

She started the foundation with her twin sister after she was diagnosed with the disease and found that there was no research at that time to combat the disease. From its inception, the MMRF has raised over two hundred million dollars and is currently the largest funder in the field of myeloma research.

And yes, while Kathy is occupied in serving others through her charitable foundation, she is combatting the disease herself. For over twelve years now, Kathy has been juggling with her life as a philanthropist, a business manager, but most of all, as a wife to her husband and as a mother to her two children.

What is amazing about this is that in spite of her disease, she seems to have never even had it by the way that she works. In fact, she spends most of her time visiting various hospitals and clinics, talking to patients and giving them encouragement that they can make it, and talking to various medical specialists about ways to improve the research to treat multiple myeloma.

Two things can be said regarding Kathy’s attitude that makes her very extraordinary: “persistent” and “positive”. Most of us, if placed in her situation, would easily be discouraged and let ourselves be taken over by despair and depression - but not Kathy.

It was inconvenient, but she saw the sickness as a challenge for her to do something great not just for herself, but for others as well. And in spite of the great fog of uncertainty that clouded her future, she bravely travelled through the rough and turbulent streams of life, firmly believing that at some point, she was going to see the silver lining and make it through.

And she did. Not just because of her attitude and outlook in life, but also because of her leadership and marketing skills. Kathy has a remarkable way of connecting to people and making friends that she is able to get your attention and listen to her. Because of this, she made so many connections that proved to be very helpful in her time of need. In fact, one of the major reasons why the MMRF has been so successful all these years is because of Kathy’s expertise in business and marketing.

Kathy’s life is a very inspiring story to many of us who may be going through some tough situations in life and we start thinking that life is over. It’s like God telling us to always move forward, believe and hope that things will always get better. Like Kathy, may we be able to say one day, that after we have passed through our trials that our test has become a testimony.

To get to know more of our extraordinary profiles and be inspired and motivated, please see TheXtraordinary.

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Caring for Your Pet With Cancer

Caring for Your Pet With Cancer - Health - CancerSearch by Author, Title or Content

Article ContentAuthor NameArticle TitleHomeSubmit ArticlesAuthor GuidelinesPublisher GuidelinesContent FeedsRSS FeedsFAQContact UsCaring for Your Pet With Cancer   by Honolulu Pet Clinicin Health / Cancer    (submitted 2013-02-20)

Finding out that a loved one has cancer can be very scary and confusing. When that loved one is your dog, it's important to keep in mind that different veterinarians might have different views on the best way to treat the disease. It's always a good idea to seek out a second opinion, perhaps from a veterinary oncologist, and carefully review your options.
What Is Cancer?
Cancer is a class of diseases in which cells grow uncontrollably, invade surrounding tissue and can spread to other areas of the body. As with people, dogs can get various kinds of cancer. The disease can be localized (confined to one area, like a tumor) or generalized (spread throughout the body).
What Causes Cancer in Dogs?
Cancer is a "multifactorial" disease, which means it has no known single cause. However, we do know that hereditary and environmental factors can contribute to the development of cancer in dogs.
What Are the General Symptoms of Cancer?
Symptoms of cancer in dogs may include:
Lumps (which are not always malignant, but should always be examined by a vet)
Swelling
Persistent sores
Abnormal discharge from any part of the body
Bad breath
Listlessness/lethargy
Rapid, often unexplained weight loss
Sudden lameness
Black, tarry stools (a symptom of ulcers, which can be caused by mast cell tumors)
Decreased or loss of appetite
Difficulty breathing, urinating or defecating
How Is Cancer Diagnosed?
If a lump is present, the first step is typically a needle biopsy, which removes a very small tissue sample. Alternately, surgery may be performed to remove all or part of the lump for diagnosis by a pathologist.
Radiographs, ultrasound, blood evaluation and other diagnostic tests may also be helpful in determining if cancer is present or if it has spread.
Which Dogs Are Prone to Cancer?
Older dogs are much more likely to develop cancer than younger ones, and certain breeds are prone to specific kinds of cancers. Boxers, Boston terriers and golden retrievers are among the breeds that most commonly develop mast cell tumors. Large and giant breeds, like Great Danes and Saint Bernards, are much more likely to suffer from bone cancer than smaller breeds. It is important to be familiar with the diseases to which your dog might have a breed predisposition.
How Can Cancer Be Prevented?
You can dramatically reduce your dog's chance of getting certain types of cancer by having him or her altered at a young age. Breast cancer, the most common cancer for female dogs, can be avoided almost completely by having your dog spayed before her first heat cycle. And of course, a properly neutered male dog has zero chance of developing testicular cancer. Additionally, some believe that adding antioxidants such as vitamins C and E to a dog's diet will reduce the likelihood of cancer.
How Is Cancer Treated?
Treatment options vary and depend on the type and stage of cancer. Common treatments include surgery, chemotherapy, radiation and immunotherapy. A combination of therapies may be used. Success of treatment depends on the form and extent of the cancer and the aggressiveness of the therapy. Of course, early detection is best.
Some dog owners opt for no treatment of the cancer at all, in which case palliative care, including pain relief, should be offered. Regardless of how you proceed after a diagnosis of cancer in your pet, it is very important to consider his quality of life when making future decisions.
Some cancers can be cured, and almost all patients can receive at least some benefit from treatment. Please note that if your dog's cancer is not curable, there are still many things you can do to make your pet feel better. Don't hesitate to talk to your vet about your options. And don't forget that good nutrition and loving care from all the members of your family can greatly enhance your dog's quality of life.
When Is It Time to See the Vet?
If your dog is exhibiting any of the symptoms mentioned in the above list, contact your veterinarian immediately. Should your dog receive a diagnosis of cancer, you may wish to consult a veterinary cancer expert. Many specialty veterinary practices and veterinary college teaching hospitals employ them.

About the Author

The Honolulu Pet Clinic, LLC, 1115 Young Street Honolulu, HI 96814. Phone: (808)593-9336
http://www.honpet.com

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Doctor Excuse - Some Bright Tips to Skip Your Work

As according to the figures there are thousands of people who are visiting the online services for the template through which they can take the leave. This kind of act is been performed mostly by those who are doing a job. But they do not know what kind of doctor excuse they need to opt. Here you will obtain the most perfect and specific excuses that, you can use. Using an excuse properly is the main object. If you will make a specific and genuine excuse it will surely help you. In this scenario you can also obtain the template from the internet.
There are many people who always make query that, from where to download the specific and genuine template. The answer is you should make a reason which looks more genuine and exact. Here is some of the reason which you can opt:-
• Most of the people have the problem of cold. It is a normal and most used justification but most effective also. This looks very genuine.
• Weather is another important justification. It is the most natural but efficient because it is natural problem. No one has control over it.
• Illness is another defensive strategy and even you can obtain the fake doctors notes on these grounds.
• You can say that, there is an urgent and necessary delivery of furniture has to be done; it looks more authentic in case of saying some other reason.
• One of the most unfair reasons is the demise. Should say that, a sudden demise of relative has occurred and need to attend its funeral.
• The birthday of your best friend or sister is going to be held on tomorrow. So need an extra leave on that day. This would look more authentic.

These are some of the doctor excuse which is effective and useful. A being can use these types of excuse for justifying his leave. But one should not forget that, he should only use such reason which is genuine and authentic. If someone uses an unauthentic reason then he may have to face the problem related to it. One of the most critical problems is of losing the job. There are many people who have lost their job in such situations.
So it is a precious advice for everyone that, always employ only that excuse which are valid and legitimate. So that you can submit the fake doctors notes on that basis. Without submitting a template your excuse would not be valid and look authentic. So the article concludes at this note that, always use a valid and legitimate reason for skipping the work.

This article is about doctor excuse and its benefits. Here you got to know some of the perfect excuse which is very beneficial for you. Always make a reason which is valid with doctors note. For more information please visit at wrchallenge.org.

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Various Types of Medical Treatment in South Africa

South Africa is not only a holiday destination but it is also one of the best places for medical tourism. With its spectacular and exhilarating landscape this is one of the stunning and rejuvenating holiday destinations. In a way it offers a wealth and stunning holiday destination and an array of medical treatment that are carried out in almost all reputed hospital in South Africa.

Heart Surgery in South Africa

Are you considering going for heart surgery in South Africa then you should consider going for packages heart surgery and safari deal. Heart surgery in South Africa is a surgical discipline that offers pre-operative care and surgical interventions for both adult and pediatric patients.

Cancer Hospital in South Africa

According to a statistics, 2 in every people are diagnosed with cancer and do not survive more years. When it comes to address the complex cancer treatment then you should go for the best cancer hospital in South Africa.

Whether you have cancer or is close to someone who has it makes a huge difference. You should understand what to expect from this disease as well as in-depth information about certain kinds of cancer.

It also includes risks, diagnosis, early detection and other treatment options. This is a country that has kept itself abreast of the recent global developments in cancer treatment with number of linear accelerators per capita both in private and public sector.
Kidneys filter wastes from your blood and determine other functions of your body.

They are basically involved in regulating the electrolyte balance, blood pressure and red blood cell production. When the kidneys fail to carry out these functions then the only treatment available is to replace them.

If you choose for the treatment then hemodialysis is must which requires a machine that is used to filter blood from your body. Peritoneal dialysis uses lining of your belly to filter blood inside your body.

Kidney Failure Treatment

To throw more light on this treatment, a new kidney is placed in your body. Each treatment has its advantages and disadvantages. The choice of treatment has a huge impact on your day to day lifestyle and to keep up a job if you are working.

You are best person to decide which will work best for you. If you find that this treatment is not good for you then you can always change your kidney failure treatment. You can take suggestion from your healthcare team, family and friends so that you can lead a full and active life.

The function of healthy kidneys is to clean your blood by removing excess fluid, minerals and wastes. Added to all these they also build hormones in your body, keep your bones strong and keep your body healthy.

When your kidney fails to do the desired function then harmful wastes might build up in your body, the blood pressure might rise and your body retains the excess fluid that does not allow to make enough red blood cells. When all these happen then you need treatment to replace your failed kidneys.

Are you considering going for heart surgery in South Africa and kidney failure treatment in South Africa then you should consider going for packages heart surgery and safari deal.

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Receptor Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors - Their Use in Treating Cancer

Presenter - Douglas H. Thamm, Assistant Professor of Oncology, Colorado State University. How much do I really know about chemotherapy agents? I know their names and what conditions to use
them for but when asked the question: 'how exactly do they work?' I can only deliver a very simplistic explanation. Last week's veterinary webinar run by 'The Webinar vet' helped to re-enforce my understanding of one particular class of drug relatively new to the veterinary world, the receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors.

Associate Professor Douglas H. Thamm led this veterinary webinar and discussed the potential for these drugs both now and in the future. He started by explaining that in order to grasp the benefits of the receptor tyrosine kinase inhibitors, the role of the receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) needed to be understood.

RTK is a protein that spans the surface of cells and listens to the extracellular environment, influencing cellular behaviour when necessary. These receptors can become deregulated by changes such as mutations which cause them to become easily activated. If signalled, they enhance cellular proliferation, cellular survival, migration and
invasion. They also enhance angiogenesis and with all these factors combined will eventually lead to metastasis and 'cancer'.

The RTK inhibitors should help to down regulate these mutated genes, the most notable of which is C-KIT, which is present on both normal and malignant canine mast cells. Around 20-40% of canine mast cell tumours have a mutation in their C-KIT gene leading to constant activation. This explains why the RTK inhibitors we are most familiar with, Toceranib ('Palladia') and Masitinib ('Masivet') are used to treat this common tumour.

Prof. Thamm went into a lot of detail outlining the benefits of both these products in the treatment of canine mast cell tumours and the role of the C-KIT gene. However from these publications came a lot more questions about the use of these drugs in treating cancer. For example when treating canine mast cell tumours, should the RTK inhibitors be used in combination with other treatments, such as other chemotherapy agents and radiation therapy?

Currently Prof. Thamm's standard therapy for nonresectable localised MCTs is to use radiation therapy,toceranib and prednisolone based on this combination offering disease control for 10.5 months. Prof. Thamm
is also hoping to publish research in the near future looking into the use of pulsed toceranib with lomustine in order to reduce cost and minimise side effects.

Questions also have to be asked about the use of these drugs post operatively in cases where there has been incomplete excision or where tumours are at high risk of metastasising. Vets are already likely to be using RTK inhibitors post operatively but currently there is no evidence to demonstrate how effective these medications are. There may also be uses for RTK inhibitors in tumours other than canine mast cells, as is the case in the human field. Tumours including osteosarcomas, squamous cell carcinomas and anal sac adenocarcinomas are all potential candidates.

This was an excellent veterinary webinar, with Prof. Thamm explaining difficult concepts in an interesting and understandable way. The RTK-inhibitors are an exciting advancement in our fight against cancer and I suspect we will be hearing a lot more about them in the future.

The Stethoscope MRCVS

http://www.thewebinarvet.com. revolutionized online learning for vets and pet owners by using webinars thereby cutting out travel time.

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Childhood Cancer: Is India Prepared to Face It?

Statistics shown by some top cancer hospitals say that only in U.S there are more than 13,000 children under the age of 21 are diagnosed with cancer. In India the ‘shadow of crab’ is one 55,000 children every year. This is a worrisome number because only 5 % of childhood cancer is hereditary rest 95% is due to external causes like viruses, pollution, radiation etc.

Here is a sad story; Nitesh loves his red car and Maggi noodles which are a small treat for him. When smiles innocently to take a photograph with his broken teeth even through high sedatives.

This 12-year old village boy is battling with bone cancer for a period of six years now. Last month his father, a farmer by profession took him to one of the top hospitals in India.

The doctors out there have already told him that he should take his son home because the cancer is incurable and has already reached the last stage. Now his skeletal body has to fight with this life threatening disease including four rounds of morphine injections everyday. All his parents want is that he should have a painless death. But the child mind of Nitesh believes that he will be fine one day.

Amongst all these, the most common ones are lymphoma, brain cancer and leukemia. Others are bone cancer, Retinoblastoma, Rhabdomyosarcoma, Lymphoma, Wilms tumor, nervous system tumors and others.

It is sad to know that funding for childhood cancer is quite low than other types of cancer. Over the years no new drug has been invented. The Pediatric Oncology Treatment offered to save the lives of children is often intrusive and aggressive as the medicines sold are old and outdates.

One thing is common about all kinds of gi cancer and childhood cancer which have a common disease process and we provide cancer surgical treatment.

Here the cells grow out of control, ignore the boundaries inside the body, develop into abnormal shapes and sizes, destroy their nearby cells and ultimately spread it to other tissues and organs. Bone marrow transplant in India is one of the most common cancer treatments.

When the cancer cell grows, they demand more and more nutrition. It takes away strength of the child, destroy organs and cells and ultimately spread to other tissue and organs. It weakens the defense mechanism of the body against all kinds of illnesses. When the child is already suffering from cancer then on entering the teens there is increase in incidence of bone cancer.

According to cancer radiation therapy in India the site of cancer is different for each type so are treatments and cure types. Usually the factors that trigger cancer in kids are different from that of adults which they might be into smoking or get exposed to environmental toxins.

It is quite rare that there might be risk in childhood cancer among kids with a genetic condition like Down Syndrome. Even those who have already undergone radiation treatment or chemotherapy for a prior cancer treatment have increased risk of this disease.

One thing is common about all kinds of gi cancer and childhood cancer which have a common disease process and we provide cancer surgical treatment.

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Understanding Your Prostate Cancer: Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Treatment

You probably take your health for granted. You don’t think twice about your ability to do all of your normal daily activities until something goes wrong. For example, simple things such as the health of your teeth, good eyesight, and your ability to hear are all things that most people take for granted unless they are in an accident affecting one of these senses. Only then do they realize the huge impact that their health has on their lives. Similarly, people who are diagnosed with serious illnesses such as cancer, quickly realize how many things they’ve taken for granted their entire lives. Men who have to deal with prostate cancer face the challenge of infertility and other issues related to bowel, urinary, and sexual function.

Symptoms and Dealing with Diagnosis

If you experience symptoms including needing to urinate frequently, having difficulty controlling the flow when you urinate, or painful urination, you may have prostate cancer and should consult a doctor. Other symptoms include difficulty achieving an erection, painful ejaculation, and blood in the urine or semen. Once you have been diagnosed with cancer, you have some important decisions ahead of you. Before you can make the best decisions about what types of treatment to undergo, it’s important to take some time to process the emotions that you might be feeling as a result of the diagnosis. In order for your body to be at its best and health quickly, it’s important for your mind to be at rest with regards to your condition. Taking time to study the issues, treatments, risks, and overall impact that the cancer could have on your life is a good way to face your enemy head on.

Treatment Options

There are various treatments available for prostate cancer. After an initial diagnosis, many men will choose active surveillance, or the careful monitoring of the cancer for any signs of progression, as their first course of action. If your cancer is still in its early stages and remains confined to the prostate, you may choose to undergo a prostatectomy, or the surgical removal of the entire prostate gland. Chemotherapy and radiation therapy are other treatments that many people undergo. Even though they are used for cases where the cancer is more wide-spread, they can be used in the early stages of the disease as well. Hormone therapy, where testosterone is removed, can be effective in killing the majority of the cancerous cells. However, there are some cancerous cells that continue to grow despite the lack of testosterone. It’s important to research the different treatment options available before making your decision.

PCF ( http://www.pcf.org ) is the leading philanthropic organization funding and accelerating prostate cancer research globally. PCF has aggressively funded significant victories in the fight against prostate cancer. But too many men still die; too many families still suffer. You can help us find better treatments and ultimately cures for this disease.

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Breast Cancer Stages: Importance of Knowing Breast Cancer Stages

Staging of breast cancer is important because it allows the patient and physician to determine the need for treatment? State s. Furthermore, it is essential to assess the risk of the given condition and what lifestyle changes the patient can do to improve your health.

To identify the stage breast cancer

When we talk about breast cancer stages, aims to describe the extent of cancer in the body. So if you are wondering how breast cancer is staged, doctors often begin to classify whether it is invasive or non-invasive. Other factors taken into account are the size of the tumor, the number of modes involved nymph, and what other parts of the body, was able to affect.

Determining the stage of cancer is useful for prognosis and deciding on a treatment option.

In determining the phase, some standard procedures are carried out by a doctor to a patient. Undergo a physical examination and a biopsy to obtain the data needed by the physician for a diagnosis.

If necessary, other tests are also performed as imaging tests, including X-ray, bone scan, breast mammography, computed tomography, positron emission tomography (PET) and Magentic resonance.

What are the stages of breast cancer?

Now that the importance of identifying the different stages of breast cancer have been identified, and the methods used to identify, now is the time to review each step. Takes note of the characteristics and extent of cancer in each step:

Stage 0 breast cancer

This step causes the case of breast cancer to be non-invasive. At this stage breast cancer, cancer cells or noncancerous still can not be detected.

The abnormal cells are still at the stage where they are trying to spread within the specific part of the breast where the cells are embedded. Furthermore, it may seek to develop tissue surrounding the cancer cells continue to grow.

Step Breast Cancer

Once breast cancer among this stage is now classified as one type of noninvasive breast cancer. Sense, cancer cells have made their way to nearby tissues. Stage I breast cancer also have the following features:

? The cancerous tumor has reached a size of 2 inches.
? No nodes are involved anyway.

Stage II breast cancer

For this particular stage of breast cancer, also known as an invasive cancer is divided into two categories:

Cancer: Stages & Diagnostics

Stages of cancer: When cancer is diagnosed initially or subsequently when the tests are performed to determine the levels of development or delivery, stage of development is generally described by the following characteristics agreed. In general, the higher the stage of the cancer, the better the outcome of treatment.

Step 1 - The cancerous tumor is only in the organ where it originated.
Step 2 - Mayor cancerous tumor that may or may not have spread to lymph nodes. Cancer cells can spread throughout the body via the vascular system (blood), or the lymphatic system. If surgery is preformed, some lymph nodes "sentinel" can be analyzed to see if cancer cells are installed in the lymphatic system.
Step 3 - Increase the cancerous tumor which is also found in the lymph nodes.
Step 4 - cancer metastasis in an organ or tissue other than that originally began, usually named for the organ or tumor origin (eg, breast cancer spread at Basin is metastatic breast cancer, etc ...) at this stage tumors are more aggressive, which requires strong treatment regimens.
***

Diagnosis

Early detection of cancer can lead to early treatment, which greatly improves the chances of a person surviving the disease. Most tumors are discovered when a professional internal or signs or notices patients symptoms and inform a provider of health care: a technician can detect abnormal mammograms, or the patient may feel strange lump / opinions of blood in faeces. Routine physical examinations and / or tests are also a good source of early detection.

Biopsy: Once the anomaly is suspected, the first step to make medical decisions if a tumor is benign or malignant is to remove a small number of cells or tissues for examination under a microscope biopsy. A biopsy can determine whether cells are cancerous, and to determine exactly what type of cancer it is.

X-rays: X-rays are a form of electromagnetic radiation that can penetrate the tissues of the body, clothing, and organs. An X-ray apparatus that emits radiation through the body. Part of the radiation emerging from the other side of the body, wherein the film is exposed or is absorbed by a digital detector to create a file. And a portion thereof is absorbed by the tissues of the body as it moves through. Radiation is painless, but at higher doses, as received radiation oncology, can create skin irritation or abrasion and long-term side effects. Radiation to the tumor kills cancer cells, but also affects healthy cells to rapid growth in the region. For example, the head radiation is directed toward the destruction of cancer cells, but also can kill the hair follicles, which the permanent hair loss.

Ovarian Cancer Stages : The Four Stages You Need To Be Award Of

There are four stages of ovarian cancer, these steps indicate that the cancer has spread. Treatment tends to be specific to each step. To find out what stage your cancer examinations and tests will be necessary.

Ovarian cancer stages are;

This stage is where the cancer is confined to the ovary, or on the surface of the ovaries.

This step is where the cancer has spread outside the ovary, but is still within the watershed.

This step is where the cancer has spread outside the pelvis, abdomen or the back of the uterus or groin.

This stage occurs when the cancer has spread to other parts of the body, which may be the lungs or liver. If this is the case, but the cancer is only on the surface of the affected area, then always classified as step 3.

It is essential to find out at what stage are also less treatment will be different for each step in the diagnosis of ovarian cancer, the doctor will refer to undergo the necessary tests. When the scene was identified treatment is initiated or changed to suit your needs.

The staging process was established by the International Federation of Gynecologic Oncologists, where it is known as FIGO.

Each stage ovarian cancer is divided into 3 categories, are a, b and c.

Step 1.

A means the cancer is only in one of the ovaries.
B means that the cancer is found in both ovaries.
C, this means that the cancer is ovarian and ovarian surface.

Step 2.

A means the cancer is found in the tubes or the uterus or fallopian tubes.
B means that the cancer has spread to areas within the watershed.
C, this means that the cancer has been found to affect all areas of the pelvis and abdomen.

Step 3.

The cancer cells are now in the abdominal lining fabric.
B tumors are found in the lining of the abdomen, which can range up to 3 cm in diameter.
C large tumors can be found in the abdomen or groin at the back lining of the uterus.

Step 4 has no categories, ie because the cancer was found to affect other parts of the body.

No matter what stage you are, there are organizations that can help you deal with your condition. Not only can support, can also offer advice on a number of things such as benefits, accommodations or advice.

Ovarian cancer stages must be properly identified, therefore, the treatment can be modified to suit. Knowing the stage of ovarian cancer are means that you get the most effective treatment, so when you go for a checkup of the cancer has spread to the next stage of your treatment will be changed.

For more information about the stages of ovarian cancer, please visit my health ezines detailed information not only about the disease, but many health-related topics.