Treatments & Coping With Colon Cancer

Author:Guest
Patients who receive a diagnosis of colon cancer quickly become depressed and have a lot of unanswered questions about their future. The most important thing for them to realize is that they are not alone and that their friends and family are there to provide love and support.

When dealing with any type of illness, including colon cancer, family and friends are the first thought of a positive support system. Understandably, these same people may be experiencing a lot of emotional pain and anxiety themselves, which stems from seeing their loved on suffering from an illness. If, for these reasons, a cancer patient cannot find support at home, it’s a good idea to join a local support group or become involved in an activity that they enjoy. If their health allows it, a cancer patient should continue living life and enjoying every day as possible. While quality of life is very important, making sure to take time out for rest is one of the key points for successful recovery from any illness.

Immediately following diagnosis, a colon cancer patient may want to visit their local library or research the internet for educational resources, of which there are plenty available. This information will help the patient to become better informed and allow them to be more involved with their treatment. It’s important to know, and understand, what is happening to the body during an illness, treatments and recovery. It is equally recommended that a patient remain involved in his/her care for as long as possible. This can be achieved by conducting research, asking the physician a lot of questions and preparing for best and worst case scenarios.

Depending on how advanced a cancer patient’s illness is, several treatment options are available. If a patient decides to move forward with treatment, he/she may also wish to consult another physician for a second opinion in order to confirm the diagnosis and recommended treatment. The best outcome is to eliminate the cancer completely but, if that is not possible, the doctor may be able to stop the cancer from spreading or to relieve the patient‘s symptoms and discomfort.

Assuming the patient’s health will allow it, and he/she wishes to pursue remedies, the main method of treatment is surgery. Depending on the location and size of the cancer, a doctor may be able to remove all or part of the colon. If a polyp is the only cancer that is known to be present, it may be all that needs removing. In some cases of colon cancer, the patient must wear a permanent colostomy following surgery. This occurs if the cancer is so advanced that it forces the doctor to remove the entire colon.

Another common approach to treating colon cancer is for the patient to begin a series of chemotherapy treatments. This process involves the intake of medicines to help fight the cancer cells, which can either be taken orally or delivered through the patient’s veins. This option is often most useful to rid the patient of any lingering cancer cells following surgery. In addition, chemotherapy may be used to control the growth of cancer, relieve symptoms and prolong life. Radiation therapy, often used in conjunction with chemotherapy to help combat various other cancers, is not a treatment used to help colon cancer patients after surgery.

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.

Antiperspirants And Breast Cancer

Author:Guest
Most underarm antiperspirants contain as the active ingredient, Aluminium Chlorohydrate, as you will probably remember there has been controversy about Aluminium, since the 1950's when it was a popular metal used for making cooking pots, Saucepans and Fry Pans and that it could be one of the contributing factors to Alzheimer's, now we have another problem that could also be related to Aluminium, Breast Cancer.

Research shows that one of the leading causes of Breast Cancer could be the use of antiperspirants. The human body has a number of areas, that it uses to purge Toxins from the body, these are, behind the knees, behind the ears, the groin area, and the armpits. The toxins are purged from the body in the form of perspiration and antiperspirant as the name clearly suggests prevents you from perspiring, thereby inhibiting the body from purging Toxins from the armpit area. These Toxin do not just disappear, Instead, the body deposits them in the Lymph Nodes below the arms, since it is unable to sweat them out. A concentration of Toxins then builds up in the areas such as the armpits, which can then lead to cell mutations, which is cancer.

It cannot be ignored, that nearly all Breast Cancer Tumors occur in the upper outer quadrant of the breast area, this is where the Lymph Nodes are located. Men are less likely (but not totally exempt) to develop breast cancer prompted by the use of antiperspirants, because the antiperspirant is more likely to be caught in the armpit hair, rather than directly applied to the skin, but ladies, who shave their armpits, increase the risk by causing imperceptable nicks in the skin, which allow the chemicals to enter easily into the body through the armpits.

This article is aimed mainly at ladies, but please be aware that there are a few antiperspirants on the market that are made from natural products, but basically they would still trap the Toxins in the same areas. The best solution is to use deodorants, rather than antiperspirants, also please remember that the Eight Essential Sugars in Glyconutrients can also help to fight off Toxins.

There is a lot of controversy about this article, the medical profession scoff at the idea, and so do big business, but then again there are huge numbers of people that scoff at the problems associated with Fluoride in drinking water. You can make up your own mind on whether there is someting in this article or not, I know that if I was a lady, I would keep clear of Antiperspirants. I realise that Doctors everywhere, do a marvelous job, and they are appreciated, but they are reluctant to look at the bigger picture, also please remember that the fourth largest killer of people in the western world is prescription drugs.

You Can Reduce Your Risk of Breast Cancer...

Author:Guest
In January 2003, the Journal of the American Medical Association featured a study finding that obesity appears to lessen life expectancy, especially among young adults. The researchers compared Body-Mass Index (BMI) to longevity and found a correlation between premature death and higher BMIs. For example, a 20-year-old white male, 5'10" weighing 288 pounds with a BMI of greater than 40 was estimated to lose 13 years of his life as a result of obesity. Jamie McManus, M.D., F.A.A.F.P. and author of "Your Personal Guide to Wellness" notes that while this study referenced extreme levels of obesity, there are still millions of overweight people in developed countries with a life expectancy rate that is three to five years less than their healthy-weight counterparts. She also estimates that there are 600,000 obesity related deaths each year in America.

Just how does obesity shorten our lifespan? The answer to this question is complex, yet there is a clear link between obesity and the development of cancer. An extensive study conducted by the American Cancer Institute involving 750,000 people showed that obesity significantly increased the risk of cancer developing in the following organs: breast, colon, ovaries, uterus, pancreas, kidneys and gallbladder.

Michael Thun, MD, vice-president of epidemiology and surveillance research for the American Cancer Society (ACS) says one reason obesity may raise cancer risk is because fat cells produce a form of estrogen called estradiol that promotes rapid division of cells, increasing chances of a random genetic error while cells are replicating, which can lead to cancer. In addition, fat centered around the abdomen may increase insulin and insulin-like growth factors in the blood, which may increase cancer risk.

"Women who are obese after menopause have a 50% higher relative risk of breast cancer," notes Thun, "and obese men have a 40% higher relative risk of colon cancer?. Gallbladder and endometrial cancer risks are five times higher for obese individuals".There is evidence that cancer rates in developed countries are increasing at 5 to 15 times faster than developing countries. A major contributor to this alarming reality has proven to be diet. In populations where the diet consists mostly of fresh fruit and vegetables and whole grains in contrast to the typical Western diet of fatty meats, refined flours, oils and sugars ? the risk of cancer is much lower.

The interaction of diet and the development of cancer is an active field of research and Dr David Heber, M.D., Ph.D. and author of "What Color is Your Diet", says "It appears that diet has its most significant effects after the cancer has already formed, acting to inhibit or stimulate the growth of that cancer". At the risk of oversimplifying a complex set of interactions, the typical Western diet that leads to obesity may actually act to stimulate the growth of cancer cells.It is never too late to improve your health through healthful eating and adopting a more health-giving lifestyle. Here are simple steps to follow which can make an immediate improvement to your health and vitality. Please check this web site for more information -> http://treat-breast-cancer.info/

1. Check your Body Mass Index (BMI) to determine if weight has become health risk. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 60% of Americans are overweight, defined as having a BMI (a ratio of height to weight) over 25. Of those, nearly half (27%) qualify as obese, with a body mass index of 30 or more. In 1980, just 15% of Americans were considered obese.

2. Match your diet to your body's requirements. If you eat and drink more calories than your body requires you will put on weight. Learn to control calories and portion sizes, make recipes leaner, and eat infrequently from fast food restaurants. Also learn how to snack with healthful choices.

3. Color your diet with a large variety of colorful, cancer-fighting fruit and vegetables. There are seven different color ranges of both fruit and vegetables and by choosing between 5 to 9 daily serves from a wide range of fruit and vegetables, we are extending our consumption of cancer (and other disease) fighting nutrients.

4. Eat lean protein with every meal. Protein provides a powerful signal to the brain providing a longer sense of fullness. The right source of protein is essential to controlling your hunger with fewer calories and necessary to maintain your lean muscle mass. Choices of protein should be flavored soy shakes with fruit; the white meat of chicken and turkey, seafood such as shrimps, prawns scallops and lobster and ocean fish or veqetarians may prefer soy based meat substitutes.

5. Rev up your metabolism with activity. If you want to enjoy a lifetime of well-being, exercise is a key ingredient. Colleen Doyle, MS, RD, director of nutrition and physical activity for the American Cancer Society (ACS), says adults should do something for 30 minutes each day that takes as much effort as a brisk walk. Children should be active for an hour each day. We are more likely to develop habits around things we enjoy, so seek activities which you enjoy doing. It is also helpful to build physical activity into your daily routine: use the stairs instead of the escalator or lift at work, park your car in the parking bay furthest from the super market and don't use the remote control to change TV channels.

6. Get support to ensure you develop a healthful eating plan and reach your goal weight. Whilst a small percentage of people possess the discipline to lose weight, many obese people have developed strong thoughts and habits concerning the food they eat. In order to establish new habits, most people respond well to some form of consistent encouragement and coaching. A study, "Effects of Internet Behavioral Counseling on Weight Loss in Adults at Risk of Type 2 Diabetes" shows that participants who had the support of weight loss coaching lost more weight than those who didn't. The study concluded that the support of a weight loss coach can significantly improve weight loss results.

Being overweight or obese has been identified next to smoking, as the most preventable major risk to developing cancer. Even small weight losses have been shown to have beneficial health effects. So it's never to late to start and you can never be too young or too old to be concerned about your health and do something about achieving a more healthy weight.

Understanding Breast Cancer

Author:Ann Anderson
Cancer begins in cells, the building blocks that make up tissues. Tissues make up the organs of the body.

The nipple is in the center of a dark area of skin called the areola. Fat fills the spaces between the lobules and ducts.

Normally, cells grow and divide to form new cells as the body needs them. When cells grow old, they die, and new cells take their place.

Sometimes, this orderly process goes wrong. New cells form when the body does not need them, and old cells do not die when they should. These extra cells can form a mass of tissue called a growth or tumor.

Tumors can be benign or malignant:

Benign tumors are not cancer:

Benign tumors are rarely life-threatening.
Generally, benign tumors can be removed. They usually do not grow back.
Cells from benign tumors do not invade the tissues around them.
Cells from benign tumors do not spread to other parts of the body.
· Malignant tumors are cancer:

Malignant tumors are generally more serious than benign tumors. They may be life-threatening.
Malignant tumors often can be removed. But sometimes they grow back.
Cells from malignant tumors can invade and damage nearby tissues and organs.
Cells from malignant tumors can spread (metastasize) to other parts of the body. Cancer cells spread by breaking away from the original (primary) tumor and entering the bloodstream or lymphatic system. The cells invade other organs and form new tumors that damage these organs. The spread of cancer is called metastasis.

Internet-based grid computing

Author: Denny Lancaster
The research centered on proteins that were been determined to be a possible target for cancer therapy. Through a process called "virtual screening", special analysis software identified molecules that interacted with these proteins, and determined which of the molecular candidates had a high likelihood of being developed into a drug. The process is similar to finding the right key to open a special lock — by looking at millions upon millions of molecular keys.

Participants in the Cancer Research Project were sent a ligand library over the Internet. Their PC analyzed the molecules using a docking software called LigandFit by Accelrys. The LigandFit software analyzed the molecular data by using a three-dimensional model to attempt to interact with a protein binding site. When a ligand docked successfully with a protein, the resulting interaction was scored and the interactions that generated the highest scores were recorded and filed for further evaluation.

We need a better answer. Over five decades of cancer research effort in drug discovery and development have yielded more than 40 drugs for the treatment of cancers. These anti-cancer drugs are extending the lives of many people with cancer, but often at great cost. The side effects commonly associated with cancer therapy often may seem as bad as the disease itself. Side effects can be so severe that they limit the dosages patients can receive. And half of all cancer patients fail to respond to the therapies currently available.

Despite these shortcomings, these therapies are still quite costly — a considerable amount of money is spent on treating cancer. Treatment of cancers account for over 6% of all health care costs. The National Institutes of Health estimate cancer is responsible for $37 billion for direct medical costs, and $11 billion in lost productivity due to illness. The discovery of new drugs represents the best hope to fight both the rising medical costs and the suffering associated with current cancer therapies.

There could hardly be a scourge more worth fighting — the high mortality rate, the suffering experienced by patients, and the high costs of treatment make fighting this disease a research priority.

Even with extensive pre-screening, the whittled-down number of molecules to review for this project is estimated at over two hundred million for each protein — a daunting number. Analyzing this quantity of anything requires an enormous amount of computational power. And when the numbers are this big, even supercomputing is limited. A super computer has a peak capacity. That is, if a workload is three times the capacity of the computer, the jobs must be "queued up" and attacked consecutively. A project like this one might take so much time that a researcher wouldn't even embark on it — he or she wouldn't see the end result in their lifetime. However, with distributed computing, thousands or even millions of individual computers can each work on different molecules simultaneously, and the time to results can be significantly lessened.

Diana Campbell's Letter

I have had Stage IV Breast Cancer (metastases to the bones) since Sept. 2000, and was first diagnosed as Stage IIIB in January, 1992. The past decade has been a roller coaster ride and if you, a family member or friend has cancer, then you know what I'm talking about.

I began researching Stage IV Breast Cancer in the summer of 1999 when an X-ray during a checkup showed a suspicious sliver on a back rib. Many months later, this sliver was a huge tumor, but it had previously biopsied negative. I had a feeling something was not right so I began researching. I found there was not as much info on Stage IV as there was on Breast Cancer prevention and awareness as well as early stage, primary diagnosis and treatment.

So I created this website and the associated Survivor webring, email lists, research project and stores. My goal was to provide the information here that we all want to know at this Stage -- mostly associated with what we can do to prolong our lives. I am in the process of updating and adding but I hope this site will be of some help to you. Please join the UD grid too as this project will help speed cancer research and possibly help me and others too very shortly as we cope with stage IV breast cancer.

Diana Campbell

Diana passed away on February 19, 2003

Within a month of joining Diana's team in December 2000 I found that cancer had vested itself in my frailer human body too.

The initial team which Diana formed began to dwindle as cancer took its ugly toll. Wishing always remember my dear friend and make a contribution, my resources were transferred to the AS! team-CureNow. AS! is now exploring forming another team with broader appeal beyond the very small awards community and will be making a decision in the very near future. I will certainly join and a new team graphic with a link will be updated in this space.

To keep the memory of Diana alive there are now various Internet-based grid computing schemas available, thanks to the pioneering work of Oxford University and United Devices.

The World Community Grid software uses the idle time of Internet-connected computers and applies this computing power toward the advancement of humanity.

The agent works like a screen saver, only using a computer's resources when it would otherwise be idle and relinquishing the resources back to the users when they start using the computers again. The agent can also be run like an application, always running in the background unless specifically disabled/paused.

While many public computing grids such as SETI@home or Folding@home have been devoted to a single project, the World Community Grid offers multiple humanitarian projects under a single umbrella. Projects are approved by an advisory board, with members from most of the major research institutions and universities, as well as the UN and WHO.

Within the grid, users may join teams that have been created by organizations, groups, or individuals. Teams allow for a heightened sense of community identity and attempts to inspire competitiveness.

World Community Grid also differs from other grid projects by offering support for more than one grid infrastructure. The open source BOINC client is available for Linux, Windows, and Mac; the proprietary Grid MP from United Devices Inc. is only available for Windows.

History

The United Devices Smallpox Research Grid Project was sponsored by IBM and other Research Participants to accelerate the discovery of a smallpox cure. The Smallpox study employed computational chemistry on a massive distributed computing grid to analyze candidates for a medical therapy to fight the smallpox virus.

The project allowed scientists to screen 35 million potential drug molecules against several smallpox proteins to identify good candidates for developing into smallpox treatments. In the first 72 hours, 100,000 results were returned and 44 strong treatment candidates were identified at the completion of the project.

Based on the success of the Smallpox study, IBM announced on November 16, 2004 the creation of World Community Grid with the goal of creating a technical environment where other humanitarian research could be processed.

World Community Grid initially only supported Windows, using the proprietary grid technology from United Devices which powers grid.org projects. Strong demand for Linux support led to the open source BOINC grid technology which powers the Seti@home and Climateprediction (among others) being added. Mac OS X support is now also included.

As of March 24, 2007, the World Community Grid had nearly 272,000 members with over 550,000 registered work stations. It had a total process run time equivalent to about 82,000 years and about 80 million results have been sent. The World Community Grid updates these statistics several times a day, making the information available through a dedicated statistics page.

Surviving Breast Cancer One Day At A Time

Author: Lobita Grimes
I've done my homework and now I'm ready to share it with you. Wish you knew the real truth about cancer and your much needed survival ? Now you can educate yourself, along with your hospital care. You can do it, you can survive breast cancer!

I want to make a believer out of you, so get ready, buckle down and read this information carefully, as one can only learn so much in so little time. Read on. It all happened in the year 2003,as I proceeded to resume my everyday life, and having no symptoms of breast cancer I truly was at the peak of my life.

I had just recently got married, and now all my children were grown and established in their own life. Things were going so great I thought, at last I can sit back and finally ENJOY life. At last after raising four sons and dealing with all the rebellious teenage years and such, I was all so ready for that much needed break just to breathe a little.

I had heard about mammogram's and such, but chose to ignore all the red flags (signs) around me. During my usual nightly shower, it was like a strong spiritual force guiding my hand to the direct area where as I call it, my life changing force area. Oh my I thought, what's this I feel, something seems different somehow, I've never witnessed a lump on my breast before. Something like the size of a small golf ball residing on my breast was no laughing matter.

As I desperately searched the other breast there was no growth of any kind. I really have to say that before my diagnosis I felt it in the deepest part of my being that I had breast cancer, call it women's intuition but it was like being in a foggy dream, kinda hoping you will wake up soon.

After waking my husband and asking him to confirm my newly discovered lump, he too agreed that something was a little off somehow. Now at this point, my husband and I needed answers and we needed them in a hurry. A week later my life changed for what I thought was the worst. After hearing those dreaded words, yes you have breast cancer, my heart sunk.

My doctor informed me that the breast cancer was spreading rapidly, and that surgery was needed to try and get a grip on things. My body was limp, my heart was pounding and I felt shocked and confused, but then right at that moment something washed over me and somehow I knew in my inner being that I was going to be all right! I knew that GOD was with me , because I could feel a strong spiritual presence surrounding me.

After going thru so many of life's disappointments I knew that I had to pick up the pieces of my fractured life, but how I thought? Where do I turn for help ? That's when I turned to the computer for help. It's been 5 years now and I still study and will continue too for as long as possible. Now I would like to share this information with others. Lifestyle changes can improve your overall health. As we all know, life holds no guarantees but, one must educate themselves to all the possibilities in life.

You won't learn everything in a doctors office, you MUST learn life changing exercises outside the doctors office. I have lived thru this nightmare and now I can share things with you that you will never learn from your doctor.

Never panic, educate yourself about all your options BEFORE you proceed with any treatments. Remember knowledge is power. Begin the journey and survive breast cancer!

How to Prevent Cancer

Author:Adrian Joele
Most cancers grow very slowly, silently eating away at your body, before they manifest themselves. In spite of claims by the National Cancer Institute of successful treatment, after a cancer emerges, medicine is usually powerless.

Every time you are set at ease by statements of the cancer industry, remember the rapid death of Jaquline Kennedy Onassis of lymphoma and Michael Landon of pancreatic cancer.
If there was an effective treatment anywhere in the world, don't you think such enormously rich people would have bought it?

So if a little of the right exercise can prevent cancer, it's worth more than all the gold in Fort Knox. And like all other good things in life..... it's totally free!

In my article about exercise to lower cholesterol, I referred to the study of Dr. Kenneth Cooper who followed 13,344 men and women, for fifteen years. After eliminating interfering factors, incidence of all forms of cancer was closely correlated with lack of physical fitness.

Unfit men and women had 300% more change to develop cancer. The fitter the subjects were, over five levels of fitness, the lower their risk of cancer. But the best finding from this study is that you have to move only a fraction out of couch potatoland to prevent cancer big time.

"You don't have to be a marathon runner. A half hour of exercise four or five days per week can drop cancer risk dramatically," according to Dr. Carl Casperson of the Centers For Disease
Control in Atlanta.

There are numerous new studies showing that exercise inhibits specific cancers. So I will restrict to two prominent examples, one for women and one for men.

Breast cancer is the most common female cancer and the third biggest cancer killer in America. More women are developing and dying from breast cancer today than in the 1960's, including all other cancers of the female reproductive organs, like uterine cancer and ovarian cancer.

Together they make 220,000 victims among the American women ech year. It will be a winner for every woman if simple exercises can help prevent such disaster.

In a major study , Dr. Rose Frisch and colleagues at the Harvard School of Public Health, followed 5000 women college students. Those who exercised from high school on had many fewer breast cancers and reproductive system cancers than their inactive class mates.This evidence is clear. Regular exercise can stop female cancers cold.

The regulation of estrogen and other sex hormones is the major mechanism, by which exercise prevents these cancers. If left unchecked, can cause uncontrolled cell proliferation in the
female reproductive system.

It seems that women who exercise regularly are simply activating an essential health mechanism in their bodies, designed to be activated in just that way by the Almighty hand that created all life on earth.

What about exercise and cancer in males? I like to use examples of colon and rectal cancers, although these are also a leading cause of cancer in women. Colo-rectal cancers are the second leading caner category , with more than 155,000 new cases every year. Red meats and animal fats are major causes, but so is inactivity.

A large study measured the exercise levels and the resting heart rates of 8000 men over 21 years. As I mentioned in my previous articles, resting heart rate is a good measure of fitness and provides a good check on reported exercise. The risk of colon and rectal cancers was directly correlated with heart rate.

An even larger study tracked 17,000 Harvard students for 25 years. Subjects who were highly active, burning 2500 calories or more i exercise each week, showed only half the risk of colon cancer as their inactive fellow students.

The mechanism by which exercise probably prevents colo-rectal cancers is simple and also part of the human design. Exercise naturally promotes regular bowel movements and increases the speed of excretion of food wastes.

As a result it reduces time for carcinogen formation and also prevents prolonged contact between carcinogens and intestinal walls. In our constipated society that spends a whopping
$700 million per year on harmful (oops! "gentle, safe and soothing") laxatives, this kind of evidence should be a wake up call to exercise.

These studies are just a fraction of the mass of intense research in respected medical journals, proving that exercise prevents cancer. But nowhere in any of the public advice hand-outs from the National Cancer Institute and the American Cancer Society mention exercise as a means of preventing cancer.

Unlike pharmaceuticals and medical treatment, exercise is free of course and available to everyone. So it garners no grants, solicits no ads and makes no obscene profits.

In the American Cancer Society's professional journal, called CA for example, a new analyses of risk factors for breast cancer includes everything. From residence in northern states to socio economic class, except couch potatoism.

Anyone less trusting than I might suspect that geniuses who populate our health agencies, are either far too brilliant to bother with lowly scientific research, or they dance to more moving music. "One-step, two-step, I'll scratch you-step, if you'll scratch me-step, Tee Hee Hee-step."