Health News and Information

The cervix is the neck of the uterus that juts into the upper vagina. It is usually about 3-4 cm long and 2-3 cm in diameter. The cervix often gets bigger following pregnancy. The outside of the cervix is usually covered by the same tissue as that which lines the vagina (‘squamous’). The inside of the cervix consists of glandular tissue responsible for producing mucus which in turn ensures that sperm is able to swim up into the uterus and subsequently along the tubes to meet the egg so that fertilization can take place and pregnancy occur.The junction where the outside skin and inner glandular material meet is called the ‘transformation zone’ and it is at this site where precancerous change develops. In younger women this site is on the outside of the cervix. In postmenopausal women it is usually within the canal of the cervix, which is why a brush sample is routinely taken during a Pap smear.The principal reason why cancer of the cervix develops is due to an infection with a virus – the ‘human papilloma virus’ (HPV). It is estimated that at least 80% of the sexually active adult population at some point are both exposed to and infected with human papilloma viruses of which there are over 100 different types. Approximately 15-20% of these can affect the female genital tract and can be responsible not only for the development of cancer of the cervix, but in some cases can also cause vaginal cancer and vulval cancer.Since these viruses are transmitted sexually, infections are usually quickly resolved through a woman’s immunity and therefore do not result in cancer. It is still unclear as to why in some women these infections persist and eventually lead to precancerous and ultimately cancerous changes. Certainly smoking cigarettes increases the risk by about 4 times. It is obvious that the more times a woman can be exposed to such viruses, then the higher the chances of her getting cancer of the cervix.The incidence of this cancer is increased in women with multiple sexual partners, particularly when barrier contraception, such as condoms, is not used. Lesbian women also have a risk of developing cancer of the cervix and need to have regular Pap tests.There are two common cancers affecting the cervix. In about 80% of cases, the cancer arises from the outside skin of the cervix – the ‘squamous epithelium’, thus these are called squamous cancers.In about 20% of cases, however, the cancers can arise either from the glandular tissue in the canal of the cervix (‘adenocarcinoma’), or can be mixed cancers called ‘adenosquamous cancers. These cancers grow locally into the upper vagina and into the ligaments supporting the cervix – the so-called ‘cardinal’ ligaments or ‘parametrium’. Because the tube running from the kidney to the bladder runs in the parametrium, if local spread of cancer does occur, these tubes can get blocked and the kidneys become swollen causing pain in the back, below the ribs on either side of the midline.These particular cancers are prone to infection, so foul smelling discharge and heavy bleeding can be a problem if left untreated. In advanced cases the bleeding can be life threatening. As in uterine cancers, advanced cancers of the cervix can invade into the bladder and into the rectum with leakage of bladder and/or rectal contents into the vagina. Because the nerves supplying the pelvis run along the ligaments supporting the cervix, then pain can be a feature, particularly in advanced cases.Cancers of the cervix take a while to spread outside of the pelvic area. The cancer spreads most often to the lungs and occasionally to the bones so that a cough or chest pain and/or bone pain becomes prominent.*4/144/5*

The doctor’s recommendation was monthly injections of a hormone-blocking drug called Lupron. It is the only recognized treatment for Precocious Puberty. Lupron blocks the release of gonadatropin-releasing hormone, made by the pituitary gland. Lupron is normally used for the treatment of
prostate cancer in older men. Pediatric medicine has now also begun using it to treat Precocious Puberty. (According to the Physicians’ Desk Reference, Lupron has 265 side-effects.)
I was most concerned about using this drug. After all, it hadn’t been used very long for Precocious Puberty What health problems might be expected? The doctor was recoav’ mending monthly injections until Sarah was eleven years old. That was six years of monthly shots! Of course, the doctor did her best to reassure me. However, from my own research about Lupron, I learned that there were, in fact, many side-effects and health problems caused by Lupron. I wasn’t at all certain about the use of Lupron in children since it was only approved for pediatric use in the mid-1980′s. There have been no long-term trials. Understandably, I was really worried.
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Finally, remember – apart from prevention in the first place, there is no single tool that is more important in preventing mortality from breast cancer than early diagnosis. If you are suspicious, get yourself checked out, and if you are told that there is nothing to worry about, but you still have doubts, get a second opinion. Do not delay in asking a doctor to check your symptoms out for any reason – there is no reason to be embarrassed, pretend they aren’t there or feel that you are wasting your doctor’s time. Any competent and caring doctor will not mind examining any irregularities. It is the experience of surgeons that I have talked to that a disquietingly large number of women still come for treatment at an advanced stage, having ignored their symptoms for quite a while. Embarrassment, fear and the hope that it will ‘just go away’ are reasons that are given. Treatment is much more effective if given during the early stages of breast cancer.
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In any given situation there is always at least one alternative. To have one treatment or another treatment or no treatment at all. To keep working or stop working, or perhaps work part-time. To Itay home or go into hospital or move in with your daughter. To i iv or to explode or to sulk or to smile. To talk or to remain silent.

To play with the grandchildren or just watch them or stop them from visiting you at all.

Often we decide on something without consciously recognising or thinking through the alternatives. This can happen when the advantages of a particular course of action seem so great that it’s not worth considering anything else. That’s fine if it’s true. But more often, it’s best to at least go through the exercise of thinking through the possible options.

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Mint Delight

A simple yet delicious drink made with pineapple and fresh mint (with or without yogurt). First, juice 1 pineapple and 1 handful of mint leaves. Then blend with some crushed ice and if you wish, add 1/2 cup yogurt. Serve cold. This juice aids healthy digestive function and contains high levels of vitamin Ñ and bioflavonoids to boost immune system function. It also possesses anti-inflammatory actions.

Mint Tang

Add some chunks of papaya to 2 cups orange juice and then add mint leaves to taste Add some ice if desired and then combine all in a blender. This juice is great for healthy digestive function, boosts immunity and acts as an anti-inflammatory. Also good for healthy skin and eyesight

Petal Cooler or Peppermint Cooler

Make this refreshing drink with any healthy herbal tea, honey, lemon juice and ice Make herbal tea, let cool. Then blend it with fresh lemon juice to taste, 1 teaspoon î honey and some crushed ice. Cancer-fighting teas include peppermint, dandelion licorice, pau d’ arco, essiac, lemongrass, burdock, red clover and rosehip.

Pink Panther

Juice 1/2 a watermelon, 4 oranges and 2 chunks of ginger. Serve cold with ice. Increase circulation, aids detoxification and provides high levels of the immune-boosting vitamin C.

Purple Rain

This combination is a rich source of the cancer-fighting antioxidant, manganese Combine 1 handful of grapes, 3 fresh pears and 1 teaspoon of honey. Juice the grape and pears. Then add 1 teaspoon of honey and some crushed ice, and blend in blender.

Siam Sunrise

A sweet, refreshing drink made from papaya and orange juice. Add a large chunk ñ papaya to the juice of 4 oranges and mix in the blender. Excellent for the skin and healthy digestion. Boosts immune system function.

Strawberry Daiquiri

This juice is high in vitamins A and C, bioflavonoids and other cancer-fighting antioxidants. It is made from fresh strawberries, banana, lemon juice, honey and natural yogurt. Firstly, juice four lemons. Then add 1 banana, 1/2 punned fresh strawberries, 1/2 cup honey and 1/2 cup natural yogurt. Combine in a blender and then serve cold with ice.

Tropical Fantasy

Strawberry, apple and pineapple juice, in equal parts. This juice is rich in enzymes and phyto-nutrients used to treat and prevent cancer. Strawberries are great for cancer of the oesophagus.

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What Is the Relationship between Stress and Control of My Cancer?

Stress is only one factor that affects health. There are unsubstantiated claims that too much negative stress or poorly handled positive stress can affect your immune system in an adverse way. It is suggested that a depressed immune system cannot fight infections or control cancer cells as well as a healthy immune system.

Solid data correlating stress and cancer in humans are lacking. There are no scientific data to support the notion that stress is a cause of cancer or a cause of recurrence. Anecdotes are not scientific evidence.

Stress only affects your health; it does not control your health.

Could My Mind Have Caused My Cancer?

Your mind affects your health, often in profound ways, but it does not control your health. Wishing yourself to get sick, either consciously or subconsciously, will not cause you to develop cancer. Having cancer does not mean that you, either consciously or subconsciously, wanted to get cancer. Many factors within and beyond your control determined that you developed cancer and when you developed it.

Your mind affects your health by playing a role in your choice of diet, use of alcohol or other harmful substances, participation in an exercise program, and choice of job or living arrangements. These factors are known to influence your risk of developing cancer.

Your mind affects how you interface with your life. If you react to difficulties with genuine calm and hope, your body’s reaction will be very different from what it would be if you reacted with anxiety or bottled-up anger. There is scientific evidence for the health benefits of joy, laughter, love, and relaxation in your life. Unpleasant stress, chronic anger or frustration, and major loss are harmful to your health.

Your overall happiness and your ability to deal with stress are only two factors that affect your health. A well-balanced life does not make you immune to cancer. If you cope poorly with difficult life circumstances, you are not guaranteed a short life. If the mind controlled health, happy people would never die from cancer. Depressed, rejected, abandoned, or grief-stricken people who had difficulty coping would all die prematurely of heart attacks or cancer. But we all know people who were genuinely happy before they developed cancer, and many miserable people who lived to a ripe old age.

Scientific studies that have tried to look at the relationship between the development of cancer and a person’s state of mind, or a person’s life stresses, such as losing a spouse or becoming unemployed, have given conflicting results. Even the studies that support the association between stress and cancer provide no scientific data to show that stress causes cancer or its recurrence.

Your mind affects your health but does not control it.

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What Causes Numbness?

Numbness, or other change in your sensation of touch, can be due to a

• medication effect

• cancer effect

•nerve injury from the cancer or surgery •vitamin deficiency

Does Numbness Go Away?

If the numbness is caused by drugs, it will often slowly reverse after the drug is stopped. If caused by a vitamin deficiency, it may reverse with vitamin replacement. If caused by nerve injury from the cancer or surgery, it may or may not reverse. Injured nerves take months to years to repair themselves. Even reversible nerve injuries are notorious for taking a long time to improve or resolve.

What Causes Headaches?

Headaches may be due to

•side effects of current medication

• muscle tension

• hormonal changes

• sinus problems, such as allergies

• eyestrain

• emotional stress

• brain metastases

If I Feel an Electric Shock When I Bend My Head Forward, What Should I Do?

A small percentage of people develop Lhermitte’s sign after radiation to certain areas of the chest (e.g., after mantle radiation given for Hodgkin’s disease). It usually begins six weeks to three months after completion of the radiation and resolves by itself over time. This self-limited cause of electric shock sensation must be distinguished by your doctor from more serious causes.

Will My Being Optimistic and Positive Make Me Feel Worse If I Do End Up Having a Recurrence in the future?

Being diagnosed with recurrent cancer brings a traumatic, emotional, difficult time under any circumstances. There is no way to prepare for recurrence or soften the blow if it happens. If you are like most people, thinking things will be bad before you receive the diagnosis of recurrence does not make it easier to hear the news. Nor does expecting good news worsen the blow when you find out you have cancer again. The blow may feel a little different, but you face a difficult time no matter what you expected before the diagnosis.

The recurrence scare is part of cancer survivorship. Overall, the scares far outnumber the actual recurrences. It tends to be adaptive and healthy to believe you are okay unless there is proof to the contrary, as long as you take the right steps to find out for sure.

Should I Make Plans Now in Case I Get a Recurrence?

It is very rare for a recurrence to come up totally unexpectedly and then so to incapacitate you that you have little time to make adjustments or plans. Usually there are warning signs that things may not be going well, such as a suspicious test result at your follow-up or a symptom that builds gradually. You can deal with the specifics of job, school, and child care when you have to. It will be hard for you and the people around you to feel secure in your health if you are always making contingency plans for a potential recurrence.

Important plans such as wills and long-term child care arrangements are best settled now if not already settled. These responsibilities should be met by everyone whether or not there is a cancer history.

Funeral arrangements and last letters to family and friends are common concerns of survivors. Getting these details out of the way unburdens some people and frees them to forget about their cancer. For others, these acts carry too much subconscious weight, sealing their sad fate in their minds. Do what feels right to you, and then explain it to those involved so that they can understand and support you.

As stated above, depression is a symptom that signals that something is wrong and needs attention. First, find out why you are depressed, by discussing your feelings with your doctor. He or she needs to make sure that there is no medical reason for your depression. While evaluation is under way, your doctor may offer medication for short-term relief.

Second, be sure to get adequate rest and nutrition, even if it means temporarily taking some additional medication to improve appetite or sleep. Even when your depression is not due to sleep deprivation or malnutrition, good rest and nutrition will help you overcome the depression. In addition, appropriate exercise can help you feel proactive and in control, as well as cause physical changes that help lift your spirits.

Third, try to find positive things that have come out of your experiences with cancer, and focus on them.

Fourth, get some professional counseling to help you sort out the causes for your depression and find ways to work through the depression. Most people can get through periods of depression without professional counseling, but it usually shortens their duration, makes them less lonely and painful, and promotes emotional growth from which you benefit for the rest of your life.

If you have thoughts of harming yourself, or if you feel that everything would be easier if you just didn’t wake up ever again, share this with your family, friends, or doctor. Destructive or suicidal thoughts are your mind’s way of telling you that you need assistance to get back on the road to health. Getting help shows strength and gives added meaning to having survived your cancer.

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Is a High-Fat Diet a Risk Factor for Cancer?

Some epidemiological studies indicate an association between a high-fat diet and cancers of the breast, colon, pancreas, prostate, and uterus. This does not necessarily mean that a high-fat diet causes these cancers. Studies are under way to explain the cause of the association.

What If I Lost Weight during My Cancer Treatment?

People lose weight during cancer treatment because of

•poor eating (which has many causes, both physical and emotional)

• increased calorie requirements

• poor absorption and poor utilization of calories

What Should I Do If I Lost Weight during Therapy?

Discuss with your doctor your goal weight and how you should achieve it. You will want to supplement your diet with foods of high nutritional value, not with high-calorie “junk food.”

What If I Gained Weight during Therapy?

It is very common for people to gain weight during cancer therapy. This can be due to

• medications such as prednisone

• decreased activity

• fluid retention

• increased appetite because of medications or emotional stress

Some of these factors continue to affect weight even after completion of cancer therapy.

If I Am Heavier Now, How Long Will It Take Me to Lose the Weight I Gained during My Cancer Therapy?

Depending on how much weight you gained during treatment and how you are doing now, it can take three to twelve months to get back to your usual weight. You can encourage healthy weight loss by

• eating well-balanced, nutritious meals and snacks

• avoiding non-nutritious, “empty” calories

• exercising with proper supervision

Is Obesity a Risk Factor for Cancer?

Obesity is associated with increased risk of certain types of cancer, such as breast and uterine cancer. The distribution of fat may make a difference for certain types of cancer. Human studies suggest that the risk for these types of cancers is reduced if people who are overweight lose weight.

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