Healthy Living Tips

One of the most significant concerns of breast cancer patients is the rate at which the cancer is likely to spread. If the rate and aggressiveness with which the cancer will spread cab be determined, the aggressiveness of the chemo treatment can also be determined. Patients with a type of cancer that is less likely to spread need not be treated as aggressively as the ones with cancer that has a tendency to spread rapidly.

Breast cancer is a disease that takes a physical and emotional toll on the patient. The violent effects of chemo on the body disturbs even the strongest of individuals. Therefore, if the strength of the chemo treatment that must be administered can be determined it will be of great help to several women suffering from this devastating disease.

As a result of recent studies, researchers have been able to discover how to determine, with a certain level of accuracy, the rate at which the breast cancer cells in a particular patient is likely to spread. This is groundbreaking research because as of now there is no reliable method by which physicians can predict what cancers will spread and how rapidly they will. This makes it very difficult to determine which patients should receive aggressive chemo and which ones need not.

For patients who have been recently diagnosed with breast cancer, there is no hundred percent accurate way of predicting whether the cancer cells will return with a vengeance even after they finish treatment. If doctors are able to identify those patients who need especially aggressive chemo sessions because their cancer cells have a propensity to spread rapidly and aggressively, the right treatment can be administered at the right time to save lives. At the same time, unnecessary treatments and hardships can also be avoided by patients who do no particularly need aggressive chemo courses.

The researchers studied a group of women with cancer that had not spread to their lymph nodes and who had not received any chemo or hormonal therapy. The results that were gathered from them were then used to analyze the tumor cells and identify the specific markers that predict relapse of cancer. Studying how these genes travel give researchers a fairly accurate method of predicting what type of cancer they are dealing with, whether the cancer cells are likely to return in future and whether it will spread aggressively.

The results of the study give patients more options to decide on how they need to approach the disease.

Source:http://www.articleclick.com/Article/Marker-that-Indicates-Breast-Cancer-Recurrence/1280940

Causes, incidence, and risk factors

Several different types of cancer can occur in the stomach. The most common type is called adenocarcinoma, which starts from one of the common cell types found in the lining of the stomach. There are several types of adenocarcinoma. Because other types of gastric cancer occur much less frequently, this article focuses on adenocarcinoma of the stomach.

Adenocarcinoma of the stomach is a common cancer of the digestive tract worldwide, although it is relatively uncommon in the United States. It occurs most frequently in men over 40 years old. This form of gastric cancer is extremely common in Japan, Chile, and Iceland. The rate of most types of gastric adenocarcinoma in the United States has declined over the years. Experts think the decrease may be related to reduced intake of salted, cured, and smoked foods.

Diagnosis is often delayed because symptoms may not occur in the early stages of the disease, or because patients self-treat symptoms that may be common to other, less serious gastrointestinal disorders (bloating, gas, heartburn, and a sense of fullness).

Risk factors for gastric cancer are a family history of gastric cancer, infection, blood type A, smoking, a history of pernicious anemia, a history of chronic atrophic gastritis, a condition of decreased gastric acid, and a prior history of an adenomatous gastric polyp.

Symptoms

Abdominal pain
Breath odor
Difficulty swallowing, particularly difficulty that increases over time
Excessive belching
Excessive gas (flatus)
General decline in health
Loss of appetite
Nausea and vomiting
Premature abdominal fullness after meals
Unintentional weight loss
Vague abdominal fullness
Vomiting blood
Weakness or fatigue

Signs and tests

The following tests can help diagnose gastric cancer:

Complete blood count (CBC) to check for anemia
Esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) with biopsy
Stool test to check for blood in the stools
Upper GI series

Source: http://www.healthline.com/

Definition of Vertigo

Vertigo is a type of dizziness felt as a shift in a person's relationship to the normal environment (a feeling that the room is spinning is common) or a sense of movement in space.

Although dizziness and vertigo are often used interchangeably, they are not the same thing. While all vertigo is dizziness, not all dizziness is vertigo.

True vertigo, from the Latin "vertere," to turn, is a distinct, often severe form of dizziness that is a movement hallucination.

Description of Vertigo

There are four major types of dizziness -vertigo, presyncope, disequilibrium, and lightheadedness.

Most patients with true vertigo have a peripheral vestibular disorder, such as benign positional vertigo. This is usually associated with tinnitus and hearing loss.

Central disorders, such as brain stem or cerebellar lesions, tend to be more chronic but less intense than peripheral disorders and are not associated with hearing loss. Central disorders account for only 15 percent of patients with vertigo.

Vertigo is the illusion that you - or your surroundings - are moving. You may feel that you are spinning, tilting, rocking, or falling through space. You may vomit or have ringing in the ears (tinnitus). Also, your eyes may uncontrollably jerk back and forth (a condition called nystagmus).

 

Causes and Risk Factors of Vertigo

There are several causes of vertigo:

Benign positional paroxysmal vertigo (BPPV) is a disorder of the inner ear. The cause usually is unknown, but an upper respiratory tract infection or a minor blow to the head may be responsible. This type of vertigo occurs abruptly when you move your head up and down, or when you turn over in bed. Symptoms can be distressing but they fade in a few seconds. Avoiding positions that bring this on may reduce its occurrence.

BPPV is the commonest form of vertigo, with attacks lasting 30 to 60 seconds, typically set off when rolling over in bed, moving the head to one side or reaching for something ("top-shelf vertigo"). Sufferers can usually describe specific head movements that trigger it.

Although BPPV often occurs for no apparent reason, it can follow an ear infection, head or ear injury, and is thought to result from the dislodgement of normal crystalline structures in the ear's balance detectors. People with BPPV are often relieved to hear that it is due to an inner ear condition and does not signify some serious disorder such as a stroke or tumor.

Labyrinthitis refers to a variety of conditions within the inner ear. It may be associated with inflammation, an upper respiratory infection or nerve deterioration, but often occurs independently of other problems.

Central nervous system disorders that can cause vertigo as a symptom include multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, neck injuries, certain forms of migraine, acoustic neuroma, cerebellar and brain stem tumors, and TIAS (transient ischemic attacks).

Symptoms of Vertigo

A patient may experience severe vertigo for days or weeks. Nausea, vomiting, and involuntary eye movements are common. The condition gradually improves, but symptoms can persist for weeks or months.

Treatment of Vertigo

Treatment depends on the diagnosis. A complete medical evaluation is recommended for anyone with vertigo. This can reveal the true cause and suggest one or more solutions based upon treating the underlying disorder.

Questions To Ask Your Doctor About Vertigo

Is it true vertigo?

What is the probable cause?

Is it related to a central nervous system disorder?

How can the symptoms be controlled?

Do I need to see a specialist?

Source:http://www.healthscout.com/ency/68/462/main.html