2.Top 7 Tips to Prevent Cancer

Top 7 Tips to Prevent Cancer

A complex mix of factors related to environment, lifestyle, and heredity plays a role in the causation of cancer. For example, 80 percent of all cancers are related to the use of tobacco products, to what we eat and drink, and to our exposure to radiation, asbestos, and some of the other cancer-causing agents. There’s not much you can do about your genes, but several other key risk factors are under your control. If you identify them and make the necessary changes in your lifestyle early enough, you can substantially decrease your chances of developing a malignancy. Here are some of the risk factors you can do something about:


1. Tobacco


Tobacco is the most preventable cause of mortality in this country. Regardless of whether you chew it, snuff it, smoke it, or inhale someone else’s exhaust, tobacco is a killer. In the United States, it is responsible for 85 to 90 percent of all lung cancers, and for one-third of all deaths related to other cancers. The magnitude of the risk depends on the number and kind of cigarettes you have smoked and for how long. A pack-a-day smoker is ten times more vulnerable than a non-smoker. It is never too late to quit. After you do, your cancer risk declines gradually each year.


2. Chronic alcohol abuse


This type of abuse can cause cancer of the liver, as well as of the mouth, throat, and larynx, especially in combination with tobacco. It may also raise the risk of breast cancer. If you are going to imbibe, limit yourself to the equivalent of two drinks a day – and stop smoking.


3. Diet


People who shun fruits and vegetables have roughly twice the incidence of most types of cancer – lung, larynx, oral cavity, stomach, colon, and rectum, bladder, pancreas, cervix, and ovary – than those with the highest intake. Yet only 9 percent of Americans heed the recommendations of the National Cancer Institute and the National Research Council to eat two servings of fruit and three portions of vegetables a day. Seventh-Day Adventists, who don’t drink or eat much meat but do consume a diet rich in fruits and vegetables, have the lowest incidence of cancer in the U.S. population. This protective effect is probably due to the antioxidants and folic acid present in fruits and vegetables, which neutralize damage to chromosomal DNA caused by oxygen-free radicals.


4. A high-fat diet


This type of diet is associated with cancer of the breast, uterus, and prostate. The guilty foods are eggs, fatty meat, high-fat salad dressings and cooking oils, and diary products such as whole milk, butter, and most cheeses.


Blueberries have a higher antioxidant capacity than any other fruit or vegetable. They are said to protect against cancer by virtue of their anthocyanins and other natural phytochemicals.


5. A high consumption of soy-based food


Soy-based food such as tofu, may also protect against cancer because of the genistein content. Genistein suppresses the production of proteins that cancer cells need in order to keep growing. In China and Japan, where people eat lots of soy, there is much less cancer of the breast, colon, and prostate than in this country. Since men with prostate cancer generally have lower blood levels of selenium than their normal counterparts, selenium supplements may protect against this malignancy.


6. Some supplements


Some supplements seem to protect against certain cancers. For instance, colon polyps and cancer do not recur as often in persons who regularly take multivitamins, calcium supplements, and vitamin E. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables is protective against cancer, presumably because of the beta-carotene content. So take your mother’s advice: Eat all the fruits and vegetables you can – and forget the pills.


7. Don’t have X-rays


Don’t have X-rays any more frequently than is absolutely necessary. I no longer take annual routine chest films on myself. Some dentists are too enthusiastic about X rays. Make sure you really need them before acquiescing.

1.Prostate Cancer Treatment

Prostate Cancer Treatment

 

ADVANCE PROSTATE CANCER TREATMENT


LIST OF QUESTIONS AND CONVERSATION TIPS TO
ASK YOUR DOCTOR ON ADVANCED PROSTATE CANCER�..





Q1: What are the treatment options for advanced prostate cancer?
Advanced prostate cancer is cancer that has spread from the prostate to the pelvic lymph nodes or to other parts of the body. Advanced prostate cancer cannot be cured but the progression of the disease can be slowed and men can be made more comfortable with hormonal therapy and, occasionally, chemotherapy.


Hormonal therapy is currently the first treatment that is recommended to men with advanced prostate cancer. The goal of hormonal therapy is to lower levels of male hormones, or androgens, such as testosterone, which can fuel the growth of prostate cancer. This can be achieved with either surgery or medication.


Testosterone levels can be reduced surgically by removing the testicles in an outpatient procedure known as an orchiectomy; prosthetic testicles may be used in the testicles' place.


If a patient prefers medication to surgery, drugs such as LHRH agonists may be given as shots every few months to lower testosterone levels. Other drugs, such as anti-androgens and estrogen therapy, can help block the activity of male hormones. Sometimes surgery and medications are tried in combination.


Side effects of hormonal therapy include impotence, low sex drive, tiredness, hot flashes and weight gain. While hormonal therapy can lead to remissions up to two or three years, it cannot stave off the progression of advanced prostate cancer indefinitely and the disease usually returns.




Q2: How will I know if hormonal therapy is working?


The main way to determine whether hormonal therapy is working is by measuring prostate-specific antigen (PSA) levels with a blood test. Blood levels of this protein can measure the presence and activity of prostate cancer.


So if PSA levels are going up, that's usually a sign that the treatment isn't working as well as it has been.There are rare instances when the PSA may not go up as the cancer is growing. In those cases, people usually have symptoms, such as bone pain, which should be evaluated with X-rays. Some doctors may monitor for metastases with CT scans, MRIs or bone scans.


Q3: What can be done if the hormonal options don't work?


When someone has advanced prostate cancer that is no longer responding to hormonal therapies-a condition known as hormone-refractory prostate cancer-other forms of treatment may be required.


Until recently, chemotherapy, which kills fast-growing cells typical of most cancers, was not thought to work against prostate cancer cells, which are usually slow growing. Even though chemotherapy was sometimes used to relieve pain in men with hormone-refractory prostate cancer, it had never been shown to improve survival.


But in May 2004, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a chemotherapy drug called Taxotere (docetaxel) for use in combination with the steroid prednisone, for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer that is not responding to hormone therapy. This new combination can help some patients live longer with the disease.


A study of more than 1,000 men with advanced hormone-refractory prostate cancer demonstrated that giving an injection of Taxotere in combination with prednisone every three weeks demonstrated a survival advantage of 2.5 months over prednisone and the chemotherapy drug mitoxantrone, which are FDA-approved to relieve pain in men with hormone-refractory prostate cancer.


Side effects of chemotherapy include nausea and vomiting, fatigue, infection risk, hair loss and tingling and numbness in the hands and feet. People who experience side effects from chemotherapy, however, can take medications to combat nausea and vomiting and low blood counts that lead to fatigue and infection.




Q4: What therapies can I take to control prostate cancer symptoms?


Men with advanced prostate cancer may experience symptoms of their disease, such as pain, that require treatment to make them feel more comfortable.


External radiation treatments might be delivered periodically to shrink tumors and help to relieve pain. A group of drugs called bisphosphonates can also be used to ease pain from cancer that has traveled to the bones; these drugs may also help prevent bone metastases.


Pain can also be managed with painkillers and non-drug methods. Some men might try complementary therapies, such as acupuncture, herbal therapies or meditation; it's important to tell your doctors about the complementary therapies you are considering since there are risks for drug interactions and side effects.




Q5: Should I consider a clinical trial?


Clinical trials are studies conducted in people to evaluate new methods and medications for safety and effectiveness. Many ongoing trials are investigating new approaches to treating advanced prostate cancer, including cryosurgery, which uses liquid nitrogen to kill prostate cancer cells, as well as new chemotherapy combinations and new approaches to radiation therapy. You should discuss the risks and benefits of participating in a clinical trial with your doctor.




Tips on how you can prepare for this discussion:


Get a three-ring binder for all of your medical documents.
Get copies of all of your laboratory and pathology reports.
Bring a note pad, tape recorder or a friend as another set of ears to your doctor's appointments to be sure you do not miss any of the information.
Make a list of all medications and complementary therapies you are taking.
Consider your goals for treatment.
If considering hormonal therapy, consider whether you prefer surgery or medications that will suppress your hormones.
Make a list of all symptoms and medication side effects you are experiencing.
Prepare a list of your questions and concerns.
Find out what clinical trials might be available to you.
Consider your expectations for participating in a clinical trial.
Consider the advantages and disadvantages of being in a clinical trial.