The Fight Against Breast Cancer

Author : Catherine Harvey

Among some of the bigger reasons for a payout from private health insurance companies is for the incidents of breast cancer. Currently, this disease kills 1200 women and 100 men in the UK every year. These figures are too high and scientists are always looking for ways to improve on it. Up to thirty per cent of breast cancers will be of the aggressive type.

Thus comes the latest breakthrough breast cancer drug that shrinks the tumours of women with the most aggressive forms of the disease. A quarter of all the women in the drug trial found that their tumours had shrunk and another quarter had been told that their tumour had had no significant growth.

Herceptin is the normal drug of choice for this type of cancer but this was failing to halt the disease. However, with a mixed treatment of Herceptin and Pertuzumab, this is when the best results were seen.

If a person has a large amount of protein, HER2, on the surface of the tumour the disease will be much more aggressive and non-responsive to chemotherapy. Private health insurance will pay for continued treatment so that is one less worry for the patient but a halting or reducing of the disease is the best thing that could happen.

One patient from Manchester was diagnosed with breast cancer fifteen years ago and underwent a double mastectomy. Despite that, the disease returned and spread to her lungs. She was not expected to live longer than 49 years of age but using the new drug has seen her reach 54 with no worsening of the disease.

Private health insurance will often pay for preventative tests and treatment and it is hoped this drug will be developed for high-risk women who test positive to HER2 protein. It is also hoped that it will eventually do away with the need for chemotherapy - a costly and unpleasant treatment.

Although the treatment with the new drug is not expected to be widely available in the UK for about another five years, there are other things that medics are doing to lessen the destruction caused by breast cancer. Breast screening is hailed as a roaring success in the on-going battle because tumours are being picked up early and successfully treated.

This early detection and treatment means that patients can expect a normal life span. This applies to 61 per cent of those screened so certainly shows that it's worth attending those appointments, however unpleasant you think they might be.

Early detection through screening is also invaluable to those with invasive breast cancer, putting the 15 year survival rate at 86 per cent, which is greatly improved on previous figures. Screening is responsible for finding a third of all breast cancer cases and women aged 50 to 70 are offered three yearly scans. This is set to be extended to cover women between 47 and 73. This means an extra 400,000 women will be helped by 2012.

This year sees the twentieth anniversary of the introduction of breast screening in the UK and has saved thousands of lives through routine checkups. In that time, treatments for breast cancer have also improved and survival rates are expected to see continued growth. It is expected that in the future less and less women will have to suffer the trauma of a mastectomy.

Raloxifene is a drug that is used in the fight against osteoporosis and this has also been found to help prevent breast cancers. For those on this drug the risk of contracting the most common form of breast cancer was more than halved.

Information About Various Types of Cancer

Author: Peter sams

Cancer

The organs and tissues of the body are made up of tiny building blocks called cells. Cancer is a disease of these cells. Cells in different parts of the body may look and work differently but most reproduce themselves in the same way.

Cells are constantly becoming old and dying, and new cells are produced to replace them. Normally, cells divide in an orderly and controlled manner. If for some reason the process gets out of control, the cells carry on dividing, developing into a lump which is called a tumour.

Cancer is a term for diseases in which abnormal cells divide without control and can invade other tissues. Cancer cells can spread to other parts of the body through the blood and lymph systems.

Brain Cancer

A brain tumor is a group or clump of abnormally growing cells that can be found in or on thebrain. They're rare in kids Brain tumors can either start in the brain or spread there from another part of the body - some cancers that start in other parts of the body may have cells that travel to the brain and start growing there.

Lung Cancer

Lung cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world. It is a leading cause of cancer death in men and women in the United States. Cigarette smoking causes most lung cancers. The more cigarettes you smoke per day and the earlier you started smoking, the greater your risk of lung cancer. High levels of pollution, radiation and asbestos exposure may also increase risk. Cancer that forms in tissues of the lung, usually in the cells lining air passages. The two main types are small cell lung cancer and non-small cell lung cancer.

It usually spreads to different parts of the body more slowly than small cell lung cancer. Squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma, and large cell carcinoma are three types of non-small cell lung cancer. Small cell lung cancer also called oat cell cancer, accounts for about 20% of all lung cancer.

Skin Cancer

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. The two most common types are basal cell cancer and squamous cell cancer. They usually form on the head, face, neck, hands and arms. Another type of skin cancer, melanoma, is more dangerous but less common. Skin cancers are the fastest growing type of cancer in the United States. Skin cancer represents the most commonly diagnosed malignancy, surpassing lung, breast, colorectal and prostate cancer. Cancer that forms in tissues of the skin. There are several types of skin cancer. Skin cancer that forms in melanocytes (skin cells that make pigment) is called melanoma. Skin cancer that forms in basal cells (small, round cells in the base of the outer layer of skin) is called basal cell carcinoma

Ear Cancer

Cancer of the outer ear occurs chiefly in instances where the outer ear has been exposed for many years to direct sunlight. A small and at first painless ulcer, with a dry scab covering it, that slowly enlarges and deepens may be a skin cancer. It is diagnosed by removing a small bit of tissue from the edge and examining it under a microscope.

Head And Neck Cancer

Tobacco is the most preventable cause of these deaths a lump in the neck Cancers that begin in the head or neck usually spread to lymph nodes in the neck before they spread elsewhere. A lump in the neck that lasts more than two weeks should be seen by a physician as soon as possible. Of course, not all lumps are cancer. But a lump (or lumps) in the neck can be the first sign of cancer of the mouth, throat, voice box (larynx), thyroid gland, or of certain lymphomas or blood cancers. Such lumps are generally painless and continue to enlarge steadily.

Cancer Awareness

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By: Paul Phillips

Diet is a very, very important factor when it comes to the subject of cancer awareness and prevention. Cancer can manifest (or not) as a result of what you have been putting on your plate day in day out: To be cancer-free it is vital to avoid certain foods. Naturally, diet becomes more critical for cancer sufferers.

Here are some examples of a cancer causing diet. So it is necessary to avoid the following.

1.Dairy Products:

Insulin growth factor (IGF) in dairy such as cow's milk is known to lead to breast & prostate cancer. Other sources of calcium can be found in things like greens and a supply of good rice milk. The immune system can also be compromised thought dairy products.

2. Animal protein. E.g. meat:

A peri-cellular coating or outer layer protects cancer cells. The enzymes called trypsin and chymotrypsin produced from the pancreas break down this outer layer. The cancer cells can then be destroyed. However, when meat is eaten, the pancreatic enzymes from the pancreas are more involved in the digestion of meat instead of breaking down the cancer cell's outer protective layer. Couple this with the fact that a lot of meat, particularly that of the processed sort, has much chemical toxicity, this renders an individual more susceptible to cancer.

3. Processed & fried foods:

Have many chemicals, flavour enhancers, preservatives...The food have been denatured & therefore has poor much of its nutritional value. These foods have been known to cause DNA injury, leading to cancer illness.

4. Refined sugar / Artificial sweeteners. E.g. Nutrasweet and aspartame.

Promotes the cancer processes of uncontrolled rapid cell division. Sugar can lead to cancer of the ovaries, breast, prostate & rectum. Can severely reduce the biochemical formation of vitamin B complexes. Also is capable of interfering with the pancreatic production of trypsin and chymotrypsin enzymes. All if taken on the long term & in large amounts can greatly increase the likelihood of cancer happening.

5. Cafeinated drinks and alcohol:

Take it easy on stimulants like tea and alcohol. However, green tea is very good.

6. Unclean tap water and toothpaste with fluoride. Toiletries with toxic chemicals like sodium laurethsulphate should also be avoided at all costs:

Chloride, fluoride, toiletries and other chemicals in tap water are metabolic poisons.

Active / passive smoking:

At risk of lung cancer...

Remember, the above lists are not an exhaustive account of what shouldn't be eaten. There are many excellent sources of info. on cancer awareness and prevention