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. . . supporting research that improves cancer survival.

 
Please contact us if you would like to contribute a news item. We are keen to publish more articles from UK-based research and findings that relate to microbial infections during therapy.

A Survivor's Guide to Managing the Side Effects of Mesothelioma

24/6/2017

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When a patient is diagnosed with cancer, he or she must deal with a lot of variables. Choosing a treatment type, and committing to its completion is a job in itself. The treatment often has side effects that patients must deal with on top of the cancer. Doctors and researchers are finding new ways to treat the health effects as successful treatments continue to rise in number. Patients have many medical and palliative choices in today's care environment.

Try Brain Puzzles

One of the first tips for coping is maintaining a mental balance. Chemotherapy and associated treatments leave a fuzzy mind behind. Patients might forget about things that are normally simple in nature. Use puzzles to keep up with a clear mind. By exercising the brain, these mental side effects can be fought off. As the patient moves forward with other treatments, the mind can still use the puzzles as a way to jog the brain and create new, neural pathways.

Managing Immunotherapy with Medications

According to the U.S. News and World Report, immunotherapy is the wave of the future. By using the body's own resources, cancer cells can be killed off in record numbers. An unwanted effect from this cancer treatment, however, is inflammation. This reaction is normal. It can get out of hand with immunotherapy pills so doctors normally suggest counter solutions in the form of other medications. 

Increase your Calorie Count

When patients have mesothelioma and treatment is ongoing, they may experience a lack of appetite. The American Lung Association suggests that excess calories in the form of good fats must be added to any consumed foods. Drizzle olive oil on a meal so that the patient consumes enough calories to avoid weight loss. Good fats improve the body's cardiovascular system with cholesterol-fighting power. The extra calories can be used to maintain a healthy weight as treatment continues.

Avoid Infections with Hygienic Solutions

Sores and infections are common during any cancer treatment. Patients must take care of their health as much as possible. Use baking soda everyday and rinse out the mouth with some water. This substance fights off germs at the molecular level. Aside from this suggestion, patients should wash their hands and keep their feet covered when they are outdoors. Any infections will impede the success of a medical program. 

Breathe Deeply

Mesothelioma patients deal with lung-tissue problems so basic breathing can be problematic. Patients should try to breathe in deeply with a relaxed tone to their muscles. Doctors might suggest breathing techniques that are specific to a patient's situation. Solid breathing will  improve the lung's flexibility as mesothelioma is being eradicated from the patients' bodies.

The symptoms of cancer will vary between patients. If a patient discovers an unusual issue, speaking to the doctor must be the first step. There might be a reasonable answer for the issue, or further evaluations may be in order. Prioritize every aspect of a healthy lifestyle so that cancer treatment is not a future option.
 
Virgil Anderson
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Balance, gait negatively impacted after chemotherapy treatment

9/6/2017

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​A single chemotherapy treatment can result in a significant negative impact on walking gait and balance, putting patients at an increasing risk for falls, according to a new study involving breast cancer patients conducted by researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC - James). Up to 60 percent of patients experience chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN), nerve damage that impacts feeling in the hands or feet; however, when and to what extent this damage impacts functional abilities has been largely unknown.

This new study is the first to objectively measure the functional abilities of cancer patients during and after taxane-based chemotherapy. Researchers followed 33 patients with stage I-III breast cancer, assessing functional performance (standing balance and gait) and patient-reported outcomes at five timepoints spanning before treatment began up to three months post-treatment completion.

Researchers observed a 28 percent increase in side-to-side sway (medial-lateral) after just one chemotherapy treatment. That increased to 48 percent with cumulative chemotherapy exposure. Patients also demonstrated a 5 percent reduction in walking speed after three cycles of chemotherapy.

"This is not simply a quality of life concern - CIPN can impact a patient's ability to receive treatment at all, limiting the potential for a cure. For patients who have great difficulty with neuropathy, we often have to modify their treatment regimen to make it tolerable - sometimes the therapy has to be ceased entirely," says Maryam Lustberg, MD, MPH, senior author of the study and director of breast cancer survivorship services at the OSUCCC - James. "We need to make these treatments more tolerable to patients so they can get the full benefit of the treatments."

Lustberg and her colleagues report that taxane exposure is also associated with worsened sensory symptoms and poorer postural control. There was also an association between patients' balance and self-reported sensory symptoms.

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Are wealthier people more likely to receive a diagnosis of cancer?

9/6/2017

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Picture
CREDIT The Dartmouth Institute
Do wealthier people receive too much medical care? In a Perspective article recently published in the New England Journal of Medicine, H. Gilbert Welch, MD, and Elliott Fisher, MD, of The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice examine the association between income level and cancer diagnosis.

Using data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program, Welch and Fisher examined incidence and mortality trends for four types of cancers: breast cancer, prostate cancer, thyroid cancer and melanoma. They chose these specific cancers because the likelihood of diagnosis is sensitive to the intensity with which physicians look for these cancers - the combined effect of factors, including the frequency of screening and diagnostic exams, the ability of exams to detect small irregularities, and the threshold used to label results as abnormal. As Welch and Fisher note, these factors can have a dramatic effect on the apparent amount of disease. In simple terms, the harder doctors look for these cancers, the more they find.

Using 2000 U.S. census data, Welch and Fisher compared incidence and mortality of the four cancers in high- vs. low-income counties (median incomes greater than $75,000 and less than $40,000, respectively). Among their findings:

  • High-income counties have recorded a much greater increase in the incidence of these four cancers than low-income counties.

  • The combined death rate from the four cancers is similar in high- and low-income counties, which Welch and Fisher say suggests that the underlying burden of disease is actually similar in high- and low-income counties.

  • Mortality from these cancers hasn't been increasing (as one might expect given the increase in diagnosis), but rather decreasing-due largely to improved treatments for breast and prostate cancer.

What accounts for the higher incidence of cancer in high-income counties? Welch and Fisher say there could be several contributing factors: affluent people may expect and demand more testing. Also, health systems serving relatively wealthy and healthy populations may see offering more testing "as a good way to produce more patients and increase business."

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Red onions pack a cancer-fighting punch, study reveals

8/6/2017

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The next time you walk down the produce aisle of your grocery store, you may want to reach for red onions if you are looking to fight off cancer.In the first study to examine how effective Ontario-grown onions are at killing cancer cells, University of Guelph​ researchers have found that not all onions are created equal.

Engineering professor Suresh Neethirajan and PhD student Abdulmonem Murayyan tested five onion types grown in Ontario and discovered the Ruby Ring onion variety came out on top. Onions as a superfood are still not well known. But they contain one of the highest concentrations of quercetin, a type of flavonoid, and Ontario onions boasts particularly high levels of the compound compared to some parts of the world.

The Guelph study revealed that the red onion not only has high levels of quercetin, but also high amounts of anthocyanin, which enriches the scavenging properties of quercetin molecules, said Murayyan, study's lead author.

"Anthocyanin is instrumental in providing colour to fruits and vegetables so it makes sense that the red onions, which are darkest in colour, would have the most cancer-fighting power."

Published recently in Food Research International, the study involved placing colon cancer cells in direct contact with quercetin extracted from the five different onion varieties.

"We found onions are excellent at killing cancer cells," said Murayyan. "Onions activate pathways that encourage cancer cells to undergo cell death. They promote an unfavourable environment for cancer cells and they disrupt communication between cancer cells, which inhibits growth."

The researchers have also recently determined onions are effective at killing breast cancer cells.
"The next step will be to test the vegetable's cancer-fighting powers in human trials," said Murayyan.

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