Herbal Health » Cancer

CANCER TREATMENTS: SURGERY

admin — Tue, 17 May 2011 10:15:38 +0000

All gynecological cancer requires some form of surgical intervention. This is because a sample of tissue is always necessary to make an accurate diagnosis. Your doctor will review this sample with all members of the cancer care team tore recommending a treatment plan to you. The extent and impact of any further surgery will vary depending on the type of cancer. For instance, with cancer of the placenta, the surgery is usually suction curettage (‘D and C) to remove the placenta or ‘mole’. This is relatively non-invasive and does not leave any abdominal scarring. However, most of the cancers, especially ovarian and endometrial usually require extensive surgery involving complete removal of the womb (a hysterectomy) and ovaries that have an impact on fertility and menopause. Other types of gynecological cancer, such as vulva or vagina cancer require removal of the external and/or internal organs that provide sexual pleasure and this has an impact on sexuality and intimacy.

For many women the surgical scar is a constant reminder of the cancer experience and can take some adjustment in accepting it as a life saving measure. Some women who cannot resume ‘normal’ intimate activities because of the scar, or who experience mild anxiety or depression as a result of it may benefit from counseling.

Most operations for gynecological cancer will take at least an hour to perform and not only do you have to deal with the possible diagnosis of cancer, and the need to have a major operation, but you will be very worried about the cancer having spread further than you and your doctor think. You also will have to trust the surgeon to do a good job. It is important that if there is a possibility of cancer being present that your surgeon is an accredited gynecological cancer specialist. This is especially important in ovarian cancer. You can find this out by simply asking him/her or by going to the website of your local cancer society. After discussing all aspects of your surgery it is important that you give consent to do what is necessary to reduce or eradicate the cancer. Preservation of ovarian function is possible in a lot of circumstances so make sure you and your surgeon have discussed this important area in some detail.

I just felt very unattractive I suppose for a very long time with the scarring. It was the major issue. It’s just such a dramatic mark and a constant reminder of a major illness for me. It’s not like I had a caesarean or a baby or that sort of excuse. At first I never felt comfortable with it but once I got used to it I got over it.

It took a few years. I didn’t have a relationship for about four years.

` My partner was very accepting and I thought ‘what have I been worrying about all this time?’

Seline

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DIET THERAPY FOR CANCER: MANAGING EATING PROBLEMS DURING TREATMENT

admin — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 16:14:16 +0000

All the methods of treating cancer – surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy and biological therapy (immunotherapy) – are very powerful. Although treatments target the cancer cells in the body, they can sometimes damage normal, healthy cells at the same time. This may produce unpleasant side-effects that cause eating problems.

Side-effects of cancer treatment vary from patient to patient. The part of the body being treated, length of treatment and the dose of treatment also determine whether side-effects will occur. The doctor should talk to the patient about how the treatment may affect him.

The good news is that only about one-third of cancer patients have side-effects during treatment, and most effects go away when treatment ends. The doctors try to plan a treatment that keeps side-effects down.

Cancer treatment may also affect eating in another way. When some people are upset, worried or afraid, they may have eating problems. Losing appetite and nausea are two normal responses to feeling nervous or fearful. Such problems should last only for a short time.

One should not be afraid to give food a chance. Not everyone has problems with eating during cancer treatment. Even those who have eating problems have days when eating is a pleasure.

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DIET THERAPY FOR CANCER: MANAGING EATING PROBLEMS DURING TREATMENTAll the methods of treating cancer – surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy and biological therapy (immunotherapy) – are very powerful. Although treatments target the cancer cells in the body, they can sometimes damage normal, healthy cells at the same time. This may produce unpleasant side-effects that cause eating problems.Side-effects of cancer treatment vary from patient to patient. The part of the body being treated, length of treatment and the dose of treatment also determine whether side-effects will occur. The doctor should talk to the patient about how the treatment may affect him.The good news is that only about one-third of cancer patients have side-effects during treatment, and most effects go away when treatment ends. The doctors try to plan a treatment that keeps side-effects down.Cancer treatment may also affect eating in another way. When some people are upset, worried or afraid, they may have eating problems. Losing appetite and nausea are two normal responses to feeling nervous or fearful. Such problems should last only for a short time.One should not be afraid to give food a chance. Not everyone has problems with eating during cancer treatment. Even those who have eating problems have days when eating is a pleasure.*5/356/5*

YOUR CANCER, YOUR LIFE – RADIO-ISOTOPE SCANS (NUCLEAR MEDICINE) (INTRODUCTION)

admin — Tue, 12 May 2009 13:06:04 +0000

This is a completely different way of using ionising radiation to get pictures of internal organs. Instead of sending X-rays through the body from an X-ray machine outside it, these pictures are produced by rays coming from tiny amounts of radioactive substances inside the body. Although this probably sounds less safe than X-rays, the amount of radiation involved is often less than with X-rays of the same part of the body.

Say, for example, we want to get a picture of the liver. One of the liver’s normal jobs is to keep the blood pure by removing certain substances from it. When such a substance is injected into the blood, it is concentrated in the liver within a short time. If that substance has been made radioactive, it sends out rays through the body which can be detected with something similar to an X-ray plate. The picture produced in this way shows us the shape, size ancU<5cation of the liver and which parts are working normally. Any part of the liver which has been so badly damaged that it can’t do its normal job will show up as a ‘hole’, where there is little or none of the radioactive substance.

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ASSESSMENT OF LYMPHATIC INVOLVEMENT – EVIDENCE OF LYMPHATIC SPREAD

admin — Tue, 12 May 2009 12:56:51 +0000

The first way to look for evidence of lymphatic spread is simply to carefully examine the patient, checking for swelling of the tissues and enlarged nodes. Because the lymph network nearly always follows the same pattern, your doctor will know which particular group of lymph nodes to check most thoroughly. For example, if the primary cancer is in the arm, or breast, the first lymph nodes to be affected would be those in the armpit. From there the cancer can go into the lymph nodes in the part of the neck just above the collarbone on the same side. There are lymph nodes just under the skin in the neck, arm pits, crease of the elbow, groins and back of the knee. If any of these are enlarged, they can easily be felt.

Unfortunately, there are many lymph nodes that are not so conveniently located. Chains of lymph nodes run up from the groins, just in front of the spine through the abdomen and chest. There are also groups of lymph nodes near most of the internal organs. Channels from these lead into the main chain I have described. They eventually form one large channel which empties its contents into the blood vessel just behind the inner end of the collarbone on the left. Cancer in a node at this spot can come from almost anywhere in the abdominal cavity or chest. Lymph nodes do not show up on normal X-rays. The only exception is some in the chest which, when enlarged, can be seen against the black air in the lungs. However, there are several ways of getting ‘pictures’ of the other internal glands. CT scanning is one method. This works best in chubbier people in whom the lymph nodes tend to be surrounded by fat. Because fat lets through more X-rays than the lymph nodes, it provides a contrast which allows us to ‘see’ the nodes more easily than in a thin person. In thin people the nodes lie next to muscles and blood vessels, both of which let through about the same amount of X-rays as the nodes themselves, making them very hard to ‘see’.

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