What to Do When Cancer Knocks at the Door

By Aaditya Sardwal

Cancer isn't any other disease; it's quite stressful for the person, and his/her family. Of course, treatments are there, but still it's pretty much difficult to hold the tears in eyes, and say to your family that everything will be okay. I've met many cancer survivors, and believe me, meeting them was truly magical. These are the people who've gone through all the pain, all the treatments, but never lost hope. Here is what they suggested for those in whom cancer has been diagnosed.

1. Don't Lose Faith

Just hold on; things will get better. There are treatments for cancer, and success chances of cure are great if the disease is detected at an early stage, so just hold on. Don't lose your faith.

2. Family and Friends

Let them be around you. Let them be your support system. Let them tell you that you'll be fine.

3. Take the Best Cancer Treatment

Not all hospitals are equal when it comes to the best cancer treatment. Do your share of research. Find out the hospitals that are known to have the best medical professionals in the Oncology field. Fix an appointment at the earliest.

4. After Treatment

Look for the people who've had cancer treatments, and are now leading a healthy lifestyle. They'll tell you a lot about life after cancer. I've found a number of blogs and websites, which have been created by cancer survivors to help the cancer patients.

5. Exercise and Diet

Let's talk food first. Include more and more of whole grains, veggies, and fruits. Cut back on unhealthy fats and sugar. As far as exercise is concerned, morning walks are great to go for.

6. Stress Management

Cancer can be quite stressful for the entire family, so you got to manage it. Amongst the many things that you can do is dating each-other frequently (for the couples), getting outdoors, and practicing living in the present. Yoga is also quite effective in managing stress.

7. Positive Attitude

A positive mindset is all you need. The family can sit together, and plan for different things, such as hiking and horse riding. The couple can plan a romantic getaway.

Remember, cancer is not something we would ever wish on someone else, but it's changed life of many. Cancer made them rethink their priorities in life, creating healthy living choices, taking more risks, and living life a little extra.

Taking the best cancer treatment is very much important. If cancer has knocked on your doors or hit somebody you love, you better look for the best treatment.

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Complementary and Alternative Treatments for Bladder Cancer

By Robin Brain

Description

Bladder cancer is frequently mistaken for a bladder infection, because the two conditions share many of the same symptoms. The presence of blood in the urine and painful urination, though, are telltale signs of bladder cancer.

Bladder cancer strikes three times as many men as women and is usually found in people over the age of 40. Approximately 40,000 new cases of it are diagnosed yearly in the United States, and more than 15,000 people die from it each year. It is commonly caused by exposure to artificial chemicals and industrial compounds.

Signs and Symptoms

Blood in the urine

Pain during urination

Appetite or weight loss

Low-grade fever

Pain in the pelvic area or lower back

Conventional Medical Treatment

If you suspect that you have bladder cancer, visit your physician immediately. Often the diagnosis is suspected because blood is detected during a routine microscopic examination of urine conducted during an annual physical exam. To confirm the diagnosis, your doctor may perform a CAT scan, or a cystoscopic examination, during which a scope is passed through the urethra into the bladder to collect a sample of the bladder lining, which is then tested for malignant cells. If bladder cancer is diagnosed early, surgery alone is usually successful in removing the growth. After surgery, the patient must be tested every 3 to 6 months for recurring masses. Approximately 70 percent of bladder surgery patients develop another small tumor within five years.

If the cancer is not diagnosed early and is allowed to penetrate the bladder wall or surrounding layer of fat, the cancer will probably require surgery followed by radiation therapy or chemotherapy. During radiation therapy, a focused beam of high-energy radiation is used to destroy cancerous cells. Radiation is targeted only at affected areas as and is performed regularly for a set period of time. During chemotherapy, the patient must take medication (usually intravenously) that is designed to kill cancer cells.

Complementary and Alternative Treatments

Traditional Chinese Medicine

Acupuncture traditional Chinese Medicine regards cancer as an energy imbalance caused by any number of factors, including poor diet, lack of exercise, stress, environmental toxins, or overwork.

Acupuncture may be used to improve the flow of energy along the bladder meridian and by targeting specific acupoints, which may offer pain relief. It also can be used to help reduce the negative side effects of radiation or chemotherapy.

Acupressure This modality works on the same principles as acupuncture, and the same meridians can be manipulated to help alleviate pain and promote overall energy balance. Herbs that strengthen the immune system may often be very beneficial.

Chinese Herbal Therapy Studies in Japan have demonstrated that fresh aloe vera juice contains chemicals that slow the growth of cancer cells and impair their ability to spread.

Read out for Vitamins. Check out breastfeeding tips and herbal remedies

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Ayurveda and Cancer - Ayurvedic Treatment For Gall Bladder Cancer

By Abdulmubeen Mundewadi

Gall bladder cancer is also known as cholangiocarcinoma and is a malignant growth of the biliary duct system and bile ducts, and may originate either in the liver or outside it. The majority of these tumours are adenocarcinomas, while about 10% are made up of squamous cell tumours. These are slow growing tumours which usually result from chronic infection, chronic inflammation or damage to the biliary duct system. Common symptoms include jaundice, clay-colored stools, dark urine, severe itching, weight loss, abdominal pain, and - in the later stages - a palpable lump in the right upper side of the abdomen.

Gall bladder cancer can be diagnosed with the help of various tests such as liver function tests, ultrasound examination, CT scan, PET scan, MRI, ERCP, brush cytology, and various tumour markers. The tumour is classified according to the TNM (tumour, lymph node, and metastasis) mode of classification or graded from 0 to 4, which indicate the extent and spread of the tumour as well as the overall prognosis. At the time of diagnosis, more than 90% of patients are not eligible for curative surgery, and in spite of aggressive therapy, the overall survival for advanced gall bladder cancer is just about six months. Stent implantation, photodynamic therapy, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy are usually used as palliative measures.

Ayurvedic herbal treatment can be judiciously utilised in the successful management and treatment of gall bladder cancer in order to bring about a remission of the tumour, and significantly improve the survival of the affected individual. Herbal medicines which have a specific action on the liver and gall bladder are used in the management of this condition. These medicines act on the gall bladder tumour and bring about a significant reduction in its size within a short span of a few months. Most gall bladder patients, at the time of presentation, have complications like fistula formation, with bile flowing through the fistula. These complications can be managed on an emergency basis with the help of simple herbal medicines which heal the fistula and redirect the bile into the intestines.

Herbal medicines are also used to prevent the spread of the gall bladder tumour into the surrounding parts of the abdomen as well as prevent metastasis to other parts of the body. Some medicines which are useful in the management of gall bladder cancer include Kutki (Picrorrhiza kurroa), Amalaki (Emblica officinalis), Yashtimadhuk (Glycyrrhiza glabra), Punarnava (Boerhaavia diffusa), Kalmegh (Andrographis paniculata), Bhumiamalaki (Phyllanthus niruri), Arogyavardhini, Punarnavadi Qadha, and Varunadi Qadha. In addition to treatment which is specific for gall bladder cancer, immunomodulatory treatment is also a must in order to boost the immune status of the affected individual. The building up of a strong immune system helps to bring about a faster therapeutic response, a longer survival, and improved chances of a complete remission of the tumour.

Most individuals affected with gall bladder cancer require aggressive Ayurvedic herbal treatment for about 9 to15 months in order to get significant improvement in the condition. Regular Ayurvedic treatment on a long-term basis can help in improving the chances for survival, and the earlier treatment is instituted, the better. Depending upon the presentation of symptoms and the severity of the cancer, Ayurvedic treatment needs to the tailor-made for each individual affected with this condition, in order to derive maximum benefit from treatment. Ayurvedic herbal treatment undoubtedly has a definite role to play in the management and treatment of gall bladder cancer.

Dr. A. A. Mundewadi is Chief Ayurvedic Physician at Mundewadi Ayurvedic Clinic based at Thane, Maharashtra, India. He is available as an online Ayurvedic Consultant at http://www.ayurvedaphysician.com
The online clinic offers Ayurvedic treatment for all chronic and refractory health problems. Dr. A. A. Mundewadi, B.A.M.S., has clinical experience of over 25 years and clinical research experience of 12 years. He has conducted extensive research in HIV infection, Schizophrenia and many other chronic diseases.

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Benefits Of Selenium In Preventing Bladder Cancer Symptoms

By Kirsten Whittaker

Experts report that one of the benefits of selenium intake might include a lower risk of bladder cancer symptoms, most especially for women. Selenium is a trace mineral that comes from plant foods and meats of animals that grazed on grain or plants in selenium rich soil. It's also found in abundance in Brazil nuts. Adults with low blood levels of the mineral selenium are more likely to develop bladder cancer - the lower the level the higher your risk.

In the study, the researchers combined information from seven previously published works to do their own meta analysis. They examined selenium levels taken from blood samples and toenail clippings and determined each subject's risk of developing bladder cancer. Both U.S. and European (Belgium, Finland and the Netherlands) subjects were included in the analysis.

The researchers found a 39% decrease in bladder cancer for those with the highest levels of selenium in the blood. The protective benefit was seen mostly in women, and the team believes this might be due to differences in how men and women's bodies break down and remove the mineral.

More work is needed before a recommendation of raising selenium intake is made. Researchers will be looking at the dose response relationship so that recommended daily intakes can be set. There also may be subsets of the general population who are more in need of selenium supplementation - this too will be identified in future studies.

Currently the recommended daily allowance for selenium is 55 micrograms, and the National Institutes of Health believes most American diets supply enough of this mineral, and that no one should exceed 400 micrograms of selenium daily.

In the United States, most of us get our selenium from meats and bread sources. Experts maintain that deficiency is rare in the U.S., but is seen in other nations, like China and New Zealand, where the soil naturally has less selenium. If you're worried about your own levels of this mineral, talk to your doctor before you take any supplement - too much selenium can be bad for you.

Our bodies use selenium to make selenoproteins that work as antioxidants in the body to prevent cellular damage. There are studies that suggest selenium can offer protection against some cancers, but clinical trials on selenium supplements have brought conflicting results.

In nature, the selenium content of the soil determines the selenium content of the plants grown in it or the animals that graze upon it. Experts know that the soil in the high plains of northern Nebraska and the Dakotas have very high levels of selenium. People who live in these areas generally have high levels of selenium in their blood.

Besides those tasty Brazil nuts, some other all natural sources of selenium include:

- Tuna

- Beef

- Cod

- Turkey, light meat

- Chicken breast, meat only

- Enriched noodles, macaroni

- Eggs

- Cottage cheese

- Oatmeal, instant

- Rice, white, enriched, long grain, brown

- Bread, white or whole wheat

- Cheddar cheese

While you wait for more research on the benefits of selenium with regards to preventing bladder cancer symptoms, consider the growing body of evidence that eating a balanced diet AND making lifestyle choices that reduce your risk for disease are your best bets for protecting your body from some pretty serious health problems... today and in the future.

FREE Bonus Secret Health Reports - For a limited time you can grab 5 FREE essential health reports from Daily Health Bulletin and click the link now to discover more about bladder cancer symptoms and other effective methods that help with prevention and treatment.

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