Talent Mash

After cancer is discovered, chemotherapy and radiation may or may not be part of the treatment. The purpose of these two treatments is to destroy the cancer cells, and thousands of cancer patients can agree firsthand to the negative effects of chemotherapy and radiation on the body’s immune system. Boosting the immune system is not considered a primary strategy of medical practitioners in the U.S.

It’s well known among these same health practitioners treating cancer patients that chemotherapeutic drugs and the steroids that follow them can easily predispose the body to develop opportunistic infections because the immune system function is low.

Countless cancer patients develop Aspergillus infections that then require additional drugs, drugs that can and often do have harmful side effects on the liver, kidney, and other organs. It’s only after cancer patients develop these horrible infections that they often wonder later what they could have done to fight cancer naturally.

There are certain signs that occur that indicate the body’s immune system needs a boost because it is suppressed or depressed: constant fatigue, low levels of white blood cells, cuts and wounds don’t heal quickly, fungal infections, a cold or the flu lingers for weeks and complications develop, frequency of colds or the flu has increased, cold sores or genital herpes outbreaks, shingles, and lymph glands that are swollen. These signs are the same in both cancer patients and also those without cancer.

Although many physicians tell their cancer patients that vitamins and mineral supplements and herbs should not be used during chemotherapy, many cancer patients have proven that the additional vitamin and mineral supplements and herbs help ease their side effects from chemotherapy and radiation. They simply feel better when they take them. They also realize there is something that they can do to fight cancer naturally and that these supplements boost the immune system. These patients did not arbitrarily decide to take a Centrum Senior MultiVitamin or one single herb, but generally take a combination of vitamins and minerals or a combination of herbs that is specifically designed to support the body of a cancer patient during his or her most difficult times. They may also consult with a nutritionist who understands the role of vitamins and minerals in cancer or a master herbalist who understands the role of herbs in cancer.

What these supplements do is provide some basic nutrients that the body needs to continue operating at least on a minimal level. In a way, the supplements are a crutch to help the cancer patient get through the hard times and start healing sooner. Chinese research studies have reported for years that adding herbal combinations can make a significant difference in the success of cancer treatments; American physicians are behind the times when it comes to acknowledging some of these proven methods.

After chemotherapy and radiation, the real healing begins. That’s when cancer patients need to boost their immune system function the most. White blood cells that kill microbes and cancer cells are activated to action with the use of certain herbs. When the herbs are used, it’s as if the cells have the chance to “blast off” like a rocket and do exactly what they are meant to do in the body.

One of these “blast off” immune system boosting formulas I have found is a proprietary formula of 15 herbs. I do not sell it; I do recommend it, though. The combination regulates the entire immune system, activating natural killer cells, stimulating white blood cells to engulf bacteria, viruses and fungi, and activates the T and B cells that are so important to the immune system. Clinical results are seen in an average of 7 days and patients reported less fatigue and restoration of normal blood cell counts.

The all-natural herbal immune system boosting formula raises the energy level and combats fatigue. There have been cases where cancer patients who are bed ridden are able to get up, go to work, and lead normal lives simply because they were taking it. The herbal formula clearly increases quality of life and clearly boosts the immune system.

Some of the herbs in the immune system boosting formula include Astragalus, Reishi mushroom, tangerine, lycium, Chinese licorice, Rehmannia, Dong quai, and bai-zhu atractylodes. Many of the herbs in this formula have been highly researched by Chinese physicians and herbalists for decades. It’s because of the research that the combination was able to be effective in boosting the immune system.

On July 2, 2005 my Aunt Geraldine died. She was only 51 years old.

My aunt did not die from one of the ailments or events that usually come to mind when we hear of someone’s unfortunate passing, namely cancer or a heart attack or a horrible car accident. My aunt died from a pulmonary embolism, commonly called a blood clot, as a result of a minor foot surgery she had a few weeks earlier.

I had heard of blot clots before and knew that they could be very serious and often deadly. A few years ago, a friend’s husband suffered from a clot in his leg. His doctor was able to successfully dissolve the clot using a variety of medications. He was one of the lucky ones. However, since my aunt’s untimely and unexpected death, I have learned a great deal more about this alarming condition.

Let me share a bit of what I’ve learned. Pulmonary embolism is a sudden blockage that occurs in an artery within the lung. The arterial blockage, also referred to in medical literature as an embolus, results in decreased oxygen flow, which in turn causes the blood pressure within the lung to rise. Blockage can be caused by a single, large blood clot or, in some cases, several smaller clots. The origin of blood clots leading to (a) pulmonary embolism can vary; however, formation in the deep veins of the legs (calf or thigh) is most common. Formation of clots in this area of the leg results in a condition called deep vein thrombosis, or DVT. It is reported that complications from DVT kills roughly 200,000 people in the United States annually. With DVT, clots can break off and travel through the circulatory system and eventually end up in the lungs.

Several factors can increase a person’s risk for DVT. Some of these include long periods of inactivity (perhaps due to bed rest, long flights or car trips), recent surgery, stroke, heart attack, some cancers, and obesity. There are a variety of treatment options available for DVT including medications, surgical procedures, and practical measures such as applying heat to relieve pain and avoiding long periods of immobility.

Symptoms can manifest during pulmonary embolism or as in the case of my aunt, sudden death can occur without any warning. Shortness of breath, sharp chest pain, cough, anxiety and sweating are some of the documented symptoms of this condition. Even when symptoms occur, the onset is rather rapid; therefore immediate medical attention is essential. You should contact your physician if you feel you are at risk.

My aunt chose to have elective foot surgery and unfortunately, she died as a result of it. If she had chosen to live with her foot pain, perhaps she would be with us today. There are some conditions that are so unbearable that patients accept the possibility of death in effort to try a treatment/surgery that may help them. Cancer is one of those horrible diseases. I have experienced that in these situations, if the outcome is death, the family is better able to cope because they find comfort in knowing that their loved one is no longer suffering. On the contrary, when we feel that a loved one is taken senselessly, we are often unable to wrap our human mind around God’s greater plan.

We are uncertain if my aunt experienced any warning signs just prior to her death. She woke up that morning around her usual time, ate breakfast with her husband and retreated to their bedroom. It was the Saturday before July 4th and she was planning to meet her sister later that day at a cookout. It was part of her morning routine to sit at the edge of her bed and lotion herself after getting out of the shower. She was especially fond of nice fragrances and particularly savored this part of her morning routine. Sadly, on this bright, summer morning, her routine was abruptly interrupted. Shortly after sitting down on the bed like she had done so many mornings before, she suddenly lost consciousness and fell back across her bed. Just like that. She was gone away from us, forever.

My family and I have replayed the last days, especially the final hours of my aunt’s life over and over in our minds. We desperately searched for clues, some unrecognized symptom that could have alerted us to her impending death. Anyone who has suffered the loss of a loved one knows that death can cause you to feel unimaginable pain, anguish, disbelief, and even fear of immortality, especially when the loss is sudden and unexpected. I know that when God calls one of his children home we are to rejoice, but I am still having a hard time coming to terms with my Aunt Geri’s death. I continue to pray for strength and understanding. I have also decided to stop taking life for granted and to live each day as if it’s my last. Because you never know, it actually may be.

References:

www.webmd.com

[http://dvt.net/home.do]

Depersonalization is a state of mind that makes life seem unreal. In “depersonalization disorder” the feeling doesn’t just come and go as it does when smoking pot or when a person’s survival is suddenly threatened. When one’s normal self seems lost and the world forever changed that is part of a mental condition that affects millions of people worldwide. It is a misery that is poorly understood and has no generally accepted treatment. It is classified as one of the dissociative disorders that are treated by psychiatrists or mental health therapists.

In this condition a person may feel numb and half paralyzed, emotionally and physically. There may be a continuous out-of-body sensation or a feeling of living in a dream or a movie. The external world may seem strange or unreal. Often individuals with depersonalization disorder have great difficulty describing their experience and they are often afraid to even think about it because it makes them feel crazy. However, they do know their experience is only a feeling and they do not actually lose contact with reality. Many people who suffered silently found information and support from others on websites devoted to depersonalization disorder.

Many dissociative disorders and anxiety disorders (particularly panic disorder) give rise to the symptom of depersonalization. The symptom may never occur again after the person recovers from the primary disorder. When depersonalization occurs as the primary problem it seems more difficult to treat. Psychiatric medication does not seem to be a solution. When medication helps it does so only temporarily. The usual psychotherapy approaches have been nonspecific and long-term.

The Mount Sinai’s Brief Psychotherapy Program in New York has put together a multistep program that has been effective for certain individuals suffering from depersonalization disorder. The program includes education about the condition, cognitive correction techniques, grounding, and general behavioral techniques. This approach focuses on controlling the symptoms of the disorder. There is another brief treatment program that focuses instead on the cause of the disorder. The Intensive Trauma Therapy Inc. program >http://traumatherapy.us

Low back pain is a common disorder affecting millions of individuals annually. It is a common musculoskeletal disorder that affects the lumbar segment of the spine, which is the lowest part of the back just above your buttocks. It is one of the most common causes of missing work, and can affect anyone of any age, race, or sex. It is one of the top 10 reasons patients seek care from a doctor.

Low back pain is typically classified as either acute or chronic. Low back pain is often accompanied by stiffness and difficulty with normal movement, muscle spasms, and pain that becomes worse with any type of straining. If it is particularly bad it may cause pain down the back of your leg, which is called sciatica.

Chronic Back Pain

Chronic low-back pain is a very common problem for which there is currently no universally effective treatment. Chronic back pain is generally defined as pain that persists for more than three months. Chronic pain is much less common than acute pain. It usually has an insidious onset, occurring over a long period of time. It can also occur in people whose work involves heavy lifting, bending, and long periods of standing on a daily basis. It also may originate from an injury, disease or stresses on different structures of the body such as osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, degeneration of the discs between the vertebrae, or a spinal disc herniation, a vertebral fracture (caused by osteoporosis), or rarely, a tumor (including cancer) or infection. Chronic low back pain can be shooting, stabbing or localised in nature. It can also be referred from another part of the body.

Acute Back Pain

Acute pain is the most common type of back pain. Acute back pain is short term, generally lasting from a few days to a few weeks. Acute pain comes on quickly and often leaves just as quickly. The commonest reasons for acute lower back pain are damaged muscles, ligaments and tendons in the lower back. Acute back pain can also be caused by kidney stones, pelvic inflammation and even some bowel conditions like constipation, inflammatory bowel disease or diverticulitis may have some back pain associated with it. These are much less common.

Back Pain Symptoms

Symptoms of low back pain depend upon the cause of the pain. Damage to muscles and ligaments causes pain, back muscle spasm, pain on walking, difficulty twisting, stiffness and sometimes pain worse on one side rather than the other.
Pain caused by nerve irritation often also causes sciatica. Sciatica is pain down the leg or legs caused by irritation to the sciatic nerve in your back. It is often caused by disc problems, arthritis and severe muscle damage and spasm.

Treatment

Treatment for back pain generally depends on what kind of pain you experience: acute or chronic. Treatment options range from basic rest but only for 24 hours, ice or heat and gradually resuming activity to medication, exercise, physical therapy and acupuncture. Using trans-cutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS ) with both acute and chronic pain can speed recovery and reduce pain. Acupuncture like TENS is excellent for treating muscle spasms and the trigger points often found in back muscles.

Treatments for chronic back pain can vary greatly depending on the type and source of the pain. Many sufferers find TENS a great help in reducing symptoms. If the problems persist an operation is often required to relieve the pressure on the disc and reduce nerve irritation.

Exercises

Having used TENS to reduce pain exercises that increase balance and strength can decrease your risk of further back pain. Exercises such as Tai Chi, yoga or any weight-bearing exercise that challenges your balance are good ones to try. String back and abdominal muscles can lessen pain. Exercises to reduce low back pain are not complicated and can be done at home without any special equipment.

So what exactly is ‘sinus fungal infection’? Fungi, as a group, can be found almost everywhere in the planet, including the human body. There are almost 50,000 kinds of fungi but only a few dozen have been proven to implicate human illness. In various cases, these fungi coexist in a natural balance, along with other microorganisms, inside our bodies.

Fungal sinusitis is classified into 4 types:

Allergic Fungal Sinusitis Fungal Ball Acute Invasive Sinusitis Chronic Invasive Sinusitis

A fungal ball is an overgrowth of fungal elements which usually occurs in the cheek or the maxillary sinus. Organisms involved are most often from the bread mold family known as Aspergillus. Patients suffering from sinus fungal infection involving these elements may be compared to a bacterial sinusitis. A radiologic study may be required to be able to see that there is a blockage involving the sinuses without causing any damage to the bones within the area. Treatments may include removal of the fungal ball and in most cases; endoscopic sinus surgery will be done with excellent cure rates.

The most common type of sinus fungal infection is known as the allergic fungal sinusitis. The fungi involved are commonly from the Dematiaceous family, including Curvularia, Alternaria and Bipolaris. The symptoms may be the same as bacterial sinusitis, and nasal polyps and thick drainage are found upon examination of the nose. Treatment of this kind of sinus fungal infection may include the removal of fungal elements, and the reestablishment of the sinus drainage. In some cases, lifelong intermittent surgical and medical management may be required. Treatment of this condition may be controversial, typical adjuncts to surgical remove may include topical or systemic steroids, antibiotics, antihistamines, allergy immunotherapy, irrigations and anti-fungal medications.

Chronic and acute invasive sinus fungal infections are the most serious types of sinus fungal infections, but fortunately, they are the least common type. Acute invasive fungal sinusitis is the type which has a quick advancing process and grows deeply into the sinus bones and tissues. Chronic invasive fungal sinusitis is similar but has slower infection. The ones who are often affected with acute invasive sinusitis are those with a compromised immune system, such as patients with uncontrolled diabetes or those who just undergo chemotherapy. On the other hand, those who are susceptible to chronic invasive sinusitis are the ones with normal immune system. The most commonly found fungi in this type of sinus fungal infection are those from the families of Mucor, Rhizopus and Aspergillus. Just like any other sinus fungal infections, symptoms for this condition may also be similar to bacterial sinusitis. Upon examination of the nasal cavity, there are visible mold spores and dying tissues that can be seen. The involved area of infection may extend far beyond the nasal cavity and sinuses. As for the treatment of this type of sinus fungal infection, a combination of anti-fungal medications and surgery might be required, especially since this is an often-fatal infection.

This is an important question since according to statistics, Americans are quite vulnerable to cancer diseases. Cancer is a disease that’s related to immune system deficiency while Colostrum is well known for its capability to increase our bodies’ immune systems. Cancer cells are created in body all the time, but our immune systems kill them before they develop further and become hazardous. The development of Cancer cells indicate that our immune systems don’t do their job effectively. These Cancer Cells use this opportunity to expand their invasion in our bodies and spread out of control.

So in order to fight the Cancer, one should strengthen their defense by boosting the immune system in the body. Colostrum is one of the treatments to help boost the immune system. Colostrum contains the antioxidant phytic acid which prevents iron from reaching and nourishing cancer cells.

Colostrum contains many bioactive compounds. Some of these beneficial molecules have been intensively studied for their effects on Cancer Cells growth and Apoptosis (programmed cell death). Recent study conducted by Sweden researchers found that:

Alpha Lactalbumin one of the immune in Colostrum can cause Cancer Cells to commit “suicide”. Another study emphasized the inhibition of cancer cell growth and induced apoptosis by Interleukin 4, a cytokine found in colostrum. Natural killer cells that are present in colostrum provide resistance against tumors, however these cells have thus far shown minimal cytotoxic activity. Other components of colostrum that can potentially inhibit the process of carcinogenesis are Tumor Necrosis Factor, Vitamin A, Vitamin D, proline-rich polypeptide (PRP), and TGF-beta like peptide.

Research has shown that increased levels of IGF-1 in the plasma are associated with an increased risk of prostate and breast cancer. However, studies suggest that the higher levels of this hormone in cancer patients are a result of cancer cells over-producing the insulin-like growth factors, not because of an addition of the hormone by an external source.

Although Colostrum has many benefits to Cancer Patients but it doesn’t change the DNA. Many humans are predisposed to cancer, and many of us have dormant cancer cells in our body. But however by doing a healthy diet and consuming nutritional supplements such as Colostrum can discourage the proliferation of unhealthy cells.

Another interesting study on Colostrum showed that it produces interferon and peroxidase inside the body. These two substances are responsible to dramatic recovery of many cancer patients.

While the most interesting part comes from DEDI website. According to this site, a group of researchers from DEDI inject a certain untreatable cancer cells to Cows and then let those Cows produce Colostrum that contains specific antibody to kill these untreatable cancer cells. According to them it seemed to work but needed a deeper research, but when the government through FDA heard about this information they close down the operation. But I cannot validate the truth of this story, I leave it to readers to dig more on this information.

So my conclusion is Colostrum has positive impacts on Cancer Patients and can be added to existing cancer treatments. Whether you’re suffering from cancer or not, you really should consider to consume Colostrum on regular basis to gain significant improvements to your health. If you’re not too sure you’d better consult with your doctor first before taking action.