Three Tips to Understanding your Cancer’s Prognosis

Understanding Cancer
Understanding Cancer

Cancer is the giant bugaboo that eventually invades everyone’s life if they live long enough. Still, if caught early and treated agressively, a prognosis of cancer is not necessarily an untimely death sentence. Here are the most important things to know about your prognosis once you have defintively been diagnosed with cancer:

It is Fact Based

Though it may mystify the patient to some extent, a doctor’s cancer prognosis is thoroughly grounded in his own and his peer’s medical experience. The doctor will look at such things as the type and location of the cancer, its metastatic stage – that is, how much it has actually spread – and the cancer’s grade – how abnormal it looks and how likely it is to spread even more.

It’s Mostly Statistics

While Mark Twain facetiously opined that there are “lies, damn lies and statistics,” the actual truth is that stats really do tell you a lot about your prognosis. By analyzing various factors such as the specific characteristics of the patient’s disease, the available treatment options and any other health issues, the doctor will make an educated guess as to what will happen.

It is Not Completely Certain

While your prognosis is your doctor’s “best guess” as to the likely course and outcome of your disease, it is by no means 100% certain. Remaining positive throughout the process is always the best medicine.

As you can see, a prognosis is as much art as it is science and the best doctors combine both when making a prognosis. For more detailed information, please contact us at Issels® or you can reach us directly at 1-888-437-7357.

High Cholesterol and Prostate Cancer Recurrence

High Cholesterol
High Cholesterol

Concerns about cholesterol and triglycerides creating problems for something other than your arteries? Apparently so. A recent study suggests a tie between high blood fats and the recurrence of prostate cancer.

The significance of normal blood fat levels
A study of 843 men whose prostates had been removed revealed an association between high levels of cholesterol and triglycerides, so-called “bad cholesterols,” and an increased risk of prostate cancer recurrence. Those with high cholesterol saw a 9 percent increase for every a10 mg/dL increase in cholesterol above 200 mg/dL. Thirty-five percent of those with a triglyceride level of 150 mg/dL or higher experienced recurrence as well. Read more information from the study.

Normalization of blood fats may reduce risk
Lead researchers at Duke University explained normalization – even partial – with the help of statins or dietary changes, was tied to a reduced risk of recurrence.

Increases in HDL, “good cholesterol”, raise the bar
The Duke team also found increases in HDL reduced the risk of recurrence by 39 percent for every 10 milligrams per decilitre (mg/dL) increase in the blood.

A word of caution
Though a link was shown, this does not indicate high blood fats as a cause for cancer. Statins for protection are not recommended at this time, according to Dr. Anthony D’Amico, chief of radiation oncology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

Understanding the role of blood fats is important
Heart disease and cancer are the leading causes of death, attributable to 45 percent of fatalities worldwide. Further research is warranted to further explore this modifiable risk factor and how to best effect it in order to save lives.

Looking to change your lifestyle and safeguard your remission? Learn more about Issels Integrative Oncology integrative cancer treatments.

Scientists Pursue Creative Cancer Detection Techniques

Cancer Detection
Cancer Detection

The earlier a cancer is found and properly diagnosed, the better the odds of effectively treating the disease. At Issels® Integrative Immuno-Oncology, we understand that different types of cancer behave differently and the best approach is individualized treatment protocols based on each person’s diagnosis. Scientists are now using nanoparticles and cancer sniffing dogs to detect cancer.

These nanoparticles (called nanoflares) connect with cancer cells in blood, causing those same cells to glow. The nanoflares are tiny gold particles that have been coated with luminescent molecules and specifically selected DNA that correlates with the RNA of different cancer cells.

Scientist are hoping to be able to identify different types of cancer by using particular DNA and various colors of molecules.

Google is looking for ways to create pills and wearables incorporating the nanoflares that would simplify the screening process and improve the accuracy of cancer diagnosis. These devices would constantly monitor for cancer cells within the individual, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Different organizations in the United States and UK are attempting to train dogs to screen patients for cancer. Many feel this non-invasive approach could be used for pancreatic and stomach cancers that do not currently have screening methods. The British Medical Journal has already published the results of successful canine scent cancer detection for prostate cancer.

For more than 60 years, Issels® Integrative Immuno-Oncology has been successfully treating cancer with innovative immunotherapy and non-toxic treatment methods. If you or a loved one is diagnosed with cancer, you do have options. Contact us for more information.

Can Your Hair or Lack of It Be An Indicator for Cancer?

Going Bald?
Going Bald?

Going bald is a fact of life for some men. There are many who dread looking in the mirror in the morning to find that they’ve lost more hair, while others embrace their hair loss by shaving their heads at the first sign of thinning. The truth is that being bald isn’t as big a deal as it was even just a few years go. Although a new study indicates that middle-aged balding might be an indicator for prostate cancer.

The study observed men who were approaching the age of forty-five and came to the conclusion that if they were going bald, they had about a thirty-nine percent increased risk for cancer than men who had all of their hair at that age. It was speculated that this could be because a dip in testosterone resulted in prostate cancer.

However, are these findings accurate enough to cause men to be concerned if they exhibit male pattern baldness?

Physicians say it’s highly unlikely. The study lacks the information that’s needed to support its findings. The best plan of action for any man who is approaching middle age is to visit the doctor on a regular basis and get screened for prostate cancer. Even though baldness might end up being a factor in a cancer diagnosis, the fact is that most cancer patients got the disease because of their genetics or because of a lifestyle choice.

Your family history is a strong indicator of whether or not you’re at risk for developing any type of cancer. If you are diagnosed with prostate cancer or any type of cancer, here at Issels®, we understand cancer treatments and patients in a way that’s different from other cancer centers. We’ve successfully been treating patients for sixty years, and we can help you too. Contact us.

Artificial Turf and Cancer in Young Athletes

Questions About Artificial Turf as a Cancer Reagent
Questions About Artificial Turf as a Cancer Agent

Artificial turf has been a normal part of many types of sports for years, but did you know it might not be safe? There is some speculation that the turf, which is made from synthetic fabrics and old, recycled tires could actually cause cancer. Here at Issels® we’re dedicated to exploring such theories and informing you about these types of potential dangers. 

According to the article on the Washington Post website, the rubber crumbs that young athletes are constantly removing from their hair, clothes and face contain benzene, carbon black and lead, which are all cancer-causing materials. This presents a risk for anyone who plays on a rubber crumb field, but it might be even more risky for soccer goalies. 

In 2009, the associate head soccer coach for Washington University, Amy Griffin, was visiting two of her female goalies in the hospital. Both of them had been diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma. A nurse informed Amy that the number of goalies she had treated recently had risen dramatically. The coach formed a hypothesis regarding the relationship between that particular soccer position and the fields they were playing on. 

For soccer goalies, their bodies are in constant contact with the ground. Not only does that lead to cuts, scrapes and abrasions, but it also means that the rubber crumbs from the turf could be entering their wounds. Her theory is further supported by the fact that blood cancers such as leukemia and lymphoma seem to be the common types of cancer goalies are being diagnosed with. 

Perhaps you or someone you love is battling a cancer diagnosis after having played on artificial turf. Here at Issels®, we have excellent treatment options and we will design a personalized plan that can help you, even if your cancer is advanced. Please contact us today.

 

Researchers Harness the HIV Virus to Fight Leukemia

New Cancer Research Is In the News
New Cancer Research Is In the News

The initials “HIV” are rarely associated with positive health news. In an amazing breakthrough, researchers at Penn Medicine have had success using the HIV virus to treat patients with incurable leukemia.

Dr. Carl June and his team at the University of Pennsylvania Health System have been working on the therapy for 20 years. The key to this treatment is the characteristic of the HIV virus to insert new genes into cells.

The procedure begins with billions of T-cells being removed from a patient’s body. A disabled form of HIV is then used to reprogram the T-cells, rendering them capable of recognizing, targeting and killing the cancer. At this point they are returned to the patient’s body to perform their mission.

According to Dr. June, once the cancer has been treated these “killer cells” become dormant, returning to action only if the cancer recurs. Out of 12 patients who have received the treatment, nine are in full or partial remission.

One of the successful cases is that of Marshall Jensen, a newlywed and young parent from Utah who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. So far, Dr. June’s treatment has accomplished what nearly three years of traveling the country for various surgeries and procedures could not.

What’s next for Dr. June and his team? They hope to be able to adapt this therapy to treat other forms of cancer. Trials on patients with pancreatic cancer are scheduled to begin in the summer of 2015.

Progress continues to be made in the fight against cancer nearly every day. Subscribe to our e-newsletter to get the latest information, including health and nutrition tips, delivered right to your inbox.   

 

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