Chemotherapy and Brain Damage - Is There a Link?

Many chemo patients report mental impairment. Some estimates say as many as 50%. They notice it during and after chemo. The impairment was not present before chemo. Is there a link between chemotherapy and brain damage?

Chemo uses chemicals to kill cancer cells. The body is pumped full of toxins. This would likely cause some cognitive deficits. Mental impairment occurs more often in those treated for cancer involving the reproductive system. Examples are breast and prostate cancers. In these cancers, the chemo levels are very high.

Some call the mental impairment a mental fog. Some call this condition chemofog. The term chemo brain came about in 2004. The term describes the mental fog patients feel during and after chemo treatments.

Researchers have known about chemo brain for over twenty years. Since the 1980's, there are a large number of breast cancer survivors. Many of them have reported symptoms. They started to suspect issues with chemotherapy and brain damage.

They were reporting problems they did not have prior to chemo. Problems with their memory. They were fumbling for words in the middle of sentences. They could not concentrate like before. They could not multi-task any longer. They were having a hard time learning new things. These are typical reports from a chemo brain sufferer. They were feeling half-crippled.

These symptoms lasted for a few weeks to years. Survivors reported different levels of each symptom.

Only recently have there been studies involving chemotherapy and brain damage. The medical profession did not understand the phenomenon. Doctors trivialized the condition for years.

The cause of chemo brain still is not clear. It is not clear how often it happens or what actually triggers it. Some theories are that stress, fatigue and depression causes the effects. Hormone changes, lack of estrogen.

When talking about chemotherapy and brain damage with patients, they have differing views. Some patients have extreme symptoms. Some notice no issues. They are not always sure if they have chemo brain or age-related issues. While other cannot notice a difference before chemo than after chemo.

Medical professionals also have conflicting views on chemotherapy and brain damage.

Some say that the link is real. They point to the large number of documented chemo brain cases. There are also a growing number of studies by researchers. These studies are showing that mental impairment after chemo is real. They are also showing that the impairment can last longer than two years.

In one study, researchers took brain scans of breast cancer survivors. They used chemo patients and patients who survived cancer through surgery. The study showed the brains of chemo patients had to work harder to perform the same tasks.

Others argue the stress of chemo could have an impact on mental function. They also cite reduced levels of estrogen, fatigue, and anxiety. These could all cause chemo brain symptoms. They also point to other medications. Chemo patients often take other drugs to treat chemo side effects.

Another study on chemotherapy and brain damage had a different conclusion. They discovered there might not be a link between chemotherapy and brain damage after all. This study evaluated the cognitive state of women before chemo. Thirty five percent of the women showed some level of mental impairment. Memory was impaired most often.

The conclusion was twofold. First, the cause of chemo brain might be due to factors not considered yet. The second is that any study linking chemotherapy and brain damage must include tests prior to chemo.

The debate about chemotherapy and brain damage will continue.

The bottom line is that the cause of the mental impairment does not matter. What matters is that people are suffering. Chemo brain, cognitive impairment, chemofog, what ever you call it. It has a direct impact on a person's quality of life.

Dr. Henry Mahncke notes how similar chemo brain and age-related mental decay is. Dr. Mahncke is Vice President of Research and Outcomes for Posit Sciences. Posit Sciences develops innovative brain training software. Their software provides brain health and improves cognitive performance.

Brain training is one way to help recover from chemo brain. Thousands have been able to regain their cognitive function due to many different causes. Chemo brain is one of them.

Are Cell Phones Causing Cancer?

In 1993, a man filed a lawsuit against the cell phone industry, claiming that his wife died from a brain tumor caused by her repeated use of the cell phone. The tumor was on the same side of the head where she held her cell phone and was shaped like the cell phone antenna. The case got widespread media attention and was featured in CNN's Larry King show.

Although the claim was dismissed by the court due to lack of sufficient evidence, it was a public relations nightmare for the wireless industry. It also marked the beginning of the global search for a definitive answer to the question: are cell phones safe or not? Does it cause cancer and other degenerative diseases? Brain cancer is up 25% since cell phones became popular. Every year, there are 183,000 more cases in the US alone. Some health experts say there's a link with cell phone use, but is there proof?

In an effort to diffuse the negative publicity from the high-profile lawsuit, the cell phone industry itself funded a $25 million dollar research program to prove that cell phones are safe. After 6 years of intensive research, however, the results were not what they were looking for. Dr. George Carlo, the chief research scientist of the program, found evidence that cell phones pose some health risks, possibly even cancer.

The first evidence of cancer link that shook the cell phone industry came in 1997. Dr. Michael Repacholi and his colleagues from the Royal Adelaide Hospital in South Australia reported that long-term exposure to the type of radiation that comes from digital cell phones caused an increase in the occurrence of lymphoma in mice. The study received widespread international media attention because it was the first time that cancer has been linked to the cell phone in a well-conducted study.

THE RED FLAGS: SOLVING THE CANCER PUZZLE

In order to show a link between cell phone radiation and cancer, let's look at several studies Dr. Carlo investigated that made him blow the whistle, so to speak. These red-flag findings provide the pieces that fit together to form the cancer picture:

- DNA Damage in Human Blood Studies

- Breakdown in the Blood-Brain Barrier

- Studies of Tumors in People Who Use Cell Phones

- Studies of Cell Phone Radiation Dosage and Response

DNA DAMAGE IN HUMAN BLOOD

All tumors and all cancers are the result of genetic damage. Most often that damage includes the formation of micronuclei--fragments of chromosomes that form membranes around themselves and appear under a microscope as additional nuclei in blood cells (which normally have just a single nucleus). The relationship between micronuclei and cancer is so strong that doctors around the world test for their presence to identify patients likely to develop cancer. The presence of micronuclei indicates that the cells can no longer properly repair broken DNA. This deficiency is considered to be an indication of an increased risk of developing cancer.

- In December 1998, Drs. Ray Tice and Graham Hook of Integrated Laboratory Systems in North Carolina have shown that blood cells exposed to cell phone radiation suffer genetic damage in the form of micronuclei. In their studies, DNA and chromosome damage in human white blood cells occurred when exposed to signals from all types of phones--analog, digital, and PCS. Damage was shown even from signals occurring at a SAR level below the government's "safety" guideline.

- Using different methods, the above finding was confirmed by Dr. Joseph Roti Roti of Washington University in St. Louis in 2000. His research showed that human blood cells exposed to radiation at wireless phone frequencies did indeed develop genetic damage, in the form of micronuclei. This finding received a lot of notice because Dr. Roti Roti is a prominent scientist who does hiw work under funding by Motorola Inc.

This has a very serious implication. If cell phone radiation encourages the formation of micronuclei in blood cells, and micronuclei are said to be "biological markers" for cancer, then based on these studies alone cell phone use could be said to increase the risk of cancer

BREAKDOWN IN THE BLOOD BRAIN BARRIER

The blood brain barrier is a special filter in the blood vessels of the brain that keeps dangerous chemicals from reaching sensitive brain tissue and causing DNA breaks and other damage.

- In 1994 and again, in 2002, Dr. Leif Salford from Lund University in Stockholm, Sweden found in his studies that rats exposed to cell phone radiation showed a breakdown in the blood brain barrier, as well as areas of shrunken, damaged neurons.

The micronuclei studies of Tice, Hook and Roti Roti and the blood-brain findings of Salford provide a two-step explanation for how cancer could be caused by cell phone radiation.

Step One: A leakage or breakdown in the blood brain barrier would provide a pathway for cancer-causing chemicals in the bloodstream (from tobacco, pesticides, air pollution, etc.) to leak into the brain and damage sensitive brain tissue that would otherwise be protected. These chemicals could break the DNA in the brain or cause other harm to reach those cells.

Step Two: While a number of studies showed that cell phone radiation by itself does not appear to break DNA, the micronuclei findings suggest that they do impair the DNA repair mechanisms in brain cells. Micronuclei result from a breakdown of the cell's ability to repair itself. If the brain cells become unable to repair themselves, then carcinogenesis--the creation of tumors--induced by chemical toxins could begin.

DNA carries the genetic material of an organism and its different cells. Any damage that goes unrepaired affects the future generation of cells. The change has procreated and this mutation is seen as a possible cause of cancer.

TUMORS IN PEOPLE WHO USE CELL PHONES

Epidemiological studies, performed by different investigators using different methods, show some evidence of an increased risk of tumors among people who use cellular phones.

- In 1998, Dr. Ken Rothman of Eidemiology Resources, Inc. in Newton, Mass., did a study showing that users of handheld cell phones have more than twice the risk of dying from brain cancer than do car phone users--whose antennas are mounted on the body of the car, far removed from the users' heads.

- In 1998, Joshua Muscat, a research scientist from the American Health Foundation, showed in his study a doubling of the risk of developing neuro-epithelial tumors on the outside of the brain among cell phone users, particularly on the side of the skull where cell phone antennas are held during calls.

- Muscat also showed in another study that people who have used cell phones for six years or more have a 50-percent increase in risk of developing acoustic neuroma, a benign tumor of the nerve that controls hearing and extends from the ear to the brain. Acoustic neuromas can cause hearing loss and can be life-threatening if untreated.

This was confirmed in a separate study in Stockholm, Sweden by Anders Ahlbom in 2004 and sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO), which finds that people who have used cell phones, this time for at least 10 years, may have an increased risk of developing acoustic neuroma.

- In a study also requested by WHO, researchers headed by Dr. Lennart Hardell of the Orebro Medical Center in Sweden examined 1,617 patients aged between 20 and 80 who had been diagnosed with a brain tumour between 1997 and 2000. They were then compared to healthy people. Those who used cell phones for less than 10 years faced a 20% higher risk of developing brain cancer. But for those who used them for more than a decade the risk was 80% higher. The study also found that tumours were 2.5 times more likely to be on the same side of the head as the phone was held. The cancer of the auditory nerve, accoustic neuroma, showed a larger increase--3.5 times greater risk.

CELL PHONE RADIATION DOSAGE AND RESPONSE

All studies mentioned showed that an increase in cell phone radiation exposure also increases the likelihood of the adverse effect occurring.

In Repacholi's study of mice, the risk of lymphoma increased significantly the longer the mice were exposed to the radio waves.

In the research work done by Tice, Hook, and Roti Roti, the risks of genetic damage as measured by micronuclei formation increased as the amount of radiation increased.

In the three epidemoiological studies--two by Muscat and one by Hardell--the risk of tumors was greater in the areas of the brain near where the cell phone was held.

In Salford's study, the higher the radiation exposure level the rats were exposed to, the more damage was apparent in the blood vessels in the brain and the neurons.

THE BIG CANCER PICTURE

The test tube studies by Tice and Hook; the mouse study by Repacholoi and Selford; and the epidemiological studies by Rothman, Muscat, and Hardell all agree in that they suggest an increased risk of cancer among cell phone users. They fit together to form the beginnings of a picture that everyone can see. They perhaps don't form the complete picture yet, but there are enough already in place to see that there is cause fo genuine public health concern about cell phone safety.

According to Dr. Carlo, "The big picture is disturbingly clear. There is a definite risk that the radiation plume that emanates from a cell phone antenna can cause cancer and other health problems. It is a risk that affects hundreds of millions of people around the world. It is a risk that must be seen and understood by all who use cell phones so they can take all the appropriate and available steps to protect themselves--and especially to protect young children whose skulls are still growing and who are the most vulnerable to the risks of radiation."

MORE PIECES COMING

- In 2000, a team of Sydney researchers published a scientific hypothesis about how mobile phone radiation causes cancer. The report claims that the radiation generated by cell phones causes ongoing stress to the body cells, causing them to give off 'heat shock proteins (HSP).' The human cells sometimes release these proteins in response to injury or infection. Such a chronic activation of the heat shock response affects the normal regulation of cells, which could result in cancer.

- In 2002, cell biologist Fiorenzo Marinelli and his team at the National Research Council in Bologna, Italy, exposed leukemia cells to continuous radio waves similar to that of cell phones. The exposed cells had a higher rate of death than the controls initially, but after further exposure, a curious thing happened: instead of more cells dying, the exposed cells were replicating furiously compared to the controls. Genes that trigger cells to multiply were turned on in a high proportion of the cells. The cancer, although briefly beaten back, had become more aggressive. Marinelli suspects that the radiation may initially damage DNA, and that this interferes with the biochemical signals in a way that ultimately triggers the cells to multiply more rapidly.

SO WHY ARE CELL PHONES STILL AROUND?

Now with all the mounting evidence, the cell phone industry still maintains their position that cell phones are safe and have even begun marketing towards children. The governments have been slow in stepping in to warn people of any danger from using cell phones. Fortunately, health officials and experts in several European countries are taking the first steps, having issued public warnings to parents urging caution about kids and cell phones,

If the previous environmental issues involving tobacco, asbestos, and lead are any indication, it takes years and even decades to accumulate the amount of evidence that would produce a definite ruling. In the case of cigarette smoking, it took two decades of study and 100 years of consumer use to gather enough data to meet research standards to demonstrate the need for the U.S. Surgeon General's warning label on cigarette packs. Some experts say that in the case of cell phones, it will not take that long as data are coming in at a faster pace. But at the present the authorities can only urge people to exercise caution.

Replication of research is another problem. A study that comes out with a new finding generally does not gain immediate acceptance in the scientific community or the wireless industry unless another research lab has been able to replicate the work and the findings. The industry has cleverly perpetuated their position by creating an illusion of responsible follow up by always calling for more research.

When Dr. Salford published his study in 2003 showing that rat brain neurons were dying from exposure to cellphone radiation, he warned there might be similar effects in humans that over time could lead to degenerative diseases of the brain. His study was written off by the industry as a "novel" finding that needed to be replicated.

But achieving the scientific standard of replication can be complicated. Salford says if studies aren't absolutely replicated, providing an apples-to-apples comparison, there's wiggle room to dispute follow-up findings. Research studies require funding, and the wireless industry, after Dr. Carlo's revelations, have been reluctant to put money into more comprehensive research. As for governments, again many European governments are taking the responsible course by funding research, but the U.S. and Canada are lagging poorly.

In 1999, CNN's Larry King once again featured a man who brought a multimillion dollar lawsuit against cell phone manufacturers. This time the man, a Maryland neurologist, was himself diagnosed with brain cancer--again located on the side of the head where he held his cell phone. The suit was yet again dismissed, however, and the man died not long afterwards.

According to WHO report, 0.1 billion people have died from tobacco use in the 20th century, and 10 times as many will die in the 21st century. No one is suggesting that cell phones could cause as much casualties, but do we really want to wait and find out?

AIMING FOR RESPONSIBLE TECHNOLOGY

Unlike tobacco, the cell phone has become as an indispensable part of our lives as television and computer. It has enabled us to make a gigantic leap in the way we communicate with one another and has been credited widely with saving people's lives in emergency situations. Cell phones are here to stay, and perhaps rightly so.

The question is not how to stop people from using this ubiquitous device but rather how to make it safer. The first step always is to admit there is a problem, hence the industry and the government have to acknowledge the health risks inherent with the present technology. This way we can all find the proper solutions that we may more enjoy the benefits of its use without sacrificing our health and wellbeing.

copyright 2005 Taraka Serrano

Brain Tumor Signs And Symptoms - What Are The Warning Signs?

A brain tumor is a growth in the brain that may be benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous). Both a benign and malignant tumor can cause symptoms because the tumors' growth takes up space and causes pressure and compression on vital nerve tissue. Review these symptoms to detect if you have any of the warning signs of a tumor and learn more about the cause, diagnosis and treatment.

Brain Tumor Signs And Symptoms Cancer Medicine

The most common symptom is a headache. 90% of those with a tumor in the brain will experience a headache during the course of the illness. The headache may be described as a an intermittent (off and on) deep ache, or pressure. It is not usually described as throbbing. The headache may be increased by coughing, straining, or changing positions (i.e. standing to lying down). Headaches caused by tumors are usually more intense in the morning at the early stages of tumor growth.

Other symptoms of brain tumor may include nausea and vomiting (some persons may vomit without any preceding nausea), sudden changes in vision (i.e. double vision), memory lapses, changes in personality, or seizures.

Tumor Cause, Diagnosis and Treatment

There is no known cause for primary brain tumors (tumors that originate in the brain) and most tumors of the brain have spread (metastasized) from cancer elsewhere in the body.

The aforementioned symptoms may be noted and should be evaluated by a physician so a proper diagnosis can be made. The evaluation may include a physical examination and specialized tests such as CT or MRI scans, or EEG (electroencephalogram instrument records brain activity).

Tumors of the brain are treated by surgically removal if possible (inoperable brain tumors can not be removed because they are too large or in an inaccessible area). Radiation treatments or chemotherapy may also be considered as treatment options.

Brain Tumor - There is A Cure

To a layman, brain tumor is basically cancer of the brain. Medulloblastoma, ependymoma, glioma, teratoma, atypical teratoid rhadoid tumor, etc, are names associated with different types of brain tumor. Cancer Medicine

In simple terms, brain tumor is no more than uncontrolled growth of cells forming a lump in the brain. Just like any other form of cancers, brain tumor can spread and proliferate to any other parts of the body. Even before the brain tumor proliferates, or metastasize as a medical doctor or an oncologist would say it, the tumor could wreak havoc in the brain. Our brain, as we know it, controls the rest of the body. Any disturbance up there will affect our normal functioning of the various faculties. Therefore, symptoms of brain tumor really depends on where and how big the tumor is.

This article brings to light a relatively new form of treatment that could bring hope to those afflicted with brain tumor.

The ideal objective of any treatment for brain tumor is total removal of the tumor, without any recurrence and proliferation. The most common treatment is surgical removal of the tumor. Surgery posts the high risks of damaging even a tiny bit of the surrounding structure, tissues or nerves.  Apart from conventional surgery, the newer types of surgery include what is known as stereotactic radiosurgery and gamma knife radiosurgery.  These two forms of surgery are specific, but are still considered ionizing and invasive, respectively. This article shares with the reader a non-surgical, non-ionizing, and non-invasive form of treatment for cancer.

This technology is commercially known as CYTOTRON, or scientifically known as RFQMR or Rotational Field Quantum Magnetic Resonance. Cytotron came into the world in 2006 after more than a decade of research and fine-tuning. It is invented by Dr. Rajah Vijay Kumar from Bangalore, India. Dr Kumar is a tissue reengineering scientist. He works with medical doctors and specialist in inventing the Cytotron. This technology was first successfully applied to the treatment of osteoarthritis. For details on this aspect, please refer to my upcoming article 'Osteoarthritis - There Is cure!'.

The layman explanation of Cytotron in cancer treatment is simplified here. The Cytotron uses radio and near radio frequency to beam specifically on the tumor or cancerous area. What Cytotron tries to accomplish is to induce the self-death of the cancer cells. This is known as apoptosis in medical term. In cancer cells, the process of natural death is missing due to some missing process in the cell cycle. With Cytotron, that process of natural death is restored without affecting the neighboring normal cells. With the many cases that had been treated, the MRI results showed objective evidence of the arrest of cancer growth and also the disappearance of the cancer cells.

One of the most amazing successful cases of Cytotron treatment on cancer was a 7 year-old girl from Ipoh of Perak state, Malaysia. This girl, Ying, was detected with brain tumor when her parents noticed she was not able to behave normally and knocked into things around the house. Her brain tumor led to her loss of vision and, if untreated, she was on the brink of death. About one year after the tumor was detected, it had grown from 3 to 4 centimeters, and then, increased by another centimeter in just another 4 months. Then, she was put on a 28 consecutive, 1 hour per day treatment with the Cytotron. During the Cytotron treatment, her condition had already begun to show improvement. 3 months after the treatment, her MRI clearly showed that the brain tumor growth had been successfully arrested. Half a year later, the tumor totally collapsed. Today, at the age of 9 years old, she has gone back to school like other kids.

To those who are living with the agony of cancer, CYTOTRON, or RFQMR, may bring new light to their lives.

Marijuana Helps Cuts Tumor Growth in Brain Cancer and Help Relieve Pain and Suffering for Others

Most individuals when they hear of cannabis, they think pot, chronic, marijuana, an unlawful herb which can cause them long prison convictions where the authorities throw away the key. Some people have heard that the use of marijuana can drive you nuts. However how many of you knew there is another side to marijuana use. Yes! outside of recreational drug use. Marijuana help A.I.D.S suffers, cancer suffers, suffers of Multiple Sclerosis. Various studies have shown cannabis may be useful in addressing alcohol abuse,attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD or AD/HD), collagen-induced arthritis, rheumatoid arthritis,asthma,atherosclerosis,bipolar disorder, colorectal cancer,depression, diabetic retinopathy, dystonia, epilepsy, digestive diseases, gliomas, hepatitis C, Huntington's disease, hypertension, urinary incontinence, leukemia, skin tumors, morning sickness, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Parkinson's disease, pruritus, post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), sickle-cell disease, sleep apnea, and anorexia nervosa. However regarding some of these claims validation of these results needs longer, controlled studies on broader samples. Which may not occur due to the criminal status of this magnificent herb

Although the extent of the medicinal value of cannabis has been disputed, and despite the opposition to research and use put forward by most national governments, it does have several well-documented beneficial effects. Among these are: the amelioration of nausea and vomiting, stimulation of hunger in chemotherapy and AIDS patients, lowered intraocular eye pressure (shown to be effective for treating glaucoma), as well as general analgesic effects (pain relief). In fact Marijuana has been used in China and India as early as 3000 B.C. to treat a variety of ailments from easing the pain of childbirth to relieving asthma and epilepsy symptoms, even improving appetite and mental or emotional dispositions. In fact marijuana was the weapon of choice when it came to medicinal treatment in pre 1930's U.S.A. Cannabis was used in the treatment of all kinds of malady from tooth ache to several forms of anxiety disorders. However it is in recent times that marijuana also known as Hemp is again finding prominence in the medicinal arena. This was influenced by efforts being done by researchers investigating methods of ascertaining cannabis intoxication when they observed that smoking the drug reduced intraocular pressure. Thus arousing efforts for further research in the medicinal benefits of marijuana.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) published a policy in May 1999 that prescribed the need for further research into the use of marijuana for medical treatment. The NIH maintains that the use of marijuana for medical reasons must involve an analysis of the benefits of use as well as the possible risks. Although the United States has not openly supported any efforts regarding the medicinal efficacy of marijuana. Most other countries have researched and identified various areas in which Cannabis help relieve suffering.

Research released in the British Journal of Cancer reported that the intra-cranial administration of THC was associated with reduced tumor cell proliferation in humans with higher glioblastomaecting the viability of non transformed counterparts. This was supported by Italian researcher who identified "cannabinoids have displayed a great potency in reducing glioma tumor growth. Appearing to be selective antitumoral agents as they kill glioma cells without affecting the viability of non transformed counterparts." What this means really is that cannabiniods which is a component of cannabis effectively isolates and destroy brain cancer cells without harming or affecting healthy brain cells unlike any invasive or radiation therapy known of. Spanish researcher Dr. Manuel Guzman, one of the world's leading experts in the field, wrote in a 2003 review in the journal Nature Reviews: Cancer, "Cannabinoids are selective anti-tumor compounds, as they can kill tumor cells without affecting their non-transformed counterparts." It is likely that cannabinoid receptors regulate cell-survival and cell-death pathways differently in tumor and non tumor cells." But Medicinal marijuana benefits doesn't stop with cancer either, remember I mentioned earlier it also delivers benefit to persons suffering with A.I.D.S

What assistance does marijuana offer A.I.D.S stricken individuals? Here is how marijuana helps; Researchers at Columbia University publicized clinical trial data in 2007 showing that HIV/AIDS patients who breathed in cannabis four times everyday experienced considerable increases in food intake with little evidence of irritation and no impairment of cognitive performance. They reasoned that smoked marijuana has a clear medical benefit in HIV-positive patients. In another study in 2008, researchers found that marijuana significantly reduces HIV-related neuropathic pain when added to a patients already-prescribed pain management regimen and may be an "effective option for pain relief" in those whose pain is not controlled with current medications. Medical cannabis appears to help negate appetite loss, nausea, and pain associated with HIV and AIDS. Additionally marijuana's use has been known to ease the dementia, also known as AIDS dementia complex, HIV dementia, HIV encephalopathy, HIV-associated dementia, HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder, and HIV-related dementia suffered by many AIDS patients during the end stages of the disease.

That's cancer and AIDS what else is there? It is a very long list which I will share with in another article. However some individuals may think that cannabis is just great for any disease or disorder. The problem is that every individual responds to cannabis differently depending upon their age and illness, their unique genetics, the setting in which cannabis is utilised, the particular strain, makeup, and potency of the cannabis used, and the unique thinking and emotions of that patient. It remains arguable whether medical marijuana is a legitimate treatment or a miracle drug. I personally cannot substantiate that however from where I stand it seems marijuana is very helpful.

How Does Cancer Affect Cells?

Cancer is the name for a disease that can affect cells from all the organs and body's structures and is considered to be life threatening. Cancer determines cells to divide in an uncontrollable way. Generally the cells of the body divide only when needed, like when they grow old and other cells need to be produced in order to replace them or when they are in a small amount and the body needs more of them.

Because the cells are produced in an increased number, a mass of unknown tissue will form, known as a tumor (this tumor can be benign or malign).

The benign form of the tumor is considered not to be harmful. It can be easily removed and will not spread to other organs. The possibility for this tumor to reappear is much reduced.

The malign form of the tumor is also known as cancer and is considered to be a threat to life. It can affect organs that are situated near the tumor and it can also get into the bloodstream or lymphatic system and reach other organs creating new tumors in the whole body. This is known as metastasis. The secondary disease will be named after the primary disease, because the metastatic cancerous cells have the same structure with the basic tumor cells.

Taking colon cancer for an example, if the colon cancer cells spread toward the liver and affect it, the liver disease will be called metastatic colon cancer.

In the whole world, colon cancer is the third leading cause of cancer in males and the fourth in women. It is quite rare in Asia and Africa but you can find it frequently in the Western world. Those who have adopted western diets are at risk to develop colorectal cancer. Doctors believe that this type of cancer is developing from polyps situated in the large intestine (colon and rectum are a part of the large intestine). These polyps are considered to be benign but left untreated for years they can transform in malign tumors. The polyps can be removed easily during a colonoscopy performed by the doctor.

Colorectal cancer can affect nearby structures and can even get into the bloodstream or lymphatic system and spread towards liver and lungs where it will produce another tumor. If metastasis has occurred, the hope of treatment efficiency is considered to have reduced drastically.

Different Types of Tumor Treatments

Almost every cancer shows in the appearance of a tumor which is attaching themselves to several organs like the brain, lungs, cervix, liver, prostate and pancreas. Other form of cancers such as leukemia or blood cancers was not manifested by tumors.

With some cases of the patients that cancers were involving tumors, there are various suggested treatments available to defeat the growing tumors. These are some types of tumor treatments that can help in restoring the patient's health without too many damages.

Surgical treatment

From definite forms of cancer like breast or prostate cancers, where the tumor cells are able to be removed from the involved organ with no considerable damage to the patient rather with the organ, the usual mode of treatment should be surgery.

Surgery was also been used to remove the surrounding tissues of the affected organ to be assured not to remain to the other safe sides. Surgical treatment requires the patient to stay in the hospital and typically followed by the radiation or chemotherapy to clean up any remains of the cancerous cells.

More often, the concerned organ loses a bundle of tissues along with the muscles in the process of terminating the cancerous cells just like in the case of breast cancer. But, it is still the doctor who needs to decide on the surgery after the various testing and reviews of the results along with the location of the affected organs.

Chemotherapy

This type of tumor treatment consists o drugs which are either be injected to a patient or have been given orally. Though, almost all patients obtain the drug doses via catheter for them to cause a minimal discomfort.

The treatment works through successive periods like treatment period and the recovery period. But, chemotherapy can also kill healthy cells to its intention of destroying the cancerous cells. The patients may also suffer horrible side effects like diarrhea, vomiting and hair losses. There are several drugs that can be managed together in destroying the cancer cells, patients should always be on their regular check-ups for the monitoring of their treatment progress.

Radiation Therapy

The radiation therapy is commonly used after undergoing a surgery to totally eliminate any existing cancerous cells that may reform to cause chaos again. Patients were given the radioactive pills to be swallowed and in some other cases, the treatment was given trough intravenously.

With this tumor treatment, the radioactive matter will destroy the cancerous cells that must have been hiding inside or at the rare of the tumor. The patients may also undergo an external beam radiation that was projected right to the site of the affected organ. This type of treatment was run at around 5 days each week and patient is permitted to go home after every session.

Other Treatment Forms

Target therapy - it is utilized to purposely target the cancerous cells as leaving behind the normal cells unharmed.

Immunotherapy - it edifies that immune system in fighting the assault of cancerous cells.

Herbal treatments and acupuncture - these are the alternatives of the tumor treatments that have not adequate research in backing up their declaration of effectiveness.