Tag Archives: cancer

Could you be at risk for Prostate Cancer?

October 1, 2014

The Effect of Testosterone Level On Risk Of Prostate Cancer

Introduction

In this article, we shall examine the effect of testosterone level on the risk of prostate cancer. This has remained a subject of great controversy because of the divergent views that have been fronted. Basically the argument has been that using testosterone therapy on men who have been treated of prostate cancer in the past exposes them to the risk of developing the cancer afresh. The reason given for this has been that the therapy could reawaken sleeping cancer cells in the body of the patient, thus triggering a new and aggressive attack.

On the other end of the spectrum has been the argument that testosterone therapy is not necessarily associated with cancer recurrence. And there have been studies to support this. We shall look at both sets of arguments in detail.

Testosterone Therapy

This is a common form of therapy that is widely used to treat a number of complications in aging men. With the process of aging comes a sustained decline in the amount of testosterone in the body of men. A decline in the amount of testosterone in the body is associated with a number of problems. For instance, men at advanced ages usually experience decreased libido. This effect can be attributed to a complex interplay of hormones within the body which is triggered by a reduction in the amount of testosterone. In the same manner, symptoms such as general fatigue and even other forms of sexual dysfunction (apart from the low libido mentioned) have been treated by use of testosterone therapy.

Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer is a common form of disease in men of advanced age. Although studies have indicated that the disease is able to affect men of even lower ages, it has been common for the disease to be associated with advanced age. The complex interaction between different factors in the body of men at advanced ages has been studies and the results have indicated that the risk of development of prostate cancer in men increases rapidly as they advance in age. So, with a decrease in the amount of testosterone, which automatically occurs with an increase in age, comes a rise in the risk for developing prostate cancer. Although this is true, it is worthwhile to mention that currently, studies are being conducted to determine whether the relationship is as a result of decline in testosterone levels in the prostate alone or the body as a whole.

Testosterone and Treatment of Prostate Cancer

For men who develop prostate cancer, the standard treatment procedure has been a radical reduction of the hormones in the body. This procedure has been used in many cases in which prostate cancer has developed and metastasized fully. However, studies have indicated that in some cases, prostate cancer is able to withstand such a treatment and recur in the future, if triggered by existence of the right conditions. The manner in which this occurs has been attributed to the ability of prostate cells to produce testosterone at a much higher level than before the hormone-reducing therapy was administered. What this means is that even if the amount of testosterone in the body of a patient is dramatically reduced by the procedure, the amount in the prostate remains the same, thus compensating for the loss. Therefore, when the right conditions are created, the cells that produce excess testosterone may develop into cancer cells.

Testosterone Therapy & Prostate Cancer

Standard procedure for tackling prostate cancer in men has been through surgery, chemotherapy and even immunotherapy. However, history and studies have indicated that when men who have been successfully treated of prostate cancer are exposed to testosterone therapy later in their lives, the possibility of the prostate cancer reoccurring is highly increased. If this is so, then testosterone therapy becomes dangerous for men who have been successfully treated of prostate cancer before.

However, there have been arguments to the contrary. Since a lot of studies have been conducted on this matter, we summarize the most important points here as follows.

First, although some studies have indicated that giving the therapy to men who have been successfully treated of prostate cancer exposes them to the risk of developing the disease afresh, the degree of risk remains minimal, at the best. Since the association has not been firmly established, the balance of probability has been that whether or not to administer the treatment to such patients depends on the judgment of the specialist. It is safe to say that the outcome of using testosterone therapy in men who have undergone successful treatment of prostate cancer cannot be predicted with certainty.

Second, there has been evidence to suggest that men with low levels of testosterone are at a higher risk of developing prostate cancer compared to those having normal testosterone levels. Therefore, if such men seek testosterone therapy in the future the risk of developing the cancer remains. This is so because testosterone therapy is not used as a prostate cancer treatment method.

Concluding remarks

AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center has been established as a leading center for cancer treatment. We offer our clients a wide range of services in relation to cancer diagnosis, treatment and general management. Feel free to contact Dr. Dalal Akoury, a leading specialist in alternative and complementary treatment of cancer, for an appointment.

The Effect of Testosterone Level on Risk Of Prostate Cancer

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Sex And Intimacy After Breast Cancer

September 30, 2014

Sex And Intimacy After Breast Cancer- Getting the Facts Right

Although breast cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer among women, advances in research have led to the development of therapies that have proven to be quite effective in treating the disease. Use of chemotherapy, surgery and radiotherapy, among other alternative forms of cancer treatments, have been widely used to treat women suffering from breast cancer. However, after successfully undergoing cancer treatment, many women experience drastic changes in their sexual lives in general and intimacy in particular. In this article, the different ways in which breast cancer affects the sexual lives of women, after it has been successfully treated, are examined.

breast cancer

  • Feelings of being unattractive

Usually, many women feel completely unattractive after they have undergone treatment procedures for breast cancer. There are several things that contribute to this feeling among them. First, many of the procedures that are used to treat breast cancer successfully are invasive. For instance, all forms of mastectomy are invasive in that the breast is invaded and tissues removed. Although there are reconstructions procedures that are meant to restore the breast to its natural shape and size, the impact of the procedure affects the sense of being attractive in many women. Secondly, the scars that remain after the procedures make many women to feel completely unattractive.

Furthermore, the majority of women who have undergone treatment for breast cancer tend to feel that they have lost their sense of femininity. Related to feelings of no longer being attractive, a sense of one having lost her femininity is equally devastating and arises from the reality that part or the entire breast has been removed. Also, feelings of unattractiveness in women who have been treated of breast cancer may be influenced by their partners. In cases of women who have lacked support from their partners, the feelings of unattractiveness and loss of femininity are strengthened. On the other hand, availability of support from the partner works to reduce such feelings in the women.

  • Impact on intimacy

For the majority, diagnosis of breast cancer always results into changes to their sex lives. This happens for several reasons and in several ways. For instance, many women tend to experience a decline in their libido after being diagnosed with breast cancer. There are several factors that are responsible for this. The most important one of them is the direct impact of the diagnosis which sets a train of emotional and psychological responses in a patient leading that lead to a decline of sexual desire in them.

With the reduction in the desire for sex, many women feel that they are failing in their duties to their partners. Feelings of guilt, apparent failure and loss usually exacerbate the condition for such women instead of making things better. In all these, the reaction of the partner matters a lot. If the partner behaves in such a manner to suggest that he is not satisfied sexually by the woman, this definitely makes the situation worse because it validates the original feelings of guilt and failure within the woman. This definitely affects the intimacy patterns of the pair.

  • Painful sex

In some cases, women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer and have successfully undergone treatment tend to experience general sexual dysfunction. This is manifested in different ways. For example, some women, as a result of hormonal changes and other psychological factors, tend to experience a decline in the desire for sex. This may be detrimental considering that the feelings of the other partner are most likely to be hurt. Secondly, many women who have suffered from breast cancer may experience painful sex as a result of dryness of the vagina. This makes it practically difficult for them to engage in pleasurable sexual intercourse with their partners, thus putting a strain on their relationships.

Apart from this, breast cancer has been known to result into failure of women to reach orgasm during sex. What usually happens is that such women are worried about their bodies to such an extent that they fail to concentrate on the intercourse. Besides, some women have reported that their breasts become completely insensitive after treatment for breast cancer. The presence of this condition often means that women are not able to fully enjoy themselves during sexual intercourse since the breast is a highly erogenous part of the body of a woman.

breast cancer

Breast cancer has a number of unpleasant consequences on the sexual and intimate lives of women. From poor self image to overall lack of desire for sex, affected women tend to experience a myriad of problems that arise from the direct effects of the disease (or treatment) as well as their own perceptions about themselves. In all these cases, the perception and behavior of the partners play a major role in shaping how women respond to the challenges that they experience. The way a partner behaves may either strengthen the unpleasant effect of breast cancer on the sexual lives of women or diminish them.

Dr. Dalal Akoury has been working with women who have breast cancer for a long time. It is the desire to provide solutions to such women and other patients in general that led her to establish AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Centre in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Since its establishment, the facility has been a leading center for cancer patients across the world. Our approach to treating cancer seeks to combine conventional treatment methods with different alternative therapies. The result of this approach is your full recovery within the shortest time possible.

Sex And Intimacy After Breast Cancer

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Radiation Therapy and Erectile Dysfunction

September 29, 2014

Radiation Therapy and Erectile Dysfunction – What Men Go Through

Erectile dysfunction

Radiation therapy is essential for prostate cancer treatment however it has great negative effect on sex life as it causes erectile dysfunction

There are many life threatening conditions we are often faced with in our daily lives some of these condition are hereditary while others affects us in the process of growth and development. The most painful thing is that often these conditions leave behind a long life scar that remain to be a constant reminder of the devastating painful condition the victims have been through. Let us take for instance the  cancer as a medical condition, and its treatment procedures. Actually the process of treating prostate cancer is one such condition that is able to transforms one’s life negatively and by extension the lives of those around the individual patient.

Radiation therapy is a well-known cause of erectile dysfunction (ED). The procedure (therapy) uses high levels of radiation to damage cancer cells’ DNA primarily to destroy them or reduce their growth and multiplication, in doing so the therapy helps in minimizing harm to the unaffected surrounding healthy cells. Prostate cancer is treatable by:

  • Pelvic external beam radiotherapy
  • Seed implants (brachytherapy)

Considering the pervasiveness of prostate cancer and the reduction in the mean age at diagnosis, it has become necessary to openly discuss the modalities of treating sexual dysfunctions emanating from radiation therapy as a method for treating prostate cancer. Great achievements have made by the experts over the last two decades to minimize the negative effects associated with radiation. It is also worth noting that, the advent of 3D conformal x-ray therapy and brachytherapy (seeds) have gone some way towards reducing radiation-induced erectile dysfunction, even though some men continue to suffer from this problem. Nonetheless at this point in time, it is still not very clear what the true incidence of sexual dysfunction is after brachytherapy and it remains to be seen whether newer techniques such as intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) will improve upon impotence rates.

Radiation therapy can cause erectile dysfunction in three ways. That is to say:

  • Arterial blockage can occur due to the development of a condition called endarteritis obliterans plus other more subtle changes can occur including direct damage to the lining of the blood vessels.
  • Radiation-induced nerve damage may occur. It has been established that there is a reduction in the number of erection-inducing nerves in the penis following exposure to low doses of radiation.
  • Direct erection tissue damage may occur and this can lead to leakage of blood from the erectile bodies (venous leak).

In radiation therapy there are two primary determinants of erectile dysfunction and they include:

  • Dose of radiation (how much)
  • Field of radiation (how wide)

Doses greater than 20 Gy (2000 rads) are frequently associated with large vessel injury meaning that, patients being treated with radiation for prostate cancer are receiving in excess of 70Gy. The wider the field of radiation, the less likely are blood vessels to recover. Given that the erection (cavernosal) artery is the only artery giving rise to erection, radiation exposure to this system may severely limit blood flow into the penis. It is therefore necessary that when you have been taken through this treatment procedure, you will need to seek medical help from the erectile dysfunction experts. I will therefore take this moment to introduce to you doctor Dalal Akoury an experienced medical professional in this line for more than two decades now. Calling her for an appointment will be the starting point and upon evaluating your condition in private and confidence she will administer the correct treatment which will leave you well, comfortable and full of fulfilled sex life again.

You may have not known and so it is essential to understand the penile anatomy and how it relates to the prostate gland.

  • The prostate gland sits above a band of muscle (urogenital diaphragm) and it is separated from the back portion of the erectile body (crus) only by a distance of less than one centimeter.
  • The urethra (urine channel) passes between the two erectile bodies into the bladder and as it does this it is known as the bulb of the penis.
  • It is important to understand that the bulb plays little if any role in the development of or maintaining erectile firmness and it is the tissue within the true erectile bodies (corpora cavernosa), which when damaged leads to erectile dysfunction.

Various studies have established that during 3D conformal x-ray therapy a significant dose of radiation is delivered to the back portion of the erectile bodies that is about 30% of the entire dose of radiation received by the prostate. Radiation therapy in the pelvis area of men can cause ED in 3 possible ways:

  • Arterial damage may block blood flow or damage the lining of the blood vessels that carry blood to the penis
  • Nerves in the pelvic area may become permanently damaged
  • Erectile tissue may be damaged, reducing blood flow to the penis or causing leakage of blood from erectile tissue (venous leak) during an erection

Some of the sexual side effects after radiation therapy may include the following:

  • Inability to achieve or maintain an erection (erectile dysfunction)
  • Weaker, less satisfying orgasms
  • Pain during ejaculation (although this usually goes away within several weeks)
  • Dry orgasm or retrograde ejaculation (orgasm without the discharge of semen)
  • Less semen ejaculated

How soon after having Radiation Therapy are men likely to have ED?

Even with the most precise radiation therapy, men may experience some ED for the first few months after treatment. Many of the sexual side effects of radiation are slow and gradual, and may take as long as six months to several years to appear. Unfortunately, radiation-induced ED is usually permanent.

There are a number of treatments available like early post-treatment evaluation and early institution of a trial of drug treatment as soon as the patient experiences any trouble with his erectile function. Besides these various therapies can also be applied:

  • First line therapy includes management of related medical conditions and psychological support combined with oral therapy.
  • Second line includes vacuum erection device therapy, penile injection therapy, and transurethral prostaglandin suppository administration.
  • Third line therapy is penile implant surgery.

Does anti-androgen therapy make ED either better or worse?

Hormone treatment (also called androgen deprivation therapy or androgen suppression therapy) for prostate cancer attempts to stop, block or remove the production of testosterone and all androgens to slow down or stop the progression of cancer. When hormone therapy is used, it is common for sexual problems to occur within the month following the beginning of therapy. Other common sexual side effects with hormone treatment include:

  • Inability to get or keep an erection (ED)
  • Difficulty climaxing
  • Orgasm without discharge of semen (dry orgasm)
  • Weaker, less satisfying orgasms

Having understood the magnitude of the side effects of prostate cancer treatment using radiation therapy, it will be very painful to jump into another health condition after struggling with prostate cancer. For the problems that may be associated with sexual dysfunction reach out for doctor Dalal Akoury for instant and professional medical attention today. You must not battle with erectile dysfunction because help is only a phone call away.

Radiation therapy and Erectile Dysfunction – What Men go through

 

 

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Opiates And The Risks of Breast Cancer

September 29, 2014

The relationship between opiates and breast cancer has been focused on three important aspects. The first aspect has been what the use of opiates is with regard to cancer in general and breast cancer in particular. The second aspect of this relationship has been whether or not the use of opiates for specific functions with regard to cancer treatment endangers the lives of the patients by contributing to recurrence of cancer long after its successful treatment. The third aspect has been the exact mechanisms by which opiates produce the said effect in the body of patients and what should be done about it. All these aspects are addressed in this article in the sections that follow.

Breast Cancer And The Use Of Opiates

Breast cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer among women in the world. Two reasons for this have been advanced. The first one is that breast cancer is generally associated with estrogen, a special type of hormone responsible for femininity. Since this hormone is predominantly found in women (sometimes in high levels), this makes them completely exposed to possible development of breast cancer. The second one arises from the observed trend of an increasing risk of breast cancer and age among women. There are several underlying reasons for this but the fact remains that with people in general living longer they get exposed to certain health conditions. For women, breast cancer is the common health condition that comes with age.

Opiates have been extensively used in the treatment of cancer as part of modern therapies. The use of opiates is in the form of drugs that are derived from morphine, a common type of plant that represents what opiates are, which is used as an extremely powerful painkiller for cancer patients. The exact mechanism by which opiates (in the form of morphine-based pain killers) works to relieve patients of pain is a complex process. But it suffices to say that the active chemical compound in opiates activates special cells within the nervous system of the patient leading to massive decline in pain sensations. This presents great relief to patients, particularly when one considers the intensity of cancer-induced pain which patients do experience.

Breast Cancer

Opiates And Breast Cancer: The Danger Of Recurrence

There has been considerable concern about the relationship between opiates and cancer recurrence in patients. The concern has been based on the growing discovery that some patients who, in the course of their treatment for cancer used morphine-derived drugs as pain killers, showed signs of the disease recurring after some time. The argument has been that the opiates that are found in the drugs must be responsible for this observed phenomenon.

There are two important things that should be understood from this. The first one regards the exact use of opiates in cancer patients. In practice, opiates are used as pain killers on patients before other forms of therapy, such as surgery, are used. During such times, the drugs are usually administered in heavy doses as a way of dealing with the equally intense pain.

The second one regards the use of the drugs during times when the disease is still in its early stages of development. There have been a number of studies that have sought to demonstrate the exact effect of opiates on cancer cells. It has been shown, with mixed reactions, that opiates do show anti-cancer properties at times and that they can actually be used to inhibit the rate of growth of cancer cells. Although this is so, the efficacy, extent and possible mechanism by which this occurs remains a subject of research.

What has caught our attention is the increasing proof that indeed using opiates as pain killers in patients of breast cancer may contribute to the cancer occurring again in them later.

Ways of recurrence as a result of opiate use in breast cancer patients

Breast CancerThere are several ways in which use of opiates as pain killers leads to recurrence of breast cancer in patients. Basically, this ability is understood by the role that the compound plays in the processes of metastasis and angiogenesis. These two processes are critical for the growth and development of cancer. Through angiogenesis, cancer cells are able to derive their own supply of blood from the existing circulatory system, thus fueling their own growth. Similarly, through metastasis, cancer cells are able to spread to other parts of the body via the circulatory system.

Opiates have been found to enhance angiogenesis by their effect on the immune system. Naturally, the body produces special hormones that work to prevent possible development of cancer cells. Use of opiates has been found to suppress the production of the hormones, thus weakening the immune system and exposing a patient to possible recurrence of breast cancer long after treatment.

Further, it has been found that opiates encourage cancer cells to spread through the body long after treatment. What usually happens is that a few cancer cells may be circulating in the body after treatment of breast cancer. Opiates do have a direct effect on these cells in the body. It is this effect that may encourage the cells to spread and redevelop into new cancer growth over eth course of time.

Use of opiates as part of the standard therapies used to treat cancer is set to continue. On the other hand, fears about its association with recurrence of breast cancer will linger. What this calls for is careful and judicious use of the right therapies in treating cancer. AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center has been known as a leading centre for cancer treatment and management for a long time. We run a range of highly specialized services in cancer diagnosis, treatment and overall care of patients. Our focus is on using alternative therapies to boost the effectiveness of other methods used in standard therapies. The result of this is your overall recovery and wellness within the shortest time possible.

Breast Cancer And The Use Of Opiates

 

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Cancer Fungal Removal: Alternative Treatment Method

September 29, 2014

 

Cancer Fungal Removal as an Alternative Cancer Treatment Method

Fungal

Fungal

We have looked at the process that takes place in the development of cancer in the body. We have examined the several stages that take place in the body of a normal person culminating to the onset and development of cancer. In this article, we shall focus our attention on an important subject: cancer fungal removal as an alternative cancer treatment method. We shall evaluate the complex relationship between fungus and cancer, the role that mycotoxins play in cancer development and different methods that are used to tackle the problem under alternative cancer treatment.

What are fungi?

Fungi are one of the many types of microorganisms that exist freely in the environment. Compared to bacteria and viruses, fungi are different in that they are well developed in terms of the number of species as well as in their ability to easily adapt to the physical conditions surrounding them. This ability to adapt to the surrounding environment is very important and it is manifested in their ability to undergo a series of physical and biochemical modifications quite easily to suit the prevailing conditions.

Although the human body has a number of different species of fungal within it, it hardly develops complications from their existence. This is because the immune system of a normal person is able to contain the effect of the fungus at acceptable levels.

The Fungal Stage of Cancer

There is a complex interconnection between cancer and fungal development. This interconnection is seen in one of the main stages of cancer development in which changes to special microstructures in the body (somatids) gives rise to fungal – like microorganisms. It is the activity of these fungal – like microorganisms that gives rise to the right conditions within the cells for the onset of cancer. This process takes place in four different steps as explained below.

Transformation of Somatids

In the first step, due to the prevailing conditions created by biochemical changes at the cellular level, somatids in the body of a patient are changed into fungal – like microorganisms. Since at this stage the internal cellular environment is characterized by increasingly anaerobic conditions, the new fungal that have developed from somatids play a key role in the process of fermentation of lactic acid in the cells.

Movement of Fungus into Cell Nucleus

In the second step, the new fungal, having successfully colonized the specific body cells, move to the nucleus of the cell. This movement to the nucleus of otherwise normal body cells produces a number of unpleasant consequences. For instance, it is when the fungi move to the nucleus of the cell that they are able to replicate and increase in number, thus colonizing many more cells of the body. Also, movement to the fungi to the cell enables them to reproduce rapidly thud producing mycotoxins, special metabolites that contain a range of poisonous compounds. It is mycotoxins that play an important role in creating the right conditions within the cells for the development of cancer.

Effect of Mycotoxins 

In general, the existence of fungi in the body results into production of mycotoxins, metabolites of the fungus which are made up of different compounds. In the third stage of this process, the full effect of mycotoxins produced by the fungus becomes apparent. The first thing that the toxins do is hamper the natural process that is responsible for blocking possible cancer development and repairing of the DNA of cells. It should be noted that the cells of the body have their own in-built mechanisms which prevent the development of cancer and ensure that the DNA of all cells are in perfect condition. However, mycotoxins work by reversing this process thus exposing the body cells to the full danger of mutations and development of cancer.

Development of Cancer and Fungal

In the fourth stage, the already damaged cells easily mutate and develop into cancer cells. The ease of change from normal body cells to cancerous ones is further facilitated by the already poisoned cell environment as a result of the complex cancer-causing process. The role of fungi in this process can therefore be visualized easily.

Cancer Fungal Removal as an Alternative Cancer Treatment

Apart from transformation of normal body somatids, the production of mycotoxins can also arise from the different forms of fungi that exist in the body of an otherwise normal individual. Notably, Candida infection in the body can be a strong source of mycotoxins which can trigger the process described before. In fact, this process has been strongly linked to cancer development. It is because of this that alternative cancer treatment pays much attention to the removal of cancer – causing fungus from the body.

Fungal

There are several natural methods that are usually used to destroy Candida and other forms of fungal infection in the body. Natural products such as Apple cider vinegar, baking soda and garlic have proven to be effective remedies to fungal infection. All these products work by killing the spores of the fungus thus making sure that the body is free from conditions that easily breed cancer.

If you have any of the different types of fungal infection, we strongly recommend that you pay us a visit at AWAREmed Health and Wellness Resource Center for help. Dr. Dalal Akoury, who has spent her career tackling cancer using alternative treatment methods, will get you the right natural method to use to get rid of the fungi in your body. This will be a strong preventive measure against the development or general management of cancer.

Cancer Fungal Removal as an Alternative Cancer Treatment Method

 

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