Health News and Information

GYNECOLOGICAL CANCER GUIDE: VULVAThe vulva includes all the external genitals and the perineum (the tissue between the vagina and anus), the lips of the vagina (the labia) and the clitoris (which is responsible for orgasm in the vast majority of women). On the inner side of the lips of the vagina are a number of glands responsible for lubrication during intercourse.The skin of the vulva is covered by ‘squamous’ tissue, just as in the cervix, but the outside surface has a thick covering of keratin that is there to prevent entrance of bacteria since it forms a physical barrier on the surface of the skin. Cancers of these squamous cells are the most common form of cancer of the vulva, being present in over 80% of cases, whilst the next most common cancer would be a ‘melanoma’, which is a cancer of the skin pigment bearing cells.There seems to be two forms of squamous cancers of the vulva, the first being found more commonly in older women (unifocal). This is usually a cancer in one area and apart from chronic irritation and perhaps an association with a skin condition called ‘lichen sclerosis’ (a thinning of the skin, which is very common in older women, and which ultimately may be associated with the development of vulva cancer in up to 7% of cases) no precipitating factors have been identified. The second occurs in younger women (multifocal), and these cancers may be present in more than one area on the vulva. It is thought now that the same virus responsible for cancer of the cervix may be responsible.Melanomas of the vulva can occur at any age, but again are more common as a woman grows older. They usually present as a pigmented or dark area on the surface of the vulva and have a great likelihood of spreading early to the lymph glands. To detect a change in colour or other abnormality, a woman should have regular vulval examinations either through self-examination with a mirror or by her partner or a doctor.If cancers of the vulva are not treated early, then bleeding, discharge and pain eventually occur. Vulva cancer can spread to the lymph glands in the groin, and then to the pelvis eventually spreading to lungs and bone. Local spread of the cancer can be very uncomfortable and very difficult to treat. Pain and difficulty with sexual intercourse usually are the most common symptoms. Some women experience a persistent itch in the clitoris area that is often mistaken for thrush.*7/144/5*

CANCER: DIAGNOSTIC TESTS, RESEARCHDiagnostic testsInvestigators are using several diagnostic tests for cancer, as the Wassermann test is used in syphilis. If it can be found that these changes in the serum of the blood come early in the disease and can be quickly detected, an intensive search can be made for the manifestations of cancer in the body.
ResearchCertain substances of the nature of folic acid have been found capable of stimulating the growth of body cells. Cancer, too, is an excessively rapid overgrowth of body cells. Other substances have been found which act against folic acid in this activity. The scientists are determining the value of anti-folic compounds as a treatment of such conditions as acute leukemia in which there is excessive growth of the white cells of the blood.Cell chemistry is fundamentally involved in the production of cancer. For instance, one investigator painted the skin of baby chicks with a chemical called methylcholanthrene, which acts as an irritant and which is known to be a carcinogenic agent. Chicks are particularly resistant to this substance. The skin did not respond except with the appearance of a few warts. Then the chicks were injected with considerable doses of the male sex hormone, testosterone, and cancers appeared, some of which were large. This shows the effects of hormones on cell growth.Dr. Huggins and his associates at the University of Chicago had shown that estrogenic hormones, the female sex hormone, can be of help in controlling the prostate gland cancers of men, and other investigators have shown that testosterone definitely modifies activities of breast cancers in women.Many different chemical substances have been tested for their effects on the human body, with particular relationship to their ability to prevent the excessive growth of cells. When it was found that the constituents of the war gases known as nitrogen mustards could lessen the production of white blood cells, a series of studies were made involving 100 different nitrogen mustard compounds. Four, which seemed to be best, were eventually tested against human leukemia and also against Hodgkin’s disease, which is a form of cancer of the lymph glands. The effects were interesting but did not prove of sufficient value to be adopted as a common treatment. Out of such studies came also trial of the anti-folic acid compounds. These studies warranted the conclusion that the substances that antagonize folic acid have a definitely beneficial, although temporary, effect on cases of acute leukemia. This is not a specific cure for the disease, but is so definitely a specific action that it represents a real advance in the treatment of acute leukemia. Urethane is one of several chemical compounds that have seemed to offer some usefulness against leukemia.In 1956 several new substances were being tested in the chemical attack on cancer. Domagk who discovered the sulfonamides has a drug called 10 – ethylene – imino – quinone which stops growth of cancer cells without injuring normal cells. An antibiotic called Sanamycin acts similarly.In the fight against cancer one of our most potent weapons is education of the public. Since cancer comes on insidiously and since it is controllable in great numbers of cases in its earliest stages, people have to be told again and again about the early signs and symptoms of cancer.How can you help yourself against cancer? First, resolve to have an annual physical examination, which is a fine insurance not only against cancer but various insidious degenerative diseases. Look out for the cancer danger signals which should send you for an immediate investigation: 1. Any sore that does not heal. 2. A lump or thickening in the breast or elsewhere. 3. Unusual bleeding or discharge. 4. Any sudden change in a wart or mole. 5. Persistent indigestion or difficulty in swallowing. 6. Persistent hoarseness or cough. 7. Any change in normal bowel habits.*6/318/5*

I’m sure you’ve heard of the depth-finders that ships use. These instruments send out a beam of ultrasound waves. By measuring how^otig these waves take to bounce back from the ocean floor, the depth at that point can be worked out. Ultrasound waves are not electromagnetic. They are the same as sound waves but of a frequency and wavelength that the human ear cannot pick up. They bounce back off some surfaces just as sound waves bounce back as echoes from cliffs.

Ultrasound can be used in medical diagnosis, because it bounces off some tissues in the body more readily than others and passes through different body tissues at different speeds. A machine that produces ultrasound waves is placed on the skin overlying the part of the body to be checked. The ‘picture’ formed by the waves echoing back can be ‘read’ by experienced people, but is not as clear as those of X-rays and scans. This method was developed originally for pregnant women because of the great importance of avoiding radiation to the delicate foetus. It is now used for many other purposes. Because it doesn’t involve any radiation it is especially useful when repeated examinations are needed, for example, to check the effects of treatment on a growth. However, it can only be used on certain parts of the body and only shows up certain types of abnormalities clearly. Ask your doctor if you want to know more about its possible use in your particular case—it may or may not be suitable and/or available.

Thermography is a means of getting a ‘picture’ of various parts of the body by measuring the amount of heat coming off. For example, a thermographic picture of the breast might show excessive heat coming from a known lump. This would mean the lump was unlikely to be a fluid-filled cyst and more likely to be cancer or an abscess. This method is not very reliable because many factors can influence the amount of heat coming off different parts of the body.

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Cancers actually starting in lymph nodes are grouped together under the name lymphoma. In turn, lymphomas are subdivided into two groups— Hodgkin’s disease and non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas. Each of these groups contains a number of quite different subtypes. Hodgkin’s disease tends to start in one group of nodes and spread in a fairly orderly and predictable way to other groups. Most non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas tend to develop in many different groups of nodes at the same time, although there are a few particular types which spread like Hodgkin’s disease. All lymphomas can also affect the bone marrow, liver, spleen and other organs.

Lymphomas can be treated by radiotherapy or chemotherapy. Hodgkin’s disease and a few particular types of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma can be completely cured by radiotherapy, provided every involved node is treated. Here it is extremely important to track down every single deposit of the disease. In contrast, if chemotherapy is to be used, it is not as important to know where the disease is, because the chemotherapy drugs go right around the body anyway.

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By following this special eleven day purification diet, you will accomplish the following:

• Clean your system – rid it of all the waste matter that has contributed to sluggishness,

tiredness, discomfort, pain and illness.

• Improve the organic function of the important eliminative organs, such as bowel, kidneys,

liver, lungs and skin.

• Increase your vitality and energy by 100 per cent.

• Remove harmful toxins and carcinogens, and benefit chronic conditions such as cancer.

• Remove harmful by-products and toxins from orthodox cancer treatments such as radiation therapy and chemotherapy. This is to ensure that secondary cancers do not manifest in the future.

Explanation of the Purification Diet.

The body has organs especially designed for elimination of waste or toxins. These organs are the bowel, kidneys, liver, lungs and skin. It is very apparent that in today’s society, because of the large amount of processed foods in the average diet, that at some time or another the function of these organs will be impeded, thus precipitating trouble. When this happens it is important for the sake of good health that the restoration of normal function proceeds as quickly as possible. A brief rest from normal food intake will aid the body in its self-regulating function and immensely improve its return to health.

Diet as Follows:

A hot epsom salts bath should be taken every night for the first week, especially on the night before the first day of cleansing. It is also essential that you have a good bowel evacuation the day or night before you begin this purification diet.

Day 1-3

Pure water and vegetable or fruit juice, preferably including:

Carrot/celery

Carrot/kale/beetroot

Carrot/apple/celery/spinach/ginger

Grape

Apple

Grapefruit

Carrot/celery/ginger

Watermelon/ginger

Or a combination of your own making.

Drink 1 glass every 3 hours, diluted 50% with pure water.

Day 4-5

Add fruits only. Fruits such as apples, pears, grapes, watermelon or sun dried fruit which has been soaked overnight are all suitable. Baked apple with stewed prunes or figs, or fresh juicy fruit when in season are also good choices.

Day 6-11

Breakfast should consist of sweet fruits only. Fruits such as melons, cantaloupe, watermelon, papaya and honeydew melon are all good. Between breakfast and lunch have any other kind of fruit.

Lunch should be a salad of 3 to 6 vegetables and 2 cups of cleansing broth. Use lots of green leafy vegetables. If hungry between meals, take fruit or fruit juices.

Dinner should consist of 2 to 3 steamed vegetables and 2 cups of cleansing broth. Fruit juice may be taken before bedtime, if desired.

Cleansing Broth Recipe

1 medium to large carrot, well washed and unpeeled

1 to 2 sticks of celery

A hand full of parsley and spinach or silver-beet

1 onion, peeled and chopped

1 tomato, chopped

1 unpeeled medium sized potato

1 liter of water

METHOD

Place all ingredients into a non-aluminum saucepan and simmer for 1/2 an hour. Strain and add kelp on serving.

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The mind and the body are inseparable. Improving your level of mental fitness and emotional health will directly and positively benefit your body. Modern medicine defines illness on a purely physical level and aims to find the most suitable pharmaceutical drug or surgical procedure to provide temporary relief from health symptoms. Many orthodox doctors refuse to recognize the integral link between our emotional state and health.

A direct relationship exists between the mind/consciousness, the brain/nervous system and the immune system. By observing changes in our body’s immune system in connection with various stresses in our lives, emotional states and personalities, an undeniable link has been adopted between our mind and emotions, what we feel and think on a daily basis and how we react to situations and changes in our environment. Our thought patterns and reactions to stress have a profound effect on the overall health of our internal body systems and general health. Shamans, medicine men and natural healers have known this for centuries and have based their natural methods of healing on this premise. By treating the mind, the spirit and the body as a whole, long-term wellness is attained rather than short-term relief of symptoms.

Cells in the body’s immune system contain receptor sites on their membranes for neurotransmitters or neuropeptides, which are secreted by the brain. Neurotransmitters may be considered the ‘chemical mediators of emotion’. Your immune system knows when you are scared, depressed, angry, in love, happy or lonely and hence weakens or strengthens immune functions in accordance with these changes in your emotions.

When we become stressed, the pituitary gland (a major, regulatory gland located in the brain) increases its production of adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH), which in turn causes the release of the hormones Cortisol, cortisone and adrenaline. These ‘stress hormones’ are secreted in order to alter body functions to allow us to cope with stress more effectively.

If these ‘stress hormones’ are produced in excess due to continual stress, they cause a suppression of our body’s immune system by decreasing the function and efficiency of white blood cells (our body’s disease fighters), thereby suppressing our body’s immune responses. At the same time, these ‘stress hormones’ alter our emotions causing depression, anxiety, insomnia and nervousness which makes us feel more stressed thereby weakening immunity further. So stress, our emotions and our immune responses are inextricably linked.

The immune system is our body’s most important ally in fighting disease. If we continually stress our body’s immune system with negative emotions, we open the doors to weakened immunity, sickness and eventually cancer. Our body’s immune system not only receives messages from the brain on our emotional state, but it can also relay information back to the brain regarding our emotional state. If we remain positive and balanced emotionally, our immune system also remains positive and balanced physically allowing us to maintain optimal levels of health and happiness.

It would be naive to think that we could remain happy and positive twenty-four hours a day, every day. In today’s world this is not the reasonable answer to maintaining optimal health and high immunity levels. The key lies in finding a ‘balance’ in our lives. That means that we should try to remain as positive as possible, learn good techniques in dealing with negativity and stress and try not to ignore our precious time for relaxation, exercise, hobbies, healthy eating and beautiful connections. By doing this we nourish our body, mind and soul, which ultimately nourishes our immune system in its vital role of disease and cancer prevention.

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Fluid Retention

Diet

• Eat potassium-rich foods. Avoid salt, processed foods, fried foods and salted foods, as these cause the body to retain fluid. Use sea salt or Herbamere as an alternative to table salt.

• Good foods to remove fluid build up include watermelon, celery, cucumber, lemon juice, lettuce and green vegetables.

• Drink plenty of pure fresh water, at least 8 glasses of pure water daily.

Vitamins and Nutrients

• A potassium supplement aids fluid retention.

• Vitamin B6 at 100 mg/day can help to eliminate excess fluids from the body.

• The celloid SS (sodium sulphate) also helps in fluid removal. Eat a diet rich in potassium foods. Avoid salt, fried foods and processed foods, as these cause the body to retain fluids.

Herbs

• Good herbs include bucchu, juniper, dandelion and cornsilk. These herbs may be taken as herbal teas. I found dandelion tea one of the best teas for removing excess fluid from the body.

Impotence

In 80 per cent of cases, impotence is caused by reduced blood supply to the penis due to narrowing of blood vessels in the penis area.

Vitamins and Nutrients

The amino acid, glutamine may alleviate impotence.

• Vitamin E is very useful.

Phosphorous deficiency can be an underlying cause of male impotence.

Herbs and Foods

Celery seeds (added to water and applied as a wash before intercourse) can stimulate a full erection.

Tribulus, an Ayurvedic herb, is renowned for alleviating impotence. Damiana, sarsparilla and ginseng are believed to assist with impotence. Yohimbe alleviates impotence (scientific research – yohimbe alleviated male impotence in 62% of males whose impotence was due to physical malfunctions and in 42% of males whose impotence was due to psychological reasons. Use 6 mg/day over 10 weeks).

Internal Bleeding

Vitamins and Nutrients

• Rutin, a bioflavonoid found in buckwheat, prevents excessive bleeding.

• Vitamin Ê assists with blood dotting.

• Glutamine can prevent damage to the microvilli and intestines.

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Nutritional Advice

Nutritional Supplements are very important as they tend to enhance healing and recovery. Eat a healthy diet rich in vitamins and minerals before surgery and make sure you eat plenty of protein-rich foods. Protein is needed to repair cut tissues and muscles, and to rebuild the body’s energy levels. Good sources of protein include nuts, seeds and fish, particularly salmon, tuna, mackerel, cod, sardines, organic chicken breast, organic turkey, grain-fed lamb and red meats in moderation. It is best if you can obtain organic meats, free from antibiotics, fertilizers and pesticides.

Dietary Advice

-    Ensure that you drink at least two to three liters of water per day to ensure that your body does not become dehydrated.

-    Check for any signs of anaemia pre-surgery. To check for anaemia, place your hand down flat on a table and push your nails down. If the pink colour returns quickly, generally your iron levels are quite good. If your nails are a whitish colour this may indicate low iron levels. If anaemic, take an iron, vitamin B12 and folic acid supplement before surgery (do not take following surgery).

-    Support the immune system with the appropriate nutrients or herbs

-    Increase intake of onions and garlic for their natural antibiotic properties.

-    Avoid aspirin or NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) prior to surgery, as they can cause excessive bleeding.

-    Òî improve detoxification of anaesthetics, supplement with liver herbs or nutrients and a good antioxidant containing vitamin Ñ, Å and beta-carotene.

-    Take a protein powder or eat plenty of protein foods before and after surgery to enhance healing.

-    Ensure that you maintain good digestion by supplementing with a good digestive enzyme, hydrochloric acid supplement or by taking apple cider vinegar – one to three tablespoons per day in water.

Homeopathics

Arnica is a great homeopathic which aids in wound healing and prevents bruising. Arnica can be taken (up to 6 c) the night before surgery. Take every two hours following surgery. Alternate doses of arnica and hypericum (up to 6 c) during waking hours. These remedies diminish pain and reduce the need for medication.

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To this day, cancer remains a great mystery. However, we do know this; cancer is a condition or disease that affects the body’s cells. Cancer is not one single disease. There are over two hundred different types of cancer and all behave in unique ways. One thing common to all cancers is that they all begin with a change to a normal cell. Each cancer is strangely different and the cause, speed of growth and spread varies with each individual cancer.

Cells are the small building blocks of the different parts of the body. They differ in shape and function, and have the ability to reproduce by dividing – one becomes two, two become four etc. This allows tissues to grow and develop and repair after injury. In normal healthy tissues, cell division has an orderly, controlled pattern. It is regulated so that the number of cells that are actively dividing is equal to the number dying or being shed. If this orderly pattern is lost an abnormal cell may divide in an uncontrolled way, leading to a build up of tissue known as a tumour. A tumour is a swelling that can be caused by a number of conditions, including inflammation and trauma. Although they are not synonymous the terms tumour and neoplasm are often used interchangeably.

The term neoplasm comes from a Greek word meaning new formation. In contrast to normal tissue growth, a neoplasm serves no useful purpose but tends to increase in size and persist at the expense of the rest of the body. Furthermore, neoplasms do not obey the laws of normal tissue growth. For example, they do not occur in response to an appropriate stimulus and they continue to grow after the stimulus has ceased.

A tumour that invades neighboring tissues and organs, and has spread or has the ability to spread to other parts of the body, is known as a malignant tumour. Malignant tumours are dangerous, cancerous and can spread through the blood system or lymph, forming new growths called secondaries or metastasis. The Latin word malus means bad; hence a malignant tumour is a bad tumour.

A tumour that remains large, yet does not spread to other areas of the body, is known as a benign tumour. A benign tumour is a good tumour. A simple example of this is a cyst.

Tumours are usually identified by the addition of the suffix -oma to the name of the tissue type from which the growth originates. Thus a benign tumour of glandular epithelial tissue is called an adenoma. The term carcinoma is used to designate a malignant tumour of epithelial tissue origin. In the case of a malignant adenoma the term adenocarcinoma is used.

One thing must be remembered – cancer does not just spring up in your body overnight. It takes quite a long time to develop and a culmination of factors to create a tumour, or cancerous growth. Each of us has cancer cells in our body as daily normal cells go haywire. However, our body’s immune system normally steps in to clean up the damage and optimal health is maintained. If our immune system is functioning correctly, developing cancer cells are destroyed. However, if these cells grow out of control and the immune system is deficient or not working correctly or at the right speed at that time, cancer is established.

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