MS Maze

Breast Cancer in the News
A new study indicates that breast cancer screening has not been a big factor in reducing breast cancer deaths. But there’s more to the story, according to the American Cancer Society (ACS).

Read it: To Mammogram or Not To Mammogram, That is the Question

Access all posts in the Living with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Series

Living with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
(#17 in a series)

After fighting triple-negative breast cancer for a year-and-a-half, 57 year-old Carmelita P died as she lived, with her faith intact and her loving family by her side. Her son graciously shares her story in the hope of educating and supporting families coping with similar circumstances.

Joseph P was 25 years-old when his mother went in for a routine mammogram. As a nurse, Carmelita took annual mammograms seriously. This one was anything but routine and she was soon diagnosed with stage IIa triple-negative breast cancer.

Now 29, Joseph, a Strategic Marketing and Partnerships advisor for nonprofits, does not mince words when speaking of his family’s ordeal, his love for his mother, and his feelings of loss. “We did not immediately fear the worst.”

Read it: Grieving Son Recounts Mom’s Battle with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer

Access all posts in the Living with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Series

Living with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
(#16 in a series)

Their demeanor and level of empathy have a direct impact on your own state of mind. Their knowledge and degree of professionalism can be a matter of life and death. Nurses are on the front lines of every facet of health care.

For me, triple-negative breast cancer is the crisis that pushed nurses into the spotlight of my health care. From the first visit to my breast surgeon’s office, through surgery and other hospital procedures, and through more than six months of chemotherapy, nurses were front and center.

Read it: The Healing Power of Nurses

Access all posts in the Living with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Series

There are thieves among us, stealing our energy and harming our health. What are these energy thieves, and what can we do about them?

Energy Health Specialist Debra Greene, PhD, author of Endless Energy: The Essential Guide to Energy Health, says that in addition to a physical body, we also have an energy body, otherwise known as a biofield. This energy body plays a vital role in our overall health and well-being.

Dr. Greene agreed to unmask some of these every day energy thieves for us, and to offer some tips on how we can avoid them.

Read it: 5 Energy Thieves and How to Avoid Them

Cancer is a scary word and the diagnosis plunges patients into a search for the most effective treatments. Some gravitate toward modern medical treatments, some to alternative treatments, and some blend the best of both. Doctors, patients, and the National Institutes of Health weigh in.

Read it: Modern Medicine and Complementary Treatments: Can Cancer Patients Have it Both Ways?

Could cinnamon be used to treat multiple sclerosis (MS)? That’s what scientists at Rush University Medical Center want to know, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has committed $750,000 over two years to fund research into the issue.

“Since medieval times, physicians have used cinnamon to treat a variety of disorders including arthritis, coughing and sore throats,” said Kalipada Pahan, PhD., Floyd A. Davis professor of neurology at Rush and leader of the study. “Our initial findings in mice indicate that cinnamon may also help those suffering from MS.”

Read it: Researchers Studying Cinnamon as Multiple Sclerosis Treatment

One photo depicts a deceased man. Another shows what a cancerous mouth looks like. They’re supposed to shock smokers and smokers-to-be into thinking twice about smoking.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released nine new somewhat graphic images in its latest effort to caution consumers about the health hazards of smoking.

Read it and view the images: Graphic Photos from FDA Depict Dangers of Smoking

Image: US Dept. of Health & Human Services

Breast Cancer in the News
A key player in the spread of breast cancer has been identified by researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University. Indeed, as a woman currently in treatment for triple-negative breast cancer, it is not cancer in my breast that I fear most, but the spread of that breast cancer to other areas of my body.

Learning how breast cancer spreads beyond the primary tumor is crucial in finding methods of treating breast cancer in the early stages, before it becomes metastatic disease.

Read it: Key to Spread of Breast Cancer Identified in New Study

Breast Cancer in the News
Aggressive Breast Cancer Linked to Low Levels of Vitamin D
Mom Loses Custody of Kids for Having Breast Cancer

Coming Soon: Breast Cancer Survivor Profiles
If you’re a triple-negative breast cancer survivor and you’d like to share your story, email writer@webcampone.com

Access the up-to-date Living with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Series

More women in the U.S. are opting for giving birth at home. After years of decline, a study published in Birth: Issues in Perinatal Care reveals that home births increased by 20 percent between 2004 and 2008. Still, less than one percent of U.S. babies are born at home.

Is there a right way and a wrong way to choose how to birth your child? Find out what the experts are saying.

Read it: Choosing How to Give Birth: Is there a right way and a wrong way?

Ignoring food handling instructions about storage and cooking temperatures can land you in the hospital — or worse.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers to pay attention to food labels, pointing to a few recent instances where people who did not pay attention to labels became ill with botulism.

Read it: Ignoring Food Handling Instructions Can Lead to Life-Threatening Illness

When the zombies come, will you know what to do? What supplies should you have on hand? Where should you flee?

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has been giving the potential for a zombie apocalypse some thought. With a tongue-in-cheek blog post, the CDC, not necessarily known for a sense of humor, has managed to tie a zombie theme into an emergency preparedness theme.

Read it: Are You Prepared for the Zombie Apocalypse?

Wash your hands and watch bacteria spread. That doesn’t sound good, but a new study revealed that all the soap dispensers at an Ohio school were contaminated with bacteria that cause illness. After kids used the soap, microbe levels on their hands grew.

Read it: Contaminated Soap Can Spread Bacteria

Living with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
(#11 in a series)

Cranial Prosthesis. Prosthetic Brassiere. Prosthetic Breast. Affordable Care Act. All important words if you have breast cancer.

After a diagnosis of triple-negative breast cancer, I braced myself for health insurance hell. After all, I’d had years of experience in that hell. But there were a few surprises in store for me:

Read it: 5 Things I Love about my Very Expensive Health Insurance

Living with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Series
#1 The Lump in my Breast: Meeting the Enemy
#2 Most Breast Lumps are Non-Cancerous: Would mine be?
#3 The Mammogram, the Ultrasound, and ‘the Look’
#4 The Biopsy and Breast Cancer Confirmation
#5 A New Twist: It’s Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
#6 Before the Mastectomy: Planning for the Future
#7 Mastectomy Day: What it’s like to lose a breast
#8 After the Mastectomy: Unveiling and Staging
#9 10 Odd Things to Say to Someone with Breast Cancer
#10 Cancer Battle Plan Phase 2: Chemotherapy

Breast Cancer in the News
Aggressive Breast Cancer Linked to Low Levels of Vitamin D

Find out how iPads are helping kids during emergency room visits.

Read it: iPads Help Lessen Pain and Anxiety in Children’s ER

Breast Cancer in the News
Breast cancer patients with 25-OH vitamin D deficiencies are more likely to present with aggressive tumors and poorer prognosis than women with optimal levels of vitamin D, according to a recent study from the University of Rochester Medical Center.

Previous research has focused on vitamin D deficiencies and cancer risk, but this is one of the first to look at vitamin D and the progression of breast cancer.

Read it: Aggressive Breast Cancer Linked to Low Levels of Vitamin D

Living with Triple-Negative Breast Cancer Series
#1 The Lump in my Breast: Meeting the Enemy
#2 Most Breast Lumps are Non-Cancerous: Would mine be?
#3 The Mammogram, the Ultrasound, and ‘the Look’
#4 The Biopsy and Breast Cancer Confirmation
#5 A New Twist: It’s Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
#6 Before the Mastectomy: Planning for the Future
#7 Mastectomy Day: What it’s like to lose a breast
#8 After the Mastectomy: Unveiling and Staging