Non-disease Causing Virus Kills Breast Cancer Cells

Penn State College of Medicine researchers, who tested the virus on three different breast cancer types that represent the multiple stages of breast cancer development, made the findings.

Adeno-associated virus type 2 (AAV2) is a virus that regularly infects humans but causes no disease. Past studies by the same researchers show that it promotes tumour cell death in cervical cancer cells infected with human papillomavirus.

Researchers used an unaltered, naturally occurring version of AAV2 on human breast cancer cells.

"Breast cancer is the most prevalent cancer in the world and is the leading cause of cancer-related death in women. It is also complex to treat," said Samina Alam, Ph.D., research associate in microbiology and immunology.

Craig Meyers, Ph.D., professor of microbiology and immunology, said breast cancer is problematic to treat because of its multiple stages.

"Because it has multiple stages, you can't treat all the women the same. Currently, treatment of breast cancer is dependent on multiple factors such as hormone-dependency, invasiveness and metastases, drug resistance and potential toxicities," Meyers said.

"Our study shows that AAV2, as a single entity, targets all different grades of breast cancer," he stated.

In tissue culture dishes in the laboratory, 100 percent of the cancer cells are destroyed by the virus within seven days, with the majority of the cell death proteins activated on the fifth day

ladies that call the shuts usually have poor sex lives

In a study conducted by researchers at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, women who call the shots at home, take decisions and generally have the last word, are somehow irregular with physical intimacy.

Professor Michelle Hindin, the lead author of the study, said: “A very consistent pattern was observed across all six countries we surveyed. The more decisions a woman reported making on her own, as compared to joint decision making, the less likely she was to have sex and the longer it was since she last had sex

“Spartacus” star Andy Whitfield dies at 39

“Spartacus” star Andy Whitfield has died after an 18-month battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He was 39.
Whitfield seemed to rise out of obscurity to play the title role in the uber-violent Starz drama. After a smash first season, Whitfield was diagnosed. Starz wanted to keep him so badly in the production, the network made the decision to air a prequel series. Whitfield went in remission and was cleared last year to return to shoot the second season of the show - then his cancer returned. Whitfield died in Sydney, Australia, surrounded by his family.
Months ago, with his blessing, Starz recast the role of Spartacus. Relative newcomer Liam McIntyre takes over the role when the show returns early next year. He has some mighty big sandals to fill.
Whitfield’s “Spartacus” co-star Lucy Lawless told Entertainment Weekly, “Obviously, Andy Whitfield left an indelible mark on all of us in the ‘Spartacus’ family. He was a gentle man who never said a bad word about anyone, a gifted photographer, engineer (no really!) and a brilliant actor. Andy’s incandescent film presence made men want to be him and women want to marry him. … How lucky we were to have him grace all our lives. Godspeed, Andy!”
It’s always a shock when someone so young and seemingly so fit dies. Whitfield was a tremendous talent and had a huge future ahead of him. This one stings today, people. To his fans and his family, all I can say is at least his work will live on.
Here’s a behind-the-scenes video with Whitfield talking about his prep work for the series in “gladiator camp.” He will be missed.

The importance of breat feeding to baby (Lactation)

Breast feeding should be encouraged by education throughout pregnancy and the puerperium. Mothers should be told the benefits of breast feeding - it is emotionally satisfying, promotes mother-infant bonding, is economical, and gives significant immunity to the infant. The period of amenorrhea associated with frequent and consistent breast feeding provides some (though not completely reliable) birth control until menstruation begins at 6-12 months postpartum or the intensity of breast feeding diminishes. If the mother must return to work, even a brief period of nursing is beneficial. Transfer of immunoglobulins in colostrum and breast milk protects the infant against many systemic and enteric infections. Macrophages and lymphocytes transferred to the infant from breast milk play an immunoprotective role. The intestinal flora of breast-fed infants inhibits the growth of pathogens. Breast-fed infants have fewer bacterial and viral infections, less severe diarrhea, and fewer allergy problems than bottle-fed infants and are less apt to be obese as children and in adult life.

Frequent breast feeding on an infant-demand schedule enhances milk flow and successful breast feeding. Mothers breast feeding for the first time need help and encouragement from providers, nurses, and other nursing mothers. Milk supply can be increased by increased suckling and increased rest.

Nursing mothers should have a fluid intake of over 2 L/d. The United States RDA calls for 21 g of extra protein (over the 44 g/d baseline for an adult woman) and 550 extra kcal/d in the first 6 months of nursing. Calcium intake should be 1200 mg/d. Continuation of a prenatal vitamin and mineral supplement is wise. Strict vegetarians who eschew both milk and eggs should always take vitamin B12 supplements during pregnancy and lactation. 

Effects of Drugs in a Nursing Mother

Drugs taken by a nursing mother may accumulate in milk and be transmitted to the infant. The amount of drug entering the milk depends on the drug’s lipid solubility, mechanism of transport, and degree of ionization.

Suppression of Lactation

A. Mechanical Suppression
The simplest and safest method of suppressing lactation after it has started is to gradually transfer the baby to a bottle or a cup over a 3-week period. Milk supply will decrease with decreased demand, and minimal discomfort ensues. If nursing must be stopped abruptly, the mother should avoid nipple stimulation, refrain from expressing milk, and use a snug brassiere. Ice packs and analgesics can be helpful. If suppression is desired before nursing has begun, use this same technique. Engorgement will gradually recede over a 2- to 3-day period.

B. Hormonal Suppression
Oral and long-acting injections of hormonal preparations were used at one time to suppress lactation. Because of their questionable efficacy and particularly because of associated side effects such as thromboembolic episodes and hair growth, their use for this purpose has been abandoned. Similarly, lactation suppression with bromocriptine is to be avoided because of reports of severe hypertension, seizures, strokes, and myocardial infarctions associated with its use. click to source for more

Healthy living

     

 Healthy living

You may want to ask what healthy living is. Healthy living is the act of living free from all kinds of diseases in order to stay fit physically, mentally and spiritually. This is very possible all you need is to be properly educated on how to. The first thing need to do is to be sensitive about your environmental hygiene, there is a regular saying that cleanliness is next to Godliness and that for sure I will like to say is true. most people especially in the continent of Africa are very careless and ignorant about their hygiene and this is one of the reasons for so many illness and also difficulty to understand environmental changes .if the government and co-operate individuals could take it upon themselves to clean their environment all the time then there will be no room for some of these illnesses to come in.

Proper nutrition

This is another factor affecting healthy living. Most people interpret been fat or obsessed as eating well. THAT IS VERY WRONG! What you need is not the fats or protruded stomach but the vitamins that that food gives because is the vitamins that aids the proper development of the body organs, gives you blood, energy and strong bones.

Exercises

When last do you care to take a long stroll or attempt jugging, skip ropes or pull some weights? Believe me you needed this because it helps to keep your body active, by aiding proper blood circulation, regulate heart beats and for the elderly, slow aging

Importance of healthy living

People are so busy that they often fail in paying attention to the one most important aspect of life, health. In the name of money, they do not care if healthy living is sacrificed because of amplifying work load which often leads to physical and mental fatigue in the end.

In case you are forgetting, your health is the key to your productivity. If you are healthy today and you keep ignoring to maintain it that way, you will soon be deprived if this important element of your life and being successful in everything that you do will be hard to achieve afterwards

If you indulge in a healthy living, everything follows quickly with you. Happiness, success, peace, and all positive auras will flow within enabling you to be even more productive because you are fit to do so. There is nothing more satisfying than when you know you don’t face the fear of failing anytime because of poor health.

Healthy Living is Healthy Mind

Remember that being healthy not only means having physical but mental fitness too. It is achieved by constantly nourishing the body with proper nutrients. These nutrients can be found in various food groups and your health depends largely on what you feed your body. However, you must also remember that healthy living is not achieved by simply eating the foods you like at anytime. You need a balanced diet and key to achieving this is a simple change in your lifestyle.

The Longevity Approach

Nowadays, people have become more knowledgeable about improved healthy living because of the various medical researches done over the years. All individuals, and even the children, know the importance and advantages of learning the proper nutritional contents of the food we eat and the needs of the body and mind.

Most of the researches done from the past few years take on a longevity approach. The raw food diet is just one of these researches done. It is primarily being promoted in most of the books of the diet author, David Wolfe.

The concept is about eating raw foods to keep the enzymes and vitamins consumed by the body for a healthier and fitter physical body and mind. It is just one of those researches made by the experts and there are still many others which people can take advantage of.

Conclusion

People are lucky nowadays because unlike the old days, they lack the information about the real concept of healthy living which was probably the main reason why there were numerous cases of adverse health conditions such as cancer, diabetes, heart failure, and many more diseases.

With the various studies about healthy living concepts now, there is no reason for you not to achieve the quality of life you should be enjoying in this world. People should also see the message of healthy living as a worthy effort towards ensuring that churches, mosques and schools in communities are used as centers for sensitization on the importance of healthy living. So, go on and start taking those steps towards ensuring that you enjoy life to the fullest!  Still your Health man Trey walter saying thanks for your attention, Cheers!

.

Male Patients with Breast Cancer Can't Get Medicaid Coverage

Raymond Johnson is 26 and has male breast cancer.  He works for a small construction company that does its best for him, but it doesn't provide health insurance.  When he turned to Medicaid for help covering the cost of treatments, he was turned down.  Medicaid rules vary by state and Johnson lives in South Carolina, where coverage for treatment of breast cancer is offered only to women.

Johnson and his mother had to absorb the shock of his cancer diagnosis and then the jolt of covering expenses with no assistance from their state.  He hoped the lump in his breast was a cyst, but when it became large and painful, he sought help.  A biopsy confirmed his breast cancer.  He went to the Charleston Cancer Center for surgery and to get help with other treatments.  It was there that he learned that he was on his own to cover the cost.  Fortunately, he met a patient advocate, Susan Appelbaum, experienced in working with state bureaucracy.  Appelbaum remarked, "Breast cancer is not exclusive to women, I know there's not near as many cases [in men] but it's certainly an issue to think about," she said. "What this 26-year-old man is going to endure, with chemo, radiation and surgery, we're talking about hundreds of thousands of dollars. This boy is never going to recover financially."

Currently, Johnson is having neo-adjuvant chemotherapy before surgery.  When chemo is given on this schedule, doctors hope to shrink the tumor and stop the possible spread of cancer.  A small tumor means less surgical trauma for the patient - male or female.  But the chemotherapy drugs are making it impossible for Johnson to continue working, as the side effects are debilitating.  His medical bills are already over $4000, just in the early stages of his treatment.  Medicaid has turned him down twice, but his patient advocate and the hospital remains positive about helping him with finances.

Appelbaum has appealed to Johnson's congressman and to local organizations that may be able to help change the laws and provide help with medical costs.  "It's always one day at a time," said Appelbaum. "We will continue to try our best because we want to help people, it's our job."  Meanwhile, the doctor bills and hospital bills continue to come in the mail.  Johnson now goes to Roper Saint Francis Hospital, a not-for-profit organization, for treatments.  He will not be denied treatment, and no collection agencies will be sent to dog him for money.  Johnson's patient advocate will help work out a payment plan that is adjusted to his current financial situation.Read more stories