Battling For Health

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Yesterday, I talked about the connection between Alzheimer’s disease and diabetes. Today, I ran across a very interesting article and the conclusion seems to be that good nutrition and exercise for your mind and body are the best “prevention” for Alzheimer’s disease.

But here is my struggle. There are basically two types of people who read this blog. People who have Alzheimer’s disease or some other type of dementia and their caregivers.

Bottom line is that you, dear reader, are impacted by Alzheimer’s disease in some way. If you are a caregiver, then, in addition to your caregiving responsibilities, you may be worried about getting the disease. Every time you forget where you parked the car, misplace your keys, forget a name or a phone number you get a little concerned that, “it’s happening to you.” So, I post about Alzheimer’s and dementia prevention knowing that, in some way, you are already impacted by the disease. And in some ways, you may be genetically and/or environmentally susceptible to the disease.

An interesting study was released last month: A portion of the article appears below. Click here to read in its entirety.

A Bigger Brain May Help Protect You from Alzheimer’s

From autopsies, researchers have long known that some people die with sharp minds and perfect memories, even though their brains are riddled with the plaques and tangles of Alzheimer’s disease. The new research suggests that people who have a larger hippocampus, a seahorse-shaped part of the brain that is critical for memory, may as a result be protected against Alzheimer’s.

“This larger hippocampus may protect these people from the effects of Alzheimer’s disease-related brain changes,” said study author Deniz Erten-Lyons, M.D., with Oregon Health & Science University in Portland. “Hopefully this will lead us eventually to prevention strategies.”

For the study, presented April 15 at the American Academy of Neurology 60th Annual Meeting in Chicago, researchers evaluated the brains of 12 people who had sharp memories and thinking skills at the time of their death. Autopsies revealed that their brains contained large numbers of Alzheimer’s plaques, even though they remained mentally sharp and alert. Their brains were compared to those of 23 people who had the same amount of plaques in their brains, but had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease before death.

While nobody can control the size of their brains, experts advise that mentally stimulating activities like completing puzzles, traveling, learning a new language, playing a musical instrument, or doing crossword puzzles can help stimulate new connections between brain cells. These strengthened connections may help to preserve thinking and memory. Maintaining strong social ties and exercising into old age may also help to protect the brain, studies show.

By alzinfo.org, The Alzheimer’s Information Site. Reviewed by William J. Netzer, Ph.D., Fisher Center for Alzheimer’s Research Foundation at The Rockefeller University.

Source: Presented at the American Academy of Neurology 60th Anniversary Annual Meeting in Chicago, April 12 to 19, 2008.

In the final analysis, we see again that mental activity, brain games, physical activity and maintaining strong relationships can make a significant difference when it comes to Alzheimer’s disease.

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New options mean new hope for cancer patients.

While some of the treatment options listed today have been used in cancer regimes for years, others mentioned are new. What they have in common is that they may fall into the category of “what exactly is that all about?”

Intraperitoneal Chemotherapy and Hyperthermic Intraoperative Peritoneal Chemotherapy or Hyperthermic Interperitoneal Chemotherapy (HIPEC): Intraperitoneal chemotherapy is given directly into the abdominal cavity. Intra = into. Peritoneal = abdominal cavity. Hyperthermic = heated above the temperature of the human body.

Intraoperative chemotherapy is chemo that is given at the time of surgery. Patients undergoing surgery to remove or debulk tumors are given chemo directly into the abdominal cavity to kill cancer cells that may have been released from the tumor during surgery. Intraperitoneal chemotherapy then may be given again after surgery utilizing a port directly into the abdomen. This type of surgery may have fewer side effects than regular chemo given using the bloodstream as a transport. Intraperitoneal chemotherapy is reported to be advantageous as the chemo drugs are more effective given this route and have a longer half life.

Resources: Greenbaum Cancer Center

Intraoperative Radiation Therapy (IOERT):In this treatment modality radiation is given directly to the tumor during surgery. The Mayo Clinic has the largest treatment program in the world for this type of therapy. ” The FDA-approved mobile Intraoperative Electron Radiation (IOERT) machine, called the “Mobetron,” can be brought directly to the patient’s operating room at Mayo Clinic Hospital where a team delivers a concentrated beam of electron radiation directly to cancerous tumors while they are exposed during surgery. ” This type of therapy has proven to increase survival rates in many types of cancers.

Resources: The Mayo Clinic

Robotic Surgery: Robot assisted surgical procedures are being used for many types of cancer surgeries including prostate and gynecological cancers. The University of Pennsylvania Health System sites the following reasons for utilizing robotics for gynecological surgeries:

• Smaller incisions/less scarring
• Significantly less pain
• Less blood loss
• Shorter recovery time
• Faster return to normal daily activities

Resources: da Vinci Prostatectomy

CyberKnife : a frameless robotic radiosurgery ystem invented by John R. Adler, a Professor of Neurosurgery and Radiation Oncology at Stanford University. This system allows precision delivery of radiation without invasive surgery and minimizes trauma to surrounding tissue and organs. Many times the procedures are done on an outpatient basis. Per the Florida CyberKnife Centers: “The CyberKnife System received clearance from the FDA in July 1999 for the treatment of head and neck tumors. In October 2001, the FDA extended its clearance to include the treatment of tumors and other conditions anywhere in the body.”

Resources: Stanford Cancer Center

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In order to optimize your health a good diet is essential. But, with all the fad diets around it can be difficult to know what is ‘good’. Nutrition science to the rescue! Though some things are still controversial, numerous studies reinforce the following basic information.

A healthy diet requires not just items from the four basic food groups, but in the proper proportion. The average person will need about 2000-2500 calories (sometimes more for larger men, less for women and those looking for rapid weight loss). About 50% of those calories should come in the form of carbohydrates, with 30% from fats (yes, fat is good!) and 20% from proteins.

Carbohydrates are the main source of compounds needed for energy. Simple sugars, such as glucose and fructose, are rapidly broken down in the intestine and absorbed. Some processing starts the minute they hit your tongue. Complex carbohydrates - starches, such as those found in potatoes - take longer, but are also healthy in moderation.

Fats are chemically similar to carbohydrates, and contain fatty acids essential to health. Proteins are lysed (split) to make amino acids, that are then recombined to form proteins used in muscles and other structures.

Meat is a valid and healthy source of proteins for almost everyone. About 3 ounces per meal is about right for the average sized person. A cup of pasta is a good source of carbohydrates. Two cups of leafy green vegetables supply fiber, minerals and vitamins.

A balanced meal can be made up of a serving of meat or other protein source, starchy carbohydrates such as pasta, rice, corn or potatoes, and fruit. Easy on the butter or margarine, go light on cheese, sauces and anything high in sugar or fat.

Though you could get the basics from a variety of sources, when considering weight control in addition to getting the proper balance, it’s important to know which sources are high in what.

Fat contains nine calories per gram, which is double than other energy sources. Thus, you need to keep those foods high in fat down to modest levels. That also helps control cholesterol levels.

All sources of carbohydrates have four calories per gram. But healthy sources also contain needed minerals, vitamins and fiber. Some examples are fruits (apples, pears, peaches), nuts (walnuts are lower in fat than peanuts or cashews, for example) and grains (for fiber and minerals).

Why is candy bad, unless consumed in very modest portions? Because they are designed to be high in fat, high in sugar with much lower amounts of helpful nutrients. Neither fat nor sugar are harmful in moderation. Indeed, they’re essential to good health. But when consumed in a form that contains an excessive proportion, they provide enormous calories and fewer other nutrients.

Making a list of items you consume will show you the relative amounts of helpful nutrients - and how many calories each contains. Putting a little arithmetic into your diet plan will help you reduce the number you obsess over - your weight.

Advertisement: @ HART Market We have combined many of our marketplace blogs into this one consolidated site.

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Earlier this week, a Maryland Zoo eutanized a giraffe suffering from arthritis. The said giraffe is 22-year old Gretchen - called ‘The Lady Of The House” - whose life was decided by the caretakers to end due to a fast moving arthritis.

Wow. Imagine a giraffe with arthritis?! The poor thing and her poor joints. It must have a very hard decision to make for her caretakers!

Gretchen was born at the Denver Zoo in May 1986, and had problems with her legs all her life. When she was little, she had shown bleeding wounds on three of her legs, which had been considered to be caused by her mother stepping on her, a common accident in the giraffe world.

Latter on, the caretakers had discovered that her hooves had been rotating inwards, instead of growing outwards, the way they were supposed to. Even though this condition made the animal feel uncomfortable, the Zoo staff’s efforts of periodically cutting her hooves had made her life a lot easier.

During the last years, however, Gretchen had begun suffering of arthritis, and had sometimes been in a great amount of pain. People at the Zoo had noticed that she was rarely leaving her barn on rainy days, and that her posture was starting to deteriorate. The caretakers have tried everything to cure the loved animal and ease its pain, but without success.

At least treatments have been tried! I don’t know how long a giraffe’s lifetime is….but 22 years for a giraffe might be pretty old.

Even though the decision was hard to make, the Zoo staff decided that it was better for Gretchen if she was euthanized. On Sunday, she was taken to a chute built for this occasion and was given a high dose of barbiturates. She died in her sleep.

Because of the condition that affected her hooves, ‘The Lady of the House’ had never been allowed to breed, for fear of passing the disorder to her children as well. However, the 4 giraffes that shared the same hill with her at the Maryland Zoo will most probably feel her absence in the days to come.

On Sunday, Gretchen died in her sleep after a high dose of barbiturates. I’m pretty sure she will be missed.

This story is not the first reported of animals suffering from arthritis. Most common are common house pets such as cats and dogs and are often related to the animal’s old age. Maybe was just extreme and worse with the giraffe’s case due to its unusually long extremities that must have taken toll on the giraffe’s joints. That must have been awful for the said giraffe!

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Initially, it was chalked up to age. It was almost expected that a person with Alzheimer’s disease also suffered from diabetes or some other illness. The thought was that the person was aging and the other disorders were a function of an aging body and not necessarily related per se to Alzheimer’s disease.

Then the researchers started to consider the fact that people with Alzheimer’s disease were often battling other health issues such as: heart disease, stroke and especially diabetes.

Have you ever noticed that “a diet low in fat, and high in fiber, whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables” is good for just about every sickness?

The point here is that good nutrition is good for the body AND the brain. Alzheimer’s disease is sometimes not detected until the person is in the third or fourth stage of the disease. By that time some damage has been done and changes have started to take place. Also, by that time other diseases have already manifested. Specifically, diabetes.

Research has shown that there is a connection between diabetes and Alzheimer’s disease. So, as you shield yourself against diabetes by eating a high fiber, low fat diet rich in complex carbs and whole grains you are doing “double duty” moreover, protecting yourself against Alzheimer’s disease and vice versa.

In some cases, Alzheimer’s is even being called type 3 diabetes.

You can get detailed information about the types of diabetes from Battling Diabetes. Click the links for information regarding type 1 diabetes, often diagnosed in children, teens and young adults, where the body ceases insulin production, and type 2 diabetes, where the body produces insulin, but not an adequate supply. In 2007, Time and USA Today ran stories about the link between Alzheimer’s and diabetes. Health.Dailynews.com even characterized Alzheimer’s disease as a form of diabetes. Suggesting that,

“Insulin disappears early and dramatically in Alzheimer’s disease,” In addition, “Many of the unexplained features of Alzheimer’s, such as cell death and tangles in the brain, appear to be linked to abnormalities in insulin signaling. This demonstrates that the disease is most likely a neuroendocrine disorder, or another type of diabetes,” said senior researcher Suzanne M. de la Monte, a neuropathologist at Rhode Island Hospital and a professor of pathology at Brown University Medical School.

In the end, it is more important to eat a balanced, nutritious diet that is low in fat and cholesterol; get plenty of exercise and address total health needs than to get all stressed about potentially getting Alzheimer’s disease. The research seems to suggest that a healthy body leads to a healthy brain.

What’s your experience? Are you providing care for someone who has Alzheimer’s AND another illness?

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The pancreas is considered a glandular organ. It is about 7 inches by 1.5 inches in size. It lies under the stomach and at the beginning of the small intestine, and functions as an exocrine organ by producing fluids for digesting food. It functions as an endocrine organ as it releases hormones. When released into the blood stream, these hormones regulate our glucose levels (insulin and glucagon).

Pancreatic cancer is a cancerous tumor that occurs in the tissues of this gland/organ.

Estimated new cases and deaths from pancreatic cancer in the United States in 2008 per the National Cancer Institute: New cases, 37,680 and deaths, 34,290.

This type of cancer typically spreads fast and is often not diagnosed in the early stages.

Per the Mayo Clinic, signs and symptoms of pancreatic cancer, which may not occur until the cancer is in the advanced stages:

• Upper abdominal pain that may radiate to your back
• Yellowing of your skin and the whites of your eyes
• Loss of appetite
• Weight loss
• Depression

There are two types of pancreatic cancer: exocrine and endocrine. Endocrine cancers are very rare. The American Cancer Society states that exocrine cancers are the most common and 95% of those diagnosed are adenocarcinomas.

Risk Factors for Exocrine (Pancreatic) Cancers:

• Smoking
• Obesity
• Gender-men have a slightly increased rate of occurrence
• Race-occurs more often in blacks than Caucasians
• Age-most people diagnosed are in their 70’s and 80’s
• Personal or family history of pancreatic cancer
• History of chronic pancreatitis
• Diabetes-occurs more often in diagnosed diabetics

The American Cancer Society site discusses risk factors that are uncertain or under research.

Diagnosis:

While there is no screening for pancreatic cancer you may undergo a CT, Ultrasound, and/or MRI if your physician suspects this disease.

Other diagnostic tests:

• Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography-ERCP-a dye is injected into your bile ducts and they are examined with a scope as air is blown into the ducts.
• Endoscopic Ultrasound-EUS-a scope with an ultrasound device is passed through the stomach into the duodenum to take pictures. It may also collect biopsy specimens.

• Percutaneous transhepatic cholangiography-PTC-a needle is inserted into the liver from outside the body and a tube is threaded into the bile ducts. Dye is injected into the ducts to detect blockages.

If a diagnosis confirms the cancer then further tests may be ordered to stage the disease and determine if it has spread. A CA19-19 blood test may be ordered to monitor your response to treatment.

Basic staging per the Mayo Clinic:

• Resectable. All the tumor nodules can be removed.
• Locally advanced. The tumor can no longer be removed with surgery because the cancer has spread to tissues around the pancreas or into the blood vessels.
• Metastatic. At this stage, the cancer has spread to distant organs, such as the lungs and liver.

For further staging information, including The American Joint Committee on Cancer TNM, numerical staging, see The American Cancer Society site.

Current Treatment for Exocrine (Pancreatic) Cancer:

• Surgery (resection)
• Chemotherapy
• Radiation therapy
• Targeted Gene Therapy

Battling Books:

100 Q & A About Pancreatic Cancer by Eileen O’Reilly M.D.

My Journey with Pancreatic Cancer by Calvin E. Rains Sr. (2006)

Pancreatic Cancer in the News:

ScienceDaily, January 9, 2008. Pancreatic Cancer: The smaller the tumor, the better your chances, study shows. “The odds of surviving cancer of the pancreas increase dramatically for patients whose tumors are smallest, according to a new study by researchers at Saint Louis University and the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston — the first study to specifically evaluate the link between tumor size and survival rates for one of the most common and deadly cancers.”

Resources:

The Pancreatica.org Clinical Trials Database is the largest resource of clinical trials for pancreatic cancer in the world.

PanCAN, the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. “Working Together for a Cure”

The National Pancreas Foundation. Support, Education and Research.

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Battling Diabetes and the HART-Empire Network welcomes Tina Radcliffe as the *NEW* Diabetes Blogger!

* Tina Radcliffe is a former R.N with a background in oncology, home health and geriatrics. She spent many years caring for and teaching newly diagnosed diabetics in the home setting. Her other experiences include a stint in the U.S. Army as well as six years as a library cataloger.

Tina officially starts June 1, 2008.

Welcome Tina!

Tina currently writes on the Battling Cancer blog.

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