It’s been eight years since I heard the words nobody wants to hear: YOU HAVE CANCER. Not the sort of call anyone wants to get from your doctor, especially in the middle of a busy day at the office.

But there IT was – and IT didn’t care whether I had time to deal with IT or not. IT arrived quietly and without warning. IT was prostate cancer, and I had IT. No warning – that’s what was the most frightening. There were no symptoms, no pain, no way to know what was going on in there. I was overdue for a physical exam. My wife lovingly but insistently kept reminding me to schedule an appointment. I was busy. I had a lot of things to do. I had classes to teach and appointments to keep. But finally, I ran out of excuses and scheduled the exam. After being poked and prodded, all seemed to be OK.

Then there was the PSA, the first one I’d ever had. Too high, said the doctor. Maybe nothing wrong, but we’d better do some more tests and another PSA. Still high, and possibly some slight irregularities in the tests. Probably nothing to worry about, said the doctor. Maybe we’d better do another test, I insisted.

This time, the test was a biopsy. And there IT was. Not to worry, said the doctor. IT is slow growing and is no immediate threat. Sometimes IT is OK for years. We can wait and see how IT does. Not an option, said I. My mother died a horrible death from cancer. The thought of walking around with a time bomb inside me was enough to make me take a good look at other options – and DO something!The options seemed to be: do nothing now; wait and seeradiation treatmentsradical surgeryseed implant therapyThe doctor explained each option thoroughly. I opted for #4, the radioactive seed implants, a newer procedure, less invasive, faster recovery time, good short-term results, but not a lot of long-term success data at that time. Well, I’ll spare you the details, but I had the implant procedure eight years ago, and I’ve never been sorry. I get check-ups and PSAs twice a year. “Eight Years and Counting” has become “Eight Years and All’s Well.” I have been blessed with good results and good health.

The moral of the story? GET REGULAR CHECK-UPS. The exams aren’t the most pleasant of activities, but far better than the alternative. MEN: get a check-up NOW, and keep getting regular exams and PSAs. If you discover a problem, don’t wait. Consider all your options, but do something about IT. WOMEN: keep insisting that the men in your life get regular check-ups.

You are welcome to pass this along to anyone you know who may need to read it. If sharing my story will help you or someone you know take positive action to avoid being a victim of cancer, we’ll all be a lot happier and healthier. Good Health to you!

CHARLES BOYER, Ed.D., a music educator, conductor and arts executive for more than 40 years, has taught, conducted, and coached a wide variety of people, from pubescents to prima donnas in middle schools, high schools, and universities. Charlie’s leadership and organizational skills and a commitment to mentoring small business and educational leaders are prominent features of his coaching and consulting practice, Infinite Perspectives, and an administrative resource service, LeaderSavers.com.

Visit his website at: infiniteperspectives.com infiniteperspectives.com and sign up for his newsletter, Viewpoints. Visit his leadership weblog at: leadersavers.com leadersavers.com

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Health conscious people often frown at the sight of smokers. This is because we have this notion that those puffing cigarettes many times each day are prone to getting cancer of the lungs. But did you know that lung cancer is not to be totally blamed on smoking cigarettes like what many of us believe? Surprisingly, it is the nonsmokers who are more at risk of getting the disease.

A new study has found that people who do not smoke can get lung cancer, too. The study, published in the February 10 issue of the Journal of Clinical Oncology, revealed that people who never smoked can get the disease with women more at risk than men. Researchers from the Stanford University School of Medicine and the Northern California Cancer Center collected data from the United States and Sweden that monitored cases of lung cancer in more than one million people aged 40 to 79. They then calculated the incidence rates based on new cases per person per year. The researchers found that the incidence rate of lung cancer in women non-smokers ranged from 14.4. to 20.8 cases per 100,000 person-years.

Lead researchers, however, say that many factors can lead to this disease among people who never smoke. Exposure of women to secondhand smoke may be partly blamed for their higher risk compared to men. Co-author Ellen Chang, ScD, an epidemiologist at the Northern California Cancer Center, said secondhand smoke does increase the chance of getting lung cancer so the cases that we observe can be attributed to that. Meanwhile, lead author Heather Wakelee, MD, assistant professor of medicine at Stanford University, also said that although some environment pollutants such as asbestos, chromium, arsenic and radon may cause the disease in non-smokers, they have not been proven. When more concrete factors are eventually known, she said doctors will be able to understand more how cancer works allowing them to find new treatment.

Each year, over 180,000 Americans are diagnosed with lung cancer. The disease actually causes more deaths than other types of cancer like breast, colon and prostate. The researchers are hoping that their study will raise public awareness and help ease the stigma among non-smoking patients.

So if you want to avoid cancer of any type, what’s the best thing to do? Very simple – just eat the right healthy foods, get some exercise and stop smoking. In other words, changes in behavior and lifestyle are very crucial. Medical experts say don’t do it later, next week or next month but right now.

Be cautious of what you eat and drink. Eating lots of fruits and veggies will surely lower your chances of getting colon, mouth, pharynx, esophagus, stomach and lung cancers. Avoid frequent consumption of red meat as much as possible as it can lead to colon cancer. Experts also recommended taking a multivitamin that has folate, a B vitamin, every day. As for drinks, wine and other alcoholic beverages should be taken in moderation as overconsumption leads to a higher risk of getting oral, esophageal, breast and other cancers.

Don’t forget to stay active, too. Being overweight and physically inactive have been blamed for 20 to 30 percent of the most common cancers in the U.S. But losing weight, especially for women in their adult years, and increasing physical activity can make you less prone to getting the disease. Physical activity has also been found to have an impact on the recurrence of a cancer or survival of a patient diagnosed with breast cancer.

Podcastblaster is a site specializing in all aspect of podcastblaster.com podcasting and provides an extensive podcastblaster.com/directory/ podcast directory covering many topics including podcastblaster.com/directory/Science-Medicine/ science & medicine podcasts.

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Mesothelioma is one of the deadliest and rarest forms of cancer types. Mesothelioma has developed for the people who have been exposed to the asbestos. The lawsuit for mesothelioma allows a person to file the case if the disease has developed through the exposure of asbestos. There are various law firms that offer you the best service in the claim for the compensation.

Mesothelioma laws provides you the complete resources regarding the different law firms of mesothelioma, top attorneys and lawyers, mesothelioma litigation, mesothelioma symptoms, treatment, and the diagnosis procedure. The Code of Federal Regulations [Title 29, Volume 8, Part 1926] states that asbestos is considered as one of the most hazardous and toxic substances known. This chapter gives information about various regulations and assessments for the person who has been exposed to asbestos.

A mesothelioma lawsuit can be filed by any of the person’s family members when the person who has developed mesothelioma has already passed away. The lawsuit can also be filed by a family member who has developed the disease through a close contact with the person who has been exposed to the asbestos. The compensation could be millions of dollars for victims of mesothelioma who have been exposed to asbestos.

Compensation can be immediately claimed if any person has developed mesothelioma through the exposure of asbestos. The disease could have been easily prevented from developing. It is caused by the fault of outsiders such as irresponsible firms that have made no protection from the exposure of asbestos. The continuous inhaling of asbestos results in mesothelioma. The particles are ingested into the human system, damaging the cells of the protective membrane which surrounds various organs.

The appropriate eligibility has to be shown regarding the disease during the filing of compensation. In order to be eligible to claim, one needs to be quick since most states vary in the time limits that range from one to three years for the mesothelioma cases. As soon as the diagnosis has been confirmed, the mesothelioma sufferer should seek legal advice and assistance quickly to ensure the chances for the best compensation for his personal loss. A mesothelioma lawyer can help you in the lawsuit filed for the compensation claimed for the disease developed through exposure to asbestos.

e-mesotheliomalitigation.com Mesothelioma Litigation provides detailed information on History of Mesothelioma Litigation, Mesothelioma Diagnosis: A Guide, Mesothelioma Laws, Mesothelioma Lawyers: A Guide and more. Mesothelioma Litigation is affiliated with e-californiacontractorlicenses.com California Contractor License Bond.

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In recent years there has been an abundance of research investigating the benefits of green and black tea on preventing disease. And, the results have been divided. Depending on the health condition being evaluated, some studies have shown green tea to be more effective, while others have shown green and black tea to be equally effective.

Green tea differs from black in its processing. Both come from the Camellia sinensis plant, but black tea is fermented when processed. This fermentation changes some of the tea plant’s compounds, and effectively reduces some of the most important anti-oxidants, namely EGCG, one of the most important anti-oxidants you can consume. However, black tea does still contain many other important anti-oxidants.

When it comes to preventing many forms of disease, EGCG seems to be an important component, making green tea the drink of choice. In addition, the reason tea came into focus in the first place was the noticeably lower rates of disease in Asian countries, where tea is consumed in large quantities - most of it green tea.

One of the diseases that tea is reported to prevent is breast cancer. Several studies have shown that tea, green in particular, seems to significantly lower your chances of developing breast cancer. Some studies have even suggested that green tea could even be an effective treatment for breast cancer.

One study conducted on breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy noted that those participants who regularly consumed green tea during their chemotherapy treatments showed higher concentrations of the chemotherapy drugs in their cancer cells than those who did not consume green tea.

Other studies have indicated that green tea can inhibit the growth of cancer cells, possibly preventing the spread of the disease. And, additional studies have shown that green tea may prevent the recurrence of breast cancer in patients diagnosed at Stage I or II of the disease.

But, what about black tea? Why have similar results not been shown with the consumption of green tea? The theory is that it has to do with hormones.

Green tea is thought to reduce certain circulating sex-steroid hormones, such as estone and estradiol, and that black tea may increase the levels of these hormones. If the reduction in breast cancer risk is due to the lower level of these sex-steroid hormones, then it’s easy to see why green tea is more effective at preventing breast cancer than black tea.

One study in Singapore evaluated a cross section of 130 healthy post-menopausal Chinese women. Their tea consumption broke down like this:

• 84 were non or irregular tea drinkers – meaning they drank tea less than once a week.

• 27 were regular green tea drinkers – meaning they drank green tea weekly or daily

• 19 were regular black tea drinkers

The study concluded that, relative to the estrone levels in the non tea drinkers, the green tea drinkers showed a lower estrone level, and the black tea drinkers showed a higher estrone level. In fact, the green tea drinkers showed a 13% lower estrone level, and the black tea drinkers showed a 19% higher level of estrone than those who did not drink tea. A similar relationship was found between tea drinking habits and estradiol levels.

While this study alone cannot be considered conclusive, it does suggest that, if high levels of circulating sex steroids increase the risk of breast cancer, green tea is a much better preventative than black tea.

Most researchers agree that having high levels of circulating hormones like estrogen (which is made up of estradiol and estrone) after menopause does increase your risk of breast cancer. This is why women who take hormone supplements to help ease the symptoms of menopause have an increased risk of developing cancer over women who do not treat their menopausal symptoms with hormones like estrogen therapy.

So, if you’ve experienced menopause and you’re at an increased risk for breast cancer, talk to your doctor about tea drinking. Particularly if you drink large quantities of black tea, it might be wise to reduce this amount, and replace it with green tea.

It’s clear that we don’t fully understand the relationship between tea and breast cancer, and that much more research should be performed. However, we do have a pretty clear picture that green tea prevents many forms of cancer, breast cancer among them.

So, it’s probably a good idea to keep drinking your green tea. While it’s true that we don’t have all the answers, it does seem clear that green tea offers many health benefits and that drinking it is a healthy habit that all of us should get into.

Green tea is delicious, refreshing and widely available. All of these attributes make green tea a simple way to improve our health and reduce the risk of certain diseases. So, make a cup of green tea, and drink to your health!

Jon M. Stout is the Chairman of the Golden Moon Tea Company. Golden Moon Tea carefully selects the finest rare and orthodox teas, which are processed slowly and handcrafted with extreme care. At their website, you can learn more about their current

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Tags: breast cancer, cancer patient, cancer risk, chemotherapy