In recent years, the incidence of skin cancer around the world has escalated and the condition now affects millions of people worldwide. The usual cause is prolonged exposure to the harmful ultraviolet radiation in sunlight. The risk is higher if anybody lives or takes vacations in areas with intense sun. The recent depletion of the ozone layer is thought to have played a part in increasing the incidence, because the ozone layer acts as a shield against harmful ultraviolet light. In addition, tanning booths, which use ultraviolet light, may cause this cancer. People who have fair skin are especially susceptible because they have low levels of melanin, the pigment that gives the skin its color and helps protect it from the sun’s harmful ultraviolet rays.

The four essential types are;

. Melanoma, a pigmented skin tumor that is quite serious and may be life-threatening.

. Basal cell carcinoma, the most common skin tumor, which is locally invasive and destructive (it destroys tissue in the immediate area), but is usually does not spread or result in death.

. Squamous cell carcinoma, which is three times rarer than a basal cell carcinoma but behaves in a similar manner.

. Bowen disease, a cousin of the squamous cell carcinoma but more superficial, involving only the outer most layer of the skin.

The typical basal cell carcinoma is an elevated round-oval, pearl-like bump with some red coloration due to fine red blood vessels going across or into it. Sometimes several small bumps form a circle. They bleed easily and sometimes ulcerate. The squamous cell carcinoma is less well defined, has uneven, poorly visualized borders and may be a scaly, crusted, red elevation with a rough surface. Bowen disease usually is a red or pink plaque-like elevation with very clear borders. Basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma tend to occur on sun-exposed sites of the skin.

Causes: The cause of cancer is unknown. It is thought, however, that squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma are related to an accumulation of sunlight over a lifetime. People with light complexions have these tumors more often than people with dark complexions. Malignant melanoma is believed to be associated with numerous severe sunburns during childhood, adolescence, or young adulthood. It, too, occurs more commonly in lightly pigmented people, especially those with blue or green eyes, freckles and almost white skin. A tendency to develop melanoma seems to run in families.

Symptoms:

. Skin lesions with persistent ulceration or bleeding

. Persistent skin lesion that changes size, shape, or color (skin changes).

Diagnosis: A Biopsy should be done on any suspicious skin lesions. When evaluating pigmented skin lesions, the physician usually looks for good and bad signs. Bad signs include

. Uneven pigmentation or coloration of the lesion

. Irregular borders

. Asymmetry

. Marked elevation

. Large size (bigger than a pencil eraser)

Treatment:

Medical Treatment: It required Surgical Treatment.

Surgical Treatment: All the types described above can be treated by means of excision and removal of the tumor. Surgical removal results in a better than 90 percent cure rate for nonpigmented tumors (basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and Bowen disease). Alternative methods for destroying the cancer include using liquid -nitrogen freezing (cryosurgery) or scraping with a curette and burning the tissue with electric cautery (electro desiccation and curettage).

The treatment of melanoma depends upon the thickness of the tumor and the depth of invasion when examined with the microscope. When the tumor is thin and superficial, excision examination of the lymph nodes draining the skin area and chemotherapy.

Prevention: prolonged sun exposure increases the risk of this cancer, so limiting exposure to the sun is the best prevention, particularly for those with fair complexions. Most of it occurs on the head, neck and hands, so clothing (wide-brimmed hats, long sleeves) and use of sun block with a sun protection factor of 15 offers adequate protection.

Michael Russell
Your Independent guide to skin-cancer-guides.com/ Skin Cancer

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Tags: chemotherapy, melanoma, skin cancer

According to the American Cancer Society, an estimated 112,340 new cases of colon cancer will be diagnosed in 2007. About 52,180 people will die from either colon or rectal cancer this year. Even though the number seems high, deaths are actually decreasing.

New screenings that detect polyps that can be removed before they turn into colon cancer may be one reason that the death rate has declined in recent years. But fewer cases have been diagnosed as well. This could be because of improvements in diet and exercise for many people. A bad diet and a lack of exercise are two risk factors.

The risk factors, according to the American Cancer Society are:

* Age: More than 9 out of 10 people are diagnosed with colon cancer are 50 or older.
* A history of polyps: Even if they have been removed, they increase the risk, especially if the polyps were large or if there were many.
* Two diseases, ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease cause inflame the colon create ulcers in the lining. If a person has either disease, her or she should begin screening early in their life.
* Family history: If a close relative has had colon cancer, especially before he or she was 60, the risk is increased.
* Diet: A high-fat diets seems to increase risks.
* A sedentary lifestyle: People who get little exercise have a higher risk.
* Obesity: This also contributes.
* Smoking: Recent studies show that smokers are 30 to 40 percent more likely to die.
* Alcohol, particularly heavy use has been linked to colon cancer.

Many people who are diagnosed early during a routine screen may not have noticed any symptoms. According to the American Cancer Society, as it advances a person may experience:

* Stomach pain or cramping
* Diarrhea, constipation or other changes in bowel habits
* Blood in the stool
* Bleeding from the rectum
* A change in bowel habits such as diarrhea, constipation, or narrowing of the stool that lasts for more than a few days
* A feeling that you need to have a bowel movement that doesn’t go away after doing so
* Bleeding from the rectum or blood in the stool (often, though, the stool will look normal
* Cramping or steady stomach pain
* Weakness and tiredness

Treatment for all types of cancer is also improving. Many patients are treated successfully with surgery. Surgery will remove the tumors or the polyps. Many patients also require chemotherapy or radiation treatments.

The American Cancer Society has a treatment tool worksheet on its website, www.cancer.org, (Alexa) to help you determine which treatment is best for you. You need to consult with you doctor before making any decisions about your treatment. Your personal physician is always the best person to help you decide how to treat your colon cancer.

For more information on cancer try visiting cancercondition.com cancercondition.com - a website that specializes in providing cancer related information and resources including information on cancercondition.com/coloncancer.html colon cancer.

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Recent studies on HRT show what scientists have suspected for a while now. There’s a clear connection between hormone replacement therapy and breast cancer.

The U.S. has the highest rate of breast cancer in the world affecting 1 out of 8 women.

Next to skin cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer for women. And, after lung cancer, it’s the second most deadly.

Research makes the HRT cancer link clear.

Over the past few years, millions of women have given up hormone replacement therapy, turning to alternative treatments for menopause symptoms instead. As a result, research shows breast cancer rates have gone down dramatically.

Scientists were shocked to see statistics drop by close to 12% in 2003. This was the largest decrease ever seen. And rates are still going down – particularly for women over 50, who seem to be more sensitive to HRT.

Recently, Dr. Peter Ravdin of the MD Anderson Cancer Center said he’s convinced the drop in cancer is related to the decrease in HRT use for menopause symptoms.

And Dr. Christina Clarke from the Northern California Cancer Center, whose study was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, agrees wholeheartedly.

“Hormone therapy use dropped by 68% between 2001 and 2003, and shortly thereafter we saw breast cancer rates drop by 10% to 11%. This drop was sustained in 2004, which tells us the decline wasn’t a fluke.”

What are your options?

The best thing you can do is make lifestyle changes that will maximize your health and minimize your risk of breast cancer.

That means, regular exercise, less stress and the healthiest diet possible. Healthy women simply have far fewer disturbing menopause symptoms.

You can begin with a nutritious diet rich in colorful vegetables and fruit, whole grains and fatty fish, such as salmon. Eliminate refined carbohydrates and sugars, saturated and trans-fats, coffee, alcohol, tobacco and carbonated sodas.

And definitely get out for a half-hour walk at least three days a week – preferably daily.

To greatly improve your odds of having a pleasant, easy, carefree menopause, make sure you’re getting all of the important essential vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients. Be especially sure to include omega-3.us/ fish oil for the omega 3 fatty acids.

Why should you take fish oil?

Balanced, omega 3 fish oil can make all the difference to your hormones.

The fatty acids from fish are necessary for the production and release of natural hormones. Thousands of women (including myself) have dramatically reduced hot flashes, mood swings and other unpleasant symptoms naturally with fish oil.

And there are many other long-range bellaonline.com/articles/art43609.asp omega 3 benefits. Besides greatly reducing menopause symptoms, this nutritional plan has also been proven to be a great anti-cancer and heart health program. So don’t wait. The best time to begin is NOW.

Copyright by Moss Greene. All rights reserved.

Moss Greene is the Nutrition Editor at BellaOnline.com and a widely read alternative health journalist. Over the past 33 years she’s helped thousands to get healthier.

For great health and fitness articles, visit Moss at BellaOnline Nutrition. You’ll get expert health advice and can subscribe to her free bellaonline.com/articles/art3859.asp Natural Health Newsletter.

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The prostate gland is located directly beneath the bladder and in front of the rectum. About one man in six will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime, but only one man in 34 will die of the disease. Men have traditionally been less likely to seek medical attention than women, especially for minor problems which often serve as warning signs for more serious underlying illness.

The male hormone testosterone contributes to the growth of cancer. The most common cancer in American men, excluding skin cancer, is prostate cancer. The prostate is a small, walnut-sized structure that makes up part of a man’s reproductive system; it wraps around the urethra, the tube that carries urine out of the body.

There are several symptoms to be aware of. Some men will experience symptoms that might indicate the presence of prostate cancer. One prostate cancer symptom is difficulty starting urination or holding back urine.

If you have one or more prostate cancer symptoms, you should see a qualified doctor as soon as possible. One of the most common symptoms is the inability to urinate at all. One symptom is a need to urinate frequently, especially at night.

A PSA test with a high level can also be from a non-cancerous enlargement of the prostate gland. A chest x-ray may be done to see if there’s a spread of cancer. CT scans may be done to see if the cancer has spread.

What is called a free PSA may help tell the difference between BPH (benign prostatic hypertrophy), an enlargement of the prostate gland, and prostate cancer. Your doctor may use either one or two of the most common tests for prostate cancer detection. The decision about whether to pursue a PSA test should be based on a discussion between you and your doctor.

Other medications used for hormonal therapy, with side effects, include androgen-blocking agents, which prevent testosterone from attaching to prostate cells. Recent improvements in surgical procedures have made complications occur less often. Surgery, radiation, hormonal therapy and chemotherapy all have significant side effects; know fully what they are before you proceed.

Surgery, called a radical prostatectomy, removes the entire prostate gland and some of the surrounding tissues. Besides hormonal drugs, hormone manipulation may also be done by surgically removing the testes. Impotence is a potential complication after the prostatectomy or after radiation therapy.

What you can do now is begin to understand what exactly your treatment options are and where you’re going to begin. Medications can have many side effects, including hot flashes and loss of sexual desire. In patients whose health makes the risk of surgery unacceptably high, radiation therapy is often the chosen conventional alternative.

Hormone manipulation is mainly used as a treatment to relieve symptoms in men whose cancer has spread. Whether radiation is as good as removing the prostate is debatable and the decision about which to choose, if any, can be difficult. Urinary incontinence can be a possible complication of surgery.

Some drugs with numerous side effects are being used to treat advanced prostate cancer, blocking the production of testosterone, called chemical castration; it has the same result as surgical removal of the testes. Be aware that some men chose natural treatment options and forgo any surgery, radiation or chemotherapy.

Just about all men with prostate cancer survive at least five years after their diagnosis, 93% survive at least 10 years, and 67% survive more than 15 years. Consider sites, such as this one, just a starting point where you can begin to learn about prostate cancer. The one thing that you should not do however is rely on any information obtained from the Internet to make your final decision.

For more information on BestProstateHealthTips.com prostate cancer treatments and prostate cancer symptoms go to BestProstateHealthTips.com BestProstateHealthTips.com Helen Hecker R.N.’s website specializing in prostate and prostate cancer tips, advice and resources, including information on prostate tests and BestProstateHealthTips.com natural prostate cancer treatments

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