Vitamin pills and supplements are no substitute for eating our vegetables. Scientists are now finding out why. It just so happens that fruits and vegetables are loaded with compounds called phytochemicals and antioxidants that demonstrably lower the risk of cancer.

Phytochemicals are not related to vitamins or minerals. They are not even nutrients. Phyto is Latin for plant. These are natural chemicals only found in plants. These food chemicals cannot be obtained from animal products. What makes these substances so exciting is that study after study continues to reveal the many cancer-protective benefits of the different phytochemicals.

You can lower your risk of cancer quite a bit by eating more fruits and vegetables. More than 200 major studies over the past 25 years have consistently shown that high plant food eaters are about half as likely to have cancer as those who eat few plant foods. This is also true for heart disease, adult diabetes, and certain other lifestyle diseases.

Phytochemicals protect against cancer usually as a blocking agent or suppressing agents. Blocking agents work on the carcinogens. They prevent them from affecting the body’s cells. For example:

- Indoles found in cruciferous vegetables (cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli) work as blocking agents by increasing colon enzymes that can deactivate some of these carcinogens.

- Others block the ability of bacteria to attach themselves to the surface of the cell.

Suppressing agents work on the body’s own cells, combating malignant changes that have been started by free radicals or carcinogens. They can slow tumor growth by suppressing the cancer cells ability to reproduce. They can suppress certain enzymes that cancer cells need in order to grow.

Some fruits and vegetables contain more potent cancer fighters than others.

1. For colon cancers, it is the cruciferous vegetables.

2. A high fruit and carrot intake appears to decreases the risk of lung cancers significantly.

3. Eating one or more onions a day were found to have only half the stomach cancer risk of those who never ate onions.

4. Soy is an absolute treasure of cancer-protective phytochemicals. Studies suggest that soy foods diminish cancer risk in many areas, including breast, colon, rectum, lung, and stomach.

The good news about phytochemicals is that you do not have to eat the foods raw to get the benefits. While a few of these compounds might lose some effectiveness when cooked, most still hold their medicinal properties. It also does not matter whether the vegetables are canned, frozen, juiced, or peeled. Pickling, boiling, microwaving, baking, and drying, are also ok.

The National Cancer Institute advocates a minimum of five servings of fruits and vegetables a day. Some people do not eat any at all.

Like phytochemicals, antioxidants are also natural chemicals found in food, but they are not limited to plant foods. The term antioxidant refers to a specific function they perform – they help the body dispose of free radicals that can genetically damage normal cells and set the stage for cancer.

“What are free radicals you ask?”

Every cell in our body is made up of molecules. Usually every molecule has electrons in range around its nucleus. These electrons usually come in pairs. This makes the molecule stable. However, some molecules have electrons that are not in pairs, leaving them extremely unstable. These molecules are called free radicals.

Free radicals have been found to have a role in at least 50 diseases. They have been known to damage DNA and are linked to cancer. It is important to strengthen our body’s antioxidant defenses with nature’s natural cancer fighters.

Jason Hunter is a natural health advocate. He is webmaster of a natural health web site called Home Health and Natural Remedies. To find out more about fruits and vegetables that contain the most phytochemicals and antioxidants, visit:

hhesonline.com/book_store/encyclopedia-of-medicinal-plants.htm The Encyclopedia Of Medicinal Plants and hhesonline.com/book_store/encyclopedia-of-foods-and-their-healing-power.htm The Encyclopedia Of Foods And Their Healing Power

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Tags: cancer risk, colon cancer, healing, lung cancer, natural cancer

Medical researches attempt to define risk factors in order to discover who is most likely to get a particular disease and also to find clues as to the disease’s cause and thus to the prevention and cure.

A risk factor is usually determined by taking a large population of people - say 1,000-2,000 or more - and identifying a variety of features about them, determining who gets the disease under study and then seeing what the relationship is between the disease and the features that commonly occur within the group. It is important how the findings from population researches are being used. If you determine that out of your 2,000 people under study, 500 got the disease and all 500 drank milk as infants, you can’t decide from this that milk-drinking causes breast cancer. If none of the 1,500 drank milk as infants, you might be on the right track; if; as is more likely, all 1,500 did drink milk, you’ve learned nothing except that most people drink milk as children.

Sometimes, as in the case of lung cancer and smoking, risk factors are dramatic and can make a clear difference to the individual’s likelihood of getting the disease. Unfortunately, it usually doesn’t work this way. In breast cancer, several risk factors, such as family history, have been identified. But so far, there is nothing comparable to the correlations found between cholesterol and heart disease, or between cigarette smoking and lung cancer. 70% of breast cancer patients have none of the classical risk factors in their background. It is important to understand this for two reasons. Overestimating the importance of risk factors can cause needless mental distress if you have one of them in your background. On the other hand, you may create a false sense of security if you don’t have them. Most breast cancer patients do not have a family history of breast cancer. By virtue of being a woman, you are at risk of breast cancer.

Another thing to note is that the risk factors do not necessarily increase in a simple arithmetical fashion; if one risk factor gives you a 20% risk of acquiring breast cancer and another gives you another 10% chance, it doesn’t always mean that you’re up to 30%. The interaction of risk factors is a tricky and complicated process. One interesting example is in the studies on alcohol and breast cancer, which shows that women with other risk factors who also drank liquor didn’t increase their risk very much, while women with no other risk factors who drank raised their risk dramatically.

Most breast cancer still occurs in white women over 50 - about 50% of cases. Your risk at age 30 is 1 in 5,900 / year. By age 40, it is 1 in 1,200 / year, so the risk of getting breast cancer before you’re 50 is very small. The median age of diagnosis of breast cancer is 64, which means that half of women who get breast cancer will get it before age 64 and half will get it after. So whenever risk factors or breast cancer is discussed, it is important to correct for age. Other risk factors - family history, hormonal factors, etc. - will most likely cause breast cancer only in combination with rising age.

Another factor that needs to be considered is the effect of variability of ethnic groups. The risk of African-American women and other women of color is less than that compared to Caucasian women. This is a disease that is predominantly found in non-Hispanic white women. African-American women have rates similar to those of white women premenopausally. That won’t necessarily be comforting news to African-American women, however, though it’s less common in that group, it’s often more deadly.

The difference in vulnerability to breast cancer works on international level as well. Third world countries have less breast cancer than highly industrialized countries.

Michael Russell

Your Independent guide to breast-cancer.treatment-and-guides.com/ Breast Cancer

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Tags: breast cancer, cancer patient, cancer risk, lung cancer

For anyone who has had any treatment for lung cancer, it is important to take care of yourself afterwards. For example, you may get side effects or the cancer could even come back.

By having regular checkups it is possible to notice any changes in your health. In this way, you have a better chance of getting the proper treatment as quickly as possible.

The type of checkups that you may expect would be a physical examination, chest x-rays, and various other laboratory tests. You should understand that it is important to make sure that you do have these tests a regular basis.

Of course if you’re not feeling well in between, then you should make an appointment with your doctor as soon as possible.

Cancer can have a devastating effect on many people. Nowadays, there is also emotional support offered and this should be used.

There are many issues facing anyone who has cancer. It is not just the physical symptoms involved, there are also many fears and worries and concerns daily. In addition, family and friends have to deal with it also.

So a part of your treatment plan should be focusing on helping you to cope with the emotional and psychological difficulties that you will experience.

This support will come from many areas, including but not limited to doctors, nurses, social workers, and other professionals. Try to seek out cancer support groups in your area, they will provide advice support and comfort. This support is important, because you will not feel so isolated with your condition.

Being a member of such a group provides a sympathetic environment where you can talk about your concerns with others who also have cancer or have had in the past.

Just by talking about the problem can help your attitude, which is important in fighting the disease. Your local healthcare professionals will be aware of any such groups, and you should ensure to remain in contact with them.

Find Out More Information At:

healthinfodocs.com healthinfodocs.com

healthinfodocs.com/lung-cancer/asbestos-related-lung-cancer/ Asbestos Lung Cancer

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Tags: lung cancer

Have you noticed a lump or thickening in your breast? Do you find your breast size uneven? Do your nipples appear retracted or inverted? Are you worried that you might have breast cancer?

The second leading cause of cancer death in the U.S among women is breast cancer, the first being lung cancer. According to the American Cancer Society, only about 5 to 10 percent of breast cancers are hereditary in nature. It is estimated that about 75 percent of breast cancers occur in women who do not even possess the risk factors. Breast cancer is also seen in men but this occurrence is often rare.

Breast cancer is a malignancy that starts as a single abnormal cell that duplicates itself beyond control. Breast cancer frequently develops in the ducts that carry milk to the nipple. This can also form in the milk producing small sac of the breast. Breast cancer can exhibit either a slow growth or a quick and aggressive growth that can spread to nearby lymph nodes or even to more distant areas.

In order to provide early treatment, it is important to be able to identify the signs and symptoms of breast cancer.

1. A person with breast cancer usually finds a thickening or a lump around her breast or armpit area.

2. The nipple often exhibits an inverted or retracted appearance.

3. Those who are suffering from breast cancer may find changes in their breast including a change in size, contour and color.

4. A clear or bloody discharge may appear in the nipple.

5. The breast skin will show pitting or dimpling which resembles the skin of an orange.

Without any doubt, finding any of the above signs and symptoms will be very frightening to any one of us. Breast cancer is undoubtedly one of women’s most dreaded illnesses.

Breast cancers treated during the early stage promise more than 95 percent success rate. The treatment procedures for breast cancers depend on a variety of factors which include the following:

1. The age, weight and general health of the patient.

2. The type and the development stage of cancer.

3. The characteristics of cancer cells.

4. The involvement of the other breast.

Even the menopausal status of the patient will also affect the type of treatment that will be provided. A combination of surgery is typically the treatment plan involved in breast cancer cases. These surgical procedures can include lumpectomy or the removal of only the lump, mastectomy or the removal of the entire breast, lymph node removal, chemotherapy, radiation therapy and hormone therapy. Hormone therapy is often administered with the drug tamoxifen which may prevent the recurrence of the cancer cells.

A patient has a higher chance of recovery if breast cancer is discovered early and proper treatment administered immediately. Therefore it is important especially for women to perform a routine self-examination to determine if any suspicious growth or lump is developing along the breast and armpit area.

If any suspicious growth is discovered, it is important to seek for medical opinion as soon as possible.

Michael Russell

Your independent guide to

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Tags: breast cancer, chemotherapy, lung cancer, mastectomy

Pleural mesothelioma is one of the most common types of lung cancer and is usually brought on by exposure to asbestos. When asbestos is inhaled, the micro fibers pass down the airways and become embedded in the pleura ( the thin outer lining of the lungs). This induces serious scarring and chronic inflammatory lesions on this delicate tissue. Over a period of time these lesions and scars slowly develop into pleural mesothelioma, a deadly form of lung cancer for which there is no definative cure. These asbestos micro fibers sometimes also settle in the abdomen, leading to the development of peritoneal mesothelioma. This type of cancer, although less common, is just as deadly.

Just like asbestosis, pleural and peritoneal mesothelioma usually have a long period of dormancy after exposure before clinical signs start to show. In fact some patients do not show symptoms for 40 years after exposure.

The common symptoms of pleural mesothelioma are:

Coughing up small amounts of blood
Stomach / belly pain
Shortness of breath/ wheezing
Chronic cough
Chronic fatigue
Weight loss
Chest pain

Unfortunately mesothelioma (both pleural or peritoneal) is in most cases fatal. Sadly most patients die within two to three years of diagnosis. However, recently researchers have made great steps in finding useful treatments for the disease.

Available Mesothelioma Treatments are:

Palliative drainage of fluid from the chest (pleural cavity)
Surgery
Chemotherapy
Radiation
Gene therapy
Photodynamic therapy
Immunotherapy

If you have been diagnosed with asbestosis, mesothelioma, or asbestos exposure-related lung cancer, you could be entitled to compensation, depending on when you were exposed, where you were exposed, and where the companies you believe to be responsible currently reside.

David Barnet writes about personal law issues because he believes people have a right to know all the facts before making a claim. If you are unsure of how to find a lawyer to help you with your claim, then look no further. Use our free information today to help you get on the right road to making a successful claim. freemesotheliomainfo.com Visit our free mesothelioma news and information website today

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Tags: chemotherapy, lung cancer, mesothelioma, pleural mesothelioma