Tag Archives: doctors

A Very Good Boy

Keeping up on all of the news related to cancer and what’s going on around the nation and world can be tough but don’t worry we’ve got you covered.

Here are all the cancer related dates, news and heartwarming stories we’ve found over the last month.

A VERY GOOD BOY — While dog has long been known as man’s best friend, one surprising way they’re becoming even more valuable to people is their use in cancer detection. This pup will be the 51st dog trained by this company to be a cancer sniffing dog according to KRCR.

How does it work? The article states that the dog will be able to detect certain compounds in things like sweat, spit and urine from patients.

(Photo courtesy KRCR) (Photo courtesy KRCR)

SURPRISE OF HER LIFE – According to Houston TV station KHOU Dylan Probe, a fourth grader, had a leg amputated after being diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma. She got the surprise of her life when she was gifted an American Girl doll with a matching prosthetic.

SURVIVAL RATES CLIMB — This year’s annual report to the nation had some good news for the future. The report states that,”death rates during the period 2010–2014 decreased for 11 of the 16 most common types of cancer in men and for 13 of the 18 most common types of cancer in women, including lung, colorectal, female breast, and prostate cancers.”

MENTAL HEALTH KEY — A new study found that cancer patients are at a 55 percent higher risk of committing suicide. This article in the Guardian notes that preliminary results show, “We suggest there is a need in cancer patients to be screened and cared not only for anxiety and depression, but also specifically for those people with suicidal thoughts and a lifetime history of suicide attempts, in particular during the period immediately subsequent to the diagnosis of cancer.”

Need help? Tell your doctor or reach out here.

DATES
April is home to a few cancer related dates ranging from cancer prevention to awareness, this list from the American Cancer Society includes:
National Cancer Control Month
National Minority Cancer Awareness Week (April 9 −15)
National Minority Health Month
National Oral, Head, and Neck Cancer Awareness Week (April 12–18)
Coaches vs. Cancer Final Four (April 1-3 Phoenix)
National Volunteer Week (April 23−29)
Testicular Cancer Awareness Month
World Health Day (April 7)

Say what? An abbreviated guide to translating a diagnosis

“You. Quadruped. Sprechen sie English?”

Admit it: you secretly foster the suspicion that doctors don’t want to be understood. Between their unintelligible scribbles for signatures and their big, fancy words, it’s easy to see where you might think that. Doctors use the language they do in order to communicate accurately the results of your appointment, but accurate is not always easy to understand.

just-smile-and-wave gif

For those times you resign yourself to nodding and pretending to understand (oh, come on—we’ve all done it) or when a doctor forgets to expand their accurate statement into an understandable one, here’s a brief list of terms or phrases translated from their native Doctor tongue to English.

Alopecia: hair loss

Anemia: low level of red blood cells

Antiemetic: intended to control nausea or vomiting

Apoptosis: cell death

Biopsy: removal of a small piece of body tissue for examination

Brachytherapy: internal radiation treatment where radioactive material is placed on the tumor or close to it

Carcinogen: cancer-causing substance

Carcinomas: solid tumors that develop on almost any organ; most common

Leukemias: blood cancers; generally don’t form solid tumors

Leukocytes: white blood cells (WBC); responsible for repairing damaged cells and eating foreign ones

Lymphatic system: body system responsible for cleansing the body; includes lymph nodes and spleen

Lymphomas: blood cancers that develop in the lymphatic system

Metastasis: the spreading of cancer from the primary site to other organs or tissues

Myelomas: cancers that begin in bone marrow cells

Primary: where the cancer originally develops; in reference to a site or tumor

Progression: the growth of a tumor or spreading of cancer in the body

Prophylaxis: preventative measures

Regression: when cancer reappears

Remission: when cancer is no longer detected

Sarcomas: tumors beginning in connective tissue like muscles, fats, cartilage and bone

Systemic: relating to the whole body

Penguins high five

Even with some preliminary vocabulary under your belt, be sure to pay attention to the real experts: your doctors and their team. When something goes over your head, don’t be afraid to stop them and ask for clarification. It is your appointment, after all, and the information is for your benefit.