Complementary and Integrative Therapies of Cancer.
Your resource for everything related to cancer. Here, you can find comprehensive information about risk, prevention, screening, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and support for all cancers.
What are the side effects of cancer treatment
It is hard to limit the effects of treatment so that only cancer cells are removed or destroyed. Because treatment also damages healthy cells and tissues, it often causes unpleasant side effects.
The side effects of cancer treatment vary. They depend mainly on the type and extent of the treatment. Also, each person reacts differently. Attempts are made to plan the patient’s therapy to keep side effects to a minimum. Patients are monitored during therapy so that any problems which occur can be addressed. All therapy and treatment of cancer is centered around the control of erosion as it relates to healthy cellular growth. The body does not have control of the gorwth of the cancer cells.
Surgery – The side effects of surgery depend on the location of the tumor, the type of operation, the patient’s general health, and other factors. Although patients are often uncomfortable during the first few… Continue reading
What does basal cell carcinoma look like
A basal cell carcinoma usually begins as a small, dome-shaped bump and is often covered by small, superficial blood vessels called telangiectases. The texture of such a spot is often shiny and translucent, sometimes referred to as “pearly.” It is often hard to tell a basal cell carcinoma from a benign growth like a flesh-colored mole without performing a biopsy. Some basal cell carcinomas contain melanin pigment, making them look dark rather than shiny.
Superficial basal cell carcinomas often appear on the chest or back and look more like patches of raw, dry skin. They grow slowly over the course of months or years.
Basal cell carcinomas grow slowly, taking months or even years to become sizable. Although spread to other parts of the body (metastasis) is very rare, a basal cell carcinoma can damage and disfigure the eye, ear, or nose if it grows nearby.
How is basal cell… Continue reading
What are risk factors for developing basal cell carcinoma?
Light-colored skin, sun exposure, and age are all important factors in the development of basal cell carcinomas. People who have fair skin and are older have higher rates of basal cell carcinoma. About 20% of these skin cancers, however, occur in areas that are not sun-exposed, such as the chest, back, arms, legs, and scalp. The face, however, remains the most common location for basal cell lesions. Weakening of the immune system, whether by disease or medication, can also promote the risk of developing basal cell carcinoma. Other risk factors include
- exposure to sun. There is evidence that, in contrast to squamous cell carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma is promoted not by accumulated sun exposure but by intermittent sun exposure like that received during vacations, especially early in life. According to the U.S. National Institutes of Health, ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun is the main cause of skin cancer.… Continue reading
New treatments for skin cancer
Professor Braathen from Bern University Hospital is using the new method for the treatment of light skin cancer. He uses a combination of a cream containing the photosensitizer methyl-amino-oxo-pentanoate (MAOP) and cold red light.
After removal of the encrustation, the cream about three hours to act under wraps. This creates in the cancer cells, the actual photosensitising. Continue reading