Awareness – Much More Is Needed!

Awareness – Much More Is Needed

by Cancer Fact File

Please Note: This is worldwide information I found, copied, and pasted on a site named uptodate.com.

Worldwide, head and neck cancer account for more than 550,000 cases and 380,000 deaths annually.

In the United States, head and neck cancer accounts for 3 percent of malignancies, with approximately 63,000 Americans developing head and neck cancer annually and 13,000 dying from the disease.

In Europe, there were approximately 250,000 cases (estimated 4 percent of the cancer incidence) and 63,500 deaths in 2012.

Males are affected significantly more than females with a ratio ranging from 2:1 to 4:1. The incidence rate in males exceeds 20 per 100,000 in regions of France, Hong Kong, the Indian subcontinent, central and eastern Europe, Spain, Italy, Brazil, and among African Americans in the United States.

Mouth and tongue cancers are more common in the Indian subcontinent; nasopharyngeal cancer is more common in Hong Kong, and pharyngeal and/or laryngeal cancers are more common in other populations; these factors contribute disproportionately to the overall cancer burden in these Asian countries.

The incidence of laryngeal cancer, but not oral cavity and pharyngeal cancer, is approximately 50 percent higher in African American men. The mortality associated with both laryngeal and oropharyngeal cancer is significantly higher in African American men, which may reflect the lower prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) positivity.

In 2016/2017, the “20-20 Voice” Cancer charity carried out an in-depth survey, worldwide regarding the start-to-finish process of self concerns, Dr visits, diagnosis & treatment: you may find the results very interesting in light of the above which has now become available!

Other Cancers

Other Cancers

by Cancer Fact File

Life & Death ( a must-read)

The man himself! R.I.P Carlos

Before you start reading this part of the information gathered here, please take a moment to read through the blog of a terminally ill cancer patient who sadly died last night (16th July 2015).

His name: Carlos Antunes

Location: Portugal

Carlos named his cancer “My Ninja” and as you will see, he fought the good fight with all his might ‘until the inevitable end, one might say! He was one brave man who knew what the outcome was to be, yet he never gave in until he had no more to give.

Loved & liked by many, I am told that even in his final days he was an absolute pleasure to be with and a kinder man who has seldom been met! May he rest in eternal peace and may a smidgeon of his bravery pass on to all of us when we need it!

Carlos Antunes R.I.P my friend (and thank you) https://an2nes.wordpress.com/

Bone Cancers (Sarcoma’s) Note here that the father of inventive estimation, so as to curry favor with anti-smoking lobbyists, Konrad Jamrozik, died aged 54 of a sarcoma, proving nothing except the fact that cancer can strike anyone, anywhere, anytime! His utterly ridiculous ‘guesstimations’ were the only ‘smoking-related deaths figures’ upon which the SCOTH Committee based their reasoning for introducing a smoking ban in this country.

He invented a figure of 11,000 and by God, that figure is still used now by such as CRUK even though they know that it is a figure conjured from thin air!  That ban has seen the death of 15,000 once viable businesses, and 200,000 jobs and has not proven to have saved one single life! Yet it has seen the creation of Chantix/Champix/Varenicline which has twisted people’s minds to such an extent that suicides have become commonplace! America has some 2,000 lawsuits stacked up against Pfizer-interesting that the first settlement came “Out of Court”.

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Cancer-of-the-bone/Pages/Introduction.aspx

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Check yourself out for breast cancer ladies!

http://www.nhs.uk/breast-cancer/pages/changes-breast-nipple.aspx

Never put off checking until tomorrow that which you easily check today!

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Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma

Now, this is a bit of a weird one, though no less devastating for those who suffer from this form of cancer.

This type of cancer is rare in the West but is much more common in the Far East.

It can occur at any age but is more likely to be found in people aged 50-60. It affects more men than women.

There are different types of nasopharyngeal cancer. They are named after the specific type of cell within the nasopharynx that has become cancerous.

Most nasopharyngeal cancers are squamous cell carcinomas. They develop in the cells that line the nasopharynx. The more common types, which are all treated in a similar way, are:

  • keratinizing squamous cell carcinoma (type 1)
  • non-keratinizing carcinoma: differentiated (type 2) and undifferentiated (type 3)
  • basaloid squamous carcinoma.

There are other types of cancer that can develop in the nasopharynx, such as melanoma, lymphoma, and sarcoma. These are much rarer and are treated in different ways.

Click here to learn more about (naso) ‘Nose Cancers’

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Check this out out for detailed information regarding

Oesophageal Cancers

There are two main types of cancer of the esophagus: squamous carcinoma, which is more common at the upper end of the gullet, and adenocarcinoma, which is more common at the lower end, particularly around the junction between the gullet and the stomach.

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/diseases/facts/oesophaguscancer.htm

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Now we have some great news on the fight against cancer battlefront. You may not believe this but researchers have tried fighting germs/bad cells with different types of germs/bad cells. This video spells it all out for you-I think you will need to watch it twice to grasp the enormity of what is being achieved here!

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And on a sadder note, we need to point out that skin cancers can come in many forms, but few so embarrassing as facial skin cancers! Check out some of these sites so as to know what to look for-if, unfortunately, you have to:

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 http://www.medicinenet.com/skin_cancer/article.htm

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 http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/cancer-help/type/skin-cancer/about/skin-cancer-symptoms

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 http://www.bmihealthcare.co.uk/treatment/treatmentsdetail?p_name=Facial%20skin%20cancer%20removal&p_treatment_id=432

(look for the A-Z of treatments)

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http://www.londonentsurgeons.com/index.php/head-neck/facial-skin-cancers

(an excellent site for information & contact)

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Post op Tastebuds etc

Now we all know, or very quickly find out, that once the laryngectomy operation is over and recovery begins we have to eat soft foods for a while in order to start building our strength up again. But what of the taste of these foods? Where has it gone?

For many of us, the sad truth is that we think we can still taste the culinary delights presented but in actual fact we can’t – we only think we can. However, as time passes we do actually claw back a percentage of our ‘taste bud excellence‘. Here is a story to give us all hope as Andrew Hedley found that he was able to start tasting the wines he created. Read this article and be aware of the power we all have within!

The winemaker who had to relearn how to taste and smell

Laryngectomees & Breathing

Laryngectomees & Breathing

by Cancer Fact File

Laryngectomees & Breathing

Although it is said that you could put 1,000 lays in a room together yet everyone would be different (and I truly believe this would be the case) there is one problem that affects all lays –

BREATHING.

The new airway created during surgery

No great surprise there then as the normal passage of air has been shut down (nasal & oral) and the new airway opened up in the throat, via a marvelous bit of surgery & needlework by your surgeon. It is very easy to say, “well, at least I can breathe properly” but in actual fact, you can’t and that is because the body’s natural filters (nasal passages, etc) no longer deal with the inflow of air and therefore the lungs are suddenly exposed to all sorts of pollution that currently sits in our supposed ‘clean air that we breathe. Note here that the World Health Organisation has categorically stated that our ‘clean air‘ & cooking vapors/emissions are now leading causes of cancer (various types).

As many of you know, once leaving the hospital with your new breathing system firmly in place and all the protective information to hand, it is a big frightening world out there as you have very little protection against chest infections which are easily caused by rapid temperature changes, damp atmospheres, hot dry atmospheres etc.

It takes time to adjust to your new way of life. Some larys need constant nebulizer applications, using a variety of Saline, Salbutamol & Budesonide solutions to keep the airway moistened & open and some larys need a semi-permanent lary tube inserted in the airway to keep the airway open and to continue to breathe.

Don’t worry, not all airways decide to contract for as I said at the beginning-everyone is different. What you have to remember is that all this surgery is one hell of a shock to the system and therefore, there are bound to be reactions as your body attempts to regain control of its severely altered functions. The early tube is made to accept a stoma button in the end of it so that the air you inhale is filtered properly and you will find that your speech/respiratory nurse will advise which type to go for.  (Countrywide Supplies  provide a tremendous range of equipment needed by lars-and delivers to your door!)

This brings us to breathing-your very life blood (no pun intended of course).
Take a breath dear reader….. now hold it for 50 seconds….. struggling already as you read this?….. I’m not surprised in the slightest – breathe out and regain your composure, please. As ladies we have to be able to control our breathing at all times-and believe me, sometimes this is not an easy task.

Your ENT/Speech Therapist/Respiratory team will educate you in all matters of breathing, and yes, they are all highly trained, highly skilled, and extremely caring but once you have been shown how to control your breathing you quickly find ‘your own method‘ (from all you have learned) of control. A combination of short breaths, long breaths, quick/slow breaths, it doesn’t matter; it is literally what helps YOU to calm down and control YOUR breathing.

Never forget that while you are puffing & panting like an old steam train your heart is working overtime to pump the oxygen around your heaving body-not good. No matter where you are, no matter what you are doing (especially COPD/Emphysema sufferers) you need to get your breathing under control.
[Note here that I have found my own way. I don’t care where I am or if people look at me as ‘go out, I know that I need to control my breathing-so I go through my silent routine.]

Being a lady you will find that a chest infection is your worst nightmare, your enemy to wellness. It causes you untold fatigue, a copious amount of secretions, discomfort with ‘wheeze’/crackling in the lungs, feeling lifeless, off your food, etc. You will no doubt be on strong antibiotics and a steroid (probably Prednisolone) to fight off the infection.

Do NOT venture out into the cold, clammy air, stay indoors, relax as best you can, and let the medicinals do their job. Remember also that having a lary tube in place enhances the difficulty of ridding the airway of phlegm (which quite often congeals somewhat to form ‘plugs’). Keep a suction machine permanently plugged in and literally suck out the unwanted secretions asap. Again, this will avoid stressing your heart. I would also advocate that you ‘up your dosage’ of nebulizer usage too as you need to keep the airway clear & moistened.

When you are indoors, try not to do too much, try and relax as much as possible, for this takes an enormous strain off the body as it fights the infection. Listening to soft music is a great relaxant and there are plenty of relaxation tapes/discs/CDs that literally lull you into a semi stupor-and that is exactly what they are supposed to do. Does it matter if the washing up doesn’t get done for another hour? Have you got the energy to hoover round? Did you really need to start polishing? I don’t think so-so be told. Relax, chill out, put some nice relaxing music on, and simply chill out!

In building our support system we contact many companies dealing with various goods that will help ladies and the enjoyment of life and on the music front, we have found that “Knighton Music & the bebop shop” (an excellent online music service) is in a class of its own as far as selection, despatch & service are concerned. We have formed an association with this online company and recommend that you search their vast listings to find the music that you know relaxes you.

Relaxation is half the battle when disposing of chest infections/colds/stress etc and believe me, there is nothing better than relaxing comfortably and listening to the sounds of your choice, whether it be classical music, Motown, 60’s pop music, dolphins & the sea, heavy rock, jazz,  basically whatever ‘floats your boat. The bebopshop & the knightonmusicgroup are the same group-only the music genres have been separated for ease of searching etc. ( www.knightonmusicgroup.co.uk

Remember, the sooner you get your breathing under control the sooner your heart returns to its normal rhythm, the calmer you will feel, and the quicker you will fight off any infections-give it a try!