Breast cancer is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the tissues of the breast. It occurs in both women and men, although breast cancer in men is rare.

Risk factors:

Lack of physical activity
Alcohol consumption
Advancing age
No childbirth or no breastfeeding
Family history of breast cancer
Early menarche (< 12 years of age) or late menopause ( > 55 years of age)
History of ovarian cancer or endometrial cancer
History of benign breast conditions (e.g. atypical hyperplasia) or lobular carcinoma in situ
Receiving hormonal replacement therapy (HRT)
History of receiving radiation therapy to the chest before age of 30
More importantly, you can lower your risk of having breast cancer by the following measures:

 Have regular physical activities, do at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activities per week (e.g. climbing stairs or brisk walking)
Avoid alcohol drinking;
Maintain a healthy body weight and waist circumference - aim for a body mass index (BMI) between 18.5 and 22.9, and a waist circumference of not more than 80cm for women; and
Have childbirth at an earlier age and breastfeed each child for longer duration factors include:
What are the common symptoms of breast cancer?

The symptoms of breast cancer may not be easily noticed at an early stage. Any of the following changes in the breast can be a symptom of breast cancer:

  Breast lump;

  A change in the size or shape of the breast;

  A change in skin texture of the breast or nipple (e.g. red, scaly, thickened or  orange-skin  appearance);

  Rash around the nipple;

  In-drawing of the nipple;

  Discharge from one or both nipples;

  New and persistent discomfort or pain in the breast or armpit; and

  A new lump or thickening in the armpit

What is breast cancer screening? Should I screen for breast cancer if I do not have any symptom?

Screening means examining people without symptoms in order to detect disease or fi nd people at increased risk of disease. It is often the fi rst step in making a defi nitive diagnosis. For breast cancer screening, its purpose is to fi nd women who have breast cancer, before they have any symptom, in order to offer them earlier treatment.

Mammography is widely used as a screening tool. It is an X-ray examination of the breasts. During mammography, the breast is pressed between 2 plates to flatten and spread the breast tissue, in order to obtain a clear image. Some women may find it uncomfortable or painful but the discomfort is usually short lasting. Mammography screening is safe in general and only a very small dose of radiation is used in the procedure. One in 5 female breast cancer patients may be missed by mammography.

Prevention and Screening for Breast Cancer: Information for women and their families

Cancer of the kidneys is amongst the ten most common types of Cancer. There are many types of renal cancer with Renal cell carcinoma being the most common amongst them. Renal cancer is said to be triggered by a genetic mutation but the cause for this mutation is yet unknown. While kidney cancer appears suddenly in some cases, in others it is inherited from the parents. Here are 4 things you should know about cancer of the kidneys.

Risk Factors
Along with a mutation of the genes which is beyond our control, some lifestyle factors can also increase a person s risk of suffering from renal cancer. Some of these factors are:

Smoking
Obesity
High blood pressure
Symptoms
An early diagnosis can make the treatment of renal cancer much easier than if it is left undiagnosed. Hence, it becomes important to recognise the symptoms of this disease. Common renal cancer symptoms include:

Blood in the urine
A lump on either side of the abdomen
Persistent pain on one side of the abdomen
Tiredness
Unexplained weight loss
Fever
These symptoms are common to a number of other diseases as well and hence if you experience them, it is best to get yourself checked out by a doctor. In order to confirm a diagnosis, your doctor is likely to ask for blood tests, urine tests, an ultrasound and a CT scan or an MRI. In most cases, your doctor will also schedule a biopsy to check for cancer cells in the kidney tissue.

Stages of kidney cancer
Once cancer has been diagnosed, your doctor will need to determine the extent of damage caused in order to find the best form of treatment for the disease. Stages of kidney cancer are determined by the size of the tumour and on how much it has spread from the original location. There are four stages of kidney cancer.
Stage I   When the cancer cells are restricted to the kidneys and the tumour is no bigger than 3  in diameter
Stage II   The tumour has grown bigger in size but is still restricted to the kidney
Stage III   The tumour may be big or small but has spread to at least one lymph node or has affected the blood vessels
Stage IV   The cancerous cells have spread to nearby lymph nodes or other organs or the tumour has grown through the fatty layer and outer fibrous layer of the kidney.

Treatment
Kidney cancer can be cured easily if detected in the early stages by removing the tumour and adjacent tissue or the entire kidney if need be. Removing one kidney is not fatal as a person can live a healthy life with a single kidney.

Kidney Cancer - How Its Stages Can Affect The Treatment?

While you cannot cure breast diseases, family history and maturing, but there are some hazards or risks that you can control. Keeping in mind the fact that there is no certain approach to forestall breast cancer, there are things you can do that may bring down the hazard. Here are five approaches to ensure your breast's well-being:

Watch your weight: Being overweight or hefty expands breast cancer chances. This is particularly true after menopause and for women who have put on weight as grown-ups. After menopause, the vast majority of your estrogen originates from fat tissue. Having more fat tissue can heighten your chances of getting breast cancer by raising the estrogen levels. Additionally, women who are overweight have a tendency to have more elevated amounts of insulin, than other hormones. Higher insulin levels have been associated with a few tumors, including breast cancer.
Exercise routinely: Many reviews have found that exercise is the sign of having a healthy breast. Studies show that one to two hours of energetic walking each week, lessened a woman s cancer risk by eighteen percent. Walking ten hours seven days decreased the hazard all the more.
Constrain liquor: Women who have two to five mixed beverages every day have a higher danger of breast cancer than women who have just one drink a day or none . As much as three to six glasses of wine seven days have been found to somewhat increase breast cancer chances. It is not clear how or why liquor raises the hazard. In any case, constraining liquor is particularly essential for women who have other hazard variables for breast cancer, like, breast cancer running in their families.
Restrain time spent sitting: Research has shown that sitting time, regardless of how much exercise you get when you are not sitting, increases the probability of growing cancer, particularly for women. Women who sit six hours or more a day outside of work have a ten percent more serious risk for breast cancer compared to the ladies who sit under three hours a day, and an increased hazard for other cancer types as well.
Stay away from or confine hormone substitution treatment: Hormone Replacement Treatment (HRT) was utilized frequently in the past to control night sweats, hot flashes, and other troublesome manifestations of menopause. In any case, specialists now realize that postmenopausal ladies who take a blend of estrogen and progestin might probably create breast tumors or cancer. Breast cancer disease seems to come back within five years in the wake of ceasing the blend of hormones. Therefore, get a breast cancer test even if you feel a small lump.

5 Ways to Decrease The Chance of Breast Cancer 

Kidney Cancer, more commonly known as renal cancer, first presents itself in the lining of the kidney. It then grows malignant and forms a tumor. The good news is that renal cancer rarely spreads to other organs. The bad news is that the tumors grow quite large before they can be detected.

Causes-
Kidney cancer has been found to occur most often in people who are older than 40 years of age. Though the cause of the cancer is not definitively known, there are a few factors that might increase the risk of developing kidney cancer. These include-

1. Obesity- Obesity can cause hormonal changes which in turn can increase the risk of cancer.

2. Smoking- As with any other kind of cancer, nicotine consumption, in the form of smoking cigarettes, increases the risk of developing the disease. In the case of renal cancer, it can, in fact, double the chances.

3. Pain Medications- A prolonged use of pain relievers over a period of time can increase the risk of renal cancer. Certain components of the medication can lead to kidney damage.

4. Genetic history- A medical history of family members, especially siblings, with the disease can significantly increase the risk of kidney cancer.



Symptoms-
In its early stages, kidney cancer remains asymptomatic, but as the tumor grow in size, symptoms begin to present themselves. These symptoms might include the following-

1. Blood in the urine.

2. A gradual loss of appetite leading to weight loss.

3. A persistent pain in your abdomen in conjunction with a lump.

4. A fever that is neither a result of an infection nor a cold, and one that lasts for weeks.

5. Swelling of the legs and ankles.

Treatment
Treatment for kidney cancer will depend on the size and location of the tumour and whether it has spread to other organs or parts of the body. Therefore, to determine the stage of cancer, diagnostic tests such as biopsy, are performed along with urine and blood tests. After determination of your cancer stage, the doctor will perform either a radical or a partial nephrectomy, where the cancerous tumor is removed along with additional tissues. Often, kidney surgery is followed by kidney transplant if both the kidneys need to be removed in nephrectomy. However, if nephrectomy does not cure your kidney cancer, then your oncologist may recommend cryotherapy, radiofrequency ablation or arterial embolization.

Kidney cancer in its advanced stage is often treated with either biological therapy where your body s immune system is utilized to fight cancer cells or targeted therapy where drugs are used stop the multiplication of cancer cells by blocking their signals. Due to such advancement in cancer treatment, the rate of success has gone up in recent years but you also need to follow a healthy lifestyle to make sure that the treatment can bring out the desired positive outcomes.

Kidney Cancer - What Causes It?

The treatment options for bone cancer depends on the type of cancer one is suffering from, the general health of the patient, the stage of cancer and the general preference of the patient. Different treatment options are designed for different types of cancer, based on the diagnosis. Each treatment responds in a different way. An oncologist decides the treatment options considering all the factors mentioned above. For instance, some cancer is best suited to surgery, while some cancer needs radiotherapy or chemotherapy to curb them. In many cases, all three modes of treatment might be required to tackle the growth of the cancer cells.

Surgery:
The goal of surgery is to eradicate the cancer cells in totality along with some surrounding healthy tissues. This involves special techniques to remove a tumor in one piece. Following are the types of surgeries that are available:

Removing the cancer cells sparing the limb: At the very first sight, the surgeon tries to understand whether it is possible to separate cancer cells from the tissues and the nerves. If the same is possible, the surgeon tries to save the limb while getting rid of the cancer cells. For the sake of safety and to ensure that the surgery is effective, the surgeon removes some of the healthy bone from the body and may replace the same with tissue from other parts of the body. To achieve this, a doctor might seek the help from of a bone bank or use a special metal prosthesis.
Surgery that does not involve the limbs: If the bone cancer does not involve the legs and the arm, surgeons can remove the affected bone along with some healthy bone from the surrounding areas. Cancer of the ribs and the spine are good examples of this type.
Surgery that affects the limb: Bone cancer that has spread to a significant extent and is strategically located in such areas that it is very difficult to remove, requires amputation. While this form of treatment is being increasingly discouraged by the wider medical community, it still does exist. In such cases, patients are fitted with artificial limbs and trained to do their job without the use of natural limbs.
Chemotherapy:
This is a form of drug treatment that uses powerful chemicals to kill cancer cells throughout the body. This medication is mostly given through an IV and the medication kills whatever cancer cells it comes across. 

Radiation therapy:
Radiation therapy involves the usage of special X-ray beams that have high power and can kill cancer cells. The patients are required to lie on a table, while a machine moves around the affected area and treats it with high energy X-rays, thereby killing the cancer cells. Radiation therapy is often used in conjunction with chemotherapy to reduce the size of a tumor before operating on it.


Bone Cancer - Know The Treatment Options!

Rubbery cushions (discs) between the bones (vertebrae) stack up to form the spine. When a nerve between the disc and vertebrae is pressed and inflamed, that condition is called herniated disc. The herniated disc is also referred to as the ruptured disc or the slipped disc. This is caused when the soft jelly is pushed out due to a tear in the exterior. Herniated discs can lead to an irritation of the nerves and result in tremendous pain. It may also cause the arms and legs to become numb and weak. However, some people suffering from this condition may not display any symptoms at all.

Herniated disc generally occur in the lower part of the vertebral column. The herniated disc may also be seen in the thoracic spine or cervical spine. The symptoms of a herniated disc include pain in the legs, feet, or the buttocks, pain in the shoulder blade, tingling of the feet, numbness of the feet and hands, muscle weakness, neck pain or muscle spasm in the neck. Most common causes of herniated discs are aging, excessive weight or lifting of heavy weight.

Prevention of herniated disc

Herniated discs are very commonly found in people who are aged between 35 or 55 years. They are seen more commonly in the men in comparison to the women.
A herniated disc cannot be prevented easily, but there certain things that you can do to reduce the risks. Maintaining the proper techniques of lifting is important. You should not be bending at your waist. You should always bend the knees and keep the back straight. This helps you to use your leg muscles which are very strong to support the weight.
As the saying goes, precaution is better than cure, so here are few precautions that can be taken to avoid herniated discs. Practicing a proper posture can help in reducing the risk of a herniated disc. It is extremely important for an individual to maintain a healthy posture while standing, sitting, walking, and even sleeping. It is imperative that you stretch your muscles when you are sitting in one position for a long time.
Another important thing to avoid is high-heeled shoes, as they are few of the most common causes of a herniated disc. It would be a good idea to go for flat and well cushioned comfortable footwear as they can go a long way in reducing the risk of the herniated disc.
Exercising regularly can go a long way in keeping the muscles of the legs, stomach, and back very strong. You should try to balance your flexibility and strength by exercising regularly. The best form of exercise to avoid herniated disc or ruptured disc is aerobic exercise.
It is true that as you start to age, the chances of getting a herniated disc increase significantly. However, if proper precautions are taken, the stress put on the spine can be effectively reduced, thereby eliminating the risk of a herniated disc. 

Herniated Disc - Is There A Way It Can Be Prevented?

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