• Effective ways to deal with chronic myeloid leukemia Effective ways to deal with chronic myeloid leukemia

    Chronic myeloid leukemia is a type of cancer that develops in the blood or bone marrow, in which the body produces too many white blood cells. This disease is common among older adults and is rarely observed in children. Weakness, anemia, fever, and bone pain are some of the symptoms that develop over time. While there is no cure for this condition, one can manage its symptoms through treatment options, foods, and lifestyle changes.

    Making healthier food choices
    According to the American Institute of Cancer Research, two-thirds of the food in meals should be plant-based. Adding lots of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and beans is a great way to meet the nutritional requirements of the day. Further, plant-based foods are low in calories, and this helps in maintaining a healthy weight.

    Green leafy vegetables: Spinach, broccoli, kale, and cabbage are cruciferous vegetables that are excellent sources of essential vitamins. The anti-inflammatory properties and other compounds in these vegetables are known to combat the inactive carcinogens in the body, which aid in the recovery process. Other leafy greens and vegetables like sweet potatoes, asparagus, and peas contain folate/folic acid and vitamin A, which can help create and repair the cells’ DNA structure. The vegetables should be properly cooked to ensure there are no raw or uncooked portions that could be difficult to digest and possibly lead to infections.
    Whole fruits: Citrus fruits like oranges, tangerines, and grapefruits are rich in vitamin C, which supports the immune system. These fruits also act as antioxidants to protect the cells and aid in the wound healing process. Non-citrus fruits like mangos, cantaloupes, and strawberries contain vitamin A and B6, which help in improving organ function, support the body’s metabolism, aid in the formation of red blood cells, and generate energy for the body to work.
    Whole grains: This would include foods like oats, quinoa, brown rice, buckwheat, whole grain pasta or bread, other millets, grains, and lentils. Whole grains are rich in fiber that supports bowel movement and digestion. They also help stabilize blood sugar in the body and get rid of the toxins in the gastrointestinal tract.
    Seafood and lean meat: Lean beef, oysters, salmon, mackerel, herring, sardines, anchovies, eggs, and organ meats are great sources of protein, vitamin B6, iron, selenium, and zinc. These nutrients are crucial for cancer recovery as they support the immune system and help heal wounds. Selenium, in particular, helps boost thyroid gland function and DNA production in the body. Further, proteins are essential building blocks of the muscles, constantly repairing and building tissues and keeping hormones and enzymes in check for healthy bodily functions.
    Good fats: Foods like nuts, peanut butter, and vegetable oil are great sources of healthy fats and even vitamin E, which acts as an antioxidant and helps protect against cell damage. It is also responsible for preventing blood clots by widening the blood vessels. The vitamin also strengthens the immune system, aiding in cancer recovery.

    Adopting a better lifestyle
    Certain practices can be incorporated into one’s daily routine to deal with chronic myeloid leukemia symptoms. A couple of simple measures are:

    Maintain hygiene: People affected by the disease should practice caution and be consistent when it comes to hygiene and sanitation practices. Cancer patients have to be extra careful about germs, eating raw, uncooked food, and exposure to dirty objects in public places. Maintaining an infection-free environment is crucial as the immune system is already weak when affected by cancer. So any infection can further compromise one’s immunity.
    Exercise regularly: Regular exercise can help the body build up stamina and strength to deal with the rigorous treatment. Exercising can help with emotional well-being while also increasing one’s energy levels and overall immunity.

    Choosing the right treatment plan
    Doctors can help you determine the right course of treatment based on the kind of cancer and severity of this illness. Some of the common options are:

    Targeted therapy: In this treatment, specific cancer cells, proteins, and genes are identified that contribute to the growth of the disease. Then products like TASIGNA® and GLEEVEC® are used to target abnormal cells and block them. For chronic myeloid leukemia, treatment would involve the use of kinase inhibitors. The two common prescription treatments used are:
    1. TASIGNA®: This is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor that helps control chronic myeloid leukemia symptoms. The ingredients work by binding themselves to the proteins that are responsible for triggering the cancer growth and blocking signals from these proteins. This can slow or stop the growth of cancer cells.
    2. GLEEVEC®: This is also a kinase inhibitor that prevents cancer cells from spreading throughout the body. According to research, this is a breakthrough treatment option that targets the disease at both the cellular and subcellular level.
    Chemotherapy: This treatment option uses prescription options that either destroy the fast-growing cancer cells or stop them from spreading to the rest of the body. The treatment options can be taken orally or through veins or muscles so that the inhibitors in the bloodstream can then reach the cancer cells.
    Stem cell transplant: High doses of chemotherapy can kill healthy cells, and a stem cell transplant can restore these cells. The stem cells, which are immature blood cells, are removed from the patient or a donor’s blood or bone marrow and are frozen and stored. After the chemotherapy is administered, these blood-forming stem cells are thawed and transferred to the bloodstream of the patient through an infusion.
    Donor lymphocyte infusion: This procedure is conducted after a stem cell transplant. Lymphocytes are a type of white blood cells that are obtained by a blood donor and infused into the patient’s bloodstream. These white blood cells then attack the cancer cells in the patient’s body.

  • Ways to Lose Weight Quickly and Safely Ways to Lose Weight Quickly and Safely

    There are so many diet plans, medications, and exercises that promise fast weight loss. However, very few of them are able to produce the results that might be helpful for you. They also lack scientific evidence of being effective in faster weight loss. Nonetheless, there are some strategies that are backed by scientific evidence that could help you to lose weight faster. Let’s discuss some of the effective ways in which you can lose weight very quickly.

    Start doing cardio
    Weight loss is all about 80% of the diet and 20% of exercise. This means your diet will have an impact on 4/5 of the weight and your exercise regime will have 1/5 impact on your weight loss. That is why if you are wondering how to reduce weight quickly then the first thing you need to do is to keep a track on what you are eating and what sort of exercise you are doing. There is a great chance that you don’t even exercise daily and that is why you have accumulated extra weight. Try to start your exercise regime with some cardio exercises such as running or cycling as that will increase your heartbeats. This will help you to increase your metabolism which is essential for weight loss.

    Keep track of what you are eating
    As your diet plays a bigger role in your weight loss, you need to check what you are eating. If you want to know how to reduce weight quickly, then the first thing you need to eliminate from your diet is sugar. It is something you just cannot afford to have. At first, it is going to be really tough for you if you have a sweet tooth. However, if you can somehow manage to avoid sugar for 40 days then on the 41st day, you will not have any craving for sugar. Also, the second thing you have to avoid in your diet is excessive carbohydrates. Carbs give you instant energy. You may not notice, but you and each and every human being on this earth craves for carbs because it gives instant energy. You cannot afford to have excess carbs while on a weight loss journey because it will keep increasing your weight no matter how hard you try.

    Try intermittent fasting
    Intermittent fasting could be one solution for your question of how to reduce weight quickly. It involves short-term fasting and eating within a shorter span of time. Many studies conducted on intermittent fasting have shown that you can reduce a considerable amount of weight if you do this for 24 weeks. Here are some of the more common intermittent fasting methods:

    • Alternate Day Fasting or ADF: In this method, you could eat on alternate days normally and fast on the next day. Also, there is a modified version of ADF where on fasting days, you have to eat 25% to 30% of the calories you consume on normal eating days.
    • 5:2 Diet: You need to fast for two days a week and eat on the rest five days. On the day of fasting, consume 500 to 600 calories.
    • 16/8 Method: In this method, you have to create a fasting window and an eating window in the whole 24 hours in which you will fast for 16 hours and eat for 8 hours.

    It is highly recommended that when you are doing intermittent fasting, you should be eating in a healthy pattern in order to avoid overeating on non-fasting days.

    Eat proteins for breakfast
    Proteins have the ability to make you feel full even if you have eaten a small portion of food. This happens because proteins decrease the hunger hormone which is known as ghrelin and increase the satiety hormone called peptide YY, cholecystokinin, and GLP-1. Several studies conducted on eating proteins for breakfasts have shown that the hormonal effect of consuming high-proteins in breakfast could make you feel full for several hours. Thus, if you want to know how to reduce weight quickly, include the following protein sources in your breakfast:

    • Eggs
    • Oats
    • Nuts
    • Seed butter
    • Porridge
    • Sardines
    • Chia seed pudding
    • Quinoa

    Eat a good amount of fiber
    When you include plenty of fiber in your diet, you will feel full for a longer period of time. So, if you are looking to find out how to reduce weight quickly then you can include the following foods that are rich in fiber:

    • Whole-grain breakfast cereals, bread, oats, rye, barley
    • Vegetable and fruits
    • Beans, peas, and pulses
    • Seeds and nuts

    Finally, these are some of the measures you should take in order to lose weight quickly. Apart from these, you can look to keep your stress level down as it will help you to increase your metabolism which is essential for weight loss.

  • Effective treatment and preventive options for dry eyes Effective treatment and preventive options for dry eyes

    If your eyes feel gritty like they have sand stuck inside them, appear red, burn, and/or sting, then you could have dry eyes. Dry eyes occur when the tiny glands within and around the eyelids don’t produce enough tears to keep the eyes healthy and your vision clear. Healthy tears, which are produced by eyes, keep the surface of the eye hydrated, comfortable, and smooth, washing away debris and dust and protecting them from infection.

    However, factors such as age, medications, and certain diseases tend to result in the eyes producing fewer tears. A person can experience dry eyes when the eyes do not produce the right kind of tears for clearing out dust/debris particles or keeping the surface well-lubricated. While there are cases wherein the doctor might have to treat underlying diseases or issues for helping your eyes produce tears, there are also some natural home remedies for dry eyes that one can follow to find relief.

    • Warm compresses

    Tears are made of mucus, water, and oil, all of which the eyes require for staying healthy and moist. Flaky, inflamed eyelids could end up clogging the oil-producing glands along the eyelid’s edge, resulting in dry eyes. To help loosen the clogged oils and ease the irritation, take a clean washcloth, wet it with warm water and wring it before placing it over your closed eyes for a minute. After that, gently press the eyelid’s edge with your finger for squeezing out the clogged oils. The heat and the moisture helps loosen up the glands that are clogged with oils. Warm compresses done every day also help lessen inflammation, long after your eyes feel better.

    • Wash crusty lashes

    Crusty lashes need to be cleaned. Cleaning out the eyelids and the surrounding hair and skin helps get rid of any eyelid inflammation. For helping the process along, take a bit of mild soap or baby shampoo on your fingertips and gently massage them on your closed eyes near the base of the eyelashes.

    • Blink more

    If you have a job where you have to sit and stare at a computer, then that tends to curb the number of times that you blink every minute. So, you need to blink often when you are in front of the computer. Try and follow the 20/20 rule – close your eyes for 20 seconds every 20 minutes. Another simple trick for keeping your eyes moist when you use a computer is to set the screen below the eye level. This will allow you to see the screen more naturally without having to widen your eyes, helping the tear evaporation between blinks to slow down.

    • Eat naturally oily fish

    Fish such as mackerel, trout, sardines, tuna, and salmon contain omega-3 fatty acids. According to research, the healthy fat content in fish help the glands that produce oil in the eyes work better, which helps ease irritation. Other food items naturally rich in omega-3 fats include flaxseed, vegetable oils such as soybean oil and canola oil, and walnuts. You can also take omega-3 fatty acids in the form of supplements. Make sure you consult your doctor before taking any supplements.

    Apart from the above, staying hydrated, using filters and humidifiers, and wearing wraparound sunglasses are some options to prevent dry eyes.

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  • Effective Home Remedies for Nasal Congestion Effective Home Remedies for Nasal Congestion

    The irritation and frustration that comes with nasal congestion or a stuffy nose can be really daunting. The trouble in breathing accompanied by a headache can definitely stall your daily activities even when it is not a serious disease. Nasal congestion is caused when there is an excessive build-up of mucus in the nose. This causes an inflammation within the nostrils which could be a side effect of an allergy or flu.

    The good news is that nasal congestion can be treated with home remedies as well. If you happen to suffer from nasal congestions frequently then this article will help you to benefit from the home remedies that you can try to get rid of stuffy nose. Here are the top effective home remedies that can help you with nasal congestion reliefs.

    • Warm compress: A warm compress has been known as the best home remedy for a stuffy nose. It helps in opening up the nasal passage and helps tremendously with a stuffy nose. All that you have to do is soak a towel in warm water and then squeeze out the excess water. Place this towel on your nose and forehead. You can repeat this several times a day for best results. The warm towel helps in soothing the inflammation and is one of the best nasal congestion remedies.
    • Stay hydrated: When dealing with a stuffy nose, drinking plenty of water will help in easing the condition. Staying hydrated helps in thinning the mucus-clogged in the nasal passage and it also decreases the pressure on sinuses. Also, you should make sure that you are drinking warm water, soups or tea to help you with the nasal congestion. This can help with nasal congestion reliefs.
    • Steam: This is one of the most effective nasal congestion remedies. Inhaling steam helps a lot in treating the sinuses. You can use a steamer and fill it with hot water. You can put your head around the nozzle and place the towel around your head to inhale the steam. You must ensure that the steam generated does not escape. Moreover, you can choose what kind of steam you wish to inhale. You can infuse the stem of antiseptic herbs in the water or can also put carom seed with water. Repeating this for two to three times a day will be really helpful.
    • Inhale the aroma of essential oils: Inhaling the aroma of essential oils helps with severe nasal congestion relief. You can make a mixture of eucalyptus oil along with warm water and inhale the aroma for over 20 minutes. The same can be replaced with peppermint oil instead of eucalyptus oil. This is extremely effective when dealing with a stuffy nose.
    • Garlic: You can make a garlic soup by crushing two to three garlic cloves in boiling water. Alternatively, you can also have an entire garlic clove as it is. It is advised to use two garlic cloves twice a day to get relief from a stuffy nose.
    • Onion: Onion is filled with a lot of mineral and vitamins. It has a lot of health benefit properties and can be really helpful in dealing with a stuffy nose. The simple act of smelling a peeled onion for about 5 minutes can facilitate breathing and provide nasal congestion reliefs.
    • Apple cider vinegar: Apple cider vinegar literally has a lot of health benefits and is also a great home remedy for nasal congestion. All that you have to do is to mix 2 tablespoons of cider vinegar along with a cup of warm water. You can also add some honey to this solution and consume this mixture for about thrice a day. This will help you with nasal congestion tremendously. It is one of the most effective home remedies to get rid of a stuffy nose.
    • Lemon: A great way of getting rid of the nasty nasal congestion is by using lemon. You can mix two tablespoons of lemon juice along with half a teaspoon of black pepper powder. Add a pinch of salt to this mixture and apply it on your nose. Simply leave it on for a while and see it work wonders for you.
    • Basil: Basil has a lot of medicinal properties. A handful of this herb can be very helpful in providing nasal congestion reliefs. Collect some fresh basil leaves and chew about four to five of them in the morning before you have your breakfast. You can also infuse them with your morning tea for better results.

    Thus, with the above-mentioned remedies, you can very well get rid of a stuffy nose. The remedies mentioned above are very easy to administer and are perfect for nasal congestion reliefs. You can choose to practice one or many of the home remedies mentioned above as per your convenience.

  • Gastric cancer – Signs, causes, and management options Gastric cancer – Signs, causes, and management options

    Gastric cancer is also called stomach cancer. It starts when the cells in a person’s stomach grow faster than usual. This abnormally fast cell growth usually begins in the gastroesophageal junction or the area between the stomach and esophagus. As the ailment progresses, the abnormal cell growth starts in the stomach’s deeper layers. To avoid this, one must treat the cancer quite early. Patients should also understand the various causes and symptoms of gastric cancer.

    Common causes
    It is not yet known what exactly causes gastric cancer. However, it has been observed that the disease is set off when the stomach lining gets injured or damaged. This can happen when someone has a prolonged infection, eats salty foods, or develops acid reflux frequently. However, not everyone who has these risk factors will have stomach cancer.

    When the stomach’s lining is injured or damaged, it may change the DNA of the cells. This change can lead the cells to multiply, grow at an abnormal rate, and destroy a person’s healthy cells and body tissue. The extra cells in the stomach combine to form a tumor as time passes.

    Common symptoms
    In the early stages, gastric cancer does not cause any visible symptoms. In most cases, one may experience a constant pain in the upper part of the stomach. Sometimes, frequent indigestion may also occur. Patients may notice these signs more clearly as the cancer progresses to the advanced stages. Then, one may start developing some of these common symptoms of gastric cancer:

    • Difficulty in swallowing
    • Abdomen pain
    • Experiencing bloating after meals
    • Feeling full with just small portions of food
    • Not feeling hungry
    • Frequent heartburn
    • Frequent indigestion
    • Nausea
    • Vomiting
    • Fatigue and tiredness
    • Dark appearance of stools

    When gastric cancer enters the advanced stages, it may start spreading to other areas of the body. This is known as metastatic gastric cancer. In these cases, the symptoms are often specific to the region where the cancer has spread. For example, one may feel lumps under the skin if the cancerous cells have spread to the lymph nodes. Or, a person may experience yellowing in the eyes and skin if the cancer has spread to the liver.

    Management options for gastric cancer
    Most of the time, experts choose a treatment for gastric cancer based on its stage. Doctors also consider the person’s health and preferences while deciding which treatment will work best for them. Generally, a care team of several specialists and experts, such as primary care doctors, oncologists, and gastroenterologists, are involved in the process. They work toward developing a treatment plan that will be most effective. A treatment plan usually combines two or more of these processes: surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and immunotherapy.

Find a doctor

Find a doctor

  • Cancer Research Institute National Cancer Research Fund & Midwes
    Serving Your AreaColumbusOH
    (180) 022 - 3787
  • OhioHealth Physician Group Breast and Cancer Surgery
    5141 West Broad Street Suite 180ColumbusOH
    (161) 456 - 6077
  • Ohio Cancer Research Associates
    50 W Broad St Ste 1132ColumbusOH
    (180) 023 - 2627