Breaking The Silence

Being diagnosed with cancer has never been easy for anyone. In fact, the mere mention of the word is enough to make people want to turn their eyes away. What more if you are the one who is left with no choice but to live with it.

The initial revelation would be really shocking. Then, soon after, the enveloping despair sets in. As with the variation in people's personalities, we cannot expect all cancer patients to react in the same way despite having to live with the same dismal reality. Some of them may be vocal about it. Others, however, would just let silence pervade as they try to hide their pain from the rest of the world. But apart from the physical perils of having cancer, the other big risk patients have to consider is the threat of depression.

Silence has its merits. But in the case of cancer patients, choosing to bottle their feelings becomes a serious threat. When emotions run high, keeping it in would only weaken a person even more. Although cancer patients might find it hard to resist the compulsion to keep their hurt to themselves, this is not the best time to be solitary.

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Dealing With Fatigue

Helping ease your loved one's fatigue due to cancer or as a side-effect of his medications and/or chemotherapy and radiation therapy treatments can be done in the comfort of your own home. Aside from following his doctor's indications and monitoring the medications prescribed to him for addressing fatigue, you can also try any of these helpful options:

• Undergoing chemotherapy or radiation therapy necessitates that he gets more rest than usual. This can be easily obtained by just sleeping more, with or without making any change in his typical daily routine. Since he is likely to become more fatigued if undergoing aggressive treatment or upon reaching its end, he may spend more time sleeping.
• Make the needed improvements in his diet to help him become more energized. At best, he should cut back or avoid caffeine, nicotine, or alcohol; all of which would only aggravate his fatigue. Also, make sure that he eats all the needed meals for the day, especially breakfast.
• Try having him break the cycle of fatigue by acquiring a more active lifestyle spent doing moderated, enjoyable activities with friends, and cutting back on screen time—time spent watching TV, playing games, or browsing the net.

Contributed By: Maris Modesto

Breaking It to Your Child Gently

Attending to a child diagnosed with cancer is ranked among the most difficult and heartbreaking challenges parents have to face. As if it isn't enough to deal with your own pain, as the parent, it is also part of your responsibility to manage the impact of your child's condition on the rest of your family. But of the many emotional aspects that need your careful attention and consideration, none could be as delicate and challenging as handling your child's emotional needs, especially at that point when you have to tell him about his condition.

Even though painful, being truthful to your child about his cancer illness is imperative to help him adjust to his condition. Letting him know that he would be needing medical attention due to his illness is his inherent right, which you could not deny from him. Doing so would make him better understand that even if medications and doctors are daunting, they are vital in keeping his health in check. However, despite the need to stay truthful, you must break it to him in a way that neither hides the truth nor exposes it too bluntly as to scathe his innocent mind.

Contributed By: Maris Modesto

Effective Exercise Advice After Cancer Treatment

Maintaining a balanced diet along with regular exercise incorporated into a serious lifestyle change are the common prerequisites ensuring recovery as a cancer survivor. Especially regarding exercise, it plays a vital role in speeding up the process of recovery while helping to maintain our good overall well-being. The many benefits it provides cancer survivors include the following: improved endurance and strength, protection against depression, reduced anxiety, stronger immune system, decreased sleeping problems, less fatigue, and improved mood. To effectively incorporate exercise into our daily routine after cancer treatment, here are some salient pointers to consider:

Instead of enrolling in a specific exercise course, concentrate on making our life more physically active instead. For example, rather than drive to the nearby convenience store, we can just walk.

Don't rush it. Get started slowly and just increase our activities as we get used to it after a period of time. Experts advice adult cancer survivors to have half an hour of exercise at least five times a week.

If we're not up to exercising given a bad mood or any medication side-effect, we shouldn't force ourselves. We can just make up for it by exercising some other time when we're feeling better.

Contributed By: Maris Modesto

Three Habits That Raise Your Cancer Risk

Whether you're doing it consciously or otherwise, these habits would up your cancer risk:

Smoking

With the many negative health effects of smoking, it is understandable why many health advocates advise against it. Aside from lung cancer, more than 11 other kinds of cancers have been attributed to it. Persisting with your smoking habit means subtracting years from your life, depending on how long you decide to stick with it.

Overexposure to the sun

Overexposure to the sun during those times of day when its deadly rays are most potent can deplete your chances of living longer rather than sustain it. So to cut your risk of contracting skin cancer, which results from your exposure to its harmful rays, make sure to practice sun smart prevention tips to keep your skin protected.

Uncontrolled weight

The pressure of all the extra weight you put on your body could deter it from functioning properly. The more overweight you are, the higher chances that your body would eventually incur health malfunctions. Hence, obesity is considered as a harbinger of a host of lethal illnesses including cancers. To keep your risk at a minimum, see to it that your weight is in check always.

Whether you're doing it consciously or otherwise, these habits would up your cancer risk:

Smoking

With the many negative health effects of smoking, it is understandable why many health advocates advise against it. Aside from lung cancer, more than 11 other kinds of cancers have been attributed to it. Persisting with your smoking habit means subtracting years from your life, depending on how long you decide to stick with it.

Overexposure to the sun

Overexposure to the sun during those times of day when its deadly rays are most potent can deplete your chances of living longer rather than sustain it. So to cut your risk of contracting skin cancer, which results from your exposure to its harmful rays, make sure to practice sun smart prevention tips to keep your skin protected.

Uncontrolled weight

The pressure of all the extra weight you put on your body could deter it from functioning properly. The more overweight you are, the higher chances that your body would eventually incur health malfunctions. Hence, obesity is considered as a harbinger of a host of lethal illnesses including cancers. To keep your risk at a minimum, see to it that your weight is in check always.

Contributed By: Maris Modesto

Three Important Cancer Screening Exams for Women

The distinction between the male and female bodies bring with it a set of health risks exclusive to each gender alone. One such risk is that of acquiring cancers. Below are the three important cancer screening tests exclusively for women:

Pelvic Exam

Gynecological health problems require women to have regular pelvic exams. It plays a vital role in detecting sexually transmitted diseases as well as the early indications of gynecological cancers. Usually done with the Pap Smear, the rate in which a woman undergoes pelvic exams depends on her susceptibility and/or the results of her previous examination.

Pap Smear

In detecting cervical cancers, doctors vouch for the effectivity of pap smear exams. Since it isn't considered as a diagnostic procedure, follow up tests are required after or along with it. Usually, it is done with a pelvic exam. Performing this test requires obtaining cells from the woman's cervix, which would then be examined closely under the microscope.

Mammogram

Mammograms are advisable to be taken by women 40 years of age and above on a regular basis. This process is needed to detect if there are any abnormal growth along the breast area, which may be indicative of breast cancer.

Contributed By: Maris Modesto

Stave Off Cancer By Eating Plant-Based Foods

Apart from ditching unhealthy habits like smoking and drinking, taking necessary precautions with the food you eat is vital in assuring that you stay cancer-free. Food serves as the fuel that keeps you literally alive and well. But besides playing an important role in keeping your good overall health, it's also important in determining your chances against illnesses, including fatal ones such as the big”C” (cancer).

When it comes to healthy eating, none is considered better than having a predominantly plant-based diet. Consisting of a large variety of whole grains, vegetables and fruits, plant-based foods possess many health advantages. Low-fat and high in fiber, they're proven to contain the most amounts of cancer-combating nutrients. Combining all these three health-sustaining attributes works to empower your body's immune system, making it more capable of fighting off cancer as well as other diseases.

There are many ways whereby you can prepare and enjoy plant-based foods. However, experts suggest that they are best eaten close to their natural, fresh state. The less processed plant-based foods are, the more nutrients stay intact, the better chances your body would have in absorbing their cancer-fighting benefits.

Contributed By: Maris Modesto