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What is Breast Cancer?

admin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 15:26:37 +0000

Breast cancer starts much the same as other cancers: a cell begins to grow and divide without normal controls, forming a mass of tissue called tumor. Most of the time, tumors are benign , and the non-life threatening cells do not spread. But when the tumor is malignant, it can spread to other parts of the body, and can be life threatening. When that malignancy starts within the breast, it is called breast cancer.

Though it primarily strikes women, breast cancer knows no boundaries as far as age, race, gender, or socio-economic status. It is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among women worldwide.

Causes of Breast Cancer

“We don’t know exactly what causes breast cancer,” says Susan Brown, MS, RN, director of health education for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. “But the many risk factors unique to women, such as estrogen levels and reproductive factors, may explain why it is so prevalent among women.”

Types of Breast Cancers

There are 2 primary types of breast cancers: invasive and ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). Invasive breast cancer develops when cancerous cells leave the milk duct, invade breast tissue and have the ability to spread to other parts of the body. This form of the disease is far more common than DCIS, and more difficult to treat.

Considered the earliest stage of breast cancer, and pre-invasive, DCIS occurs when abnormal cells grow in and are confined to the milk ducts. More than 62,000 women will be diagnosed with DCIS in 2009, over and above the 192,000 who will be diagnosed with invasive breast cancer. Brown says, “A women diagnosed with DCIS has the best prognosis possible today.”

Though there is no explanation for why cancer cells develop, we do know that abnormal genes play a role. Some gene mutations, such as the BRCA1 and BRCA2, are inherited, but most mutations are spontaneous and occur during your lifetime.

Because of the questions about causation and the lack of a cure, Brown says your best defense against breast cancer is an educated offense that includes a regular screening regimen, knowledge of your personal risk and lifestyle choices that reduce that risk.

Source: Breast Cancer, USA Today Supplement, Oct. 2009, p. 5

Breast Cancer and Health Reform

admin — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 18:09:27 +0000

According to the National Breast Cancer Coalition (NBCC), all of the debate about health care reform boils down to one key issue for breast cancer patients: affordable, quality health care for all. “Women should not have to worry about cancer and about how to pay for their life-saving treatment,” says Fran Visno, NBCC president.

While “affordable, quality care for all” is a visionary goal, Visco says NBCC is advocating for several specific points to be addressed in reform:

Removal of pre-existing conditions so that women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer will be able to purchase insurance at a reasonable price.

A move toward an evidence-based health care system so women can receive the care they need when they need it, and don’t get unnecessary or harmful care.

Shared responsibility so everyone contributes according to his or her ability to pay and everyone has affordable health care.

Equal access to quality care has long been an issue for NBCC as well as numerous other breast cancer advocacy organizations. In June, Visco testified before the House Education and Labor Committee on a draft proposal for health care reform, and took the opportunity to explain why NBCC is so committed to change.

She said, “Our long standing commitment to health care reform is driven by the experiences and stories of the millions of women who have not only received the devastating diagnosis of breast cancer but have also had to suffer the injustices of our current health insurance system.”

It remains to be seen whether current advocacy efforts will make a difference, but Visco says NBCC is redoubling its efforts and is hopeful that results are on the horizon. “Health care reform can happen this year.”

Source: Breast Cancer, USA Today Supplement, Oct. 2009, p. 5

Breast Cancer: The Fight Continues

admin — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:47:30 +0000

By: Ambassador Nancy Brinker
MediaPlanet

As the 25th National Breast Cancer Awareness Month enter its final week, I’m reminded of how much has changed for the better in the fight against this disease, and humbled by how much is still left to do.

The good news first: breast cancer mortality is dipping slightly and some forms of breast cancer have extraordinary survival rates – 98% five-year survival rates for cancers that haven’t spread from the breast, compared with 74% when I founded Susan G. Komen for the Cure and launched the global breast cancer movement in 1982.

In just one generation, leading scientists funded by Susan G. Komen for the Cure have learned that breast cancer takes many forms. They’ve developed more treatment options, and we’ve gained extraordinary insights into how cancer cells develop and spread.

Screening and widespread education programs in our communities, supported by Komen’s local Affiliates, have given more information, and thus more control, over their health.

Importantly, there are far more resources and support. When my sister, Susan G. Komen, was diagnosed in the late 1970s, there were no 1-800 numbers, no internet, and a stigma around breast cancer that left women feeling very much alone. Today, the internet and a multitude of support programs provide women with access to others and unlimited information.

Still, breast cancer remains the second leading cause of cancer death in American women. Some 200,000 people will be diagnosed with breast cancer this year; 40,000 will die just in the United States. Ten times that number will die around the world. Treatments are still elusive for aggressive forms of the disease, and we have any number of theories, but no definitive answers, on how breast cancer can be avoided in the first place. Today, too many Americans cannot access cancer care without also facing financial ruin, a situation we are addressing in our advocacy programs.

We also face arising wave of cancer deaths in countries where is not a priority. As Goodwill Ambassador for Cancer Control at the U.N.’s World Health Organization, and with information gleaned firsthand from Komen’s relationship in 50 countries, I am calling on global health ministers to include cancer screenings in existing communicable disease programs. I’ve sat with women in these countries, dying of cancers diagnosed too late to save them, who might have recovered if information and medical help were available sooner.

I promised my sister that I would do everything I could to end breast cancer forever. We’re not there yet. So while we seek the answers, I urge women – and men – to get educated about breast health. This USA Today supplement is an excellent place to start, and we have a wealth of information on www.komen.org. Please visit us.

Source: Breast Cancer, USA Today Supplement, Oct. 2009, p.2

Ritalin Effects on ADHD Child

admin — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 16:23:10 +0000

Last week I’ve posted 2 articles from US News about Ritalin’s effects on adhd child. You can find the exerpts in Related Articles section below, in case you landed first here on this web page as you are searching about Ritalin’s effects.

Ritalin Effects on ADHD Child: Warning to Parents

I have gotten this Ritalin effects information from the book: Prescription for Nutritional Healing p. 232, by Phyllis A. Balch, CNC.

The prescription medication methylphenidate (Ritalin) has become the most commonly prescribed medication to ease hyperactivity. Researchers are discovering, however, that this medication has many potentially serious, long-term side effects including:

decreased appetite,
weight loss,
insomnia,
slowed growth,
increased heart rate,
increased blood pressure,
a period of increased irritability and intolerance at the onset of use,
and the possibility of developing of Parkinson’s disease.

Adverse reports have been released in recent years warning parents of the possible side effects of Ritalin — with some reports even comparing it to cocaine.

Other ADHD Medications: Various Side Effects Reported

Other prescription medications often prescribed include:

detroamphetamine (Dexadrine, a stimulant that produces calming effects equivalent to Ritalin),
pemoline (Cylert, a stimulant that has been restricted by the FDA to use as a secondary medication because it can cause liver failure),
metamphetamine (Desoxyn),
amphetamine-detroamphetamine combination (Adderall),
and tricyclic antidepressants (if depression is suspected).
For periods of extreme anger and aggression, a tranquilizer called thiordazine (Mellaril) may be prescribed, but it should be used only as a last resort.

Various side effects, some of them serious, have been reported with all of these medications.

Other ADD/ADHD Medications and Ritalin Effects on ADHD Child: Masking the Symptoms

Due to the many potentially harmful side effects of the medications available for ADD/ADHD sufferers, a growing number of parents and health professionals are turning to all or a combination of the following as a way to reduce, and even possibly eliminate the symptoms of ADD/ADHD:

alteration of diet,
vitamin and mineral supplementation,
herbal remedies,
counseling,
and the love and support of family, teachers, and friends.

Many believe that medicating the problem is merely masking the symptoms without getting to the root of the problem.

Minimizing ADHD Medication and Ritalin Effects on ADHD Child

Health Tip: Taking ADHD Medications

(HealthDay News) — Medications prescribed to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may effectively manage symptoms, but they can also cause a number of side effects.

The American Academy of Family Physicians offers these suggestions to minimize side effects caused by ADHD drugs:

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Take only the minimal dose necessary to control your symptoms. Speak with your doctor about determining the right dose for you.
If you have stomach upset, take your ADHD meds with food.
As long as your doctor says it’s OK, consider the weekend “drug-free days” when you can skip your medication.
If ADHD meds cause undesired weight loss, add healthy snacks to the day’s menu.¹

¹Health Tip: Taking ADHD Medications – US News and World Report

More Online Information: Ritalin Effects

Few Brain Side Effects In Ritalin Study -CBS News
Ritalin, a drug used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), may not leave long-term side effects on the brain, a new study shows. The Ritalin side effects study, published in The Journal of Neuroscience, was conducted on rats, not people. ADHD is typically diagnosed in children, and Ritalin is one of the most commonly prescribed ADHD drugs, Milner’s team notes.
www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/07/03/health/webmd/main3014389.shtml

Ritalin (methylphenidate) Side Effects and Abuse
Ritalin, the most frequently prescribed stimulant drug for Attention Deficit Disorder, has been the focus of much controversy. This controversy includes harmful Ritalin effects, Ritalin abuse (including snorting Ritalin), Ritalin addiction and other Ritalin side effects.

There are few people in the United States who have not heard of Ritalin. It’s the brand name for a drug called methylphenidate and the ADHD drug of choice for physicians treating Attention Deficit Disorder. Every day five million children in America line up for their daily dose of Ritalin.

Since Attention Deficit Disorder hit the mainstream in the 1980s, prescriptions for Ritalin have skyrocketed. So have reports of children snorting Ritalin, Ritalin abuse and harmful Ritalin effects.
http://www.add-adhd-help-center.com/ritalin_side_effects.htm

ADHD and Ritalin & medication
What are the side effects of Ritalin?

As with any drug, there are side effects with the use of Ritalin. Some users will experience little or no side effects, while others may have to discontinue its use due to them. Some of the more common side effects include insomnia, decrease in appetite, headaches, stomach aches, and irritability. Whenever a child begins using Ritalin, close observations need to be made. Many doctors recommend that the child start the dosage on the weekend so that parents can see how the medication will affect the child.
http://www.essortment.com/all/adhdritalinmed_rfzt.htm

Searches related to: Retalin Effects and ADHD Child

ADHD Medication: Can Your Child Go Without?

admin — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:39:56 +0000

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) can be a distressing diagnosis, but families have more treatment options than they might realize. Although Ritalin and other stimulant drugs are the most common prescription, ADHD treatments that don’t involve medication have a proven track record. And here’s a surprise: One of the most beneficial options treats the parents, not the child. For children, skills training programs and ADHD summer camps can help teach techniques to overcome everyday problems that often make life miserable, such as remembering to bring assignments home from school or to listen without interrupting.

How training parents helps the child. Parent skills training has been used for years to improve the behavior of children, and multiple clinical trials have validated its effectiveness. Those same programs improve the behavior of kids with ADHD. Although it may seem odd to be changing parents’ behavior to treat what’s considered a medical condition in children, research has found that for children with ADHD, having parents who use effective parenting techniques is one of the best predictors of success in adulthood. These programs teach parents to make clear, specific requests of children, for instance, and to use praise and rewards for good behavior far more often than punishment.

In fact, parent training for ADHD is considered so mainstream that last fall the British government mandated parent training as the first choice for treatment in many cases. “For milder cases, we recommend starting with behavioral therapy,” says Eric Taylor, a professor of psychiatry at King’s College Hospital and an ADHD authority who helped write the new standards for the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence. In England, parents of children with ADHD are offered free government-funded classes where they learn to set clear limits for the child, be consistent in enforcing those limits, and reward good behavior.

In a perfect world, all children with ADHD would get coordinated, “multimodal” treatment, which would include parent training; a tailored program at school; education about ADHD for kids, parents, and teachers; and medication if necessary. But all too often, kids get just the pills. Most children are treated by pediatricians, who may not be aware of the data on the benefits of behavioral treatments such as parent training, despite the fact that the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends both behavioral interventions and medication. The various professional societies favor their own strengths, not surprisingly, with the psychologists endorsing behavioral therapy and the psychiatrists big on medication as the first line of treatment. “The behavioral treatment had no side effects,” says William Pelham, a research psychologist who directs the Center for Children and Families at the University at Buffalo-SUNY and who was a pioneer in the use of parent training as a behavioral intervention for ADHD. Side effects of medication include insomnia, loss of appetite, and stunted growth. That, he says, is reason enough to follow the British model.

Read full article here: ADHD Medication: Can Your Child Go Without? – US News and World Report

Ritalin Effects, ADHD Medication and Sudden Death: How to Avoid the Risk

admin — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:19:53 +0000

Nancy Shute, USNews — Are Ritalin and other stimulant drugs too risky for children? That’s the question raised by new research that found a higher risk of sudden death in children taking stimulants for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. I wrote about that study yesterday, but it’s worth an update because the issue continues to be so confusing and controversial. And Madelyn Gould, the author of the study in the American Journal of Psychiatry, gave me practical advice for parents of the 2.5 million children who take stimulants for ADHD. Her recommendation: Stay the course, but make sure your children’s doctor is taking all the recommended steps to screen for the heart problems associated with sudden death.

The Food and Drug Administration asked Gould, a professor of clinical epidemiology in psychiatry at Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute in New York City, to investigate the safety of ADHD drugs after a handful of deaths were reported in children, starting in the 1990s. It would be the first rigorous attempt to figure out whether there’s a real risk. Gould examined death records of 1,128 children from 1985 through 1996. She found that children taking stimulants were seven times more likely to die than children who were not taking the drugs.

There are methodological limitations to her study, including the fact that parents reported their children’s medication use after the children had died, and therefore might not remember correctly whether the kids were taking stimulants. Nevertheless, Gould thinks the stimulant-associated risk she found is real, rather than a statistical fluke. Still, she says, the fact that the risk is real doesn’t mean children should stop using stimulants that have been prescribed to them.

“We don’t want to make parents so scared that they would take their children off ADHD medications,” Gould told me. “Perhaps physicians will consider more seriously the idea of monitoring for heart problems or check for drastic blood pressure changes. The very last thing we would want is for a parent to take a child off medication that is working for them.”

Instead, Gould says, her findings underscore the value of the current clinical recommendations for reducing risk of death with ADHD drugs: Children should be carefully screened for heart problems before taking stimulant medications and monitored while taking them. “Parents should take comfort in good clinical practice and not be reluctant to put their kids on medication,” Gould says. In other words: Doctors need to do their jobs.

The FDA and the American Academy of Pediatrics say that doctors should screen children for heart problems before they’re prescribed stimulants for ADHD. Screening should include:

Taking a medical history for cardiovascular disease in the child and his or her family.
Performing a physical exam with special focus on the cardiovascular system (including examination for signs of Marfan syndrome, a hereditary disorder that increases the risk of heart problems).
Considering further tests, such as a screening electrocardiogram and echocardiogram if the history or examination suggests underlying risk for or the presence of heart disease.

What’s next? A new study on the risks of ADHD drugs in children is underway, and information from that should be available next year. It’s funded by the FDA and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. But because of its design and limited size, it might not be able to pick up on stimulant-related deaths. The bottom line is that all drugs carry some risk. The hope is that the work of Gould and other researchers will make it easier to weigh the risks posed by these drugs against the benefits and help parents decide when medication is worth using for their child. ¹

Ritalin Effects on ADHD Child: Is Ritalin Too Risky for Children With ADHD?

admin — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 21:47:07 +0000

Just a few years ago my husband’s relatives were discussing about the behaviors of an “adhd child“. Then my husband’s aunt, who is a teacher, heard the conversation and she yelled: “Don’t give your ADHD child a Ritalin.” I believe she is right. You can read the latest news below. . .

Just when parents thought they could spend a week or two not worrying about the health effects of Ritalin, Adderall, and other drugs used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, another study comes along to raise the question once again: Are the medications used to treat ADHD safe enough for kids? Again, the answer is: Probably.

The latest worry spike comes from a report that assessed the risk in children who died suddenly between 1985 and 1996. Researchers led by Madelyn Gould, a professor of clinical epidemiology and psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center, found that 10 of 564 children who died suddenly had been taking stimulant drugs, compared with 2 of 564 who died in car accidents. That would make you think that children taking stimulants are much more likely to suffer a sudden death. And that would square with ongoing concerns that stimulant drugs raise the risk of heart problems in children, which culminated in an April 2008 recommendation from the American Heart Association that all children be screened for heart problems with an EKG before being prescribed stimulants for ADHD.

The AHA backed off its call for universal EKGs for kids taking ADHD medications after the pediatricians howled in May 2008, saying that there’s no evidence that universal EKG screening would prevent any deaths. But parents are left wondering what they can do to reduce the risk of heart problems in kids taking ADHD drugs.

This latest study doesn’t offer much clarification, alas. Here’s why. The study looked at the history of 1,128 children, half of whom died suddenly of natural causes and half of whom died in car accidents. Of the children who died suddenly, 10 were reported to be taking a stimulant at the time of death, compared with just two of the children in the group who died in vehicle accidents. But very few children in either group were on stimulant drugs, making it more likely that the results could be in error. And parents were asked after the fact if their child had been taking stimulants, so there could be problems with correct recall. The Food and Drug Administration issued a communication saying that parents shouldn’t take children off stimulant medications as a result of the new study, which is published in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

“There’s no reason to be alarmed on the basis of a single report,” says Russell Barkley, clinical professor of psychiatry at the Medical College of Wisconsin and a research professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, N.Y. “These drugs are among the safest used in child psychiatry and pediatrics. But there are children in the population that are susceptible to rare side effects.” Still, your pediatrician should give your child a full physical and take a family history before prescribing ADHD medication to screen for hidden heart problems that could be made worse by stimulant medications, according to the May 2008 recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics. And if he or she doesn’t raise the issue, ask your pediatrician about stimulants and heart risk.¹

Acupuncture May Relieve Heartburn In Pregnancy

admin — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 16:49:43 +0000

By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter

HealthDayNews — Acupuncture relieves the indigestion and heartburn that bother many women as their pregnancy progresses, a new Brazilian study shows.

Indigestion is common during pregnancy, with up to 80 percent of moms-to-be suffering heartburn, stomach pain or discomfort, reflux, belching and bloating. Symptoms tend to worsen over time, and women who avoid taking medicine for fear of harming the developing fetus might welcome an alternative treatment.

“Although small, this study suggests that acupuncture can relieve symptoms of indigestion that are pretty common in pregnancy and may provoke loss of quality of life in the final days, disturbing not only eating but also sleeping,” said lead researcher Dr. Joao Bosco Guerreiro da Silva, from the department of internal medicine at Rio Preto Medical College.

For the study, the researchers randomly assigned 42 pregnant women with indigestion to dietary counseling plus antacids or to dietary counseling and antacids plus acupuncture once or twice a week. The researchers assessed the women’s symptoms at the beginning of the study and every two weeks after that for eight weeks.

Heartburn, the main symptom, was reduced by half in 75 percent of the women treated with acupuncture. Women receiving acupuncture also ate and slept better, he said.

The report is published in the June issue of Acupuncture in Medicine.

The 20 women who underwent acupuncture and completed the study reported having milder symptoms and took less medication than the 16 women getting conventional therapy, the researchers found.

Fewer than half the women receiving traditional treatment said their heartburn was halved.

Among the 14 women who took antacids, seven in each group, those receiving acupuncture took 6.3 fewer doses, while those receiving conventional treatment upped the amount of medication they took by 4.4 doses, the researchers found.

In addition, 15 women in the acupuncture group said that their eating habits improved by 50 percent, compared with fewer than one in three in the other group. Fourteen women receiving acupuncture said their sleep had improved by 50 percent, compared with just one in four women treated conventionally.

“Dyspepsia in pregnancy is a very common problem,” Guerreiro da Silva said. “Medication is always a concern. Acupuncture can be effective. It is safe and simple to apply and every pregnant woman can be treated.”

Not all experts agreed, however.

Dr. Richard Frieder, an obstetrician-gynecologist at Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center and clinical instructor of obstetrics and gynecology at the David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, doesn’t think that acupuncture works any better than conventional treatment.

“This is an interesting idea but far from proves any benefit, as the control group did not have any type of placebo treatment, such as fake acupuncture to make the control and test group comparable,” Frieder said.

Indigestion and heartburn are common in pregnancy and usually successfully treated with diet, sleep positioning and medication with no known harmful effects, Frieder noted.

“Acupuncture might be a nice alternative for women who are inclined to this option, but it is doubtfully more effective than standard treatment if the study had been done in an apples-to-apples comparison,” he said.

Another expert thinks that acupuncture does relieve indigestion, but he won’t perform it on pregnant women because of litigation concerns.

“It is a well-done study and it is expected that there would be positive results,” said Dr. Marshall H. Sager, past president of the American Society of Medical Acupuncture and an acupuncturist in Bala Cynwyd, Pa.

However, he worries that he would be sued if something went wrong with the pregnancy. “I wouldn’t touch a pregnant lady with acupuncture because of the malpractice situation. Not that it’s not effective, but that’s my problem with the medical/legal aspects of it,” he said.

For more information on acupuncture, visit the U.S. National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

Source: http://health.usnews.com/articles/health/healthday/2009/06/09/acupuncture-may-relieve-heartburn-in-pregnancy.html

Doctors eager to try ‘mystical mumbo jumbo’

admin — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 05:42:17 +0000

Associated Press

BALTIMORE – At one of the nation’s top trauma hospitals, a nurse circles a patient’s bed, humming and waving her arms as if shooing evil spirits. Another woman rubs a quartz bowl with a wand, making tunes that mix with the beeping monitors and hissing respirator keeping the man alive.

They are doing Reiki therapy, which claims to heal through invisible energy fields. The anesthesia chief, Dr. Richard Dutton, calls it “mystical mumbo jumbo.” Still, he’s a fan.

“It’s self-hypnosis” that can help patients relax, he said. “If you tell yourself you have less pain, you actually do have less pain.”

Alternative medicine has become mainstream. It is finding wider acceptance by doctors, insurers and hospitals like the shock trauma center at the University of Maryland Medical Center.

People turn to unconventional therapies and herbal remedies for everything from hot flashes and trouble sleeping to cancer and heart disease. They crave more “care” in their health care. They distrust drug companies and the government. They want natural, safer remedies.

But often, that is not what they get. Government actions and powerful interest groups have left consumers vulnerable to flawed products and misleading marketing.

Dietary supplements do not have to be proved safe or effective before they can be sold. Some contain natural things you might not want, such as lead and arsenic. Some interfere with other things you may be taking, such as birth control pills.

“Herbals are medicines,” with good and bad effects, said Bruce Silverglade of the consumer group Center for Science in the Public Interest.

Contrary to their little-guy image, many of these products are made by big businesses. Ingredients and their countries of origin are a mystery to consumers. They are marketed in ways that manipulate emotions, just like ads for hot cars and cool clothes.

Even therapies that may help certain conditions, such as acupuncture, are being touted for uses beyond their evidence.

An Associated Press review of dozens of studies and interviews with more than 100 sources found an underground medical system operating in plain sight, with a different standard than the rest of medical care, and millions of people using it on blind faith.

How did things get this way?

Fifteen years ago, Congress decided to allow dietary and herbal supplements to be sold without federal Food and Drug Administration approval. The number of products soared, from about 4,000 then to well over 40,000 now.

Potential health threats
Ten years ago, Congress created a new federal agency to study supplements and unconventional therapies. But more than $2.5 billion of tax-financed research has not found any cures or major treatment advances, aside from certain uses for acupuncture and ginger for chemotherapy-related nausea. If anything, evidence has mounted that many of these pills and therapies lack value.

Yet they are finding ever-wider use:

* Big hospitals and clinics increasingly offer alternative therapies. Many just offer stress reducers like meditation, yoga and massage. But some offer treatments with little or no scientific basis, to patients who are emotionally vulnerable and gravely ill.
* Some medical schools are teaching future doctors about alternative medicine, sometimes with federal grants. The goal is to educate them about what patients are using so they can give evidence-based, nonjudgmental care. But some schools have ties to alternative medicine practitioners and advocates.
* Health insurers are cutting deals to let alternative medicine providers market supplements and services directly to members. Some insurers steer patients to Internet sellers of supplements, even though patients must pay for these out of pocket.

A few herbal supplements can directly threaten health. A surprising number do not supply what their labels claim, contain potentially harmful substances like lead, or are laced with hidden versions of prescription drugs.

“In testing, one out of four supplements has a problem,” said Dr. Tod Cooperman, president of ConsumerLab.com, an independent company that rates such products.

Even when the ingredients aren’t risky, spending money for a product with no proven benefit is no small harm.

But sometimes the cost is far greater. Cancer patients can lose their only chance of beating the disease. People with clogged arteries can suffer a heart attack. Children can be harmed by unproven therapies forced on them by parents who distrust conventional medicine.

Mainstream medicine and prescription drugs have problems, too. Popular drugs such as the painkillers Vioxx and Bextra were pulled from the market after serious side effects emerged once they were widely used by consumers. But at least there are regulatory systems, guideline-setting groups and watchdog agencies helping to keep traditional medicine in line.

The safety net for alternative medicine is far flimsier.

More than a third of Americans use unconventional therapies, including acupuncture, homeopathy, chiropractic, and native or traditional healing methods. These practitioners are largely self-policing, with their own schools and accreditation groups.

Read full story here: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31086977/

Race for the Cure Commemorates 20 Years

admin — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 18:33:32 +0000

MSNBC

NBC’s Andrea Mitchell talks with Ambassador Nancy Brinker about the 20th anniversary of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure to fund breast cancer research. Brinker said, “When we started this, remember, it wasn’t even possible to used the words ‘breast cancer’ in the newspaper.”

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy