What is Mesothelioma?

I already heard and read about this kind of cancer some months ago. Just the other week, I heard over the news that asbestos were found in a former training area for soldiers somewhere in Amberg in Bavaria, Germany. If I am not mistaken, this training area was occupied before by US Army. Asbestos is a very dangerous substance that can cause Mesothelioma cancer. The people who have been exposed to asbestos dust and fiber might developed this kind of cancer. Most people who develop this kind of cancer have worked on jobs wherein they inhaled asbestos particles. If this happened to you, you better contact the nearest Mesothelioma lawyers to help you with this terminal sickness. For those who are victims of this deadly disease, I hope and pray that a miracle will happen to you to be backed in your normal health. take care everyone and have a great week ahead!

Malaysian medicine cuts chemo resistance

MONTREAL (UPI) -- A Canadian, U.S. and Austrian study has discovered a Malaysian folk medication reduces resistance to cancer chemotherapy treatments.

McGill University researchers said the study focused on a class of natural products known as cyclopenta benzofuran flavaglines, or CBFs. Working with mice genetically modified to mimic human leukemias, they found the CBF compound silvestrol can make tumors susceptible to the killing effects of anticancer drugs.

Silvestrol is a natural compound derived from a large genus of trees and shrubs found in Malaysia, South China and some Pacific islands, the scientists said. It's been used in Malaysian folk medicine for generations, but never as a cancer therapy.

The researchers cautioned trials in humans and possible treatments are still many years away.

The results of the study that included Boston University, the Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, the University of Vienna and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute are published in the June issue of The Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Copyright 2008 by United Press International
arcamax.com

Scientists find 'nervous wreck' gene

Scientists find 'nervous wreck' gene
MADISON, Wis. (UPI) -- U.S. scientists announced the discovery of a gene they call "nervous wreck" that is essential to the proper development of nerve cells in the fruit fly.

The gene governs the size of a synapse -- the junction between nerve cell endings. University of Wisconsin scientists said the gene prevents synapses from overgrowing by damping the effects of a pro-growth signal. Mutations in a human version of the "nervous wreck" gene have been linked to a severe genetic developmental disability

The 100 billion nerve cells in the human make trillions of synaptic connections to neurons, muscle cells and other cell types. Malfunctions at synapses are believed to be among the many factors leading to various neurological disorders.

Kate O'Connor-Giles, a postdoctoral fellow who led the study, said, "We really need to have a deep understanding of how all the factors involved are working together to develop rational treatments for neurological disorders associated with aberrant synaptic growth."

The researchers say their findings might speed the development of treatments for neurological disorders.

The study appears in the journal Neuron.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International
arcamax.com

Change needed in end-of-life dementia care

MILTON KEYNES, England (UPI) -- British researchers say many improvements are needed in the care provided to people in the final stages of dementia.

Open University Professor Jan Draper and Clinical Nurse Specialist Deborah Birch reached that conclusion after reviewing 29 published studies conducted in nine nations during the past 10 years.

"We must act now to stop people with dementia from suffering from protracted, potentially uncomfortable and undignified deaths" said Draper. "Our review has reinforced the importance of providing appropriate palliative care to individuals suffering from end-stage dementia and clearly identified some of the barriers to extending such provision."

The recommendations include: communicating the diagnosis of dementia in a sensitive way; acknowledging the potential influence on treatment decisions on the beliefs and values of members of the healthcare team; and reconsidering aggressive medical treatments that have limited benefits and might cause further discomfort to dying patients.

The review appears in the Journal of Clinical Nursing.


Copyright 2008 by United Press International
arcamax.com

SILENT KILLER: Nightmare!!

I got this forwarded email in my inbox from a dear friend .....wish to share and give some infos to all my friends out there....please read!! it might help and prevent it the earliest time!!

SILENT KILLER: What u need to know about NIGHTMARE or BANGUNGOT & some realities Got this information from a US-based pharmacist who is a cousin of a colleague.It seems only MALES are afflicted with this.

We had a co-staff/driver from FAO who died last month from supposedly BANGUNGOT-- leaving a housewife and 3 very young kids.

IMPORTANT: Never go thirsty when going to bed and besure you have plenty of water during your 8-hour rest.Bangungot has killed a male nurse of UERMMH. It is sudden death in adults which cause them to die while sleeping. Many theories have been put forward as its cause. However, here is an article which sheds somelight to the cause of this malady.

Please read on:Article from THE PHILIPPINE STAR: The reported cause of actor Rico Yan's death is nightmare or bangungot. Medical investigators in China , Japan and several Asian countries who performed autopsies on persons who died from "acute hemorrhagic pancreatitis" found out that the majority of them had eaten NOODLES as their supper.

This was a startling finding.However, it wasn't the noodles that caused nightmares but DEHYDRATION. Imbibing even with a few drinks of alcohol or just eating noodles immediately before bedtime compound this on an empty stomach will trigger an electrolyte imbalance and other factors that causes a person to dehydrate or lose water.

It is therefore advisable for a person to take several glasses of water before bedtime if he had a few or several alcoholic drinks. Avoid eating noodles before bedtime, but if you can not avoid it, all ow at least two hours for the body to digest the noodles before hitting the sack and drink plenty of water.The most important thing is, never go thirsty when going to bed and be sure you have plenty of water during your 8-hour rest.

PLEASE PASS TO YOUR FRIENDS!

Possible genetic link to obesity found

LONDON (UPI) -- British and other scientists say they've discovered a gene sequence that is linked with weight gain and a tendency to develop type 2 diabetes. The researchers say their findings also show the gene sequence is significantly more common in those with Asian Indian rather than European ancestry.

The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, could lead to better ways of treating obesity, researchers said. Scientists from Imperial College London and other international institutions discovered the sequence is associated with a nearly 1-inch expansion in waist circumference, a 4-pound gain in weight, along with a tendency to become resistant to insulin, which can lead to type 2 diabetes.

The sequence is found in 50 percent of the U.K. population. "Until now, we have understood remarkably little about the genetic component of common problems linked with obesity, such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes," said Imperial College London Professor Jaspal Kooner, the paper's senior author.

"Finding such a close association between a genetic sequence and significant physical effects is very important, especially when the sequence is found in half the population.? The study is detailed in the journal Nature Genetics.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International
arcamax.com

Brain disease studied at the atomic level

COLUMBUS, Ohio (UPI) -- U.S. scientists say they have, for the first time, inspected the atomic level of the protein that causes hereditary cerebral amyloid angiopathy.

The disease, thought to cause stroke and dementia, is initiated by certain kinds of proteins called prions that produce degenerative brain diseases such as CAA, mad cow disease and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans. All are incurable and fatal.

The researchers, led by Ohio State University Assistant Professor Christopher Jaroniec, used solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to inspect a tiny portion of the protein molecule that is key to the formation of plaques in blood vessels in the brain.

"This is a very basic study of the structure of the protein and hopefully it will give other researchers the information they need to perform further studies and improve our understanding of CAA," he said.

The research that included doctoral students Jonathan Helmus and Philippe Naudaud, as well as scientists at Case Western Reserve University, appears in the online edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International
www.arcamax.com