Tag: #CANCER

Getting Checked For Skin Cancer – Understanding Your skin cancer screening Options

Skin cancer rates in Australia are among the highest in the world, primarily due to intense UV exposure. Fortunately, skin cancers can be effectively treated if detected early through clinical skin cancer screening. As per experts like SunDoctors, when you get your skin checked, knowing the testing options helps you understand the procedures. Different skin exams provide a comprehensive inspection to spot any suspicious lesions requiring a biopsy.

The Visual Skin Exam

Photo by Daniel Xavier on Pexels.com

A visual inspection of your full body remains the standard first-line screening. The dermatologist scans everywhere – even the scalp, between toes, soles of feet, and underside of nails. They examine all moles and skin markings, however faint. The goal is detecting any abnormal lesions using the senses of sight and touch. Telltale signs are asymmetry, irregular borders, uneven color, large diameter and evolving size/shape. Magnification devices aid visibility.

Skin Photography

Photographic mapping provides important historical documentation. Your moles are photographed from set distances/angles for your medical record. Images enable precise comparison of lesions over time to determine if any changes indicate higher risk. Some clinics photographically map the entire body. Follow-up photos are compared to baseline images to track mole changes.

Dermoscopy

Also called dermatoscopy or epiluminescence microscopy, this technique allows magnified inspection of the skin’s surface and subsurface using a specialized instrument. The dermatoscope mitigates glare and brings subsurface skin structures into focus. This enhances ability to assess mole shape, size, pigmentation patterns and vessels to identify malignancies. It offers about 10X magnification.

Confocal Microscopy

This advanced, high-powered microscopy scans beneath the outermost skin layer using lasers. Also called reflectance confocal microscopy, the imaging captures horizontal layers as deep as the lower epidermis and upper dermis in real time. This enables scans below a mole’s surface to assess cellular-level changes indicative of melanoma, sans biopsy. The microscopic lesions can then be monitored or biopsied as needed.

Sequential Digital Dermoscopy

This approach combines serial body photography with dermoscopy for precise mole analysis. Your atypical moles are photographed and then further examined with a dermatoscope during screening. By comparing current and past clinical images, the dermatologist can identify any worrisome changes developed in specific lesions since the prior visit. This aids diagnosis.

Multispectral Digital Skin Analysis

Using advanced optics and algorithms, this technique examines suspicious lesions across multiple wavelengths of light. The mole is evaluated at various electromagnetic spectrum in order to enhance visualization of structures. The multispectral readings provide a comprehensive biomarker profile of a mole’s morphology to either rule out or confirm melanoma risks, avoiding unnecessary biopsies.

Molecular Gene Expression Profiling

This newer lab test analyzes the gene expression patterns of cells from a suspicious mole rather than visual factors. Differences in certain gene activities can indicate whether a mole is benign or potentially malignant. The genomic biomarkers discern melanoma from benign lesions. This assists diagnosis when based solely on appearance proves difficult.

Conclusion 

Understanding the screening techniques helps you better comprehend the clinical process. Knowing the available tests allows you to discuss options with your dermatologist and understand the purpose behind each exam performed during your visit. Being an informed patient supports early detection.

Can Hair Relaxers Increase Cancer Susceptibility?

For decades, millions of women have relied on hair relaxers and chemical straighteners to achieve smooth, sleek styles.

But what many may not realize is that hiding underneath the glossy surface of these products could be harmful chemical ingredients lurking, quietly increasing their risk of a deadly disease.

A new NIH study has linked a commonly used hair product to a concerning double risk of developing a malignancy in a most intimate area. Just what could be in our beauty products that has researchers so alarmed? The answer may catch you off guard and give you pause for thought regarding your next straightening session.

What Are Hair Relaxers?

Hair relaxers refer to chemical processes used to straighten hair that is curly or wavy in texture. Relaxers can come in two primary types – lye and no-lye.

Lye relaxers contain sodium hydroxide as the primary straightening agent. Sodium hydroxide works quickly to relax curls and is often used by hair professionals due to its effectiveness and processing speed. However, sodium hydroxide can be harsh on hair. Some popular brands that use lye relaxers include TCB Naturals Crème Hair Relaxers.

No-lye relaxers contain milder alkalizing components like lithium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide, calcium hydroxide, or guanidine hydroxide rather than sodium hydroxide. While no-lye relaxers don’t straighten hair as quickly as lye relaxers, they are less damaging to curls. The trade-off is they may require longer processing times.

Hair Relaxers and Concerning Link to Cancer

Over the past five years, extensive studies in the United States have explored the potential association between cancer and hair products, specifically focusing on hormone-dependent cancers like breast, ovarian, and uterine cancers.

A recent investigation conducted by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) indicated an increased risk of uterine cancer among women who use chemical hair straightening products.

The study found that women who frequently utilize hair straighteners face more than double the likelihood of being diagnosed with uterine cancer. It was based on data from the Sister Study, which had 33,497 U.S. women tracked for about 11 years.

While the doubling of risk is concerning, it’s crucial to contextualize this information, considering that uterine cancer is relatively rare. The research highlighted that approximately 1.64 out of every 100 women who never used hair straightening products may develop uterine cancer by 70 years old. In contrast, for frequent users, the risk increased to over 4 out of every 100 women.

The study did not specifically examine differences by race in the link between straightener usage and uterine cancer. However, it was noted that negative impacts could be more considerable for African-American women, given their higher reported rates of usage.

Approximately 60% of participants reporting straightener use were self-identified Black women. The study underscored the need for more research to confirm these findings in diverse populations, explore potential contributions to health disparities, and identify specific chemicals that may heighten cancer risk in women.

Legal Complications

Numerous lawsuits, such as the hair relaxer lawsuit alleging the development of health conditions, including uterine cancer, breast cancer, and uterine fibroids due to the use of hair relaxers, have been filed in various jurisdictions. These related cases have been brought together as a group (known as multidistrict litigation or MDL) in the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

Unlike class action lawsuits where any settlement is distributed collectively, TorHoerman Law notes that in an MDL, any resolution would be given out individually taking into account each person’s specific situation and claim. 

The consolidated lawsuit involves victims who have experienced adverse health effects from toxic chemicals in hair relaxers manufactured by multiple companies.

A number of cosmetic manufacturers are listed as defendants in the legal cases linking hair straightening products to cancer risk.

The companies named include L’Oreal, Softsheen-Carson (known for Optimum Relaxer), Dark & Lovely, Just For Me, Motions Hair, ORS Hair Care (produced by Namaste Laboratories, LLC), and African Pride (part of the Godrej Group).

The claimants allege that these companies knowingly released products containing cancerous chemicals and failed to warn users about the potential risks, particularly the risk of uterine cancer associated with their products.

In conclusion, while hair relaxers have been a popular choice for smoothing hair textures for many decades, recent research increasingly points to potentially serious health risks associated with their use.

The doubling of uterine cancer risk found among frequent users is highly concerning, especially for Black women, who make up a large percentage of consumers. Many experts recommend limiting or avoiding straightening products and reading labels carefully to avoid ingredients like sodium hydroxide that are harsher on the body.

As legal cases against manufacturers move forward, more transparency around product safety is crucial so that consumers, especially those in high-risk groups, can make truly informed choices about the hair products they use and potential long-term health tradeoffs.

Overall, this research highlights the need for safer, natural alternatives for straightening textures without compromising health down the line.

CANCER

Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells anywhere in a body. These abnormal cells are termed cancer cells, malignant cells, or tumor cells. These cells can infiltrate normal body tissues.

SYMPTOMS AND SIGNS

  • Change in bowel or bladder habits
  • A sore throat that does not heal
  • Unusual bleeding or discharge (for example, nipple secretions or a “sore” that will not heal that oozes material)
  • Thickening or lump in the breast, testicles, or elsewhere
  • Indigestion (usually chronic) or difficulty swallowing
  • Obvious change in the size, color, shape, or thickness of a wart or mole
  • Nagging cough or hoarseness
  • Unexplained loss of weight or loss of appetite
  • A new type of pain in the bones or other parts of the body that may be steadily worsening, or come and go, but is unlike previous pains one has had before
  • Persistent fatigue, nausea, or vomiting
  • Unexplained low-grade fevers with may be either persistent or come and go
  • Recurring infections which will not clear with usual treatment

TYPES OF CANCER

  • Carcinoma: Cancer that begins in the skin or in tissues that line or cover internal organs — “skin, lung, colon, pancreatic, ovarian cancers,” epithelial, squamous and basal cell carcinomas, melanomas, papillomas, and adenomas
  • Sarcoma: Cancer that begins in bone, cartilage, fat, muscle, blood vessels, or other connective or supportive tissue — “bone, soft tissue cancers,” osteosarcoma, synovial sarcoma, liposarcoma, angiosarcoma, rhabdosarcoma, and fibrosarcoma
  • Leukemia: Cancer that starts in blood-forming tissue such as the bone marrow and causes large numbers of abnormal blood cells to be produced and enter the blood — “leukemia,” lymphoblastic leukemias (ALL and CLL), myelogenous leukemias (AML and CML), T-cell leukemia, and hairy-cell leukemia
  • Lymphoma and myeloma: Cancers that begin in the cells of the immune system — “lymphoma,” T-cell lymphomas, B-cell lymphomas, Hodgkin lymphomas, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and lymphoproliferative lymphomas
  • Central nervous system cancers: Cancers that begin in the tissues of the brain and spinal cord — “brain and spinal cord tumors,” gliomas, meningiomas, pituitary adenomas, vestibular schwannomas, primary CNS lymphomas, and primitive neuroectodermal tumors

CANCER STAGING

  • Site of the primary tumor
  • Tumor size and number of tumors
  • Lymph node involvement (spread of cancer into lymph nodes)
  • Cell type and tumor grade (how closely the cancer cells resemble normal tissue cells)
  • The presence or absence of metastasis

CANCER PREVENTION

Cancer prevention, by avoiding its potential causes, is the simplest method. First on most clinicians and researchers list is to stop (or better, never start) smoking tobacco. Avoiding excess sunlight (by decreasing exposure or applying sunscreen) and many of the chemicals and toxins are excellent ways to avoid cancers. Avoiding contact with certain viruses and other pathogens also are likely to prevent some cancers. People who have to work close to cancer-causing agents (chemical workers, X-ray technicians, ionizing radiation researchers, asbestos workers) should follow all safety precautions and minimize any exposure to such compounds. Although the FDA and the CDC suggests that there is no scientific evidence that definitively says cell phones cause cancer, other agencies call for more research or indicate the risk is very low. Individuals who are concerned can limit exposure to cell phones by using an earpiece and simply make as few cell phone calls as possible.