Archive for May 12, 2009
WEIGHING ‘COST AGAINST ‘BENEFIT’ WHEN CHOOSING TREATMENT – CONTROLING SYMPTOMS OF CANCER
Tuesday, May 12, 2009 | 7:10 amThis leads me to a very important point—for every successful cancer treatment a price must be paid. Some treatments are much more ‘costly’ than others, some are much more effective than Others. What is important is the balance between ‘cost’ and effectiveness. To judge the possible cost you need to know about the nature and likelihood of any inconvenience, disruption to normal lifestyle, financial cost, and side effects. To judge the possible benefits you need to know both the aim of the treatment—whether control of symptoms of cancer, temporary control of the cancer or permanent cure—and what the chances are of achieving that aim. You need to weigh the nature and chance of possible ’success’ against the possible cost. If there is considerable possible benefit, you may think a considerable cost is justified. For little benefit you would probably not be prepared to pay a great ‘price’. You cannot assess any treatment without knowing both sides of this balance— the likely cost and the likely benefit.
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(posted in Cancer)
CHOOSING YOUR TREATMENT – INTRODUCTION (IMPORTANT DECISION)
Tuesday, May 12, 2009 | 7:01 amIf you’ve read this far, you are obviously keen to understand your disease. You are prepared to face the reality of being an adult person with a serious illness. You don’t want to be treated like a helpless young child. You deserve and expect explanations.
That’s great, as far as it goes. But I hope very much that you are not content to stop at that. I hope that you take it one step further, and use this understanding and knowledge as a stepping stone that enables you to make your own decisions. I can well imagine you are doubtful about taking this further step. Perhaps you’re thinking: ‘It’s nice to understand what’s happening, but surely it’s easier and safer to leave the decisions to the experts’?
I know that’s what you’ve been taught to believe. I know that’s what you want to believe. But I also know that enormous numbers of cancer patients have suffered because they have believed it. I know that a great many cancer patients undergo unpleasant and pointless tests and treatments because they unquestioningly accept the decisions of experts—both medical doctors and other practitioners. I also know that it is extremely difficult for patients who do want to make their own decisions to get the necessary information. These are my reasons for writing this book. I don’t want you to suffer in this way. I hope that by the end of this book you will understand why the decisions of experts are often not the best decisions for people with cancer. I hope you will believe that you are the best person to make decisions about yourself. I hope you will have enough confidence and understanding to ask the right questions and get the information you need to make the best decisions for you.
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(posted in Cancer)
BREAST FEEDING – GENERAL INFORMATION
Tuesday, May 12, 2009 | 6:41 amThe composition of breast milk creates a low pH in the bowel and this favors colonisation with the lactobacillus bacterium which keeps out the bacteria which can cause infection.
Because breast milk is ideally suited to the baby’s digestion there are few digestive upsets in the breast fed baby.
There are a number of old wives tales about breast feeding and the one most wrong is that the mother’s milk is not suitable for her baby. This is often invoked as a reason to explain some failure of the baby to gain sufficient weight. The baby may not be getting enough milk but with very rare exceptions breast milk is always right for the baby. Those exceptions are due to some rare diseases.
If there is a strong family history of allergy, that is with family members suffering from hayfever, asthma and eczema, then avoiding the foreign proteins of cow’s milk and other substitutes and sticking to breast milk will reduce the risk of allergy.
Breast feeding has many emotional advantages both for the mother and child and leads to better “bonding” between them. Almost every woman can breast feed if she wants to. This decision is best taken during pregnancy and should be strongly encouraged by the health care professionals with whom she comes in contact. Attention and care to the breasts and nipples during pregnancy prepares them for more successful breast feeding.
Of course, breast feeding, while entirely natural, may not always be trouble free. Some feeding mothers run into problems because of retracted nipples or may get a cracked nipple which causes pain.
The breast may become engorged with milk and painful, or the supply of milk may be inadequate. The baby may be premature or sick and have difficulty in sucking strongly.
These are problems which can all be overcome.
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(posted in General health)