In January of 2023, the American Cancer Society estimated there’ll be about 82,290 new cases of bladder cancer, and about 16,710 deaths from bladder cancer in the United States. Men are about three times more likely to be stricken by bladder cancer (BLCA) than women. A previous article discussed the symptoms, and diagnosis of bladder cancer. This article will discuss how grading and staging of the tumor predict your survival, and treatment.
Bladder cancer ranks as the fourth most common form of cancer among men, and sixth among women. Men get it three times more frequently compared to women, although women may be diagnosed when their cancer is at a more advanced stage. Smoking is the most significant risk factor for bladder cancer; and the presence of blood in the urine is a red alert, a danger sign, signaling doctors to rule out cancer as the underlying reason for this bloody finding.
With warmer weather, outdoor activities have become more popular. On a summery day, you can see men and women in their tennis whites swinging their racquets and hear the “booms and pops” the tennis balls make. Occasionally a player complains of discomfort and pain in the elbow and wonders, “Might this be the beginning of tennis elbow?”
An anxious mother takes her child to the Pediatrician concerned about a bump that appeared “out of nowhere” on one the side of the neck. Another mother is worried about swollen lymph nodes on both sides of her child’s neck that haven’t gone away after two months.
In 1951, Johns Hopkins was the only hospitals in Baltimore that treated African American patients. Henrietta Lacks, an African American woman, was examined by the doctors at the hospital after she felt a “knot” in her “womb.” After a series of tests at the hospital, Mrs. Lacks was informed she had cervical cancer. She received various treatments which included radiation therapy. But nine months after the diagnosis, Mrs. Lacks was dead.
On June 26, 2023, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a public health alert, warning the public, doctors, and public health authorities about the risk of contracting malaria in the United States after four cases of malaria infections were reported in Florida and one in Texas.
As much as we would like COVID-19 to disappear, it has not. It continues to make people sick, causing hospitalizations and in too many instances deaths. The 2020 pandemic has been blunted by Public Health measures and certain medications, one of which has been Paxlovid.
Low back pain (LBP) is common, costly, and treatable. It’s a common reason patients visit their family doctor, a common cause of disability, and costs Americans billions of dollars annually to manage this condition. Accurate diagnoses, and proper treatments are keys to successful outcomes.
Years ago, a colleague of mine was removing leaves from a rain gutter, slipped off the ladder, fell, and landed on his back. He was rushed to the hospital complaining of excruciating lower back pain. The ED physician took his medical history, and noted the physical examination was normal except for hypersensitivity in the lumbar- sacral region (lower back).
The best chance for patience winning the battle against cancer, in addition to a healthy lifestyle, is early detection, and precise, treatment of this death-dealing disease. Liquid biopsy, (LB), is a term first used around 2010. It’s a blood test that detects and analyzes circulating tumor cells and their products released by cancer cells into the blood.