Which one first?

Half of you would like the good news first. I prefer to end on the better note: My own version of the spoonful of sugar.

The bad news first.

While we battle cancer here, at home another family member battles at nearly the same place. Mary Jo is my stepmother. Her Mother's Day news was not as wonderful as we would have hoped. Her PET scan and release from the hospital yesterday was difficult.

After a long bout with breast cancer, Mary Jo's PET revealed the cancer has metastasized to all of her major organs and her bones. She was released into hospice care.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch.

Russell will be the topic of conversation for the hospice caregivers and the oncologists. Russell has reached the point where the discussion is of a pain pump: Twenty four hour continuous release morphine. The mets delusions now get him out of bed to take care of things which are only real inside his head.

Now for the good news.

I will be posting a picture at the conclusion of Momma and Poppa's stay of yours truly climbing a tree, provided Momma used my camera properly.

Yesterday, for my Mother's Day gift, we harvested oak trees and bluebonnets for my yard from the game preserve across the street from my house. We also harvested a specific breed of pine tree which makes giant cones and has such long needles its branches have the look of pompoms. These will be Momma's take home gift from South Carolina.

Buds which arrived on Friday in anticipation of Mother's Day pushed out double-bearded blue irises by Saturday. Sunday brought Asiatic lilies opened wide like a sailor's sunrise.

I am not yet a grandmother, you see, that would not have been a grand Mother's Day present. My angel still has 2.5 weeks to go. Do you think she will make it? What if I told you that picture was more than a month old? Did that change your answer?

Even though the pop-up timer is fully extended (her navel), Caden needs to stay put at least another week. We would be happiest with two.

Chin up!
Ann Marie

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How do you get cancer?

Cancer cells are normal cells which have failed to develop the way they should. As they begin to develop into organ, blood or bone cells, the DNA in the cell's nucleus sends the wrong signals to the cell. Instead of becoming a healthy new cell, it becomes a cancer cell.

Genetics

Since DNA dictates how cells form, cancer runs in families. Each family will pass along the mutated genes which make cell nuclei misfire and create cancer cells. In tracing family history, specific types of cancers and related cancers are easily traced from generation to generation.

Common treatable and survivable cancers (breast, colon, prostate, cervical and skin cancers) are immediately traced through family history. Doctors routinely propose more frequent screenings for those who are predisposed to these cancers

More malignant cancers (leukemia, lymphoma, lung, pancreatic and brain cancers) are pretreated differently. Doctors propose lifestyle changes along with screenings to reduce the environmental risks associate with these cancers.

Environmental Risks

Common environmental risks for cancer include:

• Smoking, snuffing or "dipping" tobacco
• Drinking alcohol
• Poor diet and nutrition
• Unprotected sex and poor sexual health habits
• Working or living with carcinogenic (cancer causing) inhalants such as asbestos, certain manufacturing chemicals and paint
• Continued exposure to carcinogens: insecticides, known cancer-causing agents and radiation-including sun exposure

Skip a Generation

As with all genetic heredity, not everyone in a family will definitely develop cancer. Some family history will help patients break the cycle of cancers in their family lines.

Reducing or eliminating environmental risks can reduce the likelihood of developing a cancer which is prevalent in a family, especially lung, cervical and skin cancers.

There is hope,
Ann Marie

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Like Sand Through the Hourglass...

Day: a measure of time consisting of 24 hours, 1,440 minutes or 86,400 seconds.

Autopilot

The daily grind is simple when you are proficient in your rote activities. Chores take time, but rarely do they require an excess of conscious thought.

Do you find yourself cleaning when you are upset? There is a reason. By cleaning the crud off of belongings in your abode, you are exercising control. You may not be able to scrape the barnacles from the underbelly of your situation, but you can wax the hull above the water until it shines.

There is only one downfall to autopilot: Credit. No, not plastic or the time left nonsalaried in pursuit of K time.

With your brain in neutral, you run the risk of worrying. The only purpose of worrying is to burn Vitamin C. Do you have extra vitamins to burn? That is what I thought!

Lieutenant, engage.

If you absolutely cannot eradicate thoughts entirely, engage it in something constructive.

• Mentally plan some scheduled free time. (oxymoron explained below)
• Make a mental checklist of what you can accomplish tomorrow. (establish hope)
• Consider what you can do with your children or grandchildren. (celebration of life)
• Plan a favorite meal. (health consciousness)
• Think about all the jobs already checked off your list. (accomplishment)

Military Intelligence

Long the standing oxymoron to explain behavior which is expedited far in advance of the need for completion: Hurry up and wait.

Scheduling free time is just as poignant an oxymoron. Plan what you want to do during the quiet time. If you had an hour where no menial demands would intrude, what would you do?

In your own best mental health interest, do something you enjoy, even if it consists of nothing more than television watching you (napping with the dog and a snuggly blanket on the couch).

Consider meditating or exercising. Your brain will produce endorphins to raise your mood.

Are you up for a telephone free, no interruptions, locked door, candle lit, aromatherapy Epsom salts soak in a hot tub of water?

Do you know where the last book you bought, but never have had time to read, is?

These are great free time activities to banish the blues, worry and stress from your brain and heart without leaving your patient.

Company, dismissed.

If you can use your time to leave, go. Build up some Vitamin D by getting sunshine on your face. Even your backyard is away from the worry.

• Plant some flowers, vegetables or trees. (celebrate life)
• Take a ball or Frisbee to the dog. (fellowship)
• Sip tea on the swing. (relax)

Are you able to leave the premises?

• Go buy something for a project you have not finished. (foster accomplishment)
• Visit someone who needs adult interaction. (perspective)
• Visit a gym. (more endorphins)
• Bring your laptop to the coffee shop, and let someone serve you. (relax)

This free time is paramount to your sanity, which you may have noticed being AWOL on a more regular basis.

Lead by Example

Yesterday, I went to the hardware store for chicken wire to impede my dogs escape from the yard. When I came home, I shoveled, raked, wired and began leveling and repairing my back porch.

The endorphin rush led directly into a trip to the dump. How absolutely satisfying! Taking my recyclables (long neglected) to the solid waste facility allowed me to make a major dent in a project long on hold: My laundry room.

I brought my little man out to use his miniature shovel to help. Just some time with my son's excitement and satisfaction made me more buoyant.

And the best part of all of it? I slept like a rock. Rested this morning, I am content to work inside the house...but I am planning my next outdoor adventure: Exchanging my dandelions for zinnias; moving a crepe myrtle out of harm's (school bus') way and spreading more allysum to compliment the wild purple lantana in my yard.

New Orders

The next post will address the other better places you can go without leaving home and why it is vital to your success.

Forward, march!
Ann Marie

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Study reveals cancer/heart risks of HRT

In the March 5, 2008, edition of the American Medical Association (AMA) Journal of Medicine, results from the follow up study to the hallmark research study of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in post-menopausal women were released. Reinforcing the findings of the hallmark study, the benefits of HRT are far outweighed by the long term risks.

Substantial findings from the hallmark study indicated that women faced a greater risk of heart problems shortly after the introduction of estrogen and progesterone post-menopause. 16,608 women participated in the six year hallmark study.

Before the cessation of the study, increased occurrences of breast cancer were reported in the participants receiving conjugated equine estrogens (CEE) and medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA), the primary active hormonal ingredients in HRT pills.

While women who received the HRT pills saw a reduction of hip fractures and colorectal cancer, the increase in heart attacks and breast cancer tumors were the primary cause for halting the government study.

15,730 women participated in the follow up study to determine the risks and benefits two to three years after the study. Women who took the HRT pills found nearly immediate reduction in the cardiovascular risks. Over time, the benefit of reduced instances of colorectal cancer and hip fracture declined to the normal risk in the population who had not taken HRT.

This study has shown unexplained results. Those who took HRT pills had a higher incident rate of lung cancer tumors and remained higher than normal in breast cancer tumors.

Although the American trend reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for breast cancer is a reduction of breast cancer incidents. This trend, in light of this study, is being credited to fewer women beginning HRT rather than any other contributing factor.

Despite the increase (3 more per 1000) in breast cancer tumors in post-menopausal women who had taken HRT, critics blame this evidence on the process of the study. Each participant was to report every six months to her physician to track her progress.

Further criticism of the study points to the fact that the average participant was in her 60s, where the majority of women who take HRT are in their 50s. This criticism comes primarily from the manufacturer of Prempro, the studied HRT pills, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

While doctors still recommend HRT pills to women whose menopause symptoms are severe, they admit that vigilance in breast cancer detection and cardiovascular monitoring is paramount.

The eleven year study confirmed that HRT pills proposed risk (breast cancer, lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, heart attack) that significantly outweighed benefits.

Ann Marie Dwyer is an internationally-published, award-winning citizen journalist with bylines on Helium, One World Net, Yahoo! News and Global Exchange. Her articles appear in corporate newsletters, archive history web sites and in news print.

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