Neutropenia Definition: What It Is and How It Is Treated?
Cancer chemotherapy is the most common cause of neutropenia, which can be treated depending on its cause and severity.
Search Results for: nutrition
Can Obesity Cause Cancer?
What is the relationship between obesity and cancer? Being obese increases one’s risk for a multitude of health complications and diseases, including several types of cancer. Obesity has been linked to thirteen types of cancer with a stronger risk associated with breast, esophageal and endometrial cancers, among others.
What are Superfoods and Can They Fight Cancer? [Podcast]
“Superfood,” a relatively new term, refers to foods that have certain supposed very good health benefits.
Probiotics: Can They Help Cancer Patients?
Probiotics are healthy bacteria that we introduce into our microbiome, or digestive system, to boost the healthy bacteria that already lives there.
Soy and Breast Cancer: Is There a Connection?
Could adding soy milk to your coffee or substituting tofu for meat increase your risk of breast cancer? The research is conflicting, but our breast cancer doctor, Wendy Chen, MD, MPH, is here to help us cut through the noise. “[It’s] one of the most common questions I get from breast cancer survivors,” says Chen, … Read more
Immunopatient: One Patient’s Story of Cancer and Immunotherapy
It’s not uncommon for cancer patients to take to a pen after a diagnosis. Peter Rooney’s taken that to another level. Rooney, a former journalist and author of the book Die Free, captured his cancer journey in the new book Immunopatient: The New Frontier of Curing Cancer. The following excerpt is reprinted with permission from Immunopatient by … Read more
What is the Relationship Between Tea and Cancer Prevention?
Drinking tea has been a practice around the world since ancient times, and often has been seen as a way of promoting good health. Whether tea – either the green or black varieties – can reduce the risk of cancer is a question that has been studied, but hasn’t yielded a definite answer. Made from … Read more
10 Things You Should Know About Palliative Care
It is a growing field of treatment, but there are still wide misconceptions about palliative care in the cancer community. Often mistaken as hospice, palliative care is focused on improving quality of life, reducing pain, and providing emotional support during cancer treatment. And it isn’t just for end-of-life, says Daniel Gorman, NP, of Dana-Farber’s Adult … Read more
Apricot Seeds: Do They Fight Cancer?
Although they were thoroughly debunked in the 1970s as anti-cancer agents, products made from apricot pits continue to be aggressively marketed to unsuspecting patients, according to a recent report in BuzzFeed. Do apricot seeds fight cancer? What is vitamin B17? The idea that such products could fight cancer arose because apricot pits contain a substance … Read more
Living Well with Metastatic Breast Cancer
In early 2015, Kim Delling had put her 2009 bout with breast cancer behind her. Then, at a routine checkup, her doctor ordered an additional test. “I knew something was up,” recalls Delling, a 50-year-old real estate agent in Wilmington, Mass. The cancer had come back. It had spread to her lungs, liver, and lymph nodes and … Read more
Cancer Treatment and Oral Health: What You Need to Know
When thinking of side effects of cancer treatments, nausea, fatigue and hair loss often come to mind – but what about oral health complications? Therapies that target cancer cells can also affect normal, healthy cells in the mouth and throat, and consequently, oral complications are common for cancer patients. What is oral medicine? Oral medicine … Read more
Patient Lives Energetic Life After Cancer Treatment — With Help From an App
Before her vulvar cancer diagnosis, Ronda Cushman led an energetic life as a physical therapy assistant who exercised each morning. Chemotherapy treatment curtailed both passions, but now Cushman may have a new ally in regaining her strength – and caregivers a new way to monitor her health away from the hospital. This past spring, Cushman … Read more
Vitamin D: Can It Prevent or Slow Cancer?
Vitamin D may prevent or slow some types of cancer, according to some intriguing studies. However, the evidence is not yet definitive, and no recommendations currently exist on taking extra vitamin D to prevent cancer. What is vitamin D? Vitamin D is a nutrient that helps the body use calcium and phosphorus to build bones … Read more
Multiple Myeloma: Optimizing Quality of Life for Survivors
Thanks to major advances in treatment in recent years, patients diagnosed with multiple myeloma today have a much greater life expectancy, even though the blood cancer isn’t curable. It’s possible to think of myeloma – a malignancy affecting antibody-producing immune cells – as a chronic disease with which some individuals can live for many years. … Read more
How Is Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting Treated?
Along with hair loss, nausea and vomiting from chemotherapy are among patients’ greatest concerns during cancer treatment. Fortunately, great strides have been made in the past decade or two, thanks to new generations of anti-nausea medications and better understanding of how to use them. Many patients won’t experience these distressing symptoms, or will have only … Read more
What Care Do I Need After a Stem Cell Transplant?
A stem cell transplant can be a lifesaving treatment for patients with leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma, or certain blood-related disorders. In many cases, however, transplants increase patients’ risk for an array of long-term health problems, often caused by the high doses of chemotherapy and/or radiation therapy used prior to the transplant. Dana-Farber’s Adult Stem Cell Survivorship … Read more
Can Antioxidants Prevent Cancer?
Antioxidants are substances that can help protect cells from damage caused by free radicals, or unstable molecules. That damage, called “oxidative stress,” is linked to the kind of damage in DNA mutations that can contribute to the risk of certain cancers, as well as diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease. Some studies have shown that … Read more
What Is Brain Metastasis and How Is It Treated?
Medically reviewed by Nancy U. Lin, MD When cells from a breast tumor metastasize — spread through the circulation to other tissues and organs — they can migrate to the brain and form secondary tumors, termed metastases (or “mets”) there. This is especially true of the more aggressive breast cancer types. “As many as half … Read more
What Steps Should You Take After Cancer Treatment?
The end of active cancer treatment is a welcome arrival for most patients, but it can also be a time of concern. After seeing doctors regularly for many weeks or months, the transition to a life less cluttered with physician appointments can be unsettling. So what are the best steps to take when active treatment … Read more
Do I Need Genetic Testing to Assess My Cancer Risk?
The vast majority of cancers do not have a strong hereditary link, but for people who have been diagnosed with cancer or have a significant family history of the disease, genetic testing can often shed light on the cause of the disease or an individual’s likelihood of developing it or other cancers. This information can … Read more