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LUNG CANCER AND CIGARETTE SMOKING

admin — Mon, 04 Apr 2011 16:41:22 +0000

No discussion of respiration would be complete without considering the relationship of lung cancer and cigarette smoking. This modern world is a world of marvels. It is not a great exaggeration to class among these marvels the increase in cigarette smoking in the last half century or so.

It is surprising that cigarettes have the widespread popularity which they do. In themselves they are distasteful to a non-smoker. The habit must be acquired. A natural repugnance to the aroma and the initial vertiginous and nauseating effects have to be overcome. In spite of this, each new generation cannot wait to sneak a smoke behind the barn, under stairs, or in the privy.

Cigarette smoking was certainly in poor repute in the 1890′s. A real “he-man” smoked a pipe, or a cigar, or chewed tobacco. One could not imagine a truck driver with a cigarette dangling from his lips. To the public at large, a typical male cigarette smoker was an effeminate type of fellow. As for the women, few of them smoked unless they were of a low social grade or were wicked. There is no need to tell you of the present picture.

None of the great industries realized more quickly or thoroughly the absolutely irresistible power of advertising and publicity than did the tobacco manufacturers. They had increased cigarette smoking very materially before the First World War, when there was a tremendous upsurge. It was almost as important to get cigarettes to the AEF as it was to get ammunition, and from then on the flood has been, until recently, uncontrollable.

Then something dire happened – we are speaking now from the point of view of the cigarette industry. Anesthesia and surgical techniques developed so that the interior of the chest began to be examined more and more, and with the cooperation of the pathologists it was soon realized that cancer of the lung, instead of being a rare condition, is a common one. Naturally, this situation was inquired into. As everybody knew, cigarette smoking and coughing were associated, and it was not long before lung conditions and smoking were examined statistically. Dr. Evarts A. Graham, of St. Louis, who was a pioneer in surgery of lung cancer, was soon impressed by the relationship, and early issued a report that there seems to be here a case of cause and effect.

It is well known now that smoking has an adverse effect upon the blood vessels. There is no doubt that heavy smoking is bad for the nervous system. Plenty of my fellow-physicians have told me how it affected them when they overindulged.

There is a vicious circle here: cigarette smoking makes people nervous; nervousness makes people smoke more cigarettes. A large part of cigarette smoking is simply a nervous reaction, much like thumb-sucking with children. In fact, psychiatrists have advanced the argument that sucking a cigarette and sucking a thumb are one and the same subconscious reaction.

To add to the list of serious organic diseases significantly related to cigarette smoking, we can now add cancer of the lung. There is direct and conclusive proof that cigarette smoke contains carcinogenic agents. That is what we call substances which produce cancer. Tars obtained from ordinary cigarettes, smoked in machines simulating human habits, have produced cancer when applied to the backs of mice, whereas control substances did not cause cancer.

An overwhelming proportion of people with cancer of the lung have been cigarette smokers; there is a relatively insignificant incidence of cancer of the lung in non-smokers. Cancer of the lung is increasing alarmingly each year. It seems certain that cigarette smoke is a factor here. There are enough respiratory irritants in the air without adding carcinogenic agents in the form of cigarette smoke. Lots of my doctor friends have quit cigarettes.

My impressions and conclusions are these. Nicotine is a strong poison. Almost all our drugs are poisons in large amounts, but many of them are valuable in small amounts. I have seen no evidence that nicotine in small amounts is a valuable drug. To be sure many persons feel comfortable after smoking; but opium, the barbiturates, and even marijuana give pleasant feelings. It is a question of whether the bad effects do not far outweigh the good effects. This recent testimony about lung cancer is certainly weighing down the scales against cigarettes.

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CONSTIPATION – DESCRIPTION

admin — Mon, 18 May 2009 06:51:16 +0000

You are constipated if your motions are hard and you have difficulty opening your bowels. It doesn’t really matter if you don’t open your bowels very often, as long as your motions are soft and easy to pass when you do.

I’m sure you know some of the simple things that can cause constipation—not eating enough (especially not enough fibre), not drinking enough fluids, and lack of exercise. Certain drugs can make the bowel work sluggishly, including most painkillers, the chemotherapy drugs vinblastine and vincristine and some antacids. The barium that is given by mouth for X-rays of the stomach and intestines or in enema form for X-rays of the lower bowel is also very constipating. Constipation is one of the symptoms caused by excessive calcium in the blood.

Another possible cause for constipation is damage to the nerves which supply the muscle in the wall of the bowel. This can happen if you have a cancer growth pressing on the spinal cord or on the nerves as they pass through the pelvis. With constipation due to nerve damage, you may not be able to tell when you need to open your bowels. This is because the nerves which carry this message are often damaged along with the ones which supply the bowel muscle.

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TREATMENT OF SYMPTOMS – SYMPTOMS AND NERVOUS TENSION (PART 1)

admin — Fri, 15 May 2009 06:46:52 +0000

Everybody who has cancer is under some nervous strain some of the time. This shows itself in different ways in different people. Symptoms which can be due to nervous tension include difficulty sleeping, lack of energy, irritability, crying spells, loss of appetite, nausea, difficulty in swallowing, indigestion, stomach pains, diarrhoea, breathlessness, chest pains, palpitations, headache, neck pain and many others. Each of these symptoms can also have other causes. For example, nausea may be due to anxiety, but may also be due to cancer in the stomach, liver or brain, to chemotherapy, radiotherapy, stomach ulcers, a hangover, viruses, excessive calcium in the blood and so on.

It can sometimes be quite difficult to work out which factors are playing a part in producing a certain symptom. Often it is more than one. It is not unusual for symptoms that begin for a physical reason to be aggravated by nervous tension. For instance, anxiety about nausea with chemotherapy can aggravate it and even result in it starting before you have your injection or tablets.

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BREAST DISORDERS: ABSCESSES AND NIPPLE INVERSION

admin — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 05:28:41 +0000

Abscesses

True breast abscesses are painful and can grow up to between 5 and 10 cm (2 and 4 inches) or more across. They contain pus, which is made up of bacteria and secretions from within the breast, and are distinct from the inflammation due to duct ectasia and plasma cell mastitis. Abscesses can occur anywhere in the breast, the most common cause being blockage and infection of a milk duct during lactation.

Non-lactational abscesses may be associated with plasma cell mastitis and usually occur near the nipple. They are known as subareolar abscesses and are most common in pre-menopausal women. Many are associated with a nipple abnormality such as inversion or retraction.

If treatment begins at an early stage of abscess development, needle aspiration and antibiotics may be sufficient. Otherwise, surgery will be required to remove the abscess and drain away the pus. Expert medical advice should be taken to avoid the risk of mammillary fistulae which can follow simple excision.

Peripheral breast abscesses can also occur, but these are rare in non-lactating breasts. Early treatment with antibiotics may prevent an abscess from actually forming, but those that do not respond to antibiotics will need to be surgically incised and drained under a general anesthetic.

Nipple inversion

If an inverted nipple is stimulated, for example by stroking, it may become everted. When the stimulus is removed, the nipple will once again shrink and turn in on itself. Permanent inversion can cause difficulties with breast-feeding but can be corrected by a simple cosmetic operation.

Some women’s breasts develop with inverted nipples, but if nipple inversion occurs during maturity, its cause should be investigated. Although it is likely to be a normal variant, in some cases it may be a sign of an underlying cancer.

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