High-income countries (defined by the World Bank as Gross National Income in dollars per capita per year), such as the United Kingdom and the United States of America are experiencing improved cancer outcomes. This is due to a variety of factors, such as screening and prevention measures along with evidence-based treatment strategies. Sadly not all […]
A massive leap forward in medical technology took place in the mid 20th century. The most significant change in the UK, after World War Two, was the establishment of the National Health Service. In the field of baby care, tests became available for defects such as spina bifida and Down’s syndrome and treatments were developed […]
Thirty years ago, being diagnosed with breast cancer was seen by many as a death sentence. Look how far we have come since then. According to the latest figures, 78 per cent of women are predicted to survive their disease for 10 years or more. In many other areas of cancer treatment, the improvements in […]
Lung cancer has very few symptoms at early stage and many people dismiss it as a possibility. We know that 37 per cent of lung cancer patients are only diagnosed when they make an emergency trip to A&E which is far too late. Only around 30 per cent of people with lung cancer survive one […]
Hepatitis B is a devastating virus that infects around 250 million people worldwide and is endemic proportions in parts of Africa. Left untreated, it can cause cirrhosis, liver cancer and early death. Tackling the spread of this virus is essential and vaccination programmes have been started in many countries since 1990 including the Gambia, with […]
As someone who has watched a close relative go through the experience of receiving chemotherapy, it is not something that I would ever wish upon any human being. The hypothesis for chemotherapy is simple. Cancer cells grow faster than normal somatic cells and thus if we inject poison into the body that damages cells, the […]
Mammograms, or X-ray pictures of the breast, have been used for decades to detect early stage cancers. They are a useful tool but they have their drawbacks, not least that they do not work well in women who have dense breast tissue, who tend to be younger, and they only pick up masses that are […]
As a busy GP, I am fully aware and exposed to the everyday pressures faced by our National Health Service, sadly witnessing the NHS stretching to breaking point. A huge spectrum of demands placed on services, realistically this sometimes results in patients being unable to access the most effective treatment they require. Cancer Care is […]
Science has proven that eating processed meats is ‘as bad as smoking’. Men must watch their tea consumption or increase prostate cancer’s chances, while a daily aspirin pill ‘cuts odds’ of dying from breast cancer by one-fifth. Or so the media headlines lead us to believe. The actual research article behind the aspirin claim did […]
Read More… from How the media distort health-science messages
Many people with suspected cancer undergo biopsies to diagnose their condition; however, there are growing concerns that biopsies carry their own risks and may even seed cancer cells into surrounding tissue. A biopsy is the removal of a sample of tissue from the body for examination under a microscope to assist diagnosis. The type of […]