Malignant mesothelioma

Malignant mesothelioma is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the thin layer of tissue that covers the lung, chest wall, or abdomen. It may also form in the heart or testicles, but this is rare.

The type of malignant mesothelioma depends on the cell in which it began. The most common type of malignant mesothelioma is epithelial mesothelioma, which forms in the cells that line organs. The other types begin in spindle-shaped cells called sarcomatoid cells or are a mixture of both cell types. Epithelial mesothelioma may grow more slowly and have a better prognosis than other types.

The major cause of malignant mesothelioma is being exposed to asbestos over a period of time. This includes people who were exposed to asbestos in the workplace and their family members.

After a person is exposed to asbestos, it usually takes at least 20 years for malignant mesothelioma to form.

(Souce: NCI)

The Cancer-Fighting Kitchen, Second Edition: Nourishing, Big-Flavor Recipes for Cancer Treatment and Recovery by Rebecca Katz and Mat Edelson

This new and revised edition of the IACP award-winning cookbook brings the healing power of delicious, nutritious foods to those whose hearts and bodies crave a revitalizing meal, through 150 new and updated recipes.

Featuring science-based, nutrient-rich recipes that are easy to prepare and designed to give patients a much-needed boost by stimulating appetite and addressing treatment side effects including fatigue, nausea, dehydration, mouth and throat soreness, tastebud changes, and weight loss. A step-by-step guide helps patients nutritionally prepare for all phases of treatment, and a full nutritional analysis accompanies each recipe. This remarkable resource teaches patients and caregivers how to use readily available powerhouse ingredients to build a symptom- and cancer-fighting culinary toolkit. Blending fantastic taste and meticulous science, these recipes for soups, vegetable dishes, proteins, and sweet and savory snacks are rich in the nutrients, minerals, and phytochemicals that help patients thrive during treatment. 

This second edition also includes a dozen new recipes--many of which are simpler and less complicated, for cancer patients to prepare on their low days--as well as a list of cancer-fighting foods that can be incorporated into everyday life without stepping behind the stove. Rebecca has also revised the text with the most up-to-date scientific research and includes a section on how friends and family can build a culinary support team.

Book: Anticancer: A New Way of Life Hardcover by David Servan-Schreiber

Anticancer has been a bestselling phenomenon since Viking first published it in fall 2008. Now, a new edition addresses current developments in cancer research and offers more tips on how people living with cancer can fight it and how healthy people can prevent it. The new edition of Anticancer includes: 

• The latest research on anticancer foods, including new alternatives to sugar and cautions about some that are now on the market 
• New information about how vitamin D strengthens the immune system 
• Warnings about common food contaminants that have recently been proven to contribute to cancer progression 
• A new chapter on mind-body approaches to stress reduction, with recent studies that show how our reactions to stress can interfere with natural defenses and how friendships can support healing in ways never before understood 
• A groundbreaking study showing that lifestyle modification, as originally proposed in Anticancer, reduces mortality for breast cancer by an astounding 68 percent after completion of treatment 
• New supporting evidence for the entire Anticancer program 

How can I find skin cancer early?

• Talk with your doctor if you see any changes on your skin that do not go away within one month.
• Check the skin on all surfaces of your body, even in your mouth.
• Watch for a new mole or other new growth on your skin.
• Check for changes in the appearance of an old growth on the skin or scar (especially a burn scar).
• Watch for a patch of skin that is a different color and becomes darker or changes color.
• Watch for a sore that does not heal – it may bleed or form a crust.
• Check your nails for a dark band. Check with your doctor if you see changes, such as if the dark band begins to spread.

When skin cancer is found early, it can be treated more easily.

Although dark skin does not burn in the sun as easily as fair skin, everyone is at risk for skin cancer. Even people who don't burn are at risk for skin cancer. It doesn't matter whether you consider your skin light, dark, or somewhere in between. You are at risk for skin cancer. Being in the sun can damage your skin. Sunlight causes damage through ultraviolet, or UV rays, (they make up just one part of sunlight). Two parts of UV, UVA and UVB, can both cause damage to skin. Also, the sun isn't the only cause of skin cancer. There are other causes. That's why skin cancer may be found in places on the body never exposed to the sun.

Is it true that only people with light skin get skin cancer?

No. Anyone can get skin cancer. It's more common among people with a light (fair) skin tone, but skin cancer can affect anyone. Skin cancer can affect both men and women. Even teenagers and, rarely, younger children can develop skin cancer.

How can I protect myself from skin cancer?

Have your doctor check your skin if you are concerned about a change. Your doctor may take a sample of your skin to check for cancer cells.

Ask your doctor about your risk of skin cancer:

• Some skin conditions and certain medicines (such as some antibiotics or hormones) may make your skin more sensitive to damage from the sun.
• Medicines or medical conditions (such as HIV) that suppress the immune system may make you more likely to develop skin cancer.
• Having scars or skin ulcers increases your risk.
• Exposure to a high level of arsenic (a poison that is sometimes found in well water or pesticides) increases your risk.

Stay out of the sun as much as you can. Whenever possible, avoid exposure to the sun from
10 a.m. to 4 p.m. If you work or play outside, then…

• Try to wear long sleeves, long pants, and a hat that shades your face, ears, and neck with a brim all around.
• Use sunscreen with a label that says it is broad spectrum or is at least SPF 15 and can filter both UVA and UVB rays.
• Wear sunglasses that filter UV to protect your eyes and the skin around your eyes.
• If you are concerned about having a low level of vitamin D from not being in the sun, talk with your doctor about supplements.

Don't use tanning beds, tanning booths, or sunlamps.