Anti-Angiogenesis Therapy

Hi all,

All cancer survivors fear a relapse of the disease which will almost cause metastasis or the spreading of the cancer cells unabatedly. Metastasis occur mainly due to our body's natural mechanism called angiogenesis.

Anti Angiogenesis Therapy stops angiogenesis. It blocks the pathway to feeding the cancer cells.

Watch Dr William Li explain in the Video link below.

http://www.ted.com/talks/william_li.html


Take care

Allen Lai

Autophagy

Under normal circumstance cells in our body maintain a high integrity of cell health. Our body has a natural process called Autophagy to eliminate damaged / mutated cells.

Cells Under Stress
Cells use autophagy to digest damaged or defective molecules, effectively eliminating the stressors like mis-folded proteins and damaged organelles that can threaten cell health, or in the case of hypoxia and serum starvation, devour existing proteins and organelles to generate key nutrients for survival. One process of autophagy involves the formation of a membrane around the damaged molecules, sequestering it from the rest of the cytosol with subsequent fusion with lysosomes. Autophagy is also thought to play a role in apoptosis or programmed cell death.
Autophagy—The Basics

How Autophagy Works.
When it comes to managing stress, our cells function like efficient machines, quickly assessing the situation and finding ways to adjust. Autophagy—literally, “eating oneself”—is one way that cells deal with typical day-to-day stress (misfolded proteins, aged or defective organelles) as well as unexpected disasters (hypoxic conditions, serum starvation, viral infections). The cellular machinery either digests the damaged or defective molecules, effectively eliminating the stressors that threaten cell health, or, in the case of hypoxia and serum starvation, devours existing proteins and organelles to generate key nutrients for survival.

Above article curtesy of Invitrogen.com.

Take care

Allen Lai

Fatigue

It was during one of my radiation session that I had naively asked my Oncologist if I could participate in the coming marathon. He nonchalantly replied "yes, if you still can"
Yes fatigue sets in pretty quickly during any type of treatments, be it surgery, radiation, hormonal or chemo. I never stood a chance even when taking small steps, one a time.

I was literally tired out most of the time after my 30 plus radiation sessions. Radiation had zapped up my muscle intensity. It took me a full year to regain some strength to jog up the slopes in my neighbourhood. Below are the explanation as to why we fagged out after treatments.

Fatigue is the number one side effect of cancer treatment. It is a side effect of surgery, chemotherapy, radiation and hormonal therapy. Health officials estimate that 90% of people experience fatigue during or after the treatment.

Recognize Fatigue

It is a lack of energy that develops suddenly or slowly over time from our activities of everyday life. It can be overwhelming and it is generally not relieved by rest or sleep.
The symptoms are:
- We feel like we have no energy
- We sleep more than usual
- We have difficulty of concentration
- We feel tired after nighttime
- We lack sexual desire
- We are irritable or impatient
- We feel lazy and not interested of our personal hygiene
We understand that those symptoms will lessen overtime once cancer treatment is over.

The Why of Fatigue

Fatigue during treatment can be related to cancer or the treatment. Many chemotherapy drugs cause fatigue by destroying part of our bone marrow which produce white and red blood cells. The white constitute part of our immune system where as the red carry the oxygen though our blood. Deficiency of one type of these cells will cause anemia.
Healing for surgery can also drain our reserve energy which translates into fatigue.

Contribution to fatigue

We eat less because of loss of appetite with change in taste, nausea, vomiting and mouth sores. We can become dehydrated with diarrhea and vomiting.
Also cancer cells compete with normal cells for nutrients which can slow down the growth of normal cell.

Coping with fatigue

Some ways to decrease or manage fatigue is to adjust our diet, reduce our stress and increase our physical activity.
We can plan short rest period and conserve energy for our important things. We can use light stretching session and exercise to counter fatigue.
Plan our day. We can do the most important thing first and the least important last. Space out activities. We are not doing an iron-man or women here.
Take enough continuous sleep like 8 hours straight. Remember that fatigue is temporary and our energy level will slowly improve as our blood return to normal.
Ask for help with housework, meal and errands. We are not alone and our team will gladly help us. Drink tea, we hydrate ourselves and fight cancer at the same time.

The above article is curtesy from cancerbattlefield.com. 

Take care

Allen Lai

Help DELL Computers to fight Paediatric Cancer

Hi all,
DELL Computers have come up with an innovative initiative to raise funds to do research for Paediatric Cancers.

Please watch the video as many times as you wish. Each time you watch the video, DELL contribute $1.00 for the research.

Visit

http://www.causes.com/causes/789392-powering-the-possible/actions/1672930?utm_source=causes&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=WE612_981&causes_ref=email&template=newsletter_mailer%2Fnewsletter.

Thank you and please pass this video on for more contributions.

You can make the difference.

Allen Lai

Race for the Cure

Hi ladies,
Watch this inspiring video. 30 years of Moments and Milestones. Susan G Komen for the Cure. Watch Races for the Cure worldwide. I hope our Pink Ladies will organise a Race for the Cure here in KL.

See the video in U-tube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=rPb71oIXIag


So proud of the you ladies in Pink.
Take care

Allen Lai

Ladies Know your drugs

Hi Ladies,
It is good to know what drugs are currently available for breast cancer. Know what each class of drugs are used and its side effects.

Visit Komen.org below for some current drugs:



http://ww5.komen.org/uploadedFiles/Content_Binaries/806-396.pdf

Take care

Allen Lai

T-DM1 - The latest drug for Breasts Cancer 2012

Hi ladies,

Good news,
T-DM1 combines with Hercepin will reduce a lot of side effects, including hair loss. T-DM1 is used for  treating the most aggressive form of breast cancer; advanced HER-2 possitive breast cancer.

T-DM1 contains an extremely potent form of chemotherapy that’s been around 20 years which we haven’t been able to use before because it’s so toxic. Clever new technology has allowed these two older drugs to be linked so that the chemotherapy  is not released until it reaches  the target.

curtest of Dailymail.com

Visit http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2211284/T-DM1-New-smart-drug-breast-cancer-extends-womens-live-months.html

Good Luck ladies. Fighting!!!

Take care
Allen Lai

iPhone / iPad Apps for people with Cancer

Apple Apps Store

In the fast moving world of smart phones, tablets and mobile tools. Apps contents are coming out just as rapidly. Thanks to programmers who had come out with some very useful apps for the iPhone/iPad.
Some good apps are free of charge. I managed to review some and would like to recommend some popular free apps that we can use. They are:

a. IchemoDiary
b. CaringBridge
c. Cancer.net Mobile
d. Breast Cancer Diagnosis Guide
e. Beyond the Shock
f. Keep a Breast

Go to iTunes/ Apple Apps Store and check them out. You will be glad you did.

Take care

Allen Lai

Loose that Fat

Hi all, Loose that fat. The pictorial below says it all.

If you have trouble loosing weight/fat in a healthy way. Call me.

Take care

Allen Lai

Recent FDA approved drugs for Prostrate Cancer 2012

Hi all,

I had relentlessly sought to know more about cancer and in particularly Prostrate Cancer to update myself and to share this knowledge. I have the skills and tools to browse the internet for the latest information and the basic aptitude to vet and discuss the issues presented. I am not a doctor in anyway nor a quack, But I do try my best to digest everything worthwhile and to share what is relevant. Below are some of the recently approved cancer drugs approved by the FDA.

Some of the recently approved prostate cancer drugs that have been shown to prolong life:

Provenge. A vaccine approved by the FDA in April 2010 that primes a man's immune system to attack an existing tumor. Sold by Dendreon. It costs $93,000 for a standard course of three treatments. Provenge is now available in Malaysia.

Cabazitaxel. A new form of chemotherapy, approved in June 2010, and sold by Sanofi-Aventis under the name Jevtana. The typical six cycles cost about $50,000.

Abiraterone. Approved in April 2011, and sold by Janssen Biotech under the brand name Zytiga, it deprives tumors of testosterone. An eight-month course of treatments costs about $47,000. Zytiga is now available in Malaysia.

Enzalutamide. Approved in August 2012, enzalutamide, sold under the name Xtandi and developed by Medivation and Astellas Pharma, blocks the ability of testosterone to enhance cancer growth. A typical eight-month treatment costs nearly $60,000.

Radium 223. Still awaiting FDA approval, this drug from Bayer HealthCare would carry radioactive particles deep into the bone where tumors are spreading, and kill cancer cells.

Most of the above drugs should be available in Singapore.

Sources: Lee Kalowski, Credit Suisse Group; Howard Scher, Memorial Sloan-Kettering; Philip Kantoff, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

For full treatments options, you may want to read the latest information from this website

www.ustoo.com/Treatment_Options.asp

Take care

Allen Lai

Cancer Treatment Options

Hi all,

This is a new website on cancer treatments, particularly discussing option treatments. It is good to review what are the options, but do take caution and common sense before any conclusion is made.
Always discuss options with your Oncologist before commencing to undertake any option. It may contradict whatever treatments you are currently prescribed.

This site however does give some good insight to what options are available. Do read the past postings.

Visit the website at http://www.can-cer.org/

Take care

Allen Lai

Fighting Cancer - A dual fight

Fighting Cancer is actually two fights in one. Firstly fighting the cancer cells and second, fighting the clinical treatments. The latter at times more difficult. This is my personal opinion as a soldier and fighter. We have to take all scenarios and factor in all considerations in winning the final battle. To survive. One can win in killing off all the cancer cells but still die from the harsh effects of the treatments.

Fighting Cancer cells is a tough fight and we need to harness all combat powers to win. And it is a winnable fight, whether it is a total destruction of the cancer cells or a total suppression of the cancer cells to submission. To do this there are many approved medical treatments and protocols to kill off the cancer cells. But there are no "good" nor "bad" treatments. The approach to treatments is dependent on many factors and conditions. Many survivors will attest that the integrated approach to treatment is the best course of action. Combining conventional treatments and complementary treatments do add synergy to the fight. Alternative treatments may seem attractive in the short term or to hopelessness, but with very high combat risks.

Fighting to recover from treatment needs lots of efforts and having a good body condition. Further adjunct medications do help in the short term, but again more side effects for the body to deal with. So before we decide what treatments to opt for in dealing with the cancer cells in us, we should firstly look at our body condition and fitness to withstand the treatment. Age and other ailments in the body are also main considerations to the choice of treatments. You are the best advisor to the choice of treatment. You should know your body conditions better than any doctor or oncologist. It is going to be your fight after the prescribed treatments. Your doctor can only monitor and assist you in a very secondary way. This is your fight. To improve your physique and body combat power to fight off the invasive treatment modalities. You would have a very short time to fight off the impacts of chemo, radiation, hormonal changes and loss of an organ after surgery. And most of the time our treatments will include more than one modality.

Both chemo and radiation have a protracted length of time inside our body. Producing free radicals, carcinogens and distorting our DNA every second.

Fighting off treatments is a protracted war.

Time is the essence in both the fights, against the cancer cells and recover from the treatments. But what we can do is to prepare for our body physique and fitness at all times. We cannot jump start fitness. The body needs time to develop to a new level of fitness. There is no way to an instant fitness. It actually need rest time to development time in gaining fitness. Unfortunately there are no shortcuts.

Early detection of cancer and early preparations to good health and body conditions are key to winning the dual battle.

Take care

Allen Lai

Prostrate Support Group Annual Get-together

Hi all,

Time to celebrate another good year. The Prostrate Support Groups from NCSM and Subang Medical Centre will hold our annual get-together on Saturday 15 December 2012 at the Empire Mall Subang Jaya, for High Tea.

Do come along with your families and care giver. Give them a treat for all their love and caring.

Call me at 013-3948839 for details.

Take Care.

Allen Lai

Relay For Life 2012

 me, Fighting!!!

Good job NCSM and thank you for RFL every year

Relay For Life 2012 in Kuala Lumpur was a very successful event. It had rained for the past two full days and we had thought we would have a wet evening. But God was kind and it stopped abruptly at 4.00 pm and  thence a beautiful and fresh evening and night.

I enjoyed the occasion and shared our joy in celebrating Life with all our cancer survivors. Four dedications were read and memories shared for our departed friends.

The Survivor's lap flagged off at 6 pm followed by groups of our support groups. Tentages were arranged in rows in the middle of the stadiums for over night stay. All the survivor's marque tentages were well manned and patronised.

The lighting of the luminaries was very touching, love and memories shared with one and all.

The evening's celebrating included music and performances by volunteer groups. Malaysia's celebrities also came up on stage. And lastly there were tons of good foods in the food hall.
I will let my pictures uploaded to my Facebook to tell the rest of the story.

Visit my Facebook at laikimhinn to download any picture at will.

I will certainly attend next years Relay for Life. To celebrate Life.
Take care

Allen Lai

Hidden Sugars

Being Diabetic, I am always dreadful of consuming too much sugar, particularly hidden sugars. It is a common fact that 75% of our sugar intake is hidden in all the foods we consume, conscious or unconsciously. Food industries add sugar to make their food nicer to eat. Even foods that are labeled “Low Fat” will normally have added sugar to compensate the removal of fats. Sugar is carbohydrate found in natural or processed foods. Sucrose, Dextrose, Fructose, syrups are all simple sugars. Starches are the second type of sugars, and dietary plant fibres are the third type. The American Heart Foundation recommends limiting our daily intake of sugar of no more than 150 calories for men and 100 calories for women.

How do we know the content of sugar in the food we buy? The obvious answer is to read the Nutrition label carefully. We should not be satisfied with foods labeled “good for us”, as there will always be a catch somewhere. Some products label sugar as total carbohydrate. Then again we should be able to translate and interpret the label “amount per serving”. I believe “per serving” is the most ambiguous measurement of quantity. I still do not know how to interpret it. Do you?

Reading the ingredient list on the label is no help either. We would not know how much of sugar is actually inherent from the food or how much of sugar is added on. Diet Foods are actually the biggest culprits with added sugar. The lower the Fat is reduced, the higher the compensation with sugar. So we should be more careful with diet foods as sugar is used to fill in the taste gap.

Another area for caution is “sugar free” or “no added sugar”. It does not mean there is no sugar at all. These foods may be high in other sugars. They are not automatically no sugar products.

Artificial or synthetic sugars are bad sweeteners. I believe they are basically chemicals and not natural sugars, except for some that are harvested from plants. We should avoid consuming these sugars altogether.

With so much sugar hidden in our foods, I have decided to challenge my sweet tooth instead. I have totally given up all sugared soft drinks. I have not added sugar to my hot drinks coffee and tea in the morning. I do not crave for sweet things like before. I have a fair understanding of the Glycemic Indexes (GI) of food and Glycemic loads. I try to avoid high GI foods and eat lesser portions all the time. I try to eat as many times as possible of small amounts each time.

My only draw back now is my craving for food after my exercises, giving rise to sugar spikes. I feel week and faint after an hour of any exercises and feel that I should be eating or drinking something sweet.

On special days I enjoy a sweet treat. Why not? I am aware of the hidden sugar and that will make me eat or drink less.

Take care

Allen Lai