At the Harold Leever Regional Cancer Center, we are privileged to provide the best community cancer care available for each patient. Our blog serves as an extension of this care, offering community-based resources on a wide array of cancer-related healthcare topics.
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As the Harold Leever Regional Cancer Center continues to follow Governor Lamont's executive order for wearing masks in public places in the state of Connecticut, we wanted to share some guidelines for wearing a mask that we have adapted from our caregiver protocols.
A cancer diagnosis is never good news, but for U.S. residents, a cancer diagnosis is more survivable than ever before.
Americans spent $31 billion on bottled water in 2018, with the average American consuming 42 gallons. In fact, bottled water has become the country’s number one beverage, according to Consumer Reports. Most people think that bottled water is safer or healthier than tap (or municipal) water, but 64% of all bottled water sold in the United States is just filtered tap water.
“Look Good, Feel Better offers women the opportunity to effectively mitigate some of the side effects — both physical and emotional — that can make cancer treatment especially difficult,” says Leever Operations Director Deborah Parkinson. “We’re proud to offer the program at no cost to our patients, who are always grateful for its profound impact on their lives.”
Routine screenings are among the most important tools available to physicians and patients working to treat and prevent cancer.
“Screening can help doctors find and treat many forms of cancer early, before patients begin to experience symptoms,” explains Leever Radiation Oncologist Dr. Joseph Ravalese III. “Early detection is important because almost all cancers respond to treatment better in the earliest stages of the disease, when they have not spread to other parts of the body.”
They say that knowledge is power — it equips us to predict, understand, prevent, and solve problems. Sourcing healthcare knowledge is critically important, especially when it comes to cancer, where it must be broad in scope, precise in detail, and backed by meticulous data. In Waterbury, that data is managed by highly trained cancer registrars working at the city’s two hospitals: Amy Baldwin-Stephens at Saint Mary’s Hospital and Sara Mercado at Waterbury Hospital.
Wiped out. Pooped. Exhausted. Zero energy. I cannot move without some caffeine. Chances are you have experienced at least one of these feelings. Perhaps you have been burning the candle at both ends, or maybe you haven’t been getting enough sleep. A great nap or eight hours of sleep can often resolve the problem, but if it doesn’t, maybe you are experiencing fatigue.
Warm weather is a great opportunity to get outside. Being in nature has a number of health benefits, including fighting depression and anxiety, reducing stress, improving mood, lowering blood pressure, and reducing cancer risk, but while you’re enjoying the outdoors, don’t forget to protect your skin from the sun’s damaging rays.
If you want to turn a recipe from bland and boring, to interesting and complex, try adding herbs and spices. Imagine apple pie without cinnamon, or tomato sauce without basil, oregano, garlic and pepper. It turns out that herbs and spices not only enhance the flavor of food, but they also add significant health benefits.
Last fall, Middlebury resident Paula Connolly attended a community education program at the Leever Cancer Center. The topic: the genetics of breast cancer. Some 3,000 miles away in Dublin, Ireland, Paula’s sister, Helen, was also engaged in a bit of genetic discovery. One of their cousins, Margaret (whose mom and sister died in their early forties), determined she would explore the possibility that faulty genes might be at the heart of the family’s common diagnosis; and she asked her Aunt Kathleen (who was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 76) if she would be willing to participate in genetic testing. Kathleen’s results revealed a BRCA 2 gene mutation.