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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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.
GE Discovery™ MI DR PET/CT significantly improves diagnostic accuracy and reduces patient exposure to radiation by more than 50 percent.
There are more than 1000 supplements currently available in stores and online that claim to boost one’s immunity. Their claims to fend off infection, help you bounce back from injuries, reduce the likelihood of cancer and other diseases, and prevent damage from environmental pollutants are just a few of the purported benefits. Who wouldn’t want to swallow them by the fistful? But do they work?
Summer is on its way, which means more time spent outdoors. While getting fresh air and exercise is a great way to improve and maintain your health, there’s one thing about the summer sun that isn’t so positive: skin cancer.
A cancer diagnosis brings significant challenges—not just physical, but mental and emotional as well.
For women, dealing with the physical trials associated with cancer and cancer treatment can be exacerbated by appearance-related side effects, including hair loss, changes in skin tone, and dramatic swings in body weight. Far from being trivial, those appearance-related issues can be devastating to a woman’s self-esteem, body image, social functioning, and sense of self.
It takes too long. I don’t have time. Too much chopping. Everyone eats at a different time. I don’t have the right ingredients.
These are just a few of the comments people make when asked about making homemade healthy meals.
According to a study reported in Business News Daily, Americans spend 23 hours a week emailing, texting, and using social media. Imagine how well you could eat if you used some of that time to prepare healthy food, or maybe even get in a walk! With a small amount of planning, food that is prepared at home can be delicious, easy to make, and healthier than fast food or take-out. Let’s get started!
When you're dealing with cancer treatment, it's easy to let stress take over. To help patients cope with that stress, and as part of the Leever Cancer Center's dedication to providing comprehensive cancer support services to our patients and their families, we offer the "Building Your Self-Care Toolbox” program, a series of no-cost workshops for patients and caregivers.
We've all seen and heard the ads: "Headache? Toothache? Joint pain? Muscle soreness? Take an anti-inflammatory." Products like aspirin, steroids, ibuprofen (Motrin and Advil, for example) and other NSAIDS, or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, are used by many to help manage the pain caused by inflammation. But what if there were foods that could also help to reduce inflammation? Would you be game to try them?
You go to the supermarket for your weekly groceries and find yourself in the produce aisle. Scratching your head, you wonder if you should splurge on the organic apples or save some money and get the shiny non-organic ones. The process continues as you work your way through the supermarket, with every aisle and every food item appearing to come in organic and non-organic forms, even candy bars. Is the extra cost worth it?