Donald Gray

Susan Gubar is a professor emeritus of English at Indiana University, Bloomington, and co-editor of The Norton Anthology of Literature by Women.

Feminist literary scholar Susan Gubar was diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer in November 2008. she then began her emigration “from the world of the healthy to the domain of the ill,” she writes in her book, Memoir of a Debulked Woman.

Ovarian cancer often goes undetected until it has spread throughout the abdomen, and is typically fatal. To slow the spread of the disease, Gubar underwent a procedure known as the mother of all surgeries – a radical debulking operation in which her ovaries, uterus, fallopian tubes, appendix and parts of her intestine were removed.

In her memoir, she details – with graphic honesty – the physical and emotional pain, the surgery, chemotherapy, “intestinal disasters” and psychological changes that followed.

When she first received her diagnosis, she tells NPR’s Neal Conan, she was relieved. she had seen “how debilitating old age is” in her mother, and cancer, she figured, she could deal with. “I felt strongly then that I wanted to do what I could to sort of save the preciousness of life,” she says. “But I felt I would not go beyond that. I did not want to extend life at the expense of the quality of life.”

But that resolution proved difficult to keep. “I found myself changing,” she says. “As my end grew closer, it seemed more distant. I felt that I did have to keep on taking chemotherapy to try to beat the disease, although I believe it is unbeatable given the current protocols of medicine.”

Gubar talks with Conan about her continued struggles with the cancer that will likely kill her, and the memoir that became key to her sanity.

Interview Highlights

On ovarian cancer, known as “the silent killer”

“With ovarian cancer, the signs are very subtle. They’re very muted, and they’re easily misunderstood, not only by doctors but by the patient herself, because many women experience fatigue or bloating or indigestion, and these are just symptoms you put up with. You feel you don’t want to whine about them. and they’re often misdiagnosed as irritable bowel syndrome or possibly as menopausal or depression or hernia.

“So I think it is easy to sort of not register these signs … to hear them as the noise of the midlife body and not to really understand what they signify. But, yes, in my case I think I simply repressed it. … I was convinced that if I did a lot of stretching and yoga and breathing, and I ate the proper foods and enough fiber and some prune juice maybe, all would be well and all manner of things would be well.”

On debulking

“Debulking, which tries to take out as much cancerous material and all the organs that have been affected by it as possible, often leaves visible and invisible seeds of cancer in the body. most debulking operations in America actually are called suboptimal, which means that there is some visible evidence of cancer left in the body, and that means it will recur. So this is a devastating diagnosis. …

“And it’s really not malevolence on the part of the surgeons. I mean, they don’t know. The tests don’t tell them what’s happened inside the body, and … even CT scans sometimes are completely inaccurate in terms of what’s going on inside the body. So until they slit the body open – excuse my explicit language – from the belly button to the pubic bone, they don’t really know what they’re going to find and what they’re going to have to do … which means that the woman has no volition or agency and no decision-making role in this. She’s anesthetized at that point.”

On the psychological consequences of her chemotherapy

“Everybody has a different reaction to … the toxic chemicals they’re given, and everybody is given a different kind of ‘cocktail,’ we should not call it.

“I found that with the first chemo that I discuss in the book that the symptoms that were most difficult for me were psychological rather than physical. … I felt as if my subjectivity had been evacuated. I had no self. I wasn’t me. I wasn’t Susan. I wasn’t, you know, the kind of partner I feel I want to be, the kind of mother I want to be, the kind of teacher, the kind of mentor or friend.

“I just felt like a kind of zombie. and those were psychological consequences that not everybody suffers but that I did encounter.”

On how her life as an educator has helped her endure cancer

“I dealt with this the way I’ve been trained to deal as a scholar with anything that happens in my life, and I started reading, and I started finding out how little first-person accounts there were, how few memoirs there were and how difficult it was to understand the scientific work that was being published.

“And it became a project. and … writing the book was a kind of lifeline for me. Working on sentences and paragraphs and thinking about the poems that came to my mind that helped me to express what I was feeling, or the paintings by Frida Kahlo … I don’t think I could have survived without writing the book.”

(NewsUSA) – Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is the most common form of adult leukemia. Last year, the American Cancer Society estimated that nearly 16,000 Americans were diagnosed with this disease.

Jason Whiting, Sr. never imagined he would be one of them.

Several years ago, 36 year-old Jason, a Baltimore-based father of two, visited his doctor to see why the lymph nodes in his neck were enlarged. He was immediately referred to Dr. Stephen Noga, director, medical oncology/hematology at Alvin & Lois Lapidus Cancer Institute, who completed blood and bone marrow tests, which confirmed that Jason had CLL. with the diagnosis came mixed emotions — fear, shock and relief that it was detected early.

Given the early-stage diagnosis, Jason experienced minimal symptoms, and he and Dr. Noga decided to initially take a “watch and wait” approach to treatment — a common practice for CLL patients. Over the next several years, Jason had blood tests and CAT scans to monitor his disease progression.

In may 2009, Jason experienced discomfort in his chin and neck, and a CAT scan showed that the cancer had spread to lymph nodes in his abdomen and chest. both Jason and Dr. Noga agreed — it was now time to begin treatment and the fight against cancer.

“It was important that Jason be comfortable with his treatment approach, and we spent a lot of time discussing options,” said Dr. Noga.

Dr. Noga prescribed TREANDA, and after six cycles of TREANDA, Jason has achieved partial remission.

Jason didn’t fight this battle alone. Throughout his treatment, Jason relied on the support of his family and his coworkers.

“When I was diagnosed, I made a decision to beat CLL,” said Jason. “I knew I had to stay positive and motivated so the cancer would not get the best of me. I am thankful for everyone who supported me through the experience.”

Grateful to have achieved partial remission, Jason can be found practicing martial arts and spending time with his children — something that he never takes for granted.

Individual results may vary.

• Copyright 2012, Internet Broadcasting. this material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Consultant is first in county to use new method for treating gallstones

4:00pm Tuesday 10th April 2012 in Bradford by Claire Lomax

a doctor in Bradford has become the first in Yorkshire to use a new technique to shatter gallstones in patients.

Gallstones are stones, usually made of cholesterol, that form in the gallbladder. in most cases they do not cause any symptoms. however, in a small number of cases, gallstones can become trapped in a duct, which leads to a range of symptoms, including a sudden intense pain in the abdomen, nausea and vomiting and jaundice.

Risk factors include obesity and age, with older people more likely to develop gallstones.

Women are also two to three times more likely to develop gallstones than men.

Traditionally, patients needing treatment for gallstones, many of them elderly, have faced major surgery and hospital stays of up to ten days, or frequent visits to hospital for treatment to put in stents.

Health bosses in Bradford have now invested £50,000 in new equipment called SpyGlass from a company called Boston Scientific.

it consists of a baby endoscope – a tiny flexible tube and eye piece to see inside the body – which can pass up a standard endoscope and into the bile duct to directly visualise abnormalities.

tiny forceps can then be used by the doctor to take a biopsy, to aid diagnosis and management of disease or a lithotripter – a device which emits electrohydraulic shock waves – can pass up the baby scope to shatter gallstones.

it will be used on patients who have stones which can’t be removed surgically or using standard endoscopic techniques.

Dr Conrad Beckett, a consultant gastroenterologist at Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, was the first to use SpyGlass, making Bradford one of only eight other centres in the country carrying out the procedure.

Dr Beckett, who has 18 years experience, trained in the technique in Aintree, Liverpool.

he said: “It is a procedure which is lower risk for the patient and can be done as a day case. it takes about an hour-and-a-half for a big stone and because it is not comfortable for the patient it is done under general anaesthetic.

“The first procedure went very well and we crushed a big stone nicely. hopefully the patient won’t have to come back again.

“We are talking about doing a couple of cases a months and will start with the backlog of our own patients and will then be happy to take referrals from across Yorkshire.”

more Bradford stories

Springville, UT (PRWEB) January 28, 2012

If you have moles or warts, you know how embarrassing they can be. But the power of electro waveform technology is a proven,effective way to get rid of moles and even provide an effective wart treatment.

Warts and moles are commonly small and flat, often single but sometimes clustered. they usually develop on fingers, hands and feet, and less frequently on arms, legs, neck, abdomen or back. Planter warts are common on the sole of the foot and if inflamed, may cause ongoing irritation or pain. Skin warts and moles are not easily transferred by contact.

The VyGone Inhibitor Zapper literally zaps away moles and warts using the power of electro waveform technology. When applied to warts and moles and other areas affected by microscopic viruses, the mild electro waveform released by the VyGone Zapper stops viral activities and allow fast natural healing.

For the treatment of warts and moles, simply apply the Viral Inhibitor Pro for 4 full cycles in a circular pattern around the edge of the wart in a 4-star pattern. Because warts are typically dry, wet the skin for better electro signal conduction. Applications should be hourly, up to 8 times a day. Continue applications for several months until moles and warts shrink and fall off. MD, of Orem, Utah, said the healing power of the VyGone Zapper was amazing.

“My wife had a lot of moles,” MD said. “We treated these with the Viral Inhibitor Pro and they started to shrink. they were raised and became un-raised and started to disappear. Warts will also disappear, if you apply it regularly, they’ll just vanish! It wipes away genital warts and it wipes through warts wherever they occur.”

But the VyGone Zapper is not just effective against warts and moles. It also can be used to eliminate the symptoms of cold sores, genital warts, molluscum, genital herpes, and even shingles.

Cold sores are herpes viruses that are transmitted by kissing, eating or drinking after someone already infected with the virus. many people are infected unknowingly while they are still in their youth. the viruses – which are like a short DNA protein and are 100,000 times smaller than a cell — are not alive. Therefore, they can never be killed, so nothing can cure cold sores.

Instead, the viruses lie dormant until they enter cells, copy millions of times, then burst and invade more cells. When they do, symptoms of cold sores can include early irritation, tingling, itching, burning, redness, pain, fever and tightness.

When the damage from these eruptions is sensed by the body’s immune system, it toughens the cell walls, then “dilutes” and ejects the Herpes viruses in blisters and weeping lesions that may take weeks to heal. after the blisters fade away, some of the virus remains, enters nerves and resides there dormant until the next breakout. Eventually they re-emerge and attack again.

But the VyGone Zapper can stop the blisters and lesions caused by cold sore viruses from ever forming. Its electrical pulses simulate the neural signals that stop herpes activities outside nerves. without viral interference, the body’s fast natural healing can start to heal the outbreak.

The VyGone Zapper Pro is good for thousands and thousands of treatments. A typical cold sore can be dealt with in four to eight treatments. however, you can treat it as many times as you would like, and it can be used up to every half hour until the symptoms disappear.

People with moles, warts and other conditions now have a safe and effective tool to combat their often painful and embarrassing condition. Safe and effective the VyGone Zapper wart remover and mole eradicator can make these growths disappear forever. for more information about the electro waveform technology used by the VyGone Zapper, visit our website at VyGone.com.

Read the full story at prweb.com/releases/2012/1/prweb9111916.htm

Published on 26/11/2011

Many athletes complain of a sharp, colicky pain in the left or the right upper quadrant of the abdomen during strenuous exercise. This is commonly referred to as a stitch.

This may be due to muscle spasm of the diaphragm or trapping of the gas in the liver or spleen flexure of the colon. This condition has often been thought to be associated with exercise undertaken soon after eating a solid meal.

There is no proof of this but avoidance of solid meal prior to exercise may be an appropriate treatment. Occasionally, athletes get cramping type of abdominal pain. This occurs in association with intense, endurance exercise and is thought to occur as a consequence of relative ischemia due to shunting of blood away from the gastrointestinal tract to the exercising muscles.

The effect is aggravated by dehydration. The possibility of abdominal pain being referred from the thoracic spine should always be considered. A thorough examination of the thoracic spine should be performed in any athlete complaining of abdominal pain.

Reduced mobility detected in one or more intervertebral segments should be corrected by manual therapy techniques and the effect on the athletes symptoms noted.

Diarrhoea appear to be the more frequent, with exercise especially with long distance running, as a result, the terms runners trot and runners diarrhoea have been coined to describe the condition.

Athletes may complain of an urge to defecate while running, approximately half of those who experience this urge to defecate actually complain of episodes of diarrhoea during running.

The incidence of runner’s diarrhoea seems to be related to the intensity of the exercise and occurs more commonly in competition than in training. The anxiety associated with competition may be a contributory factor. The exact cause of runner’s diarrhoea is uncertain.

Relative intestinal ischemia described above may be a contributory factor. an increase in intestinal motility may also contribute to the development of diarrhoea.

Studies of the relationship between intestinal transit time and exercise have shown conflicting results but would appear that intestinal motility is increased with intense exercise.

This increase in gut motility and changes in intestinal secretion and absorption may be related to increased level of hormones associated with exercise. When faced with an athlete with diarrhoea, the clinician should also seek a history of vitamin and mineral supplementation or ingestion of caffeine or artificial sweeteners prior to exercise.

Each of these may contribute to runner’s diarrhoea. Acute diarrhoea is usually due to an infective cause and may be viral or bacterial. This is a particular problem when the athletes are travelling away from home.

Treatment of athletes with exercise related diarrhoea involves dietary changes to include reduction of fibre content of the diet 24 hours prior to intense competitive exercise.

Dr Gondi, a medical practitioner, is a member of National Olympic Committee’s Medical Commission and board member of Regional Anti-Doping Organisation.

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our doctor explains the symptoms and treatment of appendicitis. Picture: Supplied. Source: Supplied

DR Cindy Pan explains the symptoms and treatment of this common but painful condition.

Question: How do you know if you have appendicitis? what is it and how is it treated?

Answer: Appendicitis, which means inflammation of the appendix, is the most common cause of acute abdominal pain.Typical symptoms include abdominal pain (commonly starting around the middle of the abdomen before moving to the right lower abdomen), poor appetite, nausea or vomiting and fever. It may be tender and sore when the doctor presses over the abdomen in the right lower region and there may be rebound pain when the doctor lets go after pressing deeply in this area. In some cases your abdomen may be quite rigid; the doctor will be unable to press deeply because your abdominal muscles are so tense. This can indicate that the appendix has burst and peritonitis (inflammation of the inner lining of the abdomen) has developed.the doctor may do blood tests to confirm the diagnosis of appendicitis. other tests which may be employed include CT scans and ultrasound.there are other conditions that can cause similar symptoms, such as ectopic pregnancy, severe menstrual cramps, pelvic inflammatory disease in women, gastroenteritis, urinary tract infection, diverticulitis, pancreatitis and other conditions. by listening to your symptoms, examining you physically and ordering appropriate tests, your doctor can assess the likelihood of appendicitis and, if necessary, send you to hospital for further assessment. If needed, immediate surgery may be performed to remove the appendix.  the surgery can be performed via a laparoscope (using tiny instruments attached to a narrow flexible microscope, also known as keyhole surgery) or through an incision in the abdominal wall. Your doctor will talk to you about which approach is best for you. after the surgery your recovery time can vary from days to weeks, depending on whether the appendix ruptured and whether there were any other complications. while appendicitis is extremely common, it is not a condition to be taken lightly, since if left untreated, the appendix may rupture, leading to abscess formation, peritonitis and even death.

Got a question for Dr Cindy Pan? Visit bodyandsoul.com.au/askourexperts

I was diagnosed with a simple cysts (fluid filled sac) on my ovary and I wanted to know if anyone would tell me about their symptoms they experienced.

I was diagnosed with ovarian cysts a few years ago. the first time one burst I thought it was my appendix. When they saw it wasn't my appendix (they did a CT) they sent me for an internal ultrasound. they saw not only the cyst that burst, but others.

I had a total of 4 episodes within 2 years. Since then I've not had one burst (knock on wood lol).

As far as symptoms, it always started with what felt like a stomach cramp that about 30 in after it started it would move to the lower right side of my abdomen.

A lot of women are diagnosed but never have one actually burst. It's actually very common. hopefully that will be the case with you

Good luck!

Could there be any chest pains with it? ever heard of toxins in the gall bladder?

horrible chest pains that radiate towards your back., feels like your going to die.

Gallbladder attacks usually occur after eating a large fatty meal. The pain is felt in the right upper quadrant of the abdomen (under your ribs on the right side) which is where your gallbladder is located. The pain may radiate to the right shoulder blade or back.
Avoid eating fatty foods. go to a doctor and get an ultrasound for a diagnosis of gallstones.

These severe or mild aches usually attack the right ovary. it is easy to confuse it with ovulation pains that come regularly every month to some women. Right ovary pain usually happens in the lower right Quadrant of the abdomen. Some feel the pain in their right side, just above the hips.Quite often, right ovary pain indicates the presence of an ovarian cyst. Cysts can be very painful. Nevertheless, the pain caused by an ovarian cyst will usually resolve itself and does not need the assistance of medicines or medical practitioners. Ovarian cysts are one of the conditions that are difficult to handle when it comes to symptoms and treatment too. A sonogram is used to detect the cyst. it can turn out positive if the affected ovary is plumper than the other is.Some women tend to ignore that pain in the right side, which occurs just above the hips. every woman needs to be aware that right ovary pain might be a sign that things are not well in the right whole reproductive system. although we have said that ovarian cysts do resolve themselves, any woman who gets right ovary pain must seek treatment. After all, it is only through medical testing that we can actually tell what the actual problem is. So get a diagnosis from a qualified doctor, preferably a gynecologist and follow this up with the right treatment.Pain in the right ovary can also be caused by ectopic pregnancies. The fetus attaches itself to the walls of the fallopian tubes rather than the uterus in this pregnancy complication. no woman wants to carry a baby to full term when it is outside its naturally designated place, the uterus. Now you have a reason to be very worried when you get that right ovary pain.The other symptom of the right ovarian pain is the mimic appendicitis. The appendix is a small finger like organ attached to the large intestine, which when blocked may store bacteria that eventually develop into an infection that is referred to as appendicitis. it is treated by surgically removing the appendix. however, right ovarian pain may mimic this condition and display similar symptoms.Pain from the right ovary may also be accompanied by diarrhea, fever, nausea, and vomiting. although it affects mainly females, it can occur in both adults and older children.

Chris enjoys writing articles on topics like right ovary pain and what causes ovarian cysts . Visit to read more detail.

Indigestion is a very common complaint. Indigestion symptoms can variety from very slight to severe. many people take into account an in the course of the counter indigestion remedy to relieve the pain and discomfort that they’re feeling. right here a couple more tips that one could use for indigestion remedy.

Stress is a major trigger to many common ailments which include indigestion. when you lead a hectic lifestyle, you can be likely to obtain eating whereas on the go, eating as well easily or eating the wrong sorts of convenience foods. These can all result in a terrible circumstance of indigestion for which a considerable indigestion remedy is heading to be required. In addition, whenever a stressful event makes you nervous and edgy you will often recognize that your abdomen churning aways. Your abdomen becomes very stimulated for the time-span of stressful situations.

Although an indigestion remedy tend to be consumed to settle the stomach, understanding to cope while using stress within the situation assists a whole lot more. you will count much less in your bag full of the selected indigestion remedy which you have to bring along with you everywhere you travel. you can research inhaling and exhaling techniques as well as other snooze methods that’ll calm the nervous process and quit the abdomen from making huge quantities of acid.

Another major result in of indigestion is a deficiency of quality sleep and rest. Being continually tired and fatigued can create havoc within your body, which include the digestive system. the abdomen gets confused when you take into account in at irregular intervals or past due at night and so produces hazardous acid when it should be resting. Although it would be quick to obtain treated which carries a uncomplicated indigestion remedy, an improved option is to consume sensible meals at sensible times within the day.

Indigestion is brought on by an excess of abdomen acid and so anything that encourages the abdomen to continue making the acid should definitely be avoided. two such stimulants are alcohol and nicotine. Alcohol is naturally acidic and so this just provides more within the hazardous substance i.e. acid towards the already afflicted abdomen and oesophagus. Nicotine on the other palm contains hundreds of chemicals which dry out the guitar neck and make the lining within the walls especially susceptible towards the abdomen acid. This can result in hoarseness, soreness and if left untreated for any time period of your time one within the more considerable conditions which tend to be lethal, most noticeably oesophageal and guitar neck cancer.

It is heading to be quick to turn to medication each time you need an indigestion remedy. however, its overconsumption can cause other element effects. hence, if you find by yourself enduring indigestion symptoms continually, it is best to purpose out why that is happening in the initial place and make adjustments appropriately.