The following quotes have been taken from a Public Article, found on Geutenberg.org. It was written by John. Kent, Stanton, Suffolk. The full article title is ‘Cancer, Its Nature and Symptoms‘.
Remember, these quotes were taken from an article written in 1862. I think that this helps one to realize how much more advanced the world is in fighting this disease today and how fortunate we are to be fighting this disease in 2007. I am very thankful that I did not live back in that era.
You can read the full article at ** KENT ** .
“Cancer is, unfortunately, one of those desperate diseases to which the human frame is liable, and more to be dreaded than any other, inasmuch as it is insidious in its approach, and destructive to the greatest degree when it is perfectly developed. It is so intractable and malignant in its nature that it is generally considered an incurable disease; and not without reason, as notwithstanding the great increase of knowledge amongst that valuable portion of the community, the medical profession, yet it baffles all their efforts to subdue it, and sets at defiance all the triumphs of science. “
“Like many other diseases it is frequently hereditary, many members of the same family having become the subjects of cancer. It most usually attacks the female breast, the lips, particularly the lower one, the tongue, the skin, and the glandular parts about the neck and arm-pits; the stomach, the liver, the lungs, and the brain, may also become affected with this terrible malady. Sometimes it commences without any ostensible cause, and the attention of the patient is frequently directed to the case by mere accident; at other times, blows, bruises, or continued pressure upon a part, may often be traced as the exciting cause. In either case, however, it is generally found in the state of a hard lump or knot, varying in its size, it is loose and moveable, without pain or discolouration of the skin. It may continue in this state for many months, or even years; it then enlarges, the surface of the tumour becomes more or less knotty or uneven; it becomes hot and painful, and the pain is of a peculiar darting, piercing nature, or what the faculty technically call lancinating; and the patient’s health, which had hitherto continued tolerably well, now begins to suffer from the irritation of the disease. In process of time the part ulcerates, a discharge of fetid ichorous matter issues from it; sometimes it bleeds freely, and there is a burning pain in the part. The ulcer becomes of considerable size, and assumes a frightful aspect. The patient becomes dejected in his spirits, his countenance is sallow and woe worn, his appetite fails, his days and nights are full of sorrow and pain, the disease still progresses, till, finally, death comes to the aid of the unhappy sufferer, and closes the scene of anguish and misery.
Such is the progress of this appalling malady. It commences apparently in a trifling way, it terminates in destruction of life.
I have said that the patients’ spirits are usually dejected in this disease, and I wish this to be particularly noticed, as it points out how cautious a medical man ought to be in stating positively to the sufferer the real nature of his complaint. The mind is so depressed by the disease, that the simple communication of the fact to the patient often produces such a shock to the feelings as he rarely recovers from; indeed, it often accelerates the death of the patient, and such being the case, I am quite certain that no man of experience, judgment, or common sense, would ever commit himself so seriously.”
I believe the whole medical profession are of the same opinion; in fact, those gentlemen are candid enough to acknowledge that cancer is a disease over which their art has no control. This is much to be deplored, inasmuch as it has enabled the most unprincipled characters to practise their impositions upon the unhappy sufferers with the greatest impunity. What but the most consummate impudence can allow a man to assert that he has cured a genuine cancer, when that very man does not know the nature of cancer, or point out what is, or what is not, a malignant disease?”
Bladder cancer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
I have quoted the paragraphs below from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
If you wish to read the full contents on Wikipedia, click ** HERE **.
Bladder cancer refers to any of several types of malignant growths of the urinary bladder. It is a disease in which abnormal cells multiply without control in the bladder. The bladder is a hollow, muscular organ that stores urine; it is located in the pelvis. The most common type of bladder cancer begins in cells lining the inside of the bladder and is called urothelial cell or transitional cell carcinoma (UCC or TCC).
Signs and symptoms
Bladder cancer characteristically causes blood in the urine, this may be visible to the naked eye (frank haematuria) or detectable only by microscope (microscopic haematuria). Other possible symptoms include pain during urination, frequent urination or feeling the need to urinate without results. These signs and symptoms are not specific to bladder cancer, and are also caused by non-cancerous conditions, including prostate infections and cystitis.
Causes
Risk factors
Exposure to environmental carcinogens of various types is responsible for the development of most bladder cancers. Tobacco use (specifically cigarette smoking) is thought to cause 50% of bladder cancers discovered in male patients and 30% of those found in female patients. Thirty percent of bladder tumors probably result from occupational exposure in the workplace to carcinogens such as benzidine. Occupations at risk are metal industry workers, rubber industry workers, workers in the textile industry and people who work in printing. Hairdressers are thought to be at risk as well because of their frequent exposure to permanent hair dyes. It has been proposed that hair dyes are a risk factor, and some have shown an odds ratio of 2.1 to 3.3 for risk of developing bladder cancer among women who use permanent hair dyes, while others have shown no correlation between the use of hair dyes and bladder cancer. Certain drugs such as cyclophosphamide and phenacetin are known to predispose to bladder TCC. Chronic bladder irritation (infection, bladder stones, catheters, bilharzia) predisposes to squamous cell carcinoma of the bladder. Approximately 20% of bladder cancers occur in patients without predisposing risk factors. Bladder cancer is not currently believed to be heritable (i.e., does not “run in families” as a consequence of a specific genetic abnormality).
Genetics
Like virtually all cancers, bladder cancer development involves the acquisition of mutations in various oncogenes and tumor supressor genes. Genes which may be altered in bladder cancer include FGFR3, HRAS, RB1 and TP53. Several genes have been identified which play a role in regulating the cycle of cell division, preventing cells from dividing too rapidly or in an uncontrolled way. Alterations in these genes may help explain why some bladder cancers grow and spread more rapidly than others.
A family history of bladder cancer is also a risk factor for the disease. Many cancer experts assert that some people appear to inherit reduced ability to break down certain chemicals, which makes them more sensitive to the cancer-causing effects of tobacco smoke and certain industrial chemicals.
Diagnosis
The gold standard of diagnosing bladder cancer is urine cytology and transurethral (through the urethra) cystoscopy. Urine cytology can be obtained in voided urine or at the time of the cystoscopy (”bladder washing”). Cytology is very specific (a positive result is highly indicative of bladder cancer) but suffers from low sensitivity (a negative result does not exclude the diagnosis of cancer). There are newer urine bound markers for the diagnosis of bladder cancer. These markers are more sensitive but not as specific as urine cytology. They are much more expensive as well. Many patients with a history, signs, and symptoms suspicious for bladder cancer are referred to a urologist or other physician trained in cystoscopy, a procedure in which a flexible tube bearing a camera and various instruments is intruduced into the bladder through the urethra. Suspicious lesions may be biopsied and sent for pathologic analysis.
Treatment
The treatment of bladder cancer depends on how deep the tumor invades into the bladder wall. Superficial tumors (those not entering the muscle layer) can be “shaved off” using an electrocautery device attached to a cystoscope. Immunotherapy in the form of BCG instillation is also used to treat and prevent the recurrence of superficial tumors..[3] BCG immunotherapy is effective in up to 2/3 of the cases at this stage. Instillations of chemotherapy into the bladder can also be used to treat superficial disease.
Untreated, superficial tumors may gradually begin to infiltrate the muscular wall of the bladder. Tumors that infiltrate the bladder require more radical surgery where part or all of the bladder is removed (a cystectomy) and the urinary stream is diverted. In some cases, skilled surgeons can create a substitute bladder (a neobladder) from a segment of intestinal tissue, but this largely depends upon patient preference, age of patient, renal function, and the site of the disease.
A combination of radiation and chemotherapy can also be used to treat invasive disease. It has not yet been determined how the effectiveness of this form of treatment compares to that of radical ablative surgery.
There is weak observational evidence from one very small study (84) to suggest that the concurrent use of statins is associated with failure of BCG immunotherapy.
Epidemiology
In the United States, bladder cancer is the fourth most common type of cancer in men and the ninth most common cancer in women. More than 47,000 men and 16,000 women are diagnosed with bladder cancer each year. One reason for its higher incidence in men is that a molecular receptor or protein that is much more active in men than women plays a role in the development of the disease.
External Links
I have visited this site and have found it to be excellent. The Author, Wendy Sheridan, has put up a site on Bladder Cancer.
To visit Wendy’s site, click on this URL HERE
Posted on December 18th, 2007 by Neil
Filed under: Bladder Cancer - Background, My Bladder Cancer - Symptoms
My husband has been referred to a urologist for “suspicious cells” in his urine. We are scheduled for a cystcopy in 2 weeks. Please tell me what “suspicious cells” indicate.
Thanks,