Archive for June, 2007

One of the cancers that are among the deadliest is ovarian cancer.

It is a cancer that initially attacks the ovaries.

It is named after its development in ovaries.

It is the fifth most common cancer among women.

The ovarian cancer is a very rare type of cancer but its overall chances of development are 1 out of every 100.

It is estimated that over twenty-five thousand women experience this deadly disease every year.

Before gaining knowledge about ovarian cancer, it is very important to understand what the ovaries are!

Ovaries are the female reproductive organs that produce eggs. These eggs then travel through the fallopian tubes into the uterus where the fertilized egg implants and develops into a fetus.

Actually, the ovaries have three types of tissues. Germ cells produce eggs, stromal cells generate the female hormones estrogen and progesterone, and epithelial cells cover the ovary.

Mainly, there are three types of ovarian cancers depending up on the kind of cells that the tumor initially attacks. Accordingly, the types are named. The types of this cancer are germ cell tumors, stromal tumors, and epithelial tumors.

PMS stands for Premenstrual Syndrome.

It is a syndrome that usually occurs in women from seven to fourteen days before the onset of menstruation.

However, it stops soon after periods begin.

Most of the women experience PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome) symptoms at various points of their lives.

The symptoms vary from woman to woman and from cycle to cycle. On the other hand, more than 150 symptoms are caused by PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome), ranging from breast tenderness to nausea to anger and irritability.

It is estimated that nearly eighty percent of menstruating women experience PMS symptoms. The most common are anxiety, irritability, depression, bloating and craving sugary foods.

Treatment of PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome) focuses on relieving symptoms. For relieving, there are many homeopathic and nutritional solutions. However, exercises, dietary changes, medications and a regular yoga practice can provide tremendous benefits.

Exercising regularly has a reflective effect on hormones, which are involved in the menstrual cycle. By doing exercise, you may notice less anger and depression. It also reduces stress. It is good to exercise regularly about twenty to forty-five minutes thrice a week.

Osteoporosis is a silent disease characterized by low bone mass (bone thinning) that leads to brittle bones.

Thus, osteoporotic bones are more susceptible to fracture and there will be an increased risk of fractures of the hip, spine, and wrist.

It occurs especially in women following menopause. Osteoporosis is so common that half of all women up to age sixty are prone to this disease.

As there is no cure for osteoporosis, it is good to evade the things that can increase your risk of developing this disease.

The preventive measures to reverse osteoporosis include:

Stop the Pop: Intake of carbonated beverages such as soft drinks, champagne, and sparkling water can remove calcium from your bones because carbonated beverages contain large amounts of phosphates, which causes more calcium loss.

Cut down on Protein: Excess intake of protein can lead to acidity in your body. This acidity in turn causes calcium to be lost in the urine. It is good to take only two to four ounces of lean protein, thrice a day.

Maintain Stomach Acid: Stomach acid is essential to absorb mineral deposits such as calcium, magnesium, and zinc. Blocking stomach acid significantly increases the risk of developing osteoporosis.

Miscarriage, also known as a spontaneous abortion, is a natural occurrence of expulsion of a nonviable fetus and placenta from the uterus before the baby has the ability to survive outside of the uterus.

It affects one out of every four women. It is generally caused by a chromosomal or genetic abnormality in the baby.

It is estimated that almost every woman experiences at least one miscarriage in her reproduction age.

It is also found that about half of all pregnancies lead to spontaneous abortions.

The Recent studies shown that most women who undergo miscarriage will have healthy pregnancies later on. Only 1 to 2 % of women experience more than one spontaneous abortion successively.

Miscarriage is the loss of pregnancy before twenty-four weeks. The highest risk period for spontaneous abortion is between 4-6 weeks. Once you reach 8 or 9 weeks of your pregnancy (where the baby’s heartbeat is observed on the scan), there will be only 4-5% chances of having loss of pregnancy.

The possibility of miscarriage completely depends upon the speed of heartbeat. It should be 120-160 beats per minute. The possibility of spontaneous abortion then reduces to 5-8% and gradually decreases as weeks pass on.

Menstruation is also called menses (periods).

It is part of the menstrual cycle.

Menstrual cycle is the body’s way of preparing you (woman) for pregnancy.

When you, as a girl, get your first menstrual period, known as menarche, then it will be one of the many physical signs that you are turning into a woman.

Having periods regularly indicates that your body is functioning properly.

Normally, menarche occurs after two to three years when your breasts begin to develop. Remember, menarche doesn’t occur until all parts of your reproductive system get matured and work together.

Generally, your body and mind get changes during teenage years. Thus, for the most part, menstruation starts between the ages of twelve and thirteen but a first period may occur as early as age nine.

Changes in hormones that usually occur every month stimulate your body to release an ovum (egg). The production of this ovum in different stages refers to a menstrual cycle.

The menstrual cycle is a twenty-eight day long process that each and every female come across regularly until they reach menopause stage. This menstrual cycle, usually, lasts around twenty-eight days but, in rare cases, it can be as long as 40 days.

Today, millions of women have been diagnosed with breast cancer and are enjoying even more than thirty years of being cancer free.

However, early detection is the key for this success.

Mammogram is the technology that often used to detect breast cancer.

Mammogram, also called a mammography exam, is an x-ray of the breasts.

The mammograms are used to diagnose early breast cancer in women.

Basically, there are two basic mammogram tests: screening and diagnostic mammograms.

Screening mammogram is done in women who have no signs of breast cancer. Generally, the test involves two X-rays of each breast. With a screening mammogram, you can detect a tumor that cannot be felt. The mammograms that are used frequently are screening mammograms.

Diagnostic mammogram takes even longer and also involves more radiation exposure than a screening mammogram due to the involvement of more X-rays.

With diagnostic mammogram you can evaluate the abnormalities in the breast such as lumps, pain, nipple discharge or a strange change in breast size or shape. Also, obtain a clear X-ray image that a screening mammogram is unable to produce.

Experiencing infertility issues can be distressing for any couple.

In the United States, about 6.1 million people are affected with infertility.

It is the inability of a couple to conceive a pregnancy, after at least 1 year of unprotected sexual intercourse.

Moreover, if you are a woman and experiencing repeated miscarriages then this condition is also refers to infertility.

The causes for infertility vary depending upon your health condition.

Mostly the female infertility issues are due to premature ovarian failure (PCOS) and advanced age.

However, the inability of conceiving pregnancy can be due to fertility problem in your partner.

Rarely, the usage of drugs, both prescribed and recreational, may become the cause for your fertility woes. On the other hand, for some, there will be no cause behind these fertility problems.

Treatment for infertility will be done through medication or surgery and approximately 85-90% of cases are treated effectively.

Improvements in fertility treatment have made it possible for the introduction of a new and advanced technology called in vitro fertilization (IVF). IVF is now recognized worldwide as a non-surgical and safest infertility treatment.

Hysterectomy is a surgical method of removing your uterus (womb), a place where a baby grows when you are a pregnant.

Generally, this surgery is performed for a variety of reasons:

• when you have chronic pelvic pain
• uterine fibroids
• Endometriosis
• uterine cancer or heavy
• irregular periods.

Actually, in the human body, the uterus is the major female reproductive organ with its one end, the cervix, opens into the vagina and the other end is connected to both sides of the fallopian tubes.

Just below the division point of each fallopian tube is an ovary. The ovaries are a pair of glands, which produce eggs and the sex hormones.

Hysterectomy Surgical Methods:

On the other hand, presently hysterectomy can be performed in three ways: an abdominal incision (abdominal hysterectomy), a vaginal incision (vaginal hysterectomy), or through laparoscopic incisions (laparoscopic hysterectomy).

Abdominal hysterectomy:

In this, the surgeon makes an incision through skin and connective tissue in your lower abdomen in order to reach your uterus. Generally, this surgical method has the most uncomfortable recovery because the long abdominal incision takes more time to heal.