The world is flat guys, Twitter is awesome! #doctors20 — Ángel González (@angel189) February 2, 2015 Worldwide Conversation Only on Twitter can people around the world chat with each other in real-time about an issue that impacts so many. Monday February 2nd, a group of 114 people from places as different as South Africa, Belgium, Australia,...
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The Cancer Research Institute has created an infographic to explain cancer immunotherapy. Cancer immunotherapy is an incredible resource to treat cancer. Essentially, the immune system is activated and its ability to remove specific cancer cells is re-enabled. The infographic below explains the components of the immune system that are...
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Thinking about Blood Blood carries nutrients and oxygen to the cells and waste products from the cells. Blood vessels—capillaries, arteries, veins—carry that blood throughout the body. Obviously blood vessels are important to life. The tissues in our body produce compounds that enhance the growth of blood vessels and that stop the growth of blood...
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Waste Not, Want Not Did you know that 40% of people who receive gift cards don’t use their full value? In 2011, it was estimated that since 2005 $41 billion worth of gift cards had gone unclaimed. That’s a whole lot of money and a bunch of gift cards. Enter A Great Idea One woman heard these facts and has made it her mission to see that those gift...
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Cost Medical care for cancer is costly. In addition, there is the financial burden that patients and families face in getting to and from the best care–which may be located at medical centers far from home. The situation can seem overwhelming. Corporate Angel Network Into this dilemma, little known resources have arisen to meet this challenge. One of...
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Give light, and the darkness will disappear of itself. ~Desiderius Erasmus CancerHawk is about giving light to cancer patients and their caregivers. Started by Robyn Stoller in 2011, CancerHawk is Robyn’s way of sharing the knowledge that she gained on-the-job as caregiver to her husband. Robyn and Alan’s Story Robyn met Alan Stoller on a retreat in...
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One of the most eloquent books about life, love and understanding is called A River Runs Through It. Written in 1976 it starts, “In our family, there was no clear line between religion and fly-fishing…” and takes you on a journey through the natural beauty that is the Black River in Montana where fly-fishing is art and...
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Being a Spoonie You may not know it but if you are a patient with a chronic illness, you may be a spoonie. In 2010 Christine Miserandino wrote a post called The Spoon Theory. In the post, Christine describes explaining to her best friend what it really feels like to live with Lupus. She asks her friend to hold 12 spoons and tells her that the spoons are...
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Why does nature repeat the same forms over and over again? This is a question that has driven Dr. Mina Bissell‘s cancer research. In a 2012 TED talk, Dr. Bissell spent 17 minutes summarizing decades of research–asking and answering unique questions that are toppling and evolving our understanding of cancer. Developmental Genetics Her talk...
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Losing The Man Who Helped Us Laugh The news that beloved actor and comedian Robin Williams killed himself should jar us from complacently accepting the status quo of mental healthcare in the US. His suicide also exposes the stigma of mental illness. In 2006, during an interview on “Fresh Air,” Williams’ responded to Terry...
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“Keep Calm And Carry On:” Really? “The shock of that day you hear the words, ‘you have cancer’ never leaves you and your sense of certainty in life and in your body can be hard to recapture after a diagnosis of cancer.”-Marie Ennis-O’Connor After Surgery, Chemo, Radiation This is the time when feeling sick is supposed to be over. ...
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Fatigue and Cancer Treatment You’ve finished treatment but you still feel fatigue. Fatigue is one of the most common side effects of chemotherapy and cancer treatment that can continue after treatment. It doesn’t seem logical but research indicates that physical activity can help. Physical Activity and Cancer Survivorship The Centers for...
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