Issue Date: November 6, 2005
DRUG INNOVATIONS
Reported by Susan T. Lennon
Smart advice
Heads up! These useful tips can add years to your life.
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MELANOMA: Learn to ID
This year, 10% more of us will be diagnosed with melanoma than last year (105,750 new cases), and each hour one American will die from this form of cancer. Caught early, it's usually 100% curable. Because we -- not doctors -- first find most melanomas, we must improve our detection skills:
A Boston University study finds we're better at recognizing "superficial spreading" melanoma because we've learned our "ABCDs." (Beware of spots that are Asymmetrical, with Border irregularities, in a variety of Colors and larger in Diameter than a pencil eraser.)
However, ABCD doesn't fit dangerous "nodular melanoma." Instead, says the study's Marie-France Demierre, M.D., watch for new bumps that are small, symmetrical and raised; itchy, sore and bleeding; pink or light brown; and changing rapidly. And get in the habit of conducting a monthly skin self-exam.
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IRON OVERLOAD: Adjust diet for an easy solution
When your body has too little iron, you're anemic, but when it has too much, you have iron overload, which is a potentially fatal condition. And your genes might be to blame.
Hereditary hemochromatosis is the surprisingly common genetic cause of excess iron; one in eight Americans is a "carrier." And one in 200 -- about 1.5 million of us -- has the double mutation that can cause the body to amass iron. It hits all groups, but it's most common in people of northern European ancestry.
Unfortunately, there aren't any symptoms of hemochromatosis, says Robert L. Jones, M.D., president and CEO of the New York Blood Center. By the time you're diagnosed, irreversible damage, such as arthritis, diabetes, heart failure and liver disease, may already have been done.
Still, you can take action:
If you are at risk of iron overload, one preventive treatment is therapeutic phlebotomy, or blood donation under doctor or hospital supervision.
Iron in our food
Iron inhibitors include tea, coffee, calcium, chocolate, dairy products and most high-fiber foods.
Iron promoters include beef, iron-fortified cereals and vitamin C.
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Ask your doctor to order transferrin saturation and serum ferritin blood tests to check for excess iron.
Get DNA testing as the Centers for Disease Control recommends.
Take a savvy approach to diet (see tips at right).
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STRESS: Breathe deeply 5 minutes a day
Learning to chill out is essential for well-being. And it can be as easy as breathing. "If we trade shallow chest-breathing for deep abdominal breathing," says Linda Wasmer Andrews, stress management consultant, "it leads to a more efficient exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide, and it helps you control stressed-out feelings." The Mayo Clinic's Women's HealthSource advises that even five minutes of daily deep breathing can be calming. Practice often to decrease anxiety, preserve energy, enhance sleep, perk up concentration and ease muscle tension.
8 steps to deep breathing
Sit in a chair with your feet on the floor (or lie down).
Close your eyes, or focus them on one specific spot.
Concentrate on your breathing while inhaling slowly through your nose.
Imagine your diaphragm (the muscle separating your lungs and heart from the abdominal cavity) moving down as you fill your lungs with air.
Let your lower abdomen relax and inflate as you continue breathing in slowly through your nose.
When your lungs and stomach are full, slowly breathe out through your mouth and, as your stomach contracts, visualize your diaphragm collapsing.
Repeat for several minutes.
Don't stop abruptly; slowly regain a sense of your surroundings.
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IBS: know for sure
If you're bothered by bloating, cramps and diarrhea or constipation, you could be among the one in five Americans with irritable bowel syndrome. Symptoms overlap with other illnesses, so it's vital to rule out conditions such as lactose intolerance, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis and, for women, endometriosis and ovarian cancer. A new study in October's issue of Cancer says some women with advanced ovarian cancer had IBS-like distress, especially abdominal swelling and pain, months before the diagnosis. Advice: Women with ongoing belly swelling and pain should see a gastroenterologist and gynecologist.
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