The Silent Epidemic: Liver Disease

Liver is a large reddish brown colored body organ. It is responsible for performing various functions to keep body safe from harmful materials and toxins. Any disorder may lead to reduced functioning of liver and may damage it completely over a specific period. Liver diseases have become one of the dominant reason for millions of death worldwide. Prevalence of liver diseases is more in alcoholic and obese population. Top healthcare reports predict that nearly 72,240 people will die from some type of liver disorder this year. Some of the liver diseases can be prevented by adopting a healthy lifestyle.

Why is Liver Disease Silent Killer?

In most instances, liver disease does not show any significant symptoms during initial stages. Fatty liver disease is a most commonly observed liver condition these days. It accounts for 59% of mortality rate due to liver diseases. Earlier, medical professionals used to believe that it only affects alcoholic people. But the truth is that it can affect non-alcoholic people as well. Obese and diabetic patients are at a greater risk of getting this disease. A fatty liver disease may slowly progress over years and deteriorate the underlying health condition. It may cause severe scarring and ultimately result in liver failure. Therefore, liver disease is entitled as a ‘silent killer’.

Signs and Symptoms of Liver Disease

The following signs and symptoms may indicate the presence of a liver disease.  

• Itchy skin
• Abdominal pain and swelling
• Loss of appetite
• Sleepiness
• Yellowish skin and eye color (jaundice)
• Swelling in ankles
• Chronic fatigue
• Tendency to bruise easily
• Dark urine
• Pale stool color or tar-colored stool
• Vomiting
• Nausea

Patients experiencing these liver disease symptoms should seek a prompt medical treatment. Early treatment can help cure the disease completely.   

Major Causes of Liver Failure

The enumerated list depicts some serious causes of liver failure.

• Excess liver fat (fatty liver disease)
• Diabetes
• Malnutrition
• Hepatitis B virus
• Hepatitis C virus
• Liver cirrhosis
• Excessive consumption of alcohol
• Hemochromatosis

However, causes of acute liver failure are different and may include the following.

• Adverse reactions to some medicines and herbal supplements
• Intake of poisonous mushrooms
• Overdose of acetaminophen

Treatment Options for Liver Disease

Liver disease treatment depends on overall medical status and diagnosis report of patients. Most common liver disease treatment options are described as follows.

• Medications - Diabetes is a major problem which contributes to liver damage. Surgeons may prescribe essential medications for controlling diabetes and liver disorders.
• Lifestyle Changes - Few lifestyle changes like cutting down the quantity of alcohol or completely discontinuing alcohol intake can help relieve liver problems. Overweight patients should try to maintain a balanced diet and do exercises. These simple yet powerful changes will surely aid to maintain good health.
• Liver Transplant Surgery - If patients have reached an end-stage then surgeons may recommend liver transplant surgery to treat liver failure.

Liver disease treatments are usually costly in western nations like United Kingdom and Australia. International patients seeking effective liver disease treatments can heavily rely on staunch medical system of India. Cost of liver disease treatments in India is just a fraction of money which other developed countries may charge. Global patients can avail beneficial liver disease treatments at highly reasonable rates in majority of Indian hospitals.

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What to Expect During and After Cancer Treatment?

Cancer is one of the most baneful diseases that affects millions of patients. Recent studies reveal that ratio of cancer patients has tripled during past few decades. Around 5,395,110 new cases of this disease were diagnosed worldwide in the year 2016. It is estimated that nearly 995,440 patients will lose their lives battling cancer this year. Cancer is highly treatable if diagnosed in its initial stage.

What to Expect During Cancer Treatment?

Surgery is considered as a primary treatment for any type of cancer. Oncologists may recommend various imaging tests like CT scans, x-rays, and MRI test prior to surgery. It helps to accurately diagnose the location & dimension of malignant tumor. Cancer specialists will also access patient’s underlying health status to decide whether they are eligible for surgery or not. Main aim of surgery is to remove cancerous tumor from patient’s body. Usually, surgeons operate targeted area by cutting the harmful tumor. If tumor has spread widely and it is not possible to remove the entire tumor with surgical procedure then surgeons may perform other treatments. Generally, radiotherapy or chemotherapy are used to treat such patients. Surgery along with these treatment options maximizes patient’s quality of life. It has been found to increase the survival rate of patients by relieving their symptoms.

Follow Up Care after Cancer Treatment

Patients will need to visit respective surgeons frequently after completion of surgery. Follow-up sessions are important to ensure long-term results and control any complications in future. These sessions may vary from patient to patient. Oncologists will prepare cancer treatment aftercare plan depending on patient’s age, type of cancer and health requirements. Patients must sincerely follow vital guidelines given by surgeons for a faster recovery after cancer treatment. If patients experience any problem after cancer treatment, they should promptly report it to respective oncologists. Surgeons will prescribe medications and drugs to control any symptoms. They may timely order imaging tests to prevent chances of recurrence of cancer.

Lifestyle Changes after Cancer Treatment

Life becomes tough for a cancer survivor. Not only physically but also mentally they have to face a lot. Patients can live a healthy life by following some simple yet powerful steps.

• Exercising - Patients must exercise daily. It will help improve their body’s strength. Along with it, patients may also practice breathing exercises to control stress levels.
• Healthy Diet Routine - Patients must maintain a healthy diet routine in order to stay fit. Patients may have lost weight due to cancer. It will aid a normal weight.
• Avoid Smoking and Alcohol - Patients should avoid smoking and alcohol consumption. It will minimize the risk of complications and speed up recovery after cancer treatment.

Above all, cancer survivors should maintain a positive attitude and strong will power to heal speedily. Cancer treatment cost differs from country to country. Countries like India offer high quality cancer treatment at one-third of the total amount that patients need to pay in western countries. Patients can choose India for availing effective treatment at reasonable prices.

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How Cancer is Becoming Africa's New Health Burden?

Cancer is a leading healthcare problem in Africa. According to recent reports, 5 million patients in Africa are dying due to cancer annually. This figure is expected to double up in the next few years. Cervical, breast, lung & prostate cancer are the major types of cancer affecting population of Africa. Prostate cancer is the leading cause of mortality in Africa. It killed around 29,500 patients in Africa last year. Apart from this, researchers state that nearly 12 percent of women in Africa die every year due to cervical cancer. Whereas, breast cancer affects around 19% of African women. It has been found that due to sedentary lifestyle, one in every 10 African women has the risk of developing breast cancer. In addition to this, lung cancer accounted for approximately 18,000 deaths in Africa in the year 2016.

Leading Causes of Cancer in Africa

• Poor Lifestyle Choices - Latest studies reveal that over the last few decades, unhealthy eating habits & physical inactivity has resulted in various health-related issues including cancer. African people are heavily involved in activities like smoking & drinking. Alcohol drinking in Africa is becoming a common practice. It will not be wrong to say that heavy alcohol intake & breast cancer are directly proportional to each other. Various studies have proven this fact that excessive alcohol consumption is responsible for breast cancer in African women. A healthy lifestyle can prevent the occurrence of cancer & save many lives.
• Lack of Medical Facilities - Cancer is a life-threatening disease which is not easy to diagnose. Cancer treatment needs a high degree of precision. Poor medical services are the root cause of high mortality rate in Africa. On an average, only one healthcare expert per 1000 patients is available in Africa. Therefore, shortage of qualified medical professionals (especially, oncologists) & essential equipment for cancer screening has led to rising in death rate due to cancer.
• Lack of Awareness - Cancer can be controlled to a larger extent by educating people properly. Most of the African population is still unaware of cancer & its risk factors. Poor healthcare education & illiteracy are the main reasons why cancer is killing African patients. According to top healthcare reports, two-third of cancer can be prevented by raising awareness among people & early cancer detection.

Patients should exercise regularly & eat a nutritious diet. Avoiding habits like smoking & alcohol consumption can considerably minimize the risk of cancer development. These simple steps can greatly boost health & wellness in Africa.

For more help regarding cancer treatment in India, email at: help@travcure.com

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Bone Marrow Donation Myths & Facts

It is a fact that bone marrow transplant doctors request that donors be in the age group of 18 to 45 years. These age guidelines which are followed in about 95 percent of bone marrow donors are not meant to discriminate, but are here for the safety of donors & for providing the best outcomes for patients. Since bone marrow donation is a voluntary procedure, the donor must be at least 18 years of age so as to be able to give legal informed consent. The upper cut off age for being an adult bone marrow donor is generally 61 years since people above this age are at increased risk of complications during & even after bone marrow donation.

What is Bone Marrow?

Bone marrow is basically soft tissue found within bones where immature stem cells are found which can become any type of blood cells. Bone marrow transplant is generally performed when either chemotherapy has destroyed them or when disease has affected the ability of bone marrow to produce healthy blood cells. Bone marrow transplants are normally used to treat cancers of the blood like multiple myeloma, lymphoma & leukemia. In quite a few cases the patients’ own bone marrow is derived from blood prior to application of chemotherapy & subsequently returned to the body after application of chemotherapy treatment.

Myths & Facts about Bone Marrow Donation

Unfortunately there are many myths about bone marrow donation which keep people away from serving this noble cause. Some facts about misconceptions concerning bone marrow donation are listed below.

• Myth – Donating bone marrow is painful.
  Fact – There are two ways through which stem cells are collected from a donors’ body. Although there is some pain associated with both these methods, amount of discomfort varies from one person to another & from method to method. The peripheral blood stem cell donation is a nonsurgical method involving collecting stem cells as an outpatient procedure called apheresis. The other method involves collecting bone marrow cells from the back of pelvic bone with help of a syringe. Bone marrow donors during this procedure are administered general anesthesia during extraction which eliminates the possibility of any pain during the procedure. However, the bone marrow donor may experience some pain in hip or back for few days or few weeks following bone marrow
  
  
• Myth – Donating bone marrow has long-term effects.
  Fact – Wrong, bone marrow donation is relatively harmless to either methods of extraction. Normal levels of bone marrow for donors typically return within a few weeks time following donation procedure. Bone marrow donors can return back to work & other activities within 1 to 7 days of time.
  
  
• Myth – Bone marrow is extracted from spine.
• Fact – Donating bone marrow has nothing to do with spine. While 75 percent cases of bone marrow donation involve peripheral blood stem cell donation procedure from the bloodstream, the less common method also involves extracting bone marrow from the back region of the pelvic bone & not the spine.
  
  
• Myth – Donating bone marrow is an expensive procedure.
• Fact – Wrong again, on the contrary there is no cost to the donor for donating stem cells or bone marrow. On the flip side bone marrow donors are normally reimbursed with lodging expenses, meals & travel costs.
  
  
• Myth – Family members can donate the required bone marrow.
• Fact – Family members & siblings only have 1 in 4 chance of closely matching with the patient. However, doctors do look towards family members first while considering bone marrow transplant. Nevertheless, only 30 percent patients are fortunate to find a match within the family. Majority of bone marrow transplant patients have to rely on donors outside the family.

Affordable Bone Marrow Transplant in India

Indian healthcare sector is highly advanced & quality of bone marrow transplants in India is at par with the best in the world. This is the reason why a growing number of international patients seeking medical procedures beyond their homeland are heading to India every year. Another reason why many people choose India for medical procedures is the fact that all types of healthcare treatments including bone marrow transplantation are commonly affordable & cost only a fraction of what similar procedures would cost in developed countries like Australia, United Kingdom, Canada or the United States.

For BMT related queries, send an E-mail at: help@travcure.com

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