The Greatest Benefit of Colon Cleansing

One of the stories that has been bantered around after John Waynes death from Cancer was that at his autopsy they removed over 35 pounds of impacted fecal matter from his colon.

It is hard to discern if this is urban legend or fact. However, if this is true you can certainly understand how this waste could have adversely affected his health.

How much undigested food and waste material is being held in your colon?

When we think of cleansing we have to keep in mind that the body has seven channels of elimination. Just like you would clean your entire house you should also undertake a regimen of cleansing all of your channels of elimination. These channels are the liver, lungs, lymphatic system, blood, skin, colon and kidneys. A cleanse which focuses on only one of the channels of elimination is akin to deciding that you are only going to clean the closets in your house.

A constipated colon is one in which the transit time of food is more than 24 hours. Transit time is the length of time it takes for food to enter the mouth and exit the rectum. The basic principle of good digestive health is that you should put food in and wihin 24 hours that food should come out as waste.

The naturopathic perspective is that the longer the transit time of food, the longer these toxins stay in our digestive tract which permits proteins to putrefy, fats to get rancid, and carbohydrates to ferment.

Regardless how you look at it this cannot be healthy for your body. The longer your body is exposed to these toxins in your intestines, the greater the risk of developing disease.

Stop and think about this.

If you have only one bowel movement per day, you will have all of the other meals that you ate over the last 24 hours putrefying in your intestines. This is called intoxification. It is poisoning from within. The inability to purge toxins from our systems.

What we all need to understand is that the reason why constipation is dangerous to our health is that our bodies are designed to absorb whatever is in the digestive tract. If you put good healthy nutrition there the body will absorb it. Likewise, if you put putrefying, toxic waste there the body will absorb that as well.

The best way to start a cleansing program is by cleansing your colon. After you begin your colon cleansing program you might also want to consider maintenance program with colon hydrotherapy.

Talk to your Doctor for guidance and suggestions on things you can do to maintain optimal health.

Charles O. Palmerson is the webmaster for http://www.eConstipation.com an online Constipation Information Resource created to resolve poor digestive health.

Aspirin May Prevent Colon Cancer in Women

A recent study showed that taking aspirin could in fact reduce your risk of getting colon cancer. Although the study only involved data taking from a sampling of women, it appears that aspirin may possibly prevent colon cancer, or so they say? Aspirin is over 100-years old and appears to cure lots of things, yet many were shocked to learn of this latest finding, still other completely doubt the study. The study showed that people who already had polyps maybe able to prevent the onset of colon cancer thru regular use of aspirin. The researchers went on to extrapolate that it could help those without polyps from getting one in the first place.

Now several articles in major Medical Journals are showing that if you took aspirin for a decade 1-2 per week, it would reduce the risk of colorectal cancer by a large margin over those who did not take aspirin regularly. Some of the researchers in near by fields were not surprised while other totally doubted the findings as hogwash. They are saying that any anti-inflammatory drug may have done the same and would certainly help to keep removed polyps from returning, thus reduce the risk of cancer. The study indicated that 14 aspirins per week or 2 every day would reduce the chances of colon cancer by nearly one-third. Those who took even more are said to reduce colon cancer by over 50 percentiles. Of course taking that many aspirins is not good for you, over use of aspirin can cause bleeding. So although the study appears to be a wash for many belief systems of cancer researchers, the evidence is notable and very telling. All this research is helping us fight some of the more serious forms of cancer killers. Think on this and live strong.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance in the Online Think Tank and solve the problems of the World; www.WorldThinkTank.net/

Treatment Options for Colorectal Cancer

The treatment depends on the staging of the cancer. When colorectal cancer is caught at early stages (with little spread) it can be curable. However when it is detected at later stages (when distant [[metastasis|metastases]] are present) it is less likely to be curable.

Surgery remains the primary treatment while chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy may be recommended depending on the individual patient's staging and other medical factors.

Surgery

Surgical treatment is by far the most likely to result in a cure of colon cancer if the tumor is localized. Very early cancer that develops within a polyp can often be cured by removing the polyp at the time of colonoscopy. More advanced cancers typically require surgical removal of the section of colon containing the tumor leaving sufficient margins to reduce likelihood of re-growth. If possible, the remaining parts of colon are anastomosed together to create a functioning colon. In cases when anastomosis is not possible, a stoma (artificial orifice) is created. While surgery is not usually offered if significant metastasis is present, surgical removal of isolated liver metastases is common. Improved chemotherapy has increased the number of patients who are offered surgical removal of isolated liver metastases.

Laparoscopic assist resection of the colon for tumour can reduce the size of painful incision and minimize the risk of infection. As with any surgical procedure, colorectal surgery can in rare cases result in complications. These may include infection, abscess, fistula or bowel obstruction.

Chemotherapy

Chemotherapy is used to reduce the likelihood of metastasis developing, shrink tumour size, or slow tumor growth. Chemotherapy is often applied after surgery (adjuvant), before surgery (neo-adjuvant), or as the primary therapy if surgery is not indicated (palliative). The treatments listed here have been shown in clinical trials to improve survival and/or reduce mortality and have been approved for use by the US Food and Drug Administration. Adjuvant (after surgery) chemotherapy. One regimen involves the combination of infusional 5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin (FOLFOX) 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) Leucovorin (LV) Oxaliplatin (Eloxatin®) Capecitabine (Xeloda®)

Chemotherapy for metastatic disease. Commonly used first line regimens involve the combination of infusional 5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, and oxaliplatin (FOLFOX) with bevacizumab or infusional 5-fluorouracil, leucovorin, and irinotecan (FOLFIRI) with bevacizumab 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) Leucovorin Irinotecan Oxaliplatin Bevacizumab Cetuximab

Radiation Therapy

Radiation therapy is used to kill tumor tissue before or after surgery or when surgery is not indicated. Sometimes chemotherapy agents are used to increase the effectiveness of radiation by sensitizing tumor cells if present. Radiotherapy is not used routinely in colorectal cancer, as it could lead to radiation enteritis, and is difficult to target specific portions of the colon, but may be used on metastatic tumor deposits if they compress vital structures and/or cause pain. There may be a role for post-operative adjuvant radiation in the case where a tumor perforates the colon as judged by the surgeon or the pathologist. However, as the area of the prior tumor site can be difficult (if not impossible) to ascertain by imaging, surgical clips need to be left in the colon to direct the radiotherapist to the area of risk.

Immunotherapy

Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) is gaining prominence as a complementary theraputic agent in the treatment of colorectal cancer. A review of results from recent clinical trials is given in Mosolits et al.

Support Therapies

Cancer diagnosis very often results in an enormous change in the patient's psychological wellbeing. Various support resources are available from, hospitals and other agencies which provide counseling, social service support, cancer support groups, and other services. These services help to mitigate some of the difficulties of integrating a patient's medical complications into other parts of their life.

William Ransom provides information of Colon cancer screening, diagnosis and treatment at http://colon-answers.com

Eat Right and Early Detection Key to Colon Cancer Fight

Two of the best things you can do to reduce the risk of colon cancer from causing your early demise is to eat right and to seek Early detection at the first sight of a problem. Colon cancer kills about 350 people out of 100,000 people, so although the risks are not high they are high enough to be of concern.

One thing of great benefit to know is that over the last decade or so thru good education and Early detection fewer people are dying from colon cancer. But there are a few things you need to look out for such as; blood in your stool and knowledge of your family and types of cancer that run in your genetic lines. If one of your siblings or one of your parents has had colon cancer you'd be advised to be checked out as early as age 40 and every five years.

If you are a woman and you've had breast cancer or ovarian cancer you might also be susceptible. If you have an iron deficiency whether you are a woman or a man this can be of concern. The survival rate of most types of colon cancer is quite high if detected in the earlier stages and this will definitely better your chances.

It is recommended you go to the American Cancer Society's web site and read all about colon cancer if you think you might be at risk or you just want additional information and details for a loved one. I hope you will consider all of this in 2006.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance in the Online Think Tank and solve the problems of the World; www.WorldThinkTank.net/

Prevent Colon Cancer With 5 Easy Ways

Research studies are now going on how best to prevent colon cancer as more and more people are diagnosed with this condition today. It is found that colon cancer usually starts in the large intestine, also known as colon, or the rectum. Colon cancer then develops from dead cells that have been accumulated in a lump over a period of time. The risk to getting colon cancer increases if you have a genetic medical background of parents or close relatives who have been diagnosed with colon cancer. Research also showed that that colon cancer is aggravated by unhealthy diets such as ready meals and fast food.

Hence, it is vital that you seek the advice of your doctor should you feel the discomfort of colon cancer symptoms. The symptoms to look out for include unhealthy bowel occurrence such as diarrhea, constipation or bowel infection, severe pain in abdomen, blood in the stools, narrow stools, anemia, intestinal obstruction and drastic loss of weight.

Prevention is still better than cure. So you really should consider the following 5 ways on how best to prevent colon cancer:

1. Adopt healthy habits. Colon cancer usually develops over a length of period before it actually shows. Hence you should not wait till you notice the symptoms of colon cancer before starting to adopt healthy habits. Eat healthy meals, exercise and have an adequate amount of sleep.

If your diet contains too much high fat and red meats with little fiber, you are definitely at a high risk of developing colon cancer. Fat accumulates on the walls of the intestine and rectum, forming lumps of dead cells. You should therefore adopt a balanced natural diet which includes lots of green vegetables, fruits and water.

Exercise helps by flushing out harmful toxins and waste matter which if left accumulated in your body can cause cancerous growth.

2. Know your family medical history. It appears that colon cancer is a genetic disease that is hereditary. As such, if you belong to the high risk category due to your family history, then you should take extra precautions by leading a healthy lifestyle.

3. Stop smoking. Chain smoking increases your chance to developing colon cancer. Inhaling tobacco can easily transfer carcinogen (a cancer agent) to your colon and rectum, thus resulting in colon cancer. Hence, do not hesitate to find ways to quit smoking.

4. Reduce exposure to radiation. Excessive exposure to radiation has been found to cause colon cancer. Radiation rays are harmful and can render healthy normal cells abnormal. By all means, avoid unnecessary X-rays, CT scans, mammograms so that you can best prevent colon cancer.

5. If you observe that you are experiencing symptoms like skin allergies, weak immune system, poor movement of bowels, bloating, etc, then it may be that you have too much toxins in your body. Consider colon cleansing as a way of detoxification. There are a couple of ways to perform colon cleansing. These include consuming herbs for colon cleansing and colon hydrotherapy.

Sandra Kim Leong writes on colon cleansing. Her site also includes plenty of information on detox cleansing, detox diets and liver cleansing. For free articles and tips, please visit www.detox-cleansing.com

Different Approaches to Colon Cancer Treatment

By Groshan Fabiola

Colon cancer is a disease that affects the large intestine, an organ that absorbs the nutrients from the food, and stores and eliminates the fecal material. The large intestine has two parts, the colon and the rectum. Colon cancer occurs when tumors appear inside the colon and rectum. These tumors can be malignant, in which case they do not present any danger and they can be removed by a simple surgery, and beningn. Beningn tumors are cancerous tumors that can spread and cause life-threatening complications. If you have been diagnosed with a beningn colon tumor you must begin the colon cancer treatment as soon as possible because if the illness is left untreated it can spread to other organs such as the liver and the lungs.

There are three methods of treating colon cancer - by surgery, radiation therapy and by chemotherapy.

Colon cancer surgery is the most widely-used method of treating the disease. In colon cancer surgery, the part of the colon that has the tumor and the infected tissue on it is removed, and then the remaining parts of the colon are sewn back. Lately, colon cancer surgeries are done with the help of an instrument called laparoscope, which enables the doctors operate through a very small abdominal incision, leaving only a small scar behind.

Radiation therapy is a treatment that involves the use of high energy rays that can kill the cancer cells. The advantage of this method is that it can also kill the cancerous cells that have spread and were not detected yet. Radiation therapy is required when the cancer has spread to another organ and the surgery can not remove it form there. The bad part of radiation therapy is that it has side effects that include diarrhea, tiredness or bladder irritation.

Chemotherapy uses special anti cancerous drugs that are injected into the patient's blood and spread through the whole body, killing all the cancerous cells. This kind of therapy is used when the cancer has spread to many places and surgery or radiation therapy can't cover such large areas. Unfortunately chemotherapy has the worst side effects. The most common are loss of hair, loss of appetite, fatigue, easy bruising and bleeding, vomiting and diarrhea.

The method used and the survival rate depend on what stage has colon cancer advance to when the treatment begins. In the first stage the survival rate exceeds 90%, in the second stage 70%, in the third 60%, and in the fourth is goes down to somewhere around 8%. That is why it's important to pay attention at the symptoms and start the treatment as soon as you can.

For more resource on different colon cancer subjects please click this link http://www.colon-cancer-center.com. You can also find valuable information about colon cancer diet or even about stage3 colon cancer

Colon Cancer: All the General Information About Colon Cancer that You Need to Know

By Groshan Fabiola

Colon cancer is, as its name suggests, a disease that affects the colon. The colon is a tube shaped organ, located in the abdomen, that starts at the end of the bowel and ends with the anus. It twists and turns a lot, so its length is over 4 feet. The functions of the colon are to digest the food, absorb the nutrient substances from it (proteins and aminoacids), and to create the concentrated fecal material, which is then stored and eliminated from the colon when the time comes. The end of the colon is called rectum. The rectum and the colon together form the large intestine.

When colon cancer occurs, tumors appear on the inner walls of the large intestine. There are two types of tumors - benign tumors, also called polyps, which are not dangerous, and malignant tumors, which are the cancer. Polyps do not spread to other cells and tissues and they can be easily removed. Tumors on the other hand, can spread and cause life-threatening complications. Remember that a benign polyp will turn into a malignant tumor if it is not treated in time.

Once a colon cancer appears it will start to spread and attack other tissues and cells, and eventually it can reach the lungs or the liver and form new tumors there. The causes of colon cancer are nor entirely known, but what is known is that some people are at a higher risk of developing colon cancer than others. Those who consume large quantities of fats and those who had a history of colon cancer in the family are most likely to get colon cancer. Smoking and alcohol also increases the risks.

The disease has almost no symptoms when it is in its early stages, and when it advances the symptoms are different from one person to another and they depend on the size of the cancer and its exact location. The most commonly encountered symptoms of colon cancer are:

-narrow stools
-stool that contains blood
-abdominal cramps and pain
-excessive gas
-weight loss
-change in bowel habits

If you notice any of the symptoms mentioned above consult a doctor as fast as you can. He will make several tests in order to establish a diagnose. Some people consider these tests to be embarrassing, because among them there are rectal exams, and fecal sample tests. If the test results indicate colon cancer than treatment must begin as soon as possible before it spreads to other areas. The main options for colon cancer treatment are surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Surgery the most popular treatment method.

The good news is that most of the people survive colon cancer, as time passes the survival rate increases. Survival depends on which stage of colon cancer the patient has. If the cancer has reached the final stage then the chances are much lower because the cancer has already spread to other distant organs of the body.

Although the treatments are improving and the survival rate is increasing colon cancer is still one of the leading cause of death, because many don't know that they have it until they reach the final stages. It is important to pay attention to its symptoms and consult a doctor for medical advice from time to time.

For more resource on different colon cancer subjects please click this link http://www.colon-cancer-center.com You can also find valuable information about colon cancer treatment or even about metastatic colon cancer.

Avoiding Colon Cancer

Colon cancer is known by many other names including bowel cancer and colorectal cancer, but whatever name it is called, the result is the same. A person who has this disease will suffer constipation, diarrheic, abdominal pain and anemia among other symptoms. But there are actually many ways to prevent having colon cancer. A basic lifestyle change that involves your diet and physical activities is one of the most effective ways to avoid having this disease. You should note that eating foods that are low in fiber but are high in fat every day increases your risks of having colon cancer. Likewise, eating a lot of fruits and vegetables can prevent colon cancer because these foods are rich in fiber, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that can fight cancer.

Smoking and drinking should also be avoided if you want to prevent colon cancer. Note that stopping these habits will also prevent other kinds of diseases such as cancer of the lungs and heart problems. Lessening your alcohol intake may do wonders for your health and reduce the risks of complications. On the other hand, smoking increases the risk of dying by thirty to forty percent for people who already have colon cancer so quitting this habit can actually save your life.

Aside from being conscious of your daily intake of food and avoiding bad habits that can be detrimental to your heath, having a pro-active lifestyle can also prevent all forms of cancer including colon cancer. It is believed that just doing thirty minute of physical activity everyday can significantly reduce the risks of acquiring colon cancer. The reason for this is because exercise will help keep your weight under control and keep your metabolism at a normal rate to keep your bowel movement regular. Some researchers also observed that around fifteen percent of colon cancer cases could easily have been prevented if those affected had taken the time to exercise everyday.

As in any other cancer cases, colon cancer should also be detected early to prevent it from becoming worse. Because of this, it is essential that you undertake screening tests regularly because colon cancer has no symptoms at its early stages. Note that screening tests are especially important for people who are in middle but younger people are not exempted particularly if they have a family history of having colon cancer. It is also recommended that people who are between the ages of forty to fifty undertake the faecal occult blood test every two years to be on the sage side.

To conduct a faecal occult blood test, you need to collect samples of your faeces so that it can be tested in a laboratory for some traces of blood. The reason why this test is important is because small bowel tumors can turn into cancer if it is left untreated. These tumors actually bleed in your bowel but it does not bleed enough for you to notice so laboratory tests are required.

Another way to detect if you have colon cancer is through colonoscopy. This is also the most effective way to determine whether you have colon cancer or not because it allows your doctors to examine your whole bowel for signs of tumors. This procedure is normally conducted in hospitals and you need to clean out your bowels before you can take this test.

Michael Russell

Your independent guide to Colon Cancer

Colon Cleansing Systems

By Seth Miller

With increasing pollution and unhealthy lifestyles, becoming a part and parcel of our lives, instances of colon cancer are unfortunately on the rise. Present day diets particularly play havoc with one's overall bodily functions. One way of tackling the problem of colon cancer is preventing the formation of tumors in the first place. One has to be clean from the inside in order to prevent this dreaded disease. Just like we brush our teeth or take a shower, we also need to keep our colons clean. This is possible with the help of colon cleaning systems. Colon cleansing systems are known to clean our entire digestive system, thereby ensuring a healthy life.

Toxins are known to accumulate in the digestive tract and lead to poor digestion, along with colon build up and other complications like constipation. This, in turn, leads to long-term health problems, which could sometimes result in serious disease.

This being the case, there are a number of colon cleansers that are available to treat the problem. The formula of these colon cleansers varies according to the system used. For instance, there are over-the-counter drugs that are based on certain chemicals. There are also alternate systems that have their own age-old formulas consisting of herbs and other natural ingredients. The advantage of formulas with naturally occurring herbs is that they don't lead to future side affects even after prolonged use. One can find literally thousands of these products in the market. One can also try colon-cleansing spas. They can be found literally everywhere and offer a natural way of getting rid of toxins and a way to rejuvenate your entire body.

Your diet is perhaps the best known and yet most neglected system of colon cleansing. A healthy low-fat, high-fiber diet is perhaps the best way to prevention of colon cancer and diseases related to the digestive tract.

Colon Cleansing provides detailed information on Colon Cleansing, Natural Colon Cleansing, Colon Cleansing Products, Colon Detox Cleansing and more. Colon Cleansing is affiliated with Colon Cancer Treatment.