Oncology/Hematology

5 essential tips to help men prevent prostate cancer

Conditions
March 23, 2023

1. Eat a healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Eating a healthy diet is an important way to help prevent prostate cancer. Fruits and vegetables are packed with antioxidants, which can help protect your cells from damage that can lead to cancer. Fruits and vegetables that are particularly beneficial for prostate cancer prevention include cruciferous vegetables (such as broccoli, kale, and cauliflower), tomatoes, citrus fruits, berries, apples, …

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Finding peace through surrender: a personal exploration

Physician
March 21, 2023

Words are everything.

They carry energy. They are the currency of our connection to each other. They are the currency through which we will share with future generations; they are how we communicate with people in generations past. And they carry weight in terms of how we speak to ourselves.

When we begin to grow in awareness of the words we are using and the language we choose, it sometimes becomes humbling …

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The patient who became my soulmate

Physician
March 19, 2023

As oncologists, we encounter numerous patients on a daily basis and form emotional bonds with many of them, especially if they survive long enough and continue to see the same doctor for several years. This bond can grow so deep that we feel their pain, cry with them, and sometimes even realize that some of our patients are our soulmates.

According to Wikipedia, a soulmate is a person ideally suited to …

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From cancer survivor to thriving mind: a journey to true healing and purpose

Physician
March 5, 2023

“I own the world!” was my exact thought when my doctors entered my bone-marrow transplant unit and said I was cancer-free! That joyous moment lasted a few seconds because they immediately declared, “Be careful, you have a 30 percent chance of recurrence from the same cancer and X percent chance of XYZ …”

I don’t remember the entire conversation as I stopped listening. My body became numb, and I was pushed …

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The regret of leaving an old friend behind

Conditions
February 19, 2023

I once knew a lady who eventually died of pancreatic cancer. She must have been by then in her early seventies. Her name was Marilyn, and I went to grade school with her son Tom. we went back a long way. I guess I was in my early thirties by the time what happened, happened.

Marilyn’s husband, Forrest, had died a few months earlier. I knew him, too. She missed him …

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Can personalized medicine live up to its hype in health care?

Meds
February 18, 2023

The genius of Henry Ford was in his perfection of mass production. Ford’s assembly lines produced oodles of Model T, with economies of scale so that the cost of each car fell to the point that even those working in those lines could afford them. His method was copied by other car manufacturers and ultimately by other industries as well.

The pharmaceutical industry was one of them. The industry mass produces …

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Improving cancer care through integrated care [PODCAST]

Podcast
January 25, 2023
YouTube video

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Catch up on old episodes!

In this episode, we will be discussing the role of health system specialty pharmacies in improving patient outcomes.

Our guest, Chelsey Lindner, is a clinical pharmacist who will share her insights on the unique combination of expertise and …

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Cancer as a model of diversity: To be an ally, ask

Physician
January 22, 2023

I was brought to tears today, suddenly, unexpectedly, by the ringing of a bell. I had passed a small sign earlier, and I knew that the ringing signified the completion of someone’s chemotherapy. As I heard cheers, I thought how amazing this group of individuals (who I could not see, closeted as I was behind a curtained space) had a shared experience of crossing the finish line.

There is a lot …

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Breast cancer surgery: Liking my doctor mitigates the feeling of violation

Conditions
January 15, 2023

On waking up from anesthesia-induced unconsciousness, I was dressed in an unfamiliar pink surgical bra with multiple Velcro straps. As if I were a doll, someone had clothed my limp body without my knowledge, and I had no idea who. Even then, I had a vague sense, groggy and feeling an odd lack of sensation on the right side of my chest that I had been violated.

“Violation” is an …

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Caught in the middle: How health insurance companies influence cancer drug selection

Meds
January 12, 2023

Patients may find themselves caught in the middle between their health insurance company and their oncologist when it comes to selecting the drugs used to treat their cancer. Why is this?

The American Cancer Society explains biologic drugs (derived from living organisms such as yeast, bacteria, or animal cells) and biosimilar drugs, which behave similarly to the original, patented (i.e., brand) drug. It is important to note that biosimilar drugs are …

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Learn to earn end-of-life respect

Physician
January 6, 2023

Pele, the famous Brazilian soccer star, reportedly stopped medical treatment for colon cancer. Media outlets stated he was receiving various iterations of comfort, hospice, and palliative care which were perceived as criminal and disrespectful. His daughter denied these allegations on Instagram.

How often are those with serious illnesses treated like criminals for wrongdoing?

When medical treatment is withdrawn or withheld, it seems the person has lost the battle or chose not …

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From cough to cancer: one woman’s determination to find answers and relief

Conditions
January 3, 2023

My mom is putting garlic oil in her ears because her house cleaner told her it would help with her recent hearing loss. When I asked her why she was continuing to do this even after being assessed by two physicians, including an ear, nose, and throat specialist, she just shrugged and told me she wants to fix the problem.

You see, she has recently been through a difficult six months …

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Which one is worse: cancer or loneliness? 

Conditions
December 30, 2022

If my grandfather were alive, he would be the same age as Mr. Hendricks. Seventy-eight years old. That’s why when I first met him, he introduced himself as John, but I preferred to call him Mr. Hendricks. That’s how I was taught as one of the ways to give respect to the elderly. The “American” way is to call someone by their first name if you have some level of …

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The vampire, phlebotomy, and advocating for my care

Conditions
December 25, 2022

Every five weeks, I see a different vampire from the phlebotomy and give this collective of blood-suckers consent to take my blood. The crimson-filled, turquoise-capped vacutainer is destined for analysis to see how fast my blood coagulates. If the vampires read my chart, they would see the graph showing values dating back to 2015, marking my third open-heart surgery when I got my mechanical aortic valve. My lab testing is …

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Sweet bitter: a doctor’s cancer diagnosis

Physician
December 14, 2022

I screen patients for skin cancer on a regular basis, and one of my research interests is to find new biomarkers of cancer prognosis – to be able to separate out cancers that won’t actually do someone any harm versus cancers that could very well spread, grow unchecked and uncontrolled, and potentially end a life. I know that cancer treatments have advanced beyond my imagination in recent years, with …

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Cancer: Why silence and anonymity are also courageous

Conditions
December 10, 2022

Recently, I found a lump that was diagnosed as breast cancer. It is Stage IA, with a high chance of cure, but of course, more information might change that sooner or later. I have entered the uncertain world of being a patient – before this, as a physician myself, I happily avoided seeing the doctor.

While my cancer should be curable, and this will just be a …

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Gender bias is powerful and harmful

Physician
December 9, 2022

The Boston Globe recently published an article on Dr. Jane Weeks, an oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute who declined treatment for breast cancer, passed out at work due to a pulmonary embolism in 2012, and ultimately died of breast cancer in 2013. I was a first-year fellow training at Dana-Farber in 2012 and vividly recall hearing that a well-known oncologist had passed out in the cafeteria. There were many …

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Much more than simple white coat syndrome

Conditions
December 2, 2022

Ongoing consultations with a new-to-me internist have raised attention to my in-office blood pressure measurements. In preparation for my next appointment, I regularly record my BP, sometimes several times a day. In other office visits, for cancer talks and such, I simply explain I regularly home and grocery store measure my BP, which always seems to be in the established normal range. I am confident that these in-office rises are …

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Stop calling it the good cancer

Conditions
November 28, 2022

“You have the good cancer.”

These are the most common words that spill out of providers’ mouths to patients just being diagnosed with papillary thyroid cancer. However, this statement does not make this diagnosis any easier to comprehend and digest the life-altering news that has been received by the patient. The survivability rate for this cancer is a high percentage; that is good news, but not good cancer. An issue at …

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A holiday wish for lung cancer screening

Conditions
November 26, 2022

In November, Mariah Carey defrosts for another holiday season with her iconic tune, “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” and social media floods platforms with content about Black Friday and the holidays.

November is also Lung Cancer Awareness Month. Lung cancer is the No. 1 cancer killer of both men and women in the U.S. and worldwide. Lung cancer kills more people each year than breast, prostate, and colon …

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