I hate heartburn
I really, really, really hate heartburn. I am at the point where I could even say I really, really, really, really, really, really, really, really hate heart burn. I get heart burn all the time.I take Prilosec (or the cheaper version from Costco) daily. I take tums as needed. I watch what I eat.I have a hiatal hernia which is on the border between being big and small. It is 3cm and small is considered 3cm, so I guess its middle sized. It helps contribute to heart burn.I am also on meloxicam for my back which is an anti inflammatory and has a tendency to irritate stomachs. But if I don't take it, I get more aches and ...
Source: Caroline's Breast Cancer Blog - June 20, 2013 Category: Cancer Tags: heartburn Source Type: blogs
FDA Expanding Role of Office of Criminal Investigations
Over the last year or two, the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Office of Criminal Investigations (OCI) has grown to play a crucial role in protecting the public health from fraudulent or counterfeit drugs, devices, cosmetics and other FDA regulated products. Increasingly, OCI has also played a large role in several recent high-profile settlements involving off-label marketing or deceptive promotional practices.
Several recent posts on the FDAVoice blog, written by OCI's director, John Roth, explain the work OCI has done in the past and what the future holds.
OCI consists of numerous federal agents, who have t...
Source: Policy and Medicine - June 20, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Thomas Sullivan Source Type: blogs
Rheumatoid treatment options
When I was diagnosed with rheumatoid last fall, I was already fairly aware of treatment options as my mother has had RA since 1989. The current theory for treatment is to hit it fast and early to slow progression and joint deformities.I was immediately put on plaquenile and prednisone. Plaquenile is an old drug from the 1930s or so and has successfully been proven to treat RA but it is slow working - months to have an effect - so usually prednisone is given for a brief period of time to get the swelling and pain down faster. That was bad news for me because I turned out to be allergic to both.I was then put on methot...
Source: Caroline's Breast Cancer Blog - June 12, 2013 Category: Cancer Tags: treatment options stress rheumatoid arthritis Source Type: blogs
A taste of my new life
Yesterday I had a fairly enjoyable day. Well not perfect but pretty darn good. Wednesday night was methotrexate injection night, where I keep my eyes closed and my husband injects me. We used to do this on Wednesday mornings but have found that I feel nauseous and pretty awful for a few hours so we decided let's switch it to evenings so I won't be trying to work through it.So much for that idea as I spent the evening nauseous and woke up at 1130 at night running to the bathroom. I didn't throw up but I felt like I would. Then I slept off and on for the rest of the night. In the morning I was a wreck so I actually called in...
Source: Caroline's Breast Cancer Blog - June 7, 2013 Category: Cancer Tags: fatigue resting side effects Source Type: blogs
I was unenlightened
I broke down and called my rheumatologist's office yesterday about the bump on my arm (not on a log). The problem was who to talk to.The nurse practitioner I saw a couple of weeks ago is on vacation.The rheumatologist I saw first left and I have not yet met with my new rheumatologistI ended up talking to the physician's assistant who has never met me. We will meet on Thursday afternoon.He did tell me it sounds like a rheumatoid nodule - I said that I am rheumatoid factor negative and statistics say I should not be getting nodules. But I did switch to injectable methotrexate which could be what caused it so I might need to ...
Source: Caroline's Breast Cancer Blog - April 30, 2013 Category: Cancer Tags: treatment options nodules cysts rheumatoid arthritis Source Type: blogs
If its not one thing, its another
Friday I noticed a little bump on the side of my wrist that appears to be on the end of one of the bones in my lower arm. It is solid and hurts. I had noticed some previous pain in the area but since I always have pain somewhere, I didn't really think about it.Its about the size of a pea and might have gotten a little bigger this weekend. I have no idea what it is. I did contemplate that evil cancer word for a few moments. Dr Google told me it would be very unlikely to be any kind of cancer.I have often been asked by my doctors if when I had my last flare and my response is I don't know because I am not sure if I have had ...
Source: Caroline's Breast Cancer Blog - April 29, 2013 Category: Cancer Tags: nodules pain rheumatoid arthritis Source Type: blogs
This has been a bad week
This has not been a good week for me and a lot of other people. First off all, the marathon bombing on Monday turned lives upside down. And it seems to be the only thing on network television these days. All my regular shows I record so I don't have to stay up late, have been superseded by more news coverage showing the same things over and over again.I have a very busy schedule this week. I had a meeting after work Tuesday that went relatively well. I met with my boss at the job I am leaving to talk about transition and was pleasantly surprised to find out they have two replacements for me - which is good for them and mak...
Source: Caroline's Breast Cancer Blog - April 18, 2013 Category: Cancer Tags: needles stress medical treatment rheumatoid arthritis Source Type: blogs
MKSAP: 19-year-old woman with bilateral leg weakness
Test your medicine knowledge with the MKSAP challenge, in partnership with the American College of Physicians.
A 19-year-old woman is admitted to the hospital because of a 2-week history of bilateral leg weakness and numbness accompanied by urinary incontinence that began after a viral gastrointestinal illness of 3 days’ duration. She has no personal or family medical history of note and takes no medication.
On physical examination, temperature is 36.7 °C (98.1 °F), blood pressure is 96/55 mm Hg, and pulse rate is 66/min. Bilateral leg weakness, loss of sensation below the umbilicus, and hyperreflexia in the lower...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - April 13, 2013 Category: Family Physicians Tags: Conditions Neurology Source Type: blogs
Chemo again or just semantics?
I have been emailing back and forth with a friend with whom I had lost touch. His wife had died a few years ago of pancreatic cancer. I told him that I had RA which is why I haven't been around as much recently. He replied that he has a friend who is on methotrexate - which is a form of chemo for their RA.Eeek! I had not considered that Methotrexate was a form of chemo. I take it in pill form weekly so its not like I go for an infusion or anything. I looked it up on Scott Hamilton's Chemocare.com and found out its true. The thought of being on chemo again had always freaked me out. I mean who wants a port, bald...
Source: Caroline's Breast Cancer Blog - February 28, 2013 Category: Cancer Tags: chemotherapy semantics medical treatment Source Type: blogs
Fight Aging! Newsletter, February 18th 2013
Discussion
- Latest Headlines from Fight Aging!
- Nitric Oxide and Longevity in Nematodes
- On Greater Longevity in Colder Environments
- Searching for Commonalities in Cancer
- Dietary Fatty Acids and Autophagy
- Comments on Teaching an Ethical View of Life Extension
- Arguing DNA Damage as a Cause of Aging
- Relative Risk For Causes of Cognitive Decline
- An Upcoming Oxford Debate With Aubrey de Grey and Richard Faragher
&nbs...
Source: Fight Aging! - February 17, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Reason Tags: Newsletters Source Type: blogs
2012: Banner Year for New Drugs
Fueled by new cancer therapeutics, last year the annual new molecular and biological entity approval count from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) saw its highest year since 1997. One-third of the novel products approved by the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) are used to treat cancers of the blood, breast, colon, prostate, skin and thyroid.
As part of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER) promotes and protects the health of Americans by assuring that all prescription and over-the-counter drugs are safe and effective. The CDE...
Source: Highlight HEALTH - February 13, 2013 Category: Medical Scientists Authors: Walter Jessen, Ph.D. Source Type: blogs
Blocking Development of Rheumatoid Arthritis in Mice
Progress towards a different approach to therapies for autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis, though still not one that addresses root causes directly:
Scientists have demonstrated a new strategy for treating autoimmune disease that successfully blocked the development of rheumatoid arthritis in a mouse model. They say it holds promise for improved treatment of arthritis and other autoimmune disorders in people.
Infusing a highly specific type of cell that regulates immune responses into arthritis-prone mice shut down the cascade of inflammation that damages tissues and joints. The method worked best when th...
Source: Fight Aging! - February 11, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Reason Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs
Planning for my doctor appointment
Today I have to put in some deep thoughts on a plan for my doctor appointment on Friday with Dr. G the pain management specialist. After last week with Dr P, the rheumatologist who is leaving (without permission from me!), I need to get my questions ready for managing my fibro as well as the stupid back pain which causes no end of crankiness.I have goals here:Get pain under control.See #1 above.When I go to the doctor, they always ask my pain level (and if I am safe at home - which I am unless the cat tries to trip me on the stairs). I have to think what hurts, how much, and is this doctor going to care much about it. S...
Source: Caroline's Breast Cancer Blog - January 21, 2013 Category: Cancer Tags: doctor questions pain medication costs Source Type: blogs
NIH Public-Private Partnerships to Bring Therapies from Bench to Bedside
The objective of this project is to develop a treatment called recombinant human LCAT that would act as a replacement therapy to offset the deficiency caused by LCAT deficiency syndrome.
Spinal Cord Injury: Development of Nogo Receptor Decoy for the Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury, George Maynard, Ph.D., vice president, Preclinical Development Axerion Therapeutics, Inc., New Haven, Conn. Recovery after a spinal cord injury is limited, as nerve cell growth is virtually nonexistent in the adult spinal cord. This project aims to develop a compound called Nogo Receptor Decoy to rewire nerve cells that promote the reco...
Source: Policy and Medicine - January 7, 2013 Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Thomas Sullivan Source Type: blogs
How Much? Payers And The New Pfizer RA Pill
Two months ago, the FDA approved a pill from Pfizer called Xeljanz that is being used to treat adults with moderately to severely rheumatoid arthritis who did not respond to, or cannot tolerate, methotrexate, a standard of care. Some Wall Streeters expect the drug, which competes with such biologics as Humira, to become a blockbuster.
The drug is the first in a class of medications known as JAK inhibitors for RA and data has indicated the pill would offer similar efficacy to such widely used injectables that, collectively, generate some $13 billion in annual sales for treating rheumatoid arthritis. As noted previously, Xel...
Source: Pharmalot - January 3, 2013 Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: Ed Silverman Tags: Uncategorized Abbvie Amgen Enbrel Humira Pfizer Rheumatoid Arthritis Xeljanz Source Type: blogs
