Down Syndrome: Early Treatments To Help In Dealing With The Condition
Article by Vijay K Shetty
Sometimes we come across children who have deformed organs or abnormally shaped head. We throw at them a glance of pity and in our minds thank god for blessing us with happiness. While there are many treatments for Down syndrome, Down syndrome is not a condition that can be cured.There are some therapies which can help to deal with this. The goal of medicinal treatments is to deal with physical, medical and cognitive problems with Down syndrome. This is the most common cause of mental retardation and malformation in a newborn and occurs because of the presence of an extra 21st chromosome.The symptoms include decreased muscle tone at birth, odd-shaped skull, and small mouth, protruding tongue and upward slanting eyes. There are medical treatments like anti-seizure treatments for those suffering from seizures. While some cases can get fixed by themselves with time, others require surgery, like heart defects, intestinal defects, etc.Children born with this syndrome can be helped with early interventions. This is a program of therapies, exercises and activities designed to help children the most common early intervention services for babies with Down syndrome are physical therapy and speech therapy.The goal of physical therapy is to teach children to move their bodies and improve their muscle tone, in order to prevent them from developing posture problems, etc. Speech therapy is an important treatment and can help children by making use of sign language and dealing with articulation problem.Many people with Down syndrome now live independent from their families in assisted living situations or group homes. For them to have to make that transition there need to be professionals and specialists who can help, understand and aid them in this act.Older individuals suffering with Down syndrome suffer depression and need help groups of people having the same condition, and sharing their experiences as to how to cope with it.In the United States, one out of every 750 births is a case of Down syndrome. This happens when one of the parents contributes an extra chromosome, which causes the deformities and defects related to Down syndrome. As the age of a woman increases, the risk of having a child with this problem also increases.Regular check-ups, medication and surgery are a regular part of treatment for Down syndrome. People with Down syndrome are faced with a great number of challenges in life, starting at birth. These treatments and medications are strongly focussed on increasing intelligence and improving health conditions and abilities in those suffering from Down syndrome.
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Leave a commentThe Importance Of The Early Detection For Fighting Cancer
This article starts off a serious of articles called Fighting Cancer with Early Detection and is brought to you by GenWay Biotech Incorporated. Our mission is to provide our readers with important facts and figures to enable patients to make better health decisions. This article is not written by a doctor, and it should not be used in place of your physician’s recommendation. You may wish to use the information provided in this article to facilitate a discussion with your physician. To learn more about GenWay Biotech’s cancer assessment, visit the website http://www.youtestyou.com.
The impact of cancer in the United States in undeniable. Cancer directly affects about one in three women and one in two men in the U.S (1), with more than 560,000 dyeing (2, 3) from it each year. It is widely known that the best chance to reduce these fatality numbers is through early detection. There are two major components of early detection of cancer: screening and education to promote early diagnosis.
Regular use of established screening tests can prevent the development of cancer. Either through identification and removal or treatment abnormalities, screening tests can improve survival and decrease mortality by detecting cancer at an early stage when treatment is more effective. It is important to note that screening refers to testing in individuals who have no symptoms for a particular disease) (4). This makes sense because in many cases symptoms are not present before cancer is diagnosed.
Early detection of cancer through regular screening has been shown to reduce the number of deaths from cancers of the colon and rectum, breast, and uterine cervix. For instance, in addition to detecting cancer early, regular screening can, in many cases, prevent colorectal cancer altogether. This is because some polyps, or growths, can be found and removed before they have the chance to turn into cancer (4).
Survival rates improve dramatically when cancer is diagnosed early and the disease is confined to the organ of origin. The relative 5-year survival rate for colorectal cancer when diagnosed at an early stage before it has spread is about 90%. But only about 4 out of 10 colorectal cancers are found at that early stage. Once the cancer has spread to nearby organs or lymph nodes, the 5-year relative survival rate goes down, and if cancer has spread to distant organs (like the liver or lung) the rate is about 11% (4).
A standard 5-year survival rate refers to the percentage of patients who live at least 5 years after their cancer is diagnosed; it includes people with colorectal cancer who may die of other causes, such as heart disease. Five-year relative survival rates are adjusted for patients dying of other diseases, so they reflect the chances of not dying specifically from colorectal cancer. (ACS)
Another striking example is the fact that nine out of 10 women can survive breast cancer simply by detecting it early. Prognosis of a breast cancer depends largely upon its stage and grade at diagnosis, 5-year survival rates ranging from 84% in women diagnosed with Stage 1 disease to 18% in women with Stage 4 disease.
Education to promote early diagnosis should encompass the increased awareness of new screening tests and possible warning signs of cancer, among physicians, nurses and other health care providers as well as among the general public. People without symptoms or special risks need to be aware of these screening methodologies and to be sure they are communicated to the physician.
National organizations such as American Cancer Society (ACS), National Cancer Institute (NCI), American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) are dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by preventing cancer, saving lives, and diminishing suffering from cancer through research, education, advocacy, and service. A table below represents the generally accepted screening methods based on cancer type for your reference.
This article is brought to you by GenWay Biotech Incorporated. Our company offers a cancer assessment aimed to detect cancer in the early stages under the brand name You Test You™. To learn more please visit the website http://www.youtestyou.com.
References:
1. Horner MJ, Ries LAG, Krapcho M, Neyman N, Aminou R, Howlader N, Altekruse SF, Feuer EJ, Huang L, Mariotto A, Miller BA, Lewis DR, Eisner MP, Stinchcomb DG, Edwards BK (eds). SEER Cancer Statistics Review, 1975-2006, National Cancer Institute. Bethesda, MD, http://seer.cancer.gov/csr/1975_2006/, based on November 2008 SEER data submission, posted to the SEER web site, 2009.
2. U.S. Cancer Statistics Working Group. United States Cancer Statistics: 2004 Incidence and Mortality. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Cancer Institute, 2007.
3. American Cancer Society. Cancer Facts & Figures 2009. Atlanta: American Cancer Society, 2009.
4. American Cancer Society. Cancer Prevention and Early Detection Facts and Figures 2009. American Cancer Society, 2009.