Difference between tumor and cancer

Tumor is a abnormal mass. There are benign tumor and malignant tumor.  Tumor is one of the cardinal signs of inflammation. So, the term of “ tumor” is general.

Cancer is malignant tumor.  Based on the origin of the cancer, there are carcinoma and sarcoma. The origin of carcinoma is epithelial cell, e.g., breast, thyroid, etc. The origin of sarcoma is connective tissue, e.g., bone, muscle, ligament, fat, cartilage, etc.  The most important of cancer cell is the  ability to invade and metastasize.

References

Kummar, V., Abbas, A. K., Fausto, N. & Aster, J. C., 2010. Robbin and Cotran : Pathologic basis of disease. Philadelphia: Saunders Elsevier.

The Diagnosis of Your Disease is Diarrhea. Is It Correct ?

There are many misunderstandings about diarrhea. Diarrhea is a symptom, not a diagnosis of your disease. The most important thing if you have diarrhea is the degree of dehydration.  Dehydration is very dangerous because human body can’t maintain the homeostasis state without enough water.  Severe dehydration is fatal complication of diarrhea.

If your body temperature is more than 37,5 C, it means that you have fever. Diarrhea and fever are the sign of infection in your gastrointestinal tract ( Gastroenteritis ). Now, what is the cause ?

You can check your feces. The pathogen is Vibro cholerae if your feces is like rice water. Shigella dysentriae is the cause, if you can see blood in the feces ( red feces ). If the cause is Giardia lamblia, you’ll find pear-shaped parasit with flagella under microscope ( bring your feces to Parasitology Lab ).

If your temperature is 36,5 – 37,5 C, you maybe not infected by pathogen. However, you need to reassure that there is no pathogen in your body. The temperature is normal and diarrhea only happens in the certain situation ( e.g., when you are not ready to face final exam in your school ). The cause is problably from your psychological state. You need to go to the psychiatrist.

Your temperature is normal and your psychological state is fine, but you have diarrhea only after you eat certain food ( e.g., spicy food, acidic food, milk, etc. ).  You may have alergic condition or food poisoning because of the food.

Please go to your doctor to treat your diarrhea condition ! 

Iron-deficiency Anemia and Your Cognitive Function

Anemia is the most common blood disorder worldwide. Iron deficiency is the most common nutritional disorder and accounts for approximately one-half of anemia cases¹.

Iron deficiency affects more than 2 billion people worldwide. However, the prevalence of iron deficiency anemia has recently decreased , but iron deficiency is still common cause of anemia. Iron deficiency anemia is dangerous for young children and premenopausal women². Pregnant women should be screened during pregnancy. Children must check for it at one years old. But if you are men or postmenoupausal women, you won’t need this screening anymore but you’ll need gastrointestinal endoscopy when you are diagnosed¹.

It is chronic and frequently asymptomatic so this disease go undiagnosed if you don’t check your hemoglobin level and iron stores. Weakness, fatigue, difficulty in concentrating, and poor work productivity are nonspecific symptoms. This symptoms happen because of low delivery of oxygen to human tissues and decreased activity of iron-containing enzymes. There are nonhematological effects that may not respond to iron therapy. What is that ? Yes, these are the signs of iron deficiency in the tissues. For example, decreased cognitive performance and delayed mental and motor development in children³.

Reference

¹Short, M. Iron deficiency anemia: evaluation and management,  Am Fam Physician 2013; 87: 98-104.

²McLean E, Cogswell M, Egli I, Wojdyla D, de Benoist B. Worldwide prevalence of anaemia, WHO Vitamin and Mineral Nutrition Information System, 1993-2005. Public Health Nutr 2009;12: 444-54.

³Camaschella, C. Iron-Deficiency Anemia, N Engl J Med 2015;372: 1832-1843.