Franciscan St. James Physician Pioneers New Procedure for Cases Where Cancer Spread to the Spine

CHICAGO HEIGHTS, IL, June 6, 2012 | Dr. Amar Shah, a Franciscan St. James Health interventional radiologist, completed a new spinal tumor treatment to provide bone stability and reduce pain for a patient whose cancer spread to the spine.

This is the first time this treatment, Radio Frequency Spinal Ablation (RFA), has been performed for painful spinal metastatic disease in the south and southwest suburbs. In fact, it has been performed just 42 times previously in the entire U.S.

When cancer cells spread to other organs or body structures, it is said to have metastasized. Spinal metastasis is common in patients with cancer. The spine is the third most common site for cancer cells to metastasize, following the lung and the liver. It can cause symptoms ranging from back pain to bowel/bladder problems and paralysis.

According to the American Cancer Society, when a cancer travels to the spine from other parts of the body, it can weaken the bones often resulting in fractures. Spinal metastatic disease can hamper a patients ability to maintain your regular activities and lifestyle, and as those tumors grow the may press on or dislodge the adjacent spinal cord.

“RFA therapy delivers more rapid pain relief and improves the quality of life for late stage cancer patients,” Dr. Shah said. “While other treatments, such as External Beam Radiation, require up to six weeks of treatment, RFA can provide pain relief in a single treatment.”

While RFA therapy can treat end-stage cancer patients who seek pain control and quality of life, it can also be used for patients seeking a cure of their primary cancers. It can potentially achieve more rapid pain relief, enabling the patient to stay on chemotherapy and focus on battling their primary cancer.

“RFA therapy can benefit patients who must stay on chemotherapy to fight their primary cancers,” Dr. Shah said. “It will preclude the need interrupt chemotherapy when undergoing radiation due to systemic toxicity.”

Radiation oncologists often have trouble getting patients in pain to lay still for radiation therapy. When that severe pain is successfully addressed, patients are more comfortable and more able to be successfully treated.

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Media contact:      Michael Shepherd

                              708-756-1000, ext. 3455
Michael.Shepherd@franciscanalliance.org

Type 2 Diabetes Occurring at Younger Ages

For years, Type 2 diabetes most commonly developed in patients around age 40 and up. We are now seeing a steady increase in prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes in adolescents aged 10 to 19. The major culprit? Childhood obesity.

The incidence of childhood obesity has tripled over the last 30 years, bringing with it an increase in associated diseases including Type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and arthritis. For the first time in two centuries, this generation of children may have a shorter life expectancy than their parents. We can no longer ignore the effect poor diet and lack of exercise is having on our children.

It is now protocol for doctors to order blood glucose screenings for obese children. At the Franciscan St. James Center for Diabetes, we are seeing many more young prediabetic patients, whose glucose levels are higher than normal range, but not high enough to be considered Type 2 diabetes.

Eating excessive portion sizes and consuming large amount of calories contribute to weight gain that forces the pancreas to work much harder to keep the glucose levels normal.

Even things perceived as healthy, such as fruit juices, contribute to the problem, with kids drinking over-sized portions of these sugar-filled beverages. Additionally, today’s children are much more sedentary. So, they’re not burning the calories off.

When I counsel young patients at the Center for Diabetes, their parents are present. I explain that the entire family must become involved in the shift to leading a healthier lifestyle. Family participation keeps the child from feeling singled out or punished, and builds in positive reinforcement.

Here are some basics I share with my young patients and their parents:

Physical Activity is Key

Kids require 60 minutes of physical activity each day. Unfortunately, some schools offer gym only twice each week. Especially at this time of year, I encourage kids to go outside, run and play with friends, shoot baskets – anything that involves movement. In addition to traditional team sports, swimming, tennis, and track are great ways to get exercise.

Today, we drive our kids everywhere. Whenever possible, they should walk or ride their bicycles instead.

Planning family activities and getting into an active routine together is an important, positive step. Long walks along the many south suburban walking paths and parks provide a perfect opportunity to catch up with each other’s lives.

Practice What You Preach

The entire family needs to be on board with dietary changes, with parents taking the lead. It’s easy to pick up a quick meal and eat in front of the television. But if we pay closer attention and make the effort to change, the rewards are many.

Begin by eliminating the availability of sugar-filled drinks and high calorie snacks at home. We can’t expect kids to resist these ready temptations, especially when other family members are indulging in front of them.

Local schools have done an excellent job of replacing high calorie, high sugar snacks and beverages in vending machines with water, calorie free drinks and healthier lower calorie snack options. As a community, we must recognize the epidemic that’s occurring and be more diligent about paying attention to what our kids eat and drink.

Changing the way we think about food and physical activity begins in the family. It really is a lifelong journey. If we can make changes early, it will to pay off now and in the long run.

Cheryl Boss, CNP, is a Diabetes Nurse Practitioner at the Franciscan St. James Center for Diabetes. Franciscan St. James Health is a member of the Southland Health Alliance.

Mammograms and Self-Exams are Women's Best Friends

One in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer at some point in her life. Fortunately, breast cancer mortality is on a continued decline, which has been attributed to early detection and improvements in treatment.

The earlier we detect cancer, the more treatable it is and the greater the probability of a better outcome. Catching it in the early stages makes breast conservation therapy more likely, meaning the patient can be treated with a lumpectomy versus a mastectomy.

 

The most important things a woman can do to improve her odds against breast cancer are to perform regular self-exams, go for regular check-ups with her internist or gynecologist and, past the age of 40, have yearly mammograms. From the age of 20, women are advised to have a clinical breast exam performed by a healthcare practitioner at least every three years. After reaching 40, this should be done annually.

The combination of performing self-exams and having annual mammograms is important because self-exams may detect something before it’s time for an annual visit. Sometimes women ignore an abnormality found during a self-exam and put off seeing their doctor. It can’t be over-stressed that anything even slightly suspicious should be brought to a doctor’s attention.

Another potentially dangerous practice is to put off having an annual mammogram. Screening mammography has been proven to save lives. In fact, most doctors agree that mammograms save many thousands of lives every year. Women who have higher risk factors should talk to their doctors about having mammograms before turning 40.

The Digital Difference

Many places now offer the additional technology of digital mammography, including the Breast Center at Franciscan St. James Hospital. Because digital mammograms are electronically stored, they can be analyzed by both computers and radiologists.

Unlike film mammograms, digital images can be manipulated to improve clarity and visibility. And because they are stored electronically, they are easy to access and retrieve as well as easier to share with other health care professionals.

A 2005 study found that digital mammography detected up to 28 percent more cancers than film mammography in women younger than 50 years of age, premenopausal women, perimenopausal women and women with dense breasts.

Understanding Risk Factors

Some factors that predispose women to breast cancer cannot be changed. For one, the risk increases as women get older. Most advanced cases of the disease are found in women past the age of 50. Having a close relative who has had breast, uterine, ovarian or colon cancer is another factor. Some women are genetically predisposed to breast cancer.

Women whose menstrual cycle started before the age of 12 or lasted past the age of 55 are also at increased risk. Never having children or who having a first child after the age of 30 can also increase the risk for breast cancer. Receiving hormone replacement therapy with estrogen for several years or longer is another factor that places women at a higher risk.

Be Proactive

In addition to performing self-exams, having clinical exams and going for mammograms, there are other steps that women can take to decrease the likelihood of developing breast cancer. Maintaining a healthy weight and exercising regularly are two positive steps to take. Breastfeed if possible and limit alcohol intake. Drinking more than one or two glasses of alcohol a day may increase the risk for breast cancer.

Having a mammogram takes very little time and provides potentially life-saving benefits. At the Breast Center at Franciscan St. James, most women are in and out very quickly. That’s a small sacrifice for the safety and peace of mind a mammogram can offer.

Paul Mullarkey, MD, is the Director of Breast Imaging at the Franciscan St. James Health Comprehensive Cancer Institute. Franciscan St. James is a member of the Southland Health Alliance.