Cinco Vidas

“Just once, I want to look really good,” says Kate, one of the main characters in the new movie, My Sister’s Keeper. “I look like a freak!”

The movie, based on Jodi Picoult’s novel of the same name, tracks a family’s journey through Kate’s acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL), a cancer of the blood and bone marrow. Each is affected in a unique way, from the older brother who becomes almost invisible to his driven parents, to the younger sister who was genetically engineered to donate blood and bone marrow to her sick sibling. The movie is very powerful, and we strongly recommended it to anyone.

Here at Cinco Vidas, however, we were interested to see just how much a young girl, who is going through cancer, benefits from the simple things we’ve been talking about here, like manicures, wigs, and a night at the dance with an attractive young man. Having been bald since her chemotherapy, Kate grows angry when searching for a dress. “Don’t tell me they don’t stare at me, because they do,” she tells her mother. We see how children—particularly young girls—can be affected by cancer treatments, and how simple things such as a well-fitting wig, some makeup, a pretty dress, and a nice manicure can help boost confidence and give a child a few moments of happiness amidst all the struggle.

Each year, New York puts on a big prom for children fighting cancer at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. The young patients get to borrow the fanciest dresses and gowns, all donated. “On that day,” says Dr. Farid Boulad, “everything that has to do with cancer is gone. And they are kings and queens and they are beautiful.” The children look forward to the event all year—evidence of how important such things can be.

Another thing that becomes clear as you watch the movie: with childhood cancer, we can become so obsessed with saving live that we forget to live life. It seems so wrong for a young child to be battling this disease, and certainly wrong for them to die of it. Sometimes that sense of wrongness propels us to go overboard trying to make it “right”—in other words, make the child well, the sooner the better. Of course, this is a natural and good response, but regardless of the outcome, as we concentrate on treatments and medications and getting better, we can’t forget to make sure the child enjoys life as a child. Interactions with other children; outings with family; the ability to pursue interests such as art, music, sports, as much as possible; all these things are of primary importance to any child, cancer or not, and must not be forgotten when nursing a sick child back to health.

A positive piece of news—in a study of Latino childhood cancers, Barbara L. Jones, PhD, MSW, an assistant professor and a co-director of the Institute for Grief, Loss, and Family Survival in the School of Social Work at The University of Texas at Austin, found that cancer helped change the lives of the survivors—often for the better. “They were on a difficult path [and] a frightening cancer diagnosis caused them to stop and look at what they value, what is important. The kinds of things they thought about were the importance of their family and friends, who stands by you, what it means to be a good friend, what it means to be with someone, the value of life, appreciating the little things as well as life, and gratitude for others. They found meaning and their lives changed by facing a life-changing illness.”

If you or someone you know has a child with cancer, the Children’s Cancer Association is there to help, as well as many other organizations including the National Children’s Cancer Society, Children’s Cancer Web Page, and the American Cancer Society.  Cancerkids.org offers a place where children can tell their stories. And if you’re bringing in some sunshine to a young cancer fighter with a manicure or pedicure, a massage with lotion, or a makeover, remember to always use organic and non-toxic products on their tender skin.

Have you had an experience with childhood cancer? Please share your story.

Photo courtesy of matthewcrawford via Flickr.com.

Taking antidepressants? It’s usually not a problem, unless you’re also taking the breast cancer drug, tamoxifen. Recent studies show the two together could increase the chances of breast cancer returning after treatment is over.

In the study, women taking one of these three medications along with tamoxifen were about twice as likely to experience breast cancer a second time. (Celexa, Lexapro, and Luvox did not show the same results.)

It’s a bit of a shock, as antidepressants are often prescribed to ease depression caused by cancer, or to reduce the sometimes severe hot flashes caused by tamoxifen. In fact, over 25% of women experiencing hot flashes on tamoxifen are now prescribed antidepressants to manage the symptoms! Read More »

Remember that icky-smelling stuff that used to preserve the soon-to-be-dissected frogs in your junior high science class? Yep. Formaldehyde. We warned you about it showing up in nail polish in a former post. A colorless gas used to manufacture building materials, to serve as a preservative, and to make certain substances adhere to surfaces (as in nail hardeners and polishes), it made our “ingredients to avoid” list because of its reputation as a carcinogen. Just in case you weren’t convinced, here’s some more evidence for you!

A new study conducted by scientists from the National Cancer Institute followed 25,000 industrial workers in formaldehyde-producing plants for three decades, Read More »

Dry, flaky skin is an uncomfortable side effect of many cancer treatments. Radiation creates it at the treatment site, while chemotherapy can get you itching everywhere. You apply moisturizer and apply moisturizer, but are there any other natural remedies?

Dry skin seems to occur on the surface, but actually the problem goes deeper than that, down to the oil-producing glands in the lower layers. A healthy diet filled with vitamins and minerals that support healthy gland function can help your skin battle the problem. Fortunately, the foods that are good for your skin are good for the rest of your body, too, so while you’re eating for moisturization, you’ll reap the benefit of increased immunity and strength. Read More »

Age spots, melasma, acne scarring, blotches—these are the archenemies of the beautiful complexion. If you have any of these, you know how it is when you look in the mirror. Sure, foundation helps, but it gets tiring piling on all the makeup all the time. Wouldn’t it be much better to lighten those spots, or make them disappear entirely?

Unfortunately, the most popular product out there for the job—because it definitely lightens skin—is hydroquinone. Read More »

“It’s important for cancer survivors to get strong,” says Starr Cleary, cancer exercise specialist, Pilates instructor, and Cinco Vidas expert, “but strong progressively. We don’t want to see them regress or have setbacks.”

Starr has been teaching her own special form of Pilates to cancer survivors for the last ten years. Called the “Starr Power Pilates Program,” it helps survivors regain strength and mobility in a progressive, gentle way.

“Most people have a tendency to move very quickly when they’re exercising. Pilates is about moving slowly, with control and precision. It places more emphasis on quality movements rather than quantity. If you perform three controlled arm/leg lifts beautifully, that’s going to get you stronger than moving the arm up and down really fast.” Read More »

We all experience dry skin from time to time, especially in the harsh winter months. Chemotherapy, however, is a professional thief, and skin moisture is it’s favorite prize. Drugs like 5-FU can cause extreme dry skin, and those who have it can suffer so much that they’re unable to sleep, sometimes experiencing intense itching and scratching that can lead to infection.

“It was as though a giant sponge swooped down and absorbed all the moisture from my skin,” says Pat, a breast-cancer survivor.

What are the signs? Dry skin appears rough and flaky, and can become cracked and peeled. Read More »

“I just got back from Christmas,” says a caregiver on Cancercompass.com, “and I am just so sad. My dad who was diagnosed with EC [esophageal cancer] in November couldn’t eat his dinner.”

There’s no doubt that cancer, treatments, and side effects can make it harder for you to eat, and harder for your body to absorb nutrients from your food. “Our doctors have some amazing weapons in their arsenal when it comes to knocking out cancer,” says Heather Borsa, Oncology Dietitian at Elkhart General Hospital, Indiana. Read More »

“I finished Chemo Nov 08 but still have the pain in my feet,” says survivor Kim.

“I finished chemo in Oct 08,” says Kinden, “and still have sore feet….For me it is inside the skin, not really on the outside.”

Most of the time, sore feet are the result of a side effect called “hand-foot syndrome,” or palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia (PPE). (Read our post on PPE.) Certain types of chemotherapy drugs (like Xeloda, 5FU, Doxil, and more) cause the condition by leaking out of small blood vessels in the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet. The leakage results in redness, tenderness, and sometimes peeling. Read More »

We know that fitting exercise into your day can be a big challenge. Still, the evidence continues to pile up—exercise is one of the best ways to keep cancer out of your life.

“We now believe physical activity is a primary component of preventing cancer,” says Abby Bloch, chairwoman of the American Cancer Society’s advisory committee on nutrition and physical activity. Read More »