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Hypnosis Helps Reduce Pain Suffered by Cancer Patients

Cancer patients should be offered hypnosis therapy to help reduce their pain, researchers said yesterday after a series of scientific studies.

Tests with patients as young as six found they reported and showed less discomfort when they were hypnotized or learnt how to hypnotize themselves.

Learn more about his interesting discovery by reading the Independent News article.

Pot May Have Long-Term Benefit for MS

Cannabis-based treatments may have longer-term benefits for multiple sclerosis patients, scientists said on Friday.

The findings of a short, 15-week trial of MS patients published last year were inconclusive because although patients reported relief in muscle stiffness, rigidity and mobility, the findings could not be confirmed by physiotherapists.

Click here to learn more about the specific results of the study on MSNBC's web site.

Bird Flu Spread by Cats Investigated

Cats not only can catch the deadly bird flu but can spread it to other felines, Dutch researchers said in a report that raises questions about the pets' role in outbreaks.

So far, cats have not been implicated in the spread of avian flu to people, said Dr. Klaus Stohr, the World Health Organization's influenza chief.

There are two potential reasons, he said. "One is nobody looked. The other is they don't play a role" because infected cats do not shed nearly as much virus as do infected poultry, Stohr said.

Learn more about the potential issues from CNN's information.

The Obesity Crisis: American Bodies are Out of Balance

Willpower is perhaps the least instructive explanation for the growing number of overweight Americans, say many obesity experts. Most now believe obesity is a disease triggered by a food-rich, activity-scarce environment in people who are genetically susceptible to weight gain. And the government appears to agree, with Medicare opening the door for coverage of obesity treatments earlier this year and the Internal Revenue Service now allowing tax breaks for some weight-loss programs."

Scientists now believe that biological and cultural factors, not a lack of willpower are primary in unhealthy weight gain.  Learn more about these program designed to encourage weight loss and healthy lifestyles at the Seattle Post's site.

New Pill May Limit Yeast Infections

Women who get lots of painful yeast infections can safely ward them off with a weekly pill, the largest study on the subject has found.

Regular, preventive doses of an antifungal drug for six months dramatically cut the number of episodes. But it wasn't a cure: Over time, infections recurred in many women.

Read CNN's complete coverage on this topic to learn about the specific benefits.

Easier Treatment in the Works for Breast Cancer

Within two weeks of starting a new, experimental radiation treatment for breast cancer, Karen Todkill jumped into her car and drove off to visit relatives in Ottawa.

Patients who undergo standard radiation treatment rarely jump anywhere. They are often home sick, in pain and too tired to move.

But Ms. Todkill, a 51-year-old Toronto-area resident, was cruising up the highway this spring, her father in the passenger seat, while 63 implanted pellets released radiation into her left breast.

"I feel great," she said yesterday, "There's been no side effects, nothing. The doctors said there might be some itchiness or burning, but I haven't had any of that."

Ms. Todkill's doctors, at Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre in Toronto, are being billed as the first in the world to implant permanent radioactive "seeds" into the tumor sites of women with breast cancer. Six women with early-stage breast cancer have received the implants in the past four months; doctors say no side effects have been reported.

Discover more about this fascinating new treatment by reading the Globe and Mail's complete information.

Health Impact from 9/11 Extensive

Nearly half of the more than 1,000 screened rescue workers who responded to the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks suffer from new or exacerbated respiratory, mental and other health problems, according to a government report released on Thursday.

Read the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's in-depth report on these health issues.

 Black Organ Donations Lower Nationwide

Black donors are preferable for blacks receiving kidneys because of the organ's sensitivity to genetic factors. But medical specialists say the number of black donors is not keeping up with the huge need, due in part to a distrust of doctors stemming from the infamous Tuskegee syphilis study.

Find out what you can do to help with this growing problem by reading the Associated Press information on this growing problem.

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