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Cancer Care

Thu, 29 May 2008 21:26:04 GMT

By Aja J. Junior

MILLIONS OF CANCER PATIENTS endure
six intense weeks of restlessness, fear, pain, and
loss of time during their radiation or chemotherapy
treatments. Now, those dealing with
breast cancer and its effects have options and
decreased time for radiation treatments, giving
a boost to women around Missouri for Breast
Cancer Awareness month, which is October.

Siteman Cancer Center at St. Louis is making
gains in breast cancer radiation technology.
Using the Varian Trilogy system, breast cancer
patients in the St. Louis area can cut their
radiation treatment time down to five days.

Like traditional chemotherapy treatments,
Trilogy delivers a beam of external radiation
through the skin within one millimeter of
the treatment site. Trilogy is also capable of
taking CT scans, conventional X-rays, and
three-dimensional images. It is normal for
patients to have CT scans before radiation
to determine the location of tumors.

Trilogy is a non-invasive procedure
that uses radiation through the skin to the
area where the tumor was discovered. This
treatment requires patients to have two
rounds of radiation for five days. Patients
incur slight side effects due to the
shorter time and the radiation
targeting a direct area, instead
of a larger area. To be considered
for Trilogy, candidates
must be in the early stages of
breast cancer, with no spread to
the lymph nodes.

Ellis Fischel Cancer Center at Columbia is
using MammoSite for radiation treatment.
“It makes a big difference in many women’s
lives,” says Dr. Paul Dale, chief of surgical
oncology at Ellis Fischel, who has performed
more than one hundred treatments.

As with Trilogy, women endure partial
breast radiation treatments, which would
otherwise take six weeks for whole breast
radiation treatments, twice a day for five
days. Following a lumpectomy, candidates for
MammoSite have a balloon placed within the
lump site for treatment. After a bead of radiation
is added and twelve minutes pass, a round
of treatment is complete.

Certain qualifications must be met before
a woman can receive MammoSite treatments.
She must be forty-five or older, her tumor has
to be less than three centimeters or one inch,
and she must have no evidence of lymph node
metastasis, or spreading cancer cells.

Fortunately, more than 65 percent of
women qualify as candidates for MammoSite,
and the low recurrence rate following treatment
is approximately 1.6 percent, according to
the National Registration Center.

The procedure proves safe, if not safer, than
the other radiation alternatives for women,
says Dr. Dale. No treatment comes without
its share of complications, though. Skin irritation,
chance of infection, and problems arising
from the balloon fitting the lumpectomy site
are all possible complications. However, the
complication percentage is relatively low, less
than 5 percent, Dr. Dale says.

Along with advancements in radiation
treatment, breast cancer detection seems to
be undergoing a transition to more comfortable
means. SoftScan, produced by Advanced
Research Technologies, Inc., leaves the days of
press-and-squeeze mammography behind and
gives women a reason to relax.

University of California at San Diego is testing
SoftScan technology. Lying on a table face down,
a woman’s breast is placed into immobilization
plates and through a soft, water-like pod. Using
a non-harmful laser, the device gathers an image
of the breast and potential lesions. If made available
in the United States, detection
of lumps in breasts may
become simpler and
more comfortable.

Call 573-882-
2100 or 314-
747-7222 or visit
www.ellisfischel.
org or www.siteman.
wustl.edu/
default.aspx for more
information.

Oct 2007

Easing The Anxiety

Wed, 04 Jun 2008 17:24:20 GMT

By Rebecca French Smith

SHE’S A TOUGH young lady, working on her
Taekwondo brown belt. But at thirteen, Pascale
White has been through more than most. Looking
at her, you wouldn’t know it. She’s healthy and
happy and squabbles with her two sisters, but
once upon a time her fight with leukemia had
her all but out.

In 1994 at the age of one, Pascale was diagnosed
with acute lymphoblastic leukemia.

A serious illness and multiple hospital stays led
Pascale’s parents, Sylvie Carpentier and Matthew
White, to establish Pascale’s Pals in 1995 to help
children who are suffering from serious illness
and their families. The nonprofit organization
supports the University of Missouri Children’s
Hospital at Columbia.

Because illnesses like Pascale’s strike so quickly,
Sylvie says, parents are not always able to deal
with everything that comes at them. Pascale’s Pals
offers assistance in many forms: phone cards (you
can’t use cell phones in hospitals), gas money, gift
baskets, Thanksgiving dinner, the Easter bunny,
and the list goes on. These are things forgotten in
the fog of worry for a child.

It’s the little things that make a huge difference,
says Cindy Brooks, manager of pediatric
services at University of Missouri Health Care.
Most adults understand that there are big bills to
pay, and extras are not always possible. But Sylvie
understands what it means to not have the right
Disney movie and what the right movie means to
a sick child, Cindy says.

The first time Pascale was in the hospital,
there were only two TVs on mobile carts shared
by all the families there, Sylvie says. Families were
fighting over them nonstop. That’s when Sylvie
took it upon herself to organize bake sales to help
fund the purchase of TVs for all the rooms in the
Children’s Hospital, the first unofficial action of
what would become Pascale’s Pals.

Since that first year and the twelve hundred
dollars they raised, donation totals have gone up
annually, according to Sylvie, who is also the president
of the organization. This year, the annual
auction brought in eighty-five thousand dollars—
an impressive amount, given that Pascale’s Pals
doesn’t advertise. It’s all word of mouth.

The organization will begin accepting donations
for the 2008 auction in January. Typical items
on the block include dinners at local restaurants,
gift certificates, and some more interesting donations,
such as the dinner with U.S. Congressman
Kenny Hulshof that was donated in 2007.

Over the years, the organization has donated
to the Children’s Hospital everything from DVD
movies to this year’s $25,000 donation to buy a
Luminetx VeinViewer, used to help nurses find a
vein on the first try.

The children don’t enjoy being poked, and
“The nurses never want to stick a child more than
one time, if at all possible,” Cindy says. “You just
don’t want to hurt kids. So if we can do something
to make things less scary, then that’s what
we want to do.”

For Pascale, it’s been a journey, Sylvie says.
Pascale experienced a relapse in 2000 that almost
took her life. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
at Memphis, Tennessee, stepped in and found the
perfect cocktail of medications for Pascale and put
her body into remission, which made an umbilical
cord stem cell transplant possible.

Today, Pascale is a thriving eighth-grader who
will be spending Christmas morning with her
family—at the hospital giving out presents.

Visit www.pascalespals.org for more
information.

December 2007

Art for the Health of It

Sat, 28 Oct 2006 15:16:30 GMT

*By Diana Lambdin Meyer*     Why does a blue sky lift our spirits? Shifra Stein, a Kansas City artist, writer, and workshop instructor, thinks it’s the color.
    “It’s calming and promotes physical and mental relaxation, stimulates healing and creativity, relieves pain, and lowers blood pressure,” Stein says.
    After recovering from a debilitating depressive illness in 1996 that left her unable to write, read, or concentrate, Stein attended an art therapy class where she tentatively picked up a brush and found she could create art. In the process, she found her lifeline back into the world.
    Today, she teaches an art workshop at health centers around the country, reaching those struggling with the emotional aspects of major medical crises. One organization she teaches for is Eastern Jackson County Cancer Action, a nonprofit that provides support and services to people and their families facing cancer.
    “We’ve seen our clients leave Shifra’s workshops with such a sense of empowerment in facing their illness,” says Executive Director Karla Nichols.
    For more information visit www.artforhealth.us.

February 2006

Under One Roof

Sat, 28 Oct 2006 15:15:44 GMT

*By Pamele Inzerillo*     Children and seniors who need care can both benefit by spending some time together, and now the new 4 Life Center at Lexington adds a third and fourth dimension, health and dental care, for the children, the seniors, and the busy sandwich generation trying to care for both.
    Small towns or rural communities, especially, sometimes don’t have all four options in one town. Lexington community leaders faced this situation several years ago and decided to do something about it. They formed a nonprofit organization to develop the concept that resulted in 4 Life Center, which opened in January 2006. The goal of the center is to provide a variety of care options under one roof to benefit Lafayette, Ray, and Carroll county residents. The Center is home to Rodgers-Lafayette Dental and Health Center, Lexington R-5 Pre-School and Vocational Class, Early Childhood Educational Center, and the Margaret Gray Community Center. The Center offers one-stop for primary and preventive health care,
comprehensive dental care, mental health services, obstetrics care, family planning and disease prevention education, social services, early childhood care, education and pre-school, senior adult activities, and intergenerational activities and wellness programs, which include both exercise and nutritional education.
    For more information about the 4 Life Center call 660-259-9019 or visit www.lexington4life.org.

February 2006

The Doc Makes House Calls

Sat, 28 Oct 2006 15:13:50 GMT

*By Diana Lambdin Meyer* Dr. Natalie Hodge goes about her work as a pediatric physician each day the old fashioned way — she makes house calls to her young patients in the St. Louis suburb of Clayton and surrounding neighborhoods. Dr. Hodge estimates it has been more than thirty years since doctors have made regular house calls in this country. While a handful of physicians make house calls for a portion of their practice, she is believed to be the only doctor nationwide to have a house-call only practice. A graduate of the University of Kentucky School of Medicine who did her residency at Children’s Hospital of St. Louis, Dr. Hodge practiced for seven years in a traditional medical office setting, seeing as many as forty patients a day. After giving birth to two children of her own, now two and five years old, Dr. Hodge wanted something different for herself and her patients. “When I had my own children, I realized how convenient and pleasant it would be for the doctor to see my children at home.” She now sees an average of five patients a day. Having just celebrated her first anniversary in business as Personal Pediatrics, Dr. Hodge has received inquiries about her practice from
doctors around the country. _To learn more about Dr. Hodge’s innovative work, visit www.personalpediatrics.com._ February 2006

Nordies at Noon

Sat, 28 Oct 2006 15:11:10 GMT

*By Anita Neal Harrison* When Kim Carlos, a native of Hallsville, found a lump in her breast at age thirty, she called Patti Balwanz, a friend she made at Missouri State University at Springfield. Patti, who’s from Columbia, could empathize because she had found a lump at age twenty-four. She could also introduce Kim to two more young women fighting breast cancer: Jana Peters and Jennifer Johnson, both diagnosed at age twenty-seven. Kim joined the monthly meetings Patti, Jana, and Jennifer had been having at Nordstram’s Cafe in Overland Park, Kansas. At one of these meetings, they decided to write a book together. “We’ve been able to lean on each other and support each other, but a lot of women don’t have that, and we wanted to help them,” Kim says. A few months ago, the friends released Nordie’s at Noon. Every chapter begins with a discussion set at Nordstram’s and then presents
four first-person accounts of the women’s experiences. Those experiences varied widely in part because the four women received their diagnoses at different stages in their lives. Patti was single, Jana was planning her wedding, Jennifer was five months pregnant, and Kim was planning her son’s second birthday party. Each woman writes from a different perspective, but they all use humor and unusual honesty in their tales. “The book is about a serious subject, but it’s also about living life to the fullest,” Kim says. Writing Nordie’s at Noon took three years in part because Patti faced a recurrence. On March 29, 2003, she passed away. While fighting her last battle, she insisted her friends finish the book. “She always said, ‘We didn’t go through this just to help one person; we went through this to help thousands,’” Kim says. _For more on Nordie’s at Noon and the four authors or to order the book ($15.95 plus tax), visit www.nordiesatnoon.com._ February 2006

Pain in the Back

Wed, 04 Oct 2006 21:21:24 GMT

*By Diana Lambdin Meyer* Anyone who has suffered from chronic back and neck pain is willing to do just about anything to make it go away. Options include surgery, therapy, medications, and aggressive exercise. Medical research varies from one study to the next on whether aggressive exercise or rest and tender loving care is the best treatment for an ailing back and neck. Brenda Woods, an Osteopathic doctor in Columbia, believes that physical therapy and exercise under the direct supervision of a doctor is the best course of action for many patients suffering from chronic back pain. “Therapy promotes essential movement, increased nutrition and blood-flow and structural integrity for strong bones and muscles,” Brenda says. Brenda and her team of exercise physiologists at Progressive Spine Care and Rehabilitation incorporate McKenzie™ evaluation methods and pain treatment. McKenzie™ therapy, a recognized world leader in mechanical diagnosis and treatment of the spine, encourages mechanical movement patterns that accelerate the healing process. Brenda’s clinic combines McKenzie™ therapy with MedX™ equipment specifically designed to isolate, test, strengthen, and rehabilitate the back, neck, and surrounding areas of the spine. A computergenerated graph documents the patient’s baseline strength and range of motion. “This takes out the subjective interpretation of a therapist,” Brenda says. Progressive Spine Care is one of only a handful of clinics in Missouri that uses MedX™ machines and is the only one that provides doctor supervision in the clinic during therapy sessions. Researchers have documented this approach as a solid alternative to surgery, and for those who require surgery, a better outcome. Most insurance companies recognize this approach to management of chronic back pain and pay comparably to traditional physical therapy. _For more information about Progressive Spine Care and Rehabilitation, visit www.progressivespine.com._ April 2006

Home Away From Home Near Hospitals

Wed, 04 Oct 2006 21:16:47 GMT

*By Diana Lambdin Meyer* When George and Mary Hudson first opened their St. Louis RV Park, in downtown St. Louis in the 1980s, they envisioned catering to families and empty-nesters traveling duringtheir retirement years. The Hudsons themselves anticipated a month or two of vacation when Missouri’s cold winter might make it economically feasible to shut the doors for a while. But life didn’t exactly work out that way. Their three-acre park, located thirteen blocks from the St. Louis Convention Center, is also within minutes of most of the city’s major hospitals. The RV park has become a home-away-from-home for patients and their families waiting for major procedures. “We see miracles happen here everyday,” Mary says. One of the first patients to receive a lung-heart transplant at Barnes-Jewish Hospital nearly ten years ago stayed at George and Mary’s RV park while waiting for the call from the hospital. He now returns at least once a year to visit his friends, George and Mary. “When people live here for up to six or nine months, they become friends, and we care about them as if they are family,” Mary says. Each patient on a transplant list is required to have a cell phone and multiple contact phone numbers so that the hospital may reach them at any time of the day or night. On more than one occasion, hospitals have called the Hudsons in the wee hours of the morning to alert park guests to go to the hospital. The social services departments at most St. Louis hospitals carry brochures and information about George and Mary’s RV park, which offers a full-size pool, convenience store, recreation room and laundry facilities in a gated, fenced environment in downtown St. Louis. _Visit their site at 900 North Jefferson or online at www.stlouisrvpark. com, or call 800-878-3330._ _Note: Most rural or suburban area hospitals in Missouri will accommodate patient’s families with self-contained motor homes in the parking lot for short periods of time. If such a service would benefit your family, talk with the administration or social services department._ April 2006

Floss Daily for a Healthy Heart

Wed, 04 Oct 2006 21:12:31 GMT

*By Diana Lambdin Meyer* Getting a grip on heart disease may be as simple as getting a good grip on your toothbrush, followed by a strand of dental floss. Recently published studies in the New England Journal of Medicine and the Journal of Periodontology report stronger links between good oral health, particularly the health of gums, and overall health. Particular links include heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and low birth weight babies. Such research changed the way Brad Burke, DMD, of Springfield, approaches his patients about their care. Brad has been in practice on Springfield’s Medical Mile for more than fifteen years. “In my clinic, we are consulting our patients on the connection between periodontal disease and heart disease,” Brad says. “We used to maintain teeth as long as we could and strive for non-surgical maintenance of unhealthy gums, says Dr. Burke, who today is less likely to maintain questionable teeth and more likely to eliminate pockets surgically. The studies also consider gum disease a higher predictor of heart disease than elevated cholesterol levels. Until this research became public, many oral health care providers and general physicians considered their specialties unrelated. Brad anticipates working more closely with his patients, especially those at high risk for heart disease, and their physicians. “I foresee the day when we in the oral health field will play a crucial role in the fight against cardiovascular disease,” Brad says. Although the results of this research are now widely accepted in dental and periodontal fields, Brad encourages Missourians to ask their healthcare specialists about the link between oral health and general health. April 2006

Rural Doors Open

Wed, 04 Oct 2006 02:09:52 GMT

*By Diana Lambdin Meyer* An unprecedented ninety tornadoes touched down in Missouri on March 12. One crossed Interstate 70 near Sweet Springs, flipping five trailer trucks on top of cars huddled under the overpass for protection. Had this scenario developed last spring, the eleven victims would have been transported more than twenty miles to hospitals in either Marshall or Sedalia. Instead, they were rushed less than a mile away to the new fifteen-bed I-70 Medical Center in Sweet Springs that opened last March. A similar fifteen-bed hospital will open in Pilot Knob in Iron County this December, signaling progress in a three-decade crisis of rural hospital closings. The two new hospitals are Critical Access Hospitals, meaning they get higher Medicare reimbursements, to help rural hospitals grow or maintain. Thirty-five hospitals in Missouri have the federal designation. _For more information about the Critical Access Hospital program in Missouri, visit www.hospitalconnect.com/aha/member_relations/cah/._ June 2006

The Power of Touch

Wed, 04 Oct 2006 02:10:22 GMT

*By Diana Lambdin Meyer* Sometimes the headaches come crashing in like an avalanche of pain, like a nutcracker has my head in a vice grip and won’t let go. It’s not a migraine, but it is debilitating. No amount of over-the-counter or prescription pharmaceuticals relieves the pain like an hour with Anthony, my licensed massage therapist. My doctor recognizes this as well and has written me a prescription for massage. Even though insurance doesn’t cover it, because I have a prescription, I can claim the expense as a medical deduction on my itemized taxes. In recognition of the benefit of massage, St. Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City opened a Complementary Care Center in September 2005 that includes massage therapies. “The entire environment of western medicine is changing, and the public is demanding a different approach,” says Kathleen Coleton, a licensed massage therapist, under contract with St. Luke’s Hospital. “There tends to be more references from younger doctors who are now exposed to the benefits of massage therapy in medical school.” The Missouri Division of Professional Registration currently shows 3,315 licensed massage therapists in the state of Missouri and another 300 with provisional licenses. “That the state of Missouri did not begin licensing massage therapists until 2001 is indicative of the growing recognition of the benefits of massage therapy,” says Loree Kessler, executive director of the State Board of Therapeutic Massage. Perhaps the best way to find a therapist is to ask people you know and trust. When you find a therapist with a good reputation, give him or her a try. Before your first massage, your therapist should spend several minutes talking with you about particular issues and pains, as well as your lifestyle and work habits. Katherine Harvel, a fundraising consultant in Lee’s Summit, spends much of her workday sitting at her computer, which puts pressure on her lower back. “I get muscle spasms occasionally in my lower back,” Harvel says. “I have found that if I can get in for a deep tissue massage within twenty-four hours, it kicks. Otherwise, it will be several uncomfortable days before the pain works out.” “Deep tissue” is just one of several types of massage therapies. Deciding on the right therapy is a highly individualized choice. When choosing a therapist, look for the ten-digit license number on their business card or brochure. For more information, check out the massage-finder database at www.massagetherapy.com or visit the University of Miami’s Touch Research Institute web site at www.miami.edu/touch-research. June 2006