In the Spotlight Archives | Oncology Buddies

In the Spotlight Sexuality – a ‘new me’ and a ‘new we’

Mar 20, 2019 Sandra

Satisfying sexual activity doesn’t rely on full physical perfection, and often after a diagnosis of cancer, a couple can connect and find levels of intimacy greater than what they had previously. Dr Anthony Smith explains. The diagnosis and management of cancer causes a radical disruption to normal life and can be devastating to the sexual lives of men. Over the last decade advancing therapies have allowed more people to survive cancer, resulting in longer periods of time over which disturbances in sexual function can occur. How cancer affects a man’s sexual health can broadly be divided into three areas: …

In the Spotlight Seven tips to eat right

Mar 20, 2019 Sandra

Berna Harmse, a dietitian, shares seven tips to eat right. International guidelines1 apply for those who want to reduce their cancer risk and for cancer survivors. So, eating well may help you reduce your risk of cancer and beat cancer in a variety of ways. If you have cancer, eating well can positively support treatment. This may help you live well for years to come after treatment. 1. Keep a healthy weight One in five people who die from cancer have an overweight or obese body mass index. But, exactly how weight affects cancer risk is unclear. Excess weight increases your risk by 50% for oesophageal adenocarcinoma. Weight in the belly area…

In the Spotlight The benefits of door-to-door medication delivery

Feb 5, 2019 Sandra

Wilmarie Rheeders, a clinical analyst at Medipost Pharmacy, tells us the benefits of door-to-door medication delivery. These days, almost anything can be ordered from the convenience of your home or office. You can order food; designer clothes; groceries; gifts; or even a ride to the airport with a click of a button. There is an abundance of companies offering exactly what you need, when you need it, to your doorstep. These on-demand modern conveniences make life so much easier and therefore most businesses now offer online shopping and door-to-door delivery. Over the past few years, door-to-door delivery of medication has…

In the Spotlight Partnerships save lives

Sep 26, 2018 Sandra

We hear the remarkable story of how a partnership between a private oncology centre and a government hospital saved lives and proved the value of working together. The need and solution The East London CancerCare Oncology Centre planned to replace their linear accelerator. An alternative was needed for their patients to receive radiation therapy from February 2018 to June 2018. Frere Hospital was approached to provide a care management platform for the private patients during this time. The process Eighty-four East London CancerCare patients were treated through 1523 treatment encounters at the Frere Hospital Oncology Unit, and were spared…

In the Spotlight The miracle match – bone marrow transplant

Sep 26, 2018 Sandra

The chance of finding a matching bone marrow donor for a critically ill patient is just one in 100 000. But thanks to medical technology, shared international databases and the spirit of global cooperation, the South African Bone Marrow Registry (SABMR) regularly finds that perfect match. For a child or adult with a life-threatening blood disease, like leukaemia, a bone marrow transplant can offer the greatest gift imaginable: a second chance at life. Bone marrow transplantation is unique medical work. It involves destroying an individual’s entire immune system and replacing it with one from somebody in the general population who’s…

In the Spotlight The role of radiotherapy in the treatment of soft tissue sarcoma

Jul 27, 2018 Sandra

Radiation oncologist, Dr Nirasha Chiranjan, educates us on how radiotherapy is used in the treatment of soft tissue sarcoma. What are soft tissue sarcomas (STS)? STS are rare malignant tumours that arise from mesenchymal tissue (soft tissue) at any body site. They represent less than 1% of all newly diagnosed malignant tumours1. The most common sites are the extremities (limbs), trunk and retroperitoneum (abdominal cavity, usually internal)2. Therapeutic goals Before the introduction of radiotherapy for extremity STS, amputation was the standard of care which resulted in significant physical and psychological morbidity. In treating extremity STS, the major therapeutic goals are…

In the Spotlight Laughter is the best medicine

Jun 1, 2018 Sandra

Needless to say cancer treatment is traumatic for the patient and their loved ones. So, it may be outlandish to tell them to laugh through it, but laughing can help. Laughter therapy Doctors in America have begun to include laughter therapy to compliment traditional treatments for cancer. Many hospitals around the world are now embedding ways to promote laughter in their treatment regime. Patient visits to a hospital area where laughter therapy is conducted is promoted, while laughter clubs are found outside of medical facilities too. Benefits of laughing A good belly laugh comes packed with numerous benefits. It…

In the Spotlight What are allogeneic transplants?

Jun 1, 2018 Sandra

We learn about the specialised and complicated allogeneic stem cell transplants. Allogeneic transplants – obtained from a donor Allogeneic transplants, also known as an allograft or donor peripheral blood stem cell transplant (PBSCT), differ from autologous transplants in that the stem cells are not obtained from the patient’s body but from a donor who may be related, or a matched unrelated donor (MUD). This type of transplant is much more specialised than an autologous transplant and a lot more complicated. What diseases do allogeneic transplants treat? Acute myeloblastic leukaemia; acute myelogenous leukaemia (AML) Chronic myelogenous leukaemia (CML) – this disease has…

In the Spotlight When losses become gains – Andy Grant

Jun 1, 2018 Sandra

Andy Grant tells us about losing his mother to leukaemia at the age of 12, losing his lower limb while serving as a Royal Marine in Afghanistan, becoming the fastest one-legged amputee in the world over 10km, and wining gold at the 2014 Invictus Games.

Andy Grant (29) lives in Liverpool, United Kingdom. He has one child, Alba. When Andy was told his lower limb had to be amputated in 2010, due to stepping on an improvised explosive device (IED) while serving in Afghanistan as a Royal Marine in 2009, his…