Monthly Archives: May 2013

Health

Vitamin D Supplementation for Patients with Breast Cancer

Share

Peppone LJ, Huston AJ, Reid ME et al.
The effect of various vitamin D supplementation regimens in breast cancer patients.
Breast Cancer Res Treat. 2011 May;127(1):171-7.
Read free full text at PubMed Central.

Investigators at University of Rochester Medical Center and Roswell Park Cancer Institute undertook a retrospective study of 224 women diagnosed with stage 0–III breast cancer to (1) to assess vitamin D status and (2) evaluate the effect of daily low-dose and weekly high-dose vitamin D supplementation on 25-OH vitamin D levels.

They found that “weekly high-dose supplementation significantly increased 25-OH vitamin D levels, while daily low-dose supplementation did not significantly increase levels.” They also found that vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency were common among women with breast cancer and was associated with reduced BMD in the spine.

The paper includes a review of epidemiologic data indicating that vitamin D deficiency is associated with an increased incidence of breast cancer, that low vitamin D levels are associated with increased breast cancer recurrence and mortality rates, and that breast cancer patients are at increased risk for a number of medical
complications associated with vitamin D deficiency including bone loss, falls, fractures and infection.

In conclusion, they state:

“It is imperative that breast cancer patients maintain optimal vitamin D levels to minimize the risk of treatment-related problems such as bone loss, arthralgias, and falls. Clinicians need to carefully consider the vitamin D regimen (amount and type) when treating vitamin D deficiency in breast cancer patients due to the limited efficacy of daily low-dose supplementation.”

Read free full text at PubMed Central.

The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.

Art, Health, Social Progress

Expressive Arts Therapies: Working with Survivors of Torture

Share

Gray AE.
Expressive arts therapies: working with survivors of torture.
Torture. 2011;21(1):39-47.
Read free full text at Torture Journal.

Amber Elizabeth Lynn Gray reviews twenty-six articles and papers in six therapeutic modalities with “emerging, promising and best practice potentials for torture survivors”: art therapy, dance/movement therapy (including body-oriented therapy combined with brief therapy), drama therapy, music therapy, sandtray therapy, and ritual.

In her concluding considerations, Gray recommends an integrated approach to using expressive arts therapies in work with survivors of torture:

“On a cautionary note, the power that is inherent in the creative process indicates discretion and careful consideration in how and when these modalities are used, by whom and with whom. It is recommended
those who are appropriately trained and credentialed in the therapeutic practice of the expressive arts, or those working as artists, work closely with other experienced clinicians, community leaders or healers in cross cultural contexts to ensure that safety. Containment and processing of painful traumatic histories need to be titrated and respectful of personal and cultural boundaries. At minimum, the expressive arts therapies offered as adjunct (or primary) therapies with more “mainstream” therapies ensures that the therapeutic process is inclusive of the whole person. As a category of clinical modalities and practices, all of the expressive arts therapies might best be described as emerging clinical practice that offer tremendous promise.”

In addition to reviewing each of the six modalities in context of supporting research, Gray includes a list of highly recommended readings.

Read free full text at Torture Journal.

The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.

Health

Assessment of Anticancer & Antimalarial Properties of Apocynaceae Used in Traditional Medicine

Share

Wong SK, Lim YY, Abdullah NR, Nordin FJ.
Assessment of antiproliferative and antiplasmodial activities of five selected Apocynaceae species.
BMC Complement Altern Med. 2011 Jan 14;11:3.
Read free full text at BioMed Central.

Investigators at Monash University Sunway Campus (Selangor, Malaysia) assessed leaf extracts of five selected species of the Apocynaceae family for antiproliferative and antiplasmodial activities. The plants – which are used by traditional medicine practitioners to treat gastrointestinal ailments, fever, malaria, pain and diabetes, among other conditions – included Alstonia angustiloba (Pulai tree), Calotropis gigantea (Calotropis gigantea), Dyera costulata (jelutong), Kopsia fruticosa (shrub vinca, pink kopsia, kopsia merah, pink gardenia) and Vallaris glabra (bread flower).

The authors found that leaf extracts of C. gigantea and V. glabra inhibited the growth of all six cancer cell lines studied, showing “great promise as potential candidates for anticancer drugs.” In addition, V. glabra displayed effective activity against Plasmodium falciparum, the most deadly of the Plasmodium species that cause malaria in humans.

Read free full text at BioMed Central.

The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.

Health

Evaluation of antibacterial & anticancer activities of South African medicinal plants

Share

Bisi-Johnson MA, Obi CL, Hattori T, et al.
Evaluation of the antibacterial and anticancer activities of some South African medicinal plants.
BMC Complement Altern Med. 2011 Feb 17;11:14.
Free full text via BioMed Central.

Investigators from Walter Sisulu University, South Africa, evaluated antibacterial and anticancer activity of six medicinal plants used in the treatment of diarrhea stomach disorders: Eucomis autumnalis (autumn pineapple flower, autumn pineapple lily), Cyathula uncinulata (bohome, burweed, globe cyathula, klits, maime, rondeklits, tchimate, wolbossie), Hypoxis latifolia (broad-leaved hypoxis, igudu, ilabatheka, ilabetheka, ingcobo, inkomfe, yellow star), Lantana camara (Spanish flag, West Indian lantana, LAVA), Aloe arborescens (Krantz aloe, candelabra aloe) and Aloe striatula (hardy aloe, coral aloe).

The results indicated that E. autumnalis had a profound cytotoxic effect, and the investigators called for caution in its use. However, they found that the antibacterial activities and non-cytotoxic effects of A. arborescens and A. striatula validates their continuous usage in ethnomedicine.

Free full text via BioMed Central.

The information on my blog is not intended as a substitute for medical professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding current medical knowledge. A physician should always be consulted for any health problem or medical condition.

Art, Social Progress

IN PRODUCTION: Songs from The Building

Share

At the highly acclaimed New York premier of The Legend of Apsara Mera (BAM Howard Gilman Opera House, 2-4 May 2013), Hun Sarath sat in the back row of singers, beside the orchestra, at extreme stage right, invisible to perhaps a third of the audience.

Sarath’s presence on the stage may have been inconspicuous, but her story has the makings of its own kind of legend:

“Since the fall of the Khmer Rouge in 1979, Hun Sarath, the last surviving singer of the Royal Palace, has lived in what is known as ‘The Building’. Now her home is slated for demolition. For many in Phnom Penh the Building is a slum. Erasing this eyesore liberates some of the most valuable land in the city. In the face of impending destruction of the Building, Sarath gathers the old masters to stage a Royal performance for her community and to remind the city of the value of Cambodian culture and history.”*

Director Koam Chanrasmey and producer Martin Potter, with a small team of Cambodian and international filmmakers, are now in early stages of production of SONGS FROM THE BUILDING – a film about “community and creativity in the face of urban development,” estimated for completion this winter.

The production has already won a PUMA Catalyst Award, and the team is “seeking financial and network support including: production and completion funding, broadcast and festival interest and interest from distributors focussed on Asian documentary content, or with an interest in land rights or Cambodian arts and culture.”

A natural fit for venues such as Berlinale Forum, New Directors/New Films and others devoted to original stories from emerging filmmakers.

*Information about Songs from The Building from PUMA Awards film directory. Also see “A Light on the Dark Side,” Martin Potter’s enlightening backstory on the project in the February 2013 issue of Asian Currents: The ASAA E-Bulletin.

Hun Sarath Sings “Phnom Penh Lullaby”