New Information on Radiation Treatments

Cancer, a word that many have become more and more scared of over the years. I have dealt with this with this mysterious word. It was one of the most life changing things I have been through, but lucky enough for me I did not need very much radiation. It still was very worry-some that something could happen, and I wouldn’t be ok afterwards. Fortunately I have been cancer free for 2 years, with no complications or no more radiation treatments.

These people in the story on the MSNBC site were not as lucky, and unfortunately, for them there interaction was fatal. Scott Jerome –Parks had tongue cancer and underwent radiation treatments in New York City hospital, unnoticed by the radiation techs there happened to be a computer error when that sent radiation blasts using a linear accelerator to his brain stem and neck. Not only did he endure this treatment once, but also three times in three consecutive days. This lead Scott to have a fatal radiation overdose, which entailed him becoming deaf, losing some of his sight, lost ability to swallow, burned, loss of teeth, ulcers in his mouth and throat, nauseated, and finally unable to breath. Scott’s last wish to figure out what exactly was happening with the radiation that was causing such problems.

This did not just happened once; this also happened with Alexandra Jn-Charles a breast cancer patient taking treatments at the Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn. She underwent 27 days of overdosed radiation; each time was three times the dose prescribed. The linear accelerator with a missing filter burned a whole through her chest, leaving a vast hole so painful she almost considered suicide.

Of course there are many cases of cancer that need radiation and everything works out fine, but they do not know of the harm that could happen or if technology goes wrong. In the MSNBC report the NY Times researched many of the flaws of the technology that could happen, like software failing, faulty programming, poor safety procedures, and insufficient training of staff. There is only an estimated guess on how many cases go wrong, they are using under reported and some states don’t require they be reported at all.

These are just some cases that have been swept under the rug, a Philadelphia hospital gave the radiation dose to more than 90 patients. In 2005, a Florida hospital disclosed 77 brain cancer patients that received more than 50 % more radiation than prescribed because the linear accelerator was programmed incorrectly for a year.

So after really reading into this report I think people should know of all the harmful things that could happen with dealing with radiation treatment, no ifs, ans, or buts. It can work very well for most, but there those cases that can happen incorrectly. Everyone should be informed equally of the chances that something could become harmful. Trying to research male practices on cancer radiation treatment, not much came up, it seems like everywhere they are just hiding the negative of what radiation can do. Maybe they are doing this to frighten cancer patient, or something. I believe that everyone should be well aware of the conflicts.

Choice of drug czar indicates treatment, not jail

Treatment for those, instead of incarceration
The White House said yesterday that it will push for treatment, rather than incarceration, of people arrested for drug-related crimes as it announced the nomination of Seattle Police Chief R. Gil Kerlikowske to oversee the nation's effort to control illegal drugs. Vice President, Biden, who helped shape the Office of National Drug Control Policy as a U.S. senator in the 1980s, said the Obama administration would continue to focus on the southwest border, where Mexican authorities are facing thousands of drug-related slayings and unchecked violence from drug cartels moving cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine into American markets. But it remained unclear how the new administration would engineer its budget to tackle the problem. Obama and Biden promised to offer first-time, nonviolent offenders a chance to serve their sentences in a drug rehabilitation center rather than in federal prison. In promoting wider use of drug courts, the administration is embracing an idea that has broad support in theory but has never been a main path for people with drug addictions who are charged with crimes.
I think this will be great, people who have got in trouble with drugs but have no previous convictions should be allowed to have treatment instead of prison. Some people get into things they really aren't into, but are followers of others. They do things and don't think about it, they think about impressing others, rather then doing what they know is right. I have had my share of run ins with the law, but I have gotten what I deserved, nothing more, nothing less. Now that people with drug problems and no priors will get help for their problem, instead of just slamming them in jail right away.

Niagara Falls Plunger

Plunging into the Ice
A man on Wednesday decided to jump into Niagara Falls and survived the 180 foot plunge. When trying to be rescued he resisted, and was in the water for up to 45 minutes. Although he was in and out consciousness at the time of rescue, he was still responsive to some verbal commands. There are horrible effects of hypothermia, anyone can become a victim within as short as 5 minutes. There are four different stages, early where the core temperature of someone is about 36 degrees Celsius. Mild, where core temperature is about 34 degrees or 35, Moderate from about 33 to 31 degrees Celsius and Severe is where the core temperature is anything less then 31 degrees. Treatment should be approached with knowledge and care. More damage than good can be the outcome with the wrong treatment. The best way to treat hypothermia is to not allow it to happen to begin with. Always remember gentle handling, insulation, no alcohol, coffee, tea, cocoa and gradual rewarming. Any method which will rewarm the person in a hurry will likely cause further complications or death. If it is difficult to distinguish the level of hypothermia through visible signs and symptoms, then assume severe hypothermia. Usually, if shivering has stopped, it indicates a more severe situation.
I am a certified lifeguard and I am very gualified to detect the different stages of hypothermia, although it is difficult at times, it is a great tool to understand. Not only do I know the stages, but I know how to deal with someone who is dealign with those stages. The water the man jumped into at Niagara Falls was near freezing, so spending 45 minutes in that had to be a severe case of hypothermia. The fact they think it might be a suicide attempt throws a curve ball into the story, the man didn't get what he necessarily wanted but atleast he is still alive, maybe this opened his eyes to new things around him as well.

Mahnomen Deputy

Mahnomen man shot in stomach and head
Just about a week ago, Chris Dewey was shot in the stomach and the head. He was then put into a induced coma, since the surgeries he has made great progress, and hopefully will be release sometime later this week. Chris was involved with a local neighborhood shooting, two Twin-Cities men are facing multiple charges, in the shootings. From Mahnomen they transferred him to Fargo where all his surgeries took place. Thomas Lee Fairbanks, 32, the alleged shooter, was charged with first-degree attempted murder and 20 other felony counts in the shooting of Dewey and the following standoff with officers. Daniel Kurt Vernier, 27, was charged with 16 felonies.They even have their own website you can visit and leave comments.
What a horrible incident this family had to go through. They are extremely lucky that he actually made it through the shooting itself. Not many cases of people getting shot in the head, have survived, let alone the stomach as well. Also for the shooters, what were they thinking?! I mean to shoot someone is horrible.... and then to shoot a cop, that is way worse. They go to jail/prison they will always be known as the cop shooter, and those cops in the jail/prison are going to treat them even worse.

Drag Queen Homecoming Queen

The Drag Queen Homecoming Queen
It is true, at George Mason University in a suburban town of Washington D.C. Ryan Allen became the homecoming queen as Reann Ballslee. A senior from Virginia’s Goochland County Ryan said it was one of most exciting moments of his life, winning this on Saturday. The contest was half talent judging and half voting by the student body. Allen received the most votes but does not know how he scored in the talent competition, in which he performed in zebra-print pants and lip-synced to Britney Spears.“Reann is very sassy, very silly. She’s an entertainer throughout. She’s not afraid to do a high kick if that’s what it takes,” Allen said. “She’s got a little camp but is not as campy as some queens.” I thought this was a great article, showing how comfortable everyone was, not only Ryan but also the community and the school. They had local news articles that had all positive remarks about this remarkable day of Ryan's. More power to him I think, it is Ryan's life and I think it is great how open he was about his homosexuality and his cross dressing to even try out for homecoming queen. Not only is the college known for its openness of this, but also is very colored diversity college. Soooo, all in all :) GO RYAN or Reann whichever name he likes better :)

Another week gone by, another blog to be made :)

Plane crash in Buffalo, NY

As I'm sure by now we have all heard about the Continental Connection Flight 3407 that crashed in Buffalo, NY on Thursday, killing 49 people on the plane and 1 on the ground. They are saying now it is possible for the crash to have been caused by ice on the wings, because they were just passing through light snow and mist. The thing that kind of caught me off guard was they were talking about how a 9/11 widow was killed in this accident. They talked about all the works she did trying to keep her husbands memory alive, she even went to Congress with her story. What a tragic way to go for her, considering the one thing that killed her husband was a plane and the people that took them over. At least now, they will both live on with a great memory each of them.

Rodriguez attorney: Improper evidence used at trial

And here we go again..........the Rodriguez trial is back in the news. This time his lawyers are trying to say that Alfonso Rodriguez the man convicted in 2003 of killing Dru Sjodin had an unfair trail because improper evidence was allowed at trial. Saying that a testimony from two girls Rodriguez assaulted in 1974 should be overlooked because they weren't "bodily injured" by him. After this argument the U.S. defense attorney for North Dakota, Drew Wrigley, stated that the trial was fair but the prosecutors would always be fighting with the verdict of the trial. They don't know yet when the panel might rule for what is to happen with this information the prosecutors brought forth but it will be interesting I'm sure. It's unbelievable to me that with all the evidence they have on Rodriguez and all the priors he had, he is still trying to get out of the conviction. Rodriguez, I think is just trying to pull this along as long as he can. Granted he won't get the death sentence he is suppose to right away, but he's trying to dig through every little crack that he can with his case, to stretch his time as long as he can. Being optimistic, maybe he's not guilty and he's trying to prove himself innocent, but to me....that is definitely not the case, I think.

Stories of the world

60 YEAR OLD WOMAN GIVES BIRTH TO TWINS
Wow, in Calgary, Canada a 60 year old woman gave birth to twins. After going through invitro fertilization she was able to get pregnant. Although having children this late in life isn't unheard of, it's unbelievable. My mother is 57, and I could not imagine her having another child, I don't think she could psychically handle it. I mean there is a lot of things that come along with being 60 years old, chance of arthritis, heart attack and even stroke. There are so many medical problems that could occur, and when having a baby I believe you should be in some sort of good psychically condition. Not only was this lady pregnant but she had twins, which means double the trouble. As long as knew she was ready to be a mom again I think it would all work out, I just hope she knew what she was getting into with having twins at such a late age.

KMART RECALLS BAKED GOODS
There is a risk of salmonella in some of the baked goods in KMART. Some of them have been linked to Hickory Harvey Foods peanut products which have been contaminated. So doughnuts, peanut butter cake, and single layer Carmel apple cake can be brought back to the store and recalled. This whole salmonella outbreak has sickened 575 people in 43 states, and at least 8 people died. There has been 1,300 products in Georgia's processing plant recalled alone. It's unreal how one product(peanut butter) can cause so much damage and chaos when something has gone wrong with it. I haven't even dared to eat any type of peanut butter, I'd rather not risk it at all!!