On the flu vaccine & boosting your immune system

There hasn't been much for me to write about lately, except for the [lousy] weather and it's contribution to my feeling of malaise (which I'm not going to bore you with today), but now that the winter season is upon us, and with it the heightened awareness of the greater potential for getting sick, this seemed like the perfect opportunity to post some information I think might help us all get through this season in far better shape.

If you have cancer, the question of the efficacy of the flu vaccine has always been a controversial one. Most oncologists will tell you to get vaccinated, because it won't do any harm, and it may be effective, but now there is evidence to support that belief.

The available literature shows that patients with cancer do mount an immune response to influenza immunization. It is unclear, however, whether this response is as robust as that seen in otherwise healthy persons. The CDC recommends annual influenza vaccination for this patient population. Preliminary data suggest that influenza vaccination between cycles of chemotherapy may be more effective than vaccination on day 1 of chemotherapy. Larger, well-designed prospective studies are needed to assess the efficacy of the influenza vaccination in patients with cancer, and the optimal timing of vaccination relative to chemotherapy administration.

There was also this article from the New England Journal of Medicine, on why everyone should get the flu vaccine, which I unfortunately am unable to fully access (the link is only for the first 100 words), but to paraphrase:

.....vaccination decreases the likelihood that an exposed person will pass virus on to others. If sufficient numbers of people can be vaccinated in time, an epidemic can be slowed or even stopped in its tracks.

And finally from the NY Times on how not to fight a cold. This article was published on the op-ed page, but there is a lot of evidence to support this theory (including the two links in the side bar of this blog on why boosting your immune system is not a good idea).

[A] susceptibility to cold symptoms is not a sign of a weakened immune system, but quite the opposite. And if you’re looking to quell those symptoms, strengthening your immune system may be counterproductive. It could aggravate the symptoms by amplifying the very inflammatory agents that cause them.

My concerns reaffirmed today

When I was first diagnosed with MCL, I pretty much read just about everything I could get my hands on, I attended various conferences, and I talked to anyone who would listen. One of the most important lessons I learned, and which I've mentioned numerous times before was No one cares more about you than you. But in addition to that, I learned to fear the drug Doxorubicin , AKA Adriamycin, Doxil, Hydroxydoxorubicin, or more affectionately the Red Devil. Besides being a deadly chemical, as is the case with most chemotherapy drugs, it is one of the few chemotherapy drugs known to cause permanent heart damage. I even heard Dr. Sandra Horning , a noted Stanford lymphoma specialist, state at the first lymphoma conference I attended in LA, there was no evidence Doxorubicin provided any added benefit to chemotherapy protocols. This was music to my ears, since Doxorubicin is very common in most lymphoma treatment protocols. And even though Dr. Horning has since changed her tune [which my sk...

Bowling: A metaphor on life [sorta]

Over the past 15+ years the game of bowling has changed dramatically. Not only has the equipment changed, making it easier for bowlers of all ages and physical conditions to participate, and score well, but there have even been major advances to how the lanes are prepared for the start of bowling. No longer is it just heavy oil, light oil, long oil, short oil, or no oil, with the latest equipment, the amount of oil can be varied from front to back and side to side, producing a myriad of patterns designed to make the game more interesting, more challenging and as you might surmise, more frustrating. No longer does the "one ball fits all" approach work any more either. In order to navigate all the differing possible lane conditions, you need to have a varied selection of bowling balls. Most pros will tell you the average bowler needs 3 balls, plus a ball for spares, but to be an above average bowler you'll need at least 6 balls, with many possessing more than that. But just...

Fatigue! Part II - Maybe it is real?

Or it's actually Motivational Deficiency Disorder, MoDeD (pronounced Mo-Dee-Dee) for short. In a report this week by Roy Moynihan who reports for the British Medical Journal Austrailian scientists may have come across the reason for extreme laziness . The condition is claimed to affect up to one in five Australians and is characterised by overwhelming and debilitating apathy. Neuroscientists at the University of Newcastle in Australia say that in severe cases motivational deficiency disorder can be fatal, because the condition reduces the motivation to breathe. Neurologist Leth Argos is part of the team that has identified the disorder, which can be diagnosed using a combination of positron emission tomography and low scores on a motivation rating scale, previously validated in elite athletes. "This disorder is poorly understood," Professor Argos told the BMJ. "It is underdiagnosed and undertreated." Who knew? Maybe I have MoDeD, from my attempts to become a...

LIVING WITH MCL

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