Zurak Cancer Foundation

Prostate cancer is the second most frequently diagnosed cancer in men, with 903,500 new cases estimated to have occured in 2008. Nearly three-quarters of these cases were diagnosed in economically developed countries. Incidence rates of prostate cancer vary by more than 70-fold worldwide. The highest rates are recorded primarily in the developed countries of Europe, North America, and Oceania, largely because prostate specific antigen (PSA) testing is widely used and detects clinically important tumors, as well as other slow-growing cancers that might otherwise have escaped diagnosis. The lowest rates are in many parts of Asia. With an estimated 258,400 deaths in 2008, prostate cancer was the sixth leading cause of cancer death in men worldwide. Men of African descent in the Caribbean region have the highest prostate cancer mortality in the world, with age standardized rates more than four times higher than those in the US and more than 15 times higher than those in the M...

For thousands upon thousands of years (during most of which overweight, let alone obese, people were fairly rare), therapeutic fasting was a common protocol for the healing of many a malady. From famous sages like Plato, Aristotle, and the aforementioned Hippocrates and Plutarch to cancer patients unable to eat during chemotherapy to pet dogs and cats who suddenly lose once-voracious appetites upon falling ill, it seems like the natural response to – and perhaps therapy for – major illness is to stop eating for a while. Now, “natural” is not always good. “Is” does not necessarily imply “ought.” But I think the persistence of this phenomenon throughout nature demands that we look a little more closely into whether or not there’s something to it. From babies putting items they found on the ground into their mouths to introduce novel bacteria to their bodies, to weight lifters craving meat after a hard workout to introduce protein to their hungry muscles, to pregnant women experienci...

Childhood Cancer - Overview Cancer is uncommon in children. Most cancers (99%) develop in adults, and it is most common in older adults. About one out of every six adults will develop cancer during his or her lifetime, while one in 300 boys and one in 333 girls will develop cancer before the age of 20. At the same time, there is a lot of research going on to discover new treatments for childhood cancer. This ongoing research has greatly improved the overall survival rate for children with cancer, which is now more than 80%. What is childhood cancer? Cancer begins when normal cells change and grow uncontrollably. In most types of cancer, these cells form a mass called a tumor. A tumor can be cancerous or benign. A cancerous tumor is malignant, meaning it can spread to other parts of the body. A benign tumor means the tumor will not spread. In leukemia, a cancer of the blood that starts in the bone marrow, these abnormal cells very rarely form a solid tumor. Instead these cells...

Cancer is an emerging public health problem in Africa. According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), about 715,000 new cancer cases and 542,000 cancer deaths occurred in 2008 in Africa. These numbers are projected to nearly double (1.28 million new cancer cases and 970,000 cancer deaths) by 2030 simply due to the aging and growth of the population, with the potential to be even higher because of the adoption of behaviors and lifestyles associated with economic development, such as smoking, unhealthy diet, and physical inactivity. Despite this growing burden, cancer continues to receive low public health priority in Africa, largely because of limited resources and other pressing public health problems, including communicable diseases such as acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)/human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, malaria, and tuberculosis. It may also be in part due to a lack of awareness about the magnitude of the current and future cancer...

Zurak Cancer Foundation organized its second edition of Cervical Health Awareness Program at Madina-Zongo.  Zurak Cancer Foundation brought together various schools in the vicinity to educate the youth about cervical cancer. The event was attended by Abassiya Islamic School, Umar Bun Hatab Islamic School and An-Nida Islamic School. This event was targeted at getting the youth to under the risk factors of cervical cancer such as the Human Papillomavirus. Zurak Cancer Foundation took the students through the concept of cervix, the risk factors of cervical cancer, signs and symptoms, prevention, diagnosis and treatment option. The students were also educated on the main causative activities related to cancer which is smoking, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity. This initiative is aimed at encouraging the youth to foster healthy lifestyles to ensure cancer prevention which is the primary objective on Zurak Cancer Foundation. The event was also graced by distinguished personali...