Health News Blog. Lots of resources and information

There are a great many different types of cancer. Each of the many different types of normal cells in our bodies can give rise to a cancerous growth under certain circumstances. Cancers start more often in cells which frequently replace themselves than in cells which are very stable. When we study a specimen from a cancer under the microscope we find that the cells look quite different from the normal mature cells of the organ in which the growth began. The cancer cells are bigger, and less differentiated. As you would expect from their appearance, these cells are useless. They are not capable of carrying out the special functions of the cells from which they started.

Some cancer cells are so undifferentiated that it is very difficult, if not impossible, for the pathologist to work out where in the body they originated. It is important to establish the origin of a cancer as this tells us how it is likely to behave and what treatment is likely to work against it. Therefore, the pathologist must study specimens from poorly-differentiated cancers very carefully. To establish where it started, he or she tries to find traces of the more specialised structures which occur in normal mature cells. Sometimes special techniques are used on the specimen to make such traces apparent.

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Home-made Vegetable Stock (Cleansing Broth)

4 tomatoes

2 potatoes

1/4 small cabbage

2 sticks celery

1 litre water

2 onions

2 carrots

4 spinach leaves

Combine all of the ingredients with skin still on and simmer for one hour. Strain, discarding the vegetables. Store vegetable stock in a glass jar, in the refrigerator.

Salt Substitute

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

1 teaspoon ground mace

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon dried sage

Mix all of the ingredients together.

Yogurt Cheese

100 ml of low-fat yogurt

Line a bowl with muslin cloth. Fill the cloth with yogurt and tie the cloth in a bundle. Suspend the bundle over a sink or bowl for 5 to 6 hours, or until the whey has drained completely. Store and cool.

Vitality Sandwiches for a Snack

Here is a selection of my favourite sandwich fillings. Simply fill two slices of rye bread or pita bread with any of the following combinations. The sandwiches are great with a salad or can be eaten on their own.

• 120 grams cottage cheese with a large handful of alfalfa sprouts.

• 120 grams hummus and a large handful of alfalfa sprouts, together with some refreshing

cucumber slices.

• 1/4 packet of cooked tofu with lettuce, sprouts and grated carrot.

• 1 sliced tomato and a large handful of watercress.

• 50 grams canned salmon or tuna in brine, cucumber slices and a large handful of watercress.

• 120 grams of cottage cheese, sun-dried tomatoes, rocket leaves

• 1/4 packet of cooked tofu, watercress, black sesame seeds

• 1 hard-boiled egg with watercress, tomato and lettuce.

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