Cancer Associated Cachexia (CAC): A Case Study

CA 19-9 as a tumor marker for pancreatic cancer CA 19-9 is a type of tumor marker for pancreatic cancer. It mostly used to help in differentiating between pancreatic cancer and other conditions which include pancreatitis, monitor, to monitor patient’s response to the treatment of pancreatic cancer or cancer progression and to watch for the recurrence of pancreatic cancer (Hui et al., 2015).

Cases are defined as patients with newly and pathologically diagnosed HCC who were referred for treatment at MD Anderson Cancer Center. All participants had to be residents of the United States and could not have had a prior history of other cancers. We included all referred HCC patients with no restriction to age, sex, and race. Patients who agreed to participate in the study signed informed consent documents indicating their willingness to be personally interviewed for 45 minutes to provide detailed history of smoking, alcohol, occupational, chronic medical diseases, hormonal, and family history of cancer. Patients provided answers to detailed diet “food frequency questionnaire” prior to cancer development. They also provided blood samples for viral, biomarkers and genetic testing. All data is securely documented in password protected database. Diet questionnaire are currently being analyzed through a collaboration with Harvard University for macro- and micronutrient analysis. Upon enrollment, the complete clinical picture of HCC at the time of diagnosis (Baseline) are retrieved. Under IRB approval

Unfortunately 30% of people in the US will develop cancer at some point, and two-thirds of those will eventually succumb as a result. In dealing with cancer, many patients have symptoms from the disease along with side effects of the medications that are extremely debilitating. Chemotherapy can make patients feel sick,

SPECIFIC AIMS: Pancreatic Cancer is currently one of the deadliest cancers in the world. In the United States alone, Pancreatic Cancer was the fourth leading cause of death among males and third in females causing 19,480 and 24,530 deaths respectively (Siegel et al., 2013). It has a five year survival rate of less than three percent in the United States (Siegel et al., 2013). This is mainly due to late diagnosis, surgical difficulties, aggressive metastases and resistance to apoptosis (Li et al., 2014). Surgical intervention has been seen as the most effective form of treatment for pancreatic tumors but due to late detection, surgical options become difficult to pursue. As a result, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy are the main routes of treatment for patients (Li et al., 2014). Unfortunately not only are these routes very low in efficacy (Li et al., 2014), but have incredibly devastating side effects on the body and the overall quality of life of patients (Love et al., 2006).

The specific metabolic disorder that I picked for this discussion is Krabbe Disease or globoid cell leukodystrophy. The disease destroys the protective coating of nerve cells in the brain and throughout the body causing the nerve cells to stop responding or react unpredictably. The disease is caused by a person receiving two copies of a mutated gene that results in severely curtailed production of an enzyme called galactocerebrosidase (GALC) (Krabbe disease, n.d.). This enzyme is responsible for breaking down certain substances in a cell's recycling center. Unfortunately, in Krabbe disease, not enough GALC was produced so the cells begin accumulating fats called galactolipids which normally are responsible for maintaining the protective coating

Nursing Care Plan CLIENT CLINICAL PICTURE Mr. GB is a 78 year old white male admitted to Bay Pines VAMC on 6/18/96. for " atypical chest pain and hemoptysis". V/S BP 114/51, P 84, R 24, T 97.4. He seems alert and oriented x

Pancreatic cancer is lethal malignancy with a mortality rate that almost equals its incidence. It is the 4th leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, with only a 5-year survival rate of about 6%. Pancreatic cancer remains to be one of the most aggressive tumors. When diagnosed 60-80% patients already have locally advanced or the tumor has already metastasized. A majority of pancreatic cancers are derived from the exocrine part of the pancreas. The exocrine part of the pancreas produces digestive enzymes that help break down proteins, fats, and starches. There are several mutations that have been identified in pancreatic cancer; these mutations can lead to potential biomarkers, leading towards a better prognosis for high risk patients.

Sarcopenia is the progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass and function with age. It often is a result of or leads to decrease in physical activity which leads to functional impairement or disability and increases vulnerability towards other chronic ailments such as cardiovascular disease, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes etc (Roubenoff & Hughes 2000). With age there is a decline in mitochondrial biogenesis as well as reduction in the ability to promote muscle protein synthesis which has substantial impact on the age-associated loss of muscle mass and strength, both of which are the two most recognized risk phenotypes associated with sarcopenia. Previous work has reported enormous inter-individual variability in these phenotypes arising

Mitochondrial damage is therefore a serious threat to the viability of the acinar and ductal cells, as well as the pancreas as a whole. Bile acids and ethanol metabolites, among the most common pancreatitis-inducing factors, act by causing the release of stored Ca2+ within the ER and inducing extracellular Ca2+ influx. This prolonged increase in cytosolic Ca2+ concentration leads to mitochondrial Ca2+ overload and decreased intracellular ATP levels. SERCA and PMCA pumps, which remove Ca2+ from the cytoplasm, require ATP to function and will become less active; further contributing to the sustained elevation of cytosolic Ca2+ concentration. This continuous overload causes mitochondrial membrane permeabilization and overall damage to the mitochondria.

Metabolism is a process in which chemicals and enzymes break down food in the digestive system to make energy. The food is converted into simple sugars, energy and amino acids with the help of the mitochondria. A body can use this energy right away or it can store the energy in tissues such as liver, muscles, and body fats. A metabolic disorder happens when something goes wrong with the metabolic process because of abnormal chemical reactions. The metabolic disorder causes some substances to be produced either too much or too little, resulting in unhealthy digestive conditions. Metabolic disorders can affect the breakdown of carbohydrates, lipids, or amino acids. Metabolic disorders can also happen if an enzyme or vitamin required to carry out a chemical reaction goes missing. One of the rarest, inherited metabolic disorders is Alkaptonuria. Alkaptonuria occurs when there is a build up of homogentisic acid (HGA) that causes the urine to turn black when exposed to air. The buildup of HGA gets deposited throughout the body and usually attaches to connective tissues and cartilages

Skeletal muscle is the major type of muscle tissue and its main functions are controlling body movement and generating body heat. Skeletal muscle atrophy, also known as wasting or cachexia, is a condition characterized by the loss of muscle mass that is often associated with an underlying primary illness such as AIDS, cancer, and sepsis (Argiles, Moore-Carrasco, Fuster, Busquets, & Lopez-Soriano, 2003; Tisdale, 1997) . It is also associated with normal physiological changes like aging, referred to as sarcopenia (Evans, 2010). The consequences of skeletal muscle atrophy range from poor quality of life to increased mortality rate (Fanzani, Conraads, Penna, & Martinet, 2012) . In cancer, it is estimated that cachexia is the cause of death in

This results in an increase in appetite and stimulation of catabolic activity, such as glycolysis (Lim et al., 2013). However, it causes a decline in AMPK activity in the liver and adipose tissue, which can lead to inhibition of anabolic processes, such as lipogenesis (Kola et al., 2005; Lim et al., 2013). AMPK also plays a key role in cellular energy homoeostasis in relation to the opposing effects of leptin and ghrelin in the hypothalamus (Kola et al., 2005). Moreover, the enzyme, AMPK, is involved in a major pathway associated with the regulation of appetite and metabolism (Kola et al.,

Common causes include : Infections e.g. Distemper and tetanus Poisoning e.g. Metaldehyde (slug bait) and ethylene-glycol (anti-freeze) Head Injury e.g. Following a road accident Metabolic disease e.g. Low circulating levels of blood calcium in, for example, eclampsia (milk fever)

Kidney-yang defient, water over-flowing is a severe case of kidney yang deficiency, caused by an acumulation of fluids be cause the yang has been unable to transform fluids; which results in problems like an excess of fluids in the wrong place it will be too much urine and fluids loss from the body

This paper is to inform you on the disease Acid Maltase Deficiency. This is a disease that affects a small amount of people but can be very deadly if it is not treated or taken care of. It affects a person’s enzyme and makes them, and their muscles, weak. Acid