Cervical cancer can be successfully prevented or mitigated through routine cervical cancer screening. However, a significant disparity in screening exists in the Muslim American women population due to societal pressures, healthcare inequities, and a lack of recognition as a disparate community. This review explores these barriers and strategies in addressing them, to ultimately aims raise awareness of the health disparities of Muslim American women.
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is considered a relatively new, but effective treatment for cancer attributed to its minimal invasiveness and versatility for a wide variety of existing cancers. However, PDT is underapplied in clinical settings due to various limitations. Despite the restriction of PDT for cancer treatment, there is increasing research that aims to find solutions to its limitations. This review analyzes the limitations of PDT for oncological use and report current solutions to them.
Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (hUC-MSC) have been a recent area of interest within regenerative medicine. In association with hUC-MSC, the phosphoinositide 3-kinase/protein kinase B/mammalian target of the rapamycin pathway (PI3K/AKT/mTOR) is a secretory pathway responsible for regulating a variety of cell functions. The processes between the hUC-MSCs and the PI3K/AKT/mTOR are commonly interdependent, but due to their novelty, most of the mechanisms in this relationship are still unknown. This review will discuss the potential of using hUC-MSCs in conjunction with the PI3K/AKT/mTOR for future regenerative treatment.
While the current leading forms of treatment for Crohn’s Disease have been immunosuppressive and biologic medications, more focus needs to be placed on alternative therapies for those who cannot tolerate the drugs that are frequently prescribed. One alternative therapy that is being researched is the implementation of a solely diet-based approach for the purpose of limiting disease activity. This review will evaluate the efficacy of the three main diet-based interventions as monotherapy—Exclusive Enteral Nutrition (EEN), Partial Enteral Nutrition (PEN), and the Crohn’s Disease Exclusion Diet (CDED)—with focus placed on the assessment of inflammatory markers and patient reported outcomes.
Historically, poisonous plants have been used for medicine, decoration, and religious rituals, and even as a source of immortality around the globe. Recently, there has been a push to turn to more plant-based medicine in the hopes of decreasing drug side effects while still maintaining their effectiveness. Get ready for a journey through the past and present medicinal uses of some of the world’s most dangerous plants.
Malaria’s long evolutionary history among humans and its mosquito vector has resulted in intense selection pressure on each organism to evolve traits that confer survival. This coevolution makes malaria a challenging disease to eradicate; therefore, achieving malarial control requires an extensive understanding of malaria’s evolutionary and life history. Malaria’s life and evolutionary history reveal that arresting mosquito longevity is the key to malarial control. This paper will demonstrate that an effective intervention strategy must take a multifaceted and ecologically conscious approach towards targeting the mosquito vector.
Oral immunotherapy (OIT) is a preventative measure against food allergies that introduces increasing doses of an allergen to a patient under medical supervision. Research has sought to understand the benefits of introducing allergens in different age groups, but studies have yet to be compared to find the ideal window of time for children to be introduced to allergens. This literature review aims to determine whether this window exists in early childhood or the fetal stages to prevent the development of allergies using OIT.
Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) analogs are a promising androgen deprivation treatment option for patients suffering from prostate cancer. However, there has been no survey of LHRH analog treatment efficacy that considers potential side effects and compatibility with other therapies, such as external beam radiotherapy. This review aims to discover how different types of LHRH drugs can be used to treat prostate cancer, by exploring their efficacies, cardiovascular side effects, and combinatory effects with external beam radiotherapy.
Neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington's disease, have no known cure. Interventions such as a healthy diet and regular exercise have in place been widely encouraged in order to delay onset or slow progression of symptoms. Yoga is one form of physical exercise that has been shown to positively impact the neuromorphology in the brain by increasing gray matter volume and stimulating the hippocampus to lower stress levels and improve memory retention. This review focuses on the effects of Yoga practice on the brain and its potential as a productive, noninvasive, and affordable practice for brain stimulation that could impact incurable neurodegenerative diseases.
Amoebiasis is one of the leading causes of death from parasitic disease worldwide, but it is rarely heard about in the United States. The disease is caused by a protist, specifically an amoebozoa named Entamoeba histolytica. Infection by this parasite is most common in underdeveloped countries and invades hosts by the fecal-oral route, secreting enzymes and using its pseudopods to tear apart human cells in the gastrointestinal tract. In some cases, they can penetrate the gut lining and migrate through the bloodstream to other vital organs. This can lead to bloody diarrhea, as well as abscesses in the liver, lungs, or brain, which may ultimately result in death.
