extra aggressive her2neu breast cancer with grim prognosis + not calcified.
molecular-level testing prescribed the targeted cancer drug herceptin, in addition to chemo, shrank my huge tumor completely, but i still had to have deforming surgery + radiation, in case a single cell of cancer survived.
detecting cancer that isn't calcified, like "my different cancer" that mammograms aren't designed to detect, requires an MRI + self exams.
i wish detecting breast cancer didn't depend on waiting for a tumor to grow.
i attended the LYFE kitchen pre-opening vip dinner in palo alto :) delightful to sample the organic vegan dishes, wild salmon, beet + faro salad, corn chowder, ancient whole grains, coffee, cucumber mint coolers... + witness a "nutrition tech startup" launch
the ultra modern decor, furnishings + flooring are all ecofriendly + gorgeous! the execs, designer, + staff are amazingly gracious, committed to nutrition, design + an inspiring healthy dining environment :) lots of herbs growing inside + outside!
LYFE opens to the public tomorrow at 4pm 10/12/11, then spreads across the U.S. like a dream come true. they'll build 5 in the san francisco bay area by next year (they plan 250)
LYFEis a new healthy restaurant chain created by former mcdonald’s execs + oprah's vegan chef, + a venture capitalist, offering healthy food, drinks + wifi. plus they'll sell organic vegan products in grocery stores :)
Google Blogger + mod*mom blog are getting renovated :) i got to go to Google + ride a 2-story slide + sneak peek preview my blog in the newest Blogger version in 5 years :)
my blog skin's customised DIY code has gone wonky in the 7 years since i created my Google Blogger blog, because browsers, operating systems, blogger templates, widgets + sharing buttons have evolved + so has the width + variety of screens to view blogs. soon i will be able to integrate with all Google products i LOVE
doris day is my favorite movie star + glass bottom boat 1966 is my favorite movie :) doris is a mermaid, space center worker, night student, + maybe a spy?
doris day is my vitamin D :: i LOVE all her 39 movies, 600+ songs, tv shows, tv specials, + relentless generous animal protection (that influence child protection legislation - like not leaving them in cars with windows rolled up ). her life story is inspirational. she has overcome so many obstacles in her public + personal life... her persevering positive caring assertive character is my role model + mod*tot loves her too.
doris day is still the top actress in box office history, even though she left show business in 1978! i am her HUGE fan, but i usually can't get through editing a post about her including the Doris Day Barbie Doll, new Doris Day paper dolls... because i get so caught up enjoying her movies, music + going to her Cypress Inn dog friendly hotel in any chance i get.
Sixties pop icon Beatle, Sir Paul McCartney, interviewed Doris at her home in Carmel Valley, about her new album "My Heart" for the London Daily Telegraph. "My Heart" includes cover versions of the Beach Boys, Lovin Spoonful, Joe Cocker + 9 songs written by Doris's son, Terry, who was the Byrds producer, a singer, + passed away in 2004 of cancer. "My Heart" CD will be released September 5 worldwide on Amazon Doris Day Animal Foundation
Chef Charlie Ayers, opened "Calafia Cafe + Market A Go Go" across the street from Stanford University + Palo Alto High School. Calafia demonstrates that "being green" is good for consumers, team members, the environment, + community. Calafia Cafe Market a Go Go provides healthful, artisan-style, sustainable cuisine, fresh smoothies like "Google Gulp" + fair trade coffee in a fast, affordable format with FREE WIFI :)
Chef Charlie was executive chef for Google Inc., a position he won in a cook-off, judged by the company's 40 employees in 1999. As Google grew, Chef Charlie + his helpers in 10 cafes across the Googleplex served 4,000 meals daily. Chef Charlie's Google cafes were featured in the New York Times, London Times, France's Le Capital, the Washington Post, Food Management, Restaurants Institutions, The Food Network, + the book, "The Google Story: Charlie's Place"... At Google, Chef Charlie established a new standard: "fine food for the fast crowd" + gained a reputation for innovative, flavorful, + healthful foods that are good for you + the planet. His unique operation was visited by culinary luminaries Cat Cora, Mario Batali, Martin Yan, Bruce Aidell, Bradley Ogden, + Michael Chiarello. In addition to nourishing Silicon Valley high-tech innovators, Chef Charlie has cooked for Bill Clinton, Jimmy Carter, Al Gore, Madeleine Albright, Colin Powell, Mikhail Gorbachev, the Sultan of Brunei, Queen Noor of Jordan, The Grateful Dead, Robin Williams, Bono, Cold Play, Gwyneth Paltrow + mod*mom :)
Chef Charlie's 1st cookbook is a collection of smart recipes offered at Calafia (i got an autographed copy at a kiwi themed luncheon he created to educate lunchbox preparers like me on innovative ways to get kids to eat green + gold nutritious kiwis!). Chef Charlie is on advisory boards for social conscious organizations such as ChefsForHumanity.Org + ROCKtheEARTH.Org + he supports http://folding.stanford.edu/English/forevercloud
all rights reserved 2011
Stanford University "Abstract Parallels Beyond the App" an Art-Science- Technology performance event. The Art is "forevercloud" 2011 by artist Peter Shaw, in collaboration with the Science of protein folding research program that is calculating to accelerate cures for diseases ranging from Neonatal to Cancer + Alzheimer's. The Technology is the Cloud computing distributed program dynamic of the enterprise created by the Pande Lab.
Stanford University Professor Vijay Pande presented the fundamentals of the http://folding.stanford.edu/ enterprise and how the aesthetic engagement with the New Media Art work "forevercloud" allows Social Media to deliver significant computer power support to http://folding.stanford.edu/ with the content being the vehicle, beyond the standard of applications. what the pande lab can do with their computer program for $1m, would cost $1b to buy from a "cloud" computer power service (computing speed, bandwith).
mod*tot is growing up so fast + had another great dentist exam + cleaning :) i'm thrilled mod*tot still has no cavities + loves to brush, floss + gargle :) maybe there will be no decay in the future because of oral probiotics!!! yay!!!! she was so cute in the purple miniature dental chairs getting examined.
oral care of the future :: probiotics crowd out decay-producing plaque. our children can avoid decay, drills, morning breath, yellow teeth...
oragenics specializes in innovative biotechnology for oral health + launched the 1st ever probiotic oral care chewable for kids. "designed for kids 3 to 10, EvoraKids is 100% natural + targets only the bad bacteria in the mouth + establishes a healthy balance of beneficial bacteria." oral probiotic mints colonize healthy bacteria to "crowd out" bad bacteria. before i was offered samples of evora oral probiotics, i had my teeth cleaned + my dentist gave me a folder with pictures of gingivitis, periodontitis , + bad news. parents like me often concentrate on their children + neglect their own oral health, then pass the harmful oral bacteria to their children. my pregnant dental hygienist confirmed this week, that my gum "issues" have almost completely resolved in about a month of using oral probiotics, desert essence tea tree oil toothpaste + mouthwash, which saved $2,000 she quoted for deep cleaning, antibiotics + placing the antibiotics under the gumline, which she + my dentist warned wasn't a cure + would quickly grow back if i didn't religiously brush, floss, have 4 cleanings a year... also, my teeth are noticeably whiter + my breath is much better + i don't get bad taste in mouth - morning breath as much + my sinuses feel clear. this is so amazing for my total health, because it relieves the burden my immune system was fighting as a "wound". i want everybody to use oral probiotics. very important for seniors + disabled too, since medicare does not cover dentistry. they also have evora for dogs and cats called teddy's pride. you mix in food.
i am so excited with oral probiotics i interviewed a company spokesperson at evora: the directions don't say if it's ok to drink water after chewing mint?
With either EvoraKids or EvoraPlus (Oragenics' probiotic oral care product for those over the age of 11) it's best to wait 30 minutes after the chew or mint dissolves to eat or drink anything. how does it affect gut bacteria? ProBiora3(r), the active ingredient in EvoraKids and EvoraPlus, is a blend of beneficial bacteria that survives only in the environment of your mouth. If you swallow some of the probiotics, those beneficial bacteria become inert and have no effect on your gut bacteria. how does it work if it's chewed + swallowed immediately?
Try to allow the EvoraPlus mint or EvoraKids to dissolve in the mouth. The absolutely best way to use it is to let it first dissolve, then swish it between your teeth. We know it may not be easy for many kids to understand those directions, but remember - some of the EvoraKids chews will stay in the crevices of the teeth even if they chew it (just like tiny particles of food linger after eating) so kids get plenty of probiotics from EvoraKids even if they chew it right up. i only chewed with side teeth, so how does it help front gums? The ProBiora3(r) probiotics are living bacteria that move around in your mouth - just like the other 700+ bacteria that normally reside in your mouth. Even if you chew with your side teeth (we all do!) the bacteria floods the entire mouth and sets up camp below the gum line and between the teeth. The mint in the EvoraPlus is not super strong like many breath mints, and the mint itself is not actually meant to freshen your breath. It's the probiotics that freshen your breath by crowding out the harmful bacteria that produce the foul-smelling sulfur gases that give us all bad breath. If you use the EvoraPlus for about 5 consecutive days, you notice a significant decrease in bad breath and morning breath. It's very important to use the mints as directed. Not using them twice daily will allow the smelly bacteria the opportunity to begin to repopulate right away. harmful bacteria are common in children’s mouths and are passed from parent to child, usually when the child is between 6 months to three years old – a time–frame dentists refer to as “the window of infectivity". These bacteria can be passed through kissing, sharing cups or utensils or food. One simple step parents can take to reduce the risks of passing these harmful bacteria to their children is through daily use of EvoraPlus® to keep their own mouths healthy while reducing the risk of passing these harmful bacteria to their children. The beneficial bacteria found in EvoraKids™ are natural residents in very healthy mouths. Using EvoraKids™ daily ensures that the beneficial bacteria have the upper hand in maintaining a healthy bacterial balance in your children’s mouths. EvoraKids™ reaches where toothbrushes and floss can’t – into the crevices on the chewing surfaces of teeth "tonsil stone" bacteria is not same as mouth plaque. it's anaerobic, so it's treated with "oxygenated" mints. how do you use both mints, if you need to solve both problems? Tonsilith is defined as an infection occurring over the tonsils. This infection is generally associated with bacteria. EvoraPlus does not claim to address tonsilith. If someone uses "oxygenated" mints to treat tonsilith, these mints will not affect the activity of our probiotics mint. The two mints can be used together, or best separated by about 30 minutes. Our probiotics are not anaerobes and so extra oxygen will not affect them. However, our probiotics generate hydrogen peroxide (oxygen) and that is how they negatively impact on the anaerobes that occupy the space around and under the gum line, and these anaerobes have been identified as risk factors to gingival health. Our probiotics may be transient colonizers on tissues at the back of the mouth, and could temporarily occupy space on the tonsils, but no studies have been done to determine if our probiotics have beneficial value past their existing health benefit claims for oral care food yogurt probiotics: do these linger in mouth + compete with evora? Yogurt probiotics are residents of the gastro-intestinal tract and not the mouth, so they would only be present in the mouth for brief periods of time as they pass through to the gut. The yogurt strains may loosely attach indiscriminately to oral tissues but not likely to compete directly for space and nutrients with our probiotic strains since our strains are natural colonizers of the mouth have very specific niches in the complex 3-dimensional oral biofilm surrounding the teeth and around the gums. One should be able to use our product without concern, even if the previous meal/snack included a fermented dairy product such as yogurt evora "whitens teeth 4-5 shades in 30 days" : how does that work? will your teeth get tooo white if you use evora daily for years? Evora can whiten up to 4 shades in 30 days. This whitening effect is achieved by the low dose of hydrogen peroxide naturally produced by our probiotic strains on a 24/7 basis. Because the whitening effect is gradual, there is not the threat of damage or sensitivity that can sometimes be experienced with whitening kits that rely on much higher strength hydrogen peroxide and short contact times with the teeth. Our product can maintain its moderate whitening effect over time, even without a change in life-style (e.g., smoking or drinking wine or coffee). By regularly using our oral care probiotics, you are not adding anything to your mouth that's not already contained in a healthy mouth. Our product has been on the market for 2 years, and none of its long-term users have complained that their teeth were "too white"
pic: disneyland house of the future 1957, life magazine
eco laundry love video :: method :: good clean fun watch this a bunch of times to really appreciate the stop motion animation + spot me director tony benna of mekanism in san francisco
i'm grateful to mom hero alaina for sharing her private struggle to overcome devastating domestic abuse: emotional, financial, legal. alaina is role modeling how to stand up to "bullies" who exploit our adversarial family court system that profits from parental battles.
alaina was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer 3 years ago, then her 10-year marriage broke up + her husband moved 600 miles away. he hired lawyers to battle alaina in court for custody of their 5 + 11 year old children. alaina could not afford to hire an attorney + lost primary custody. she is in remission + has a strong support system for her + the children. join her supporters to appeal the judge's decision before june 17
worse than a deadbeat dad, it seems her ex is attempting to destroy alaina emotionally + physically with the devastating toll of chronic stress to her immune system by taking their children from her care + their home + community. financial abuse tactics aimed at a custodial parent to get out of paying child support + spousal support hurts children most, because family resources go to lawyers + family court fees. parents lose time at both work + parenting, because they can't be in 2 places at once with attention + energy to personally work full time + care for children, since both are full time jobs.
ciclotte monocycle exercise bike :: Luca Schieppati for Lamiflex Group
"designed to reproduce the dynamics + performance of road cycling. ideal for high intensity spinning workouts. ciclotte uses an epicycloid system, which works by generating a concentrated magnetic field using a copper ring that is rotated at a high speed in front of 5 magnets. resistance is controlled via the touch screen."
(i wonder if this is a "superconductor" + i could produce an MRI scan? or even better, power smart appliances like washing machine + dryer)
ciclotte gym-standard training machine is only 121 lbs.
prefab modular fiberglass house :: Wolfgang Feierbach :: Kunststoffhaus FG 2000
constructed 1968-1970 in Altenstadt Germany . furniture designed + custom made by Wolfgang Feierbach, except sofa + chairs designed by Dieter Rams + produced by Vitsoe, + fiberglass bathroom fixtures created by Rohm and Haas.
come inside the mod summer camp :: museumotel :: france :: built 1967 "on an island in the Vosges by Pascal Haüsermann, utopian organic architect 9 bubble cabins with bathrooms, accommodate 5 people each."
philippe starck 3 sensowash remote controlled toilet seat, lid, rear-front + oscillating wash, individual adjustment of water, air + seat temperatures, as well as nozzle position + jet strength, self-cleaning wand, individually adjustable programmable user profiles, night light
i want one that's solar powered :) no more running out of paper :)
yesterday, i celebrated my 5-year re-birthday from terminal breast cancer diagnosis + living with the side effects of breast cancer surgery, radiation + drug therapies, by meeting with top lymphedema research pioneer stanley rockson md, to learn the future of lymphatic disease treatments. the lymphatic system is our 2nd largest circulatory system + connects with our blood vascular system; it produces our immune system cells, filters our blood, + if it isn't working properly, spreads cancer.
doctor rockson is a professor at stanford university school of medicine + practicing cardiologist at stanford medical center. he told me he has a text book publishing later this year for use in educating doctors on lymphatic disease, + he hopes we will be able to develop molecular therapies, + enable "survivor's bodies to grow new lymph nodes" (lymph node replacement surgery is more damaging, than beneficial). doctor rockson also lead an animal model study that reversed lymphedema.
millions of cancer survivors, like me, emerge from surgery, to a lifetime of swelling + discomfort, caused by an incurable buildup of waste fluid in their tissues. doctor rockson's team at the stanford university school of medicine created an animal model for this complex condition called lymphedema, toward understanding its behavior. their results, published in Public Library of Science-Medicine, indicate lymphedema is characterized not just by the presence of swelling, but by a profound, accompanying inflammation. this finding suggests molecular therapies could one day be used to treat lymphatic disease.
"10,000,000 people in the United States have lymphedema. it's heartbreaking that it goes unacknowledged or unrecognized, because doctors have no treatment to offer," said doctor rockson. "15-30% of breast cancer survivors develop lymphedema from surgery-induced damage to the lymphatic system."
the lymphatic system consists of the lymph nodes, spleen, tonsils, thymus, bone marrow, appendix, peyer's patches, lymph vessels, + lymph fluid. a network of lymph nodes "draw" the lymph in a 1-way pathway of "channels" throughout the bodies tissues + cells, to the spleen. the tonsils + lymph nodes produce + store lymphocytes to fight infection. the thymus makes "T" cells, by adding an androgen marker to lymphocytes. the lymph nodes also filter lymph, which is protein, sugar + fat rich fluid waste products from the body's continual cell replacement. the spleen destroys pathogens + old red blood cells (rbc have a 120 day lifespan). protein goes back to the blood, fat is absorbed in the lower intestine by peyer's patches (masses of lymphocytes) + uptaken by the thoracic duct to the junction of internal jugular + left subclavian veins in the neck, to be distributed back into blood venus pathways. when lymph node removal surgery disrupts this circulatory system, lymph fluid collects in the interstitial (between cell) tissue of the affected limb + torso. this stagnant liquid bloats the tissue + impairs limb mobility, creating a cesspool for infection.
treatments for lymphedema involve bandaging the affected area or wearing tight-fitting garments to compress the swelling. elevation, exercises, + daily lymphatic drainage massage treatments can also help re-direct lymphatic flow. but such measures are temporary + provide little relief. "it's like the iron lung for polio--it works, but it's certainly no way to live," rockson said.
in this study, doctor rockson + his co-authors generated a mouse model to simulate human-acquired lymphedema. the model was tested using microscopic imaging + molecular-level techniques to find a molecular fingerprint or signature of the disease. "mouse tails were used for the model because of their rich lymphatic network--a simple substitute for the arm," rockson said.
researchers were able to trace lymphatic cell flow by injecting luciferase, the enzyme that gives fireflies their glow, into the mouse tails. using a dynamic imaging technique, the scientists observed cell traffic slowing to a crawl in mice with lymphedema. at the molecular level, the researchers used a microarray chip to determine which of the mouse genes were active. "much to our delight, only 600-700 of the genes had changed," rockson said, corresponding to about 1% of the 55,000 genes in a mouse. "this will allow us to determine whether we can treat lymphedema with a drug or compound that will revert the patient to normal behavior."
please see the information + join the community dedicated to curing lymphatic diseases atlymphatic research foundation - guided by doctor rockson.
(btw he refuted my theory that chemobrain may be caused by lymphedema :)
this $12,000 giveaway is in memory of crickett julius + racheltroxell
crickett julius, survived breast cancer only 4 months from HER2+ diagnosis in 2006, but her mother + cousin are dedicated to helping other women enjoy life post-diagnosis. Crickett’s Answer, is their nonprofit that provides wigs, mastectomy + lymphedema products, massage, facials + other pampering services to help women heal after losing their breasts + hair.
rachel troxell was cofounder of LympheDIVAs with her friend robin miller, also a breast cancer survivor. they saw a need to create attractive, fun + comfortable compression garments for life with lymphedema. rachel passed away in 2008.
Crickett’s Answer + LympheDIVAs want to help breast cancer survivors with lymphedema who can't afford $2-$500 for compression sleeves + gauntlets (gloves). lymphedema sufferers (like me) must wear these every day to control swelling. although lymphedema sleeves are medically necessary, they are not covered by most insurance, including medicare, under current law*, so thousands of survivors go without sleeves, needlessly suffering painful swelling that interferes with their normal activities + leaves them vulnerable to infection. left uncompressed, lymphedema increases steadily, becomes debilitating, + is irreversible.
to apply for 2 sets of lympheDIVAs compression sleeves + gauntlets (gloves), please download forms at Crickett’s Answer for Cancer + write in “lymphedema sleeve + gauntlet” on page 2. include measurements.
*the lymphedema treatment act will be reintroduced in 2011 Congress, to help change the law, so insurance covers lymphedema garments.
