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| Preface | |
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| Acknowledgments | |
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| List of Illustrations | |
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| Facing the Diagnosis | |
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| Survival Statistics | |
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| Ten things you need to do before deciding on treatment | |
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| How to proceed | |
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| Judging your attitude | |
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| Thoughts for your mental computer | |
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| Searching for Answers on the Web | |
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| Finding the right site | |
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| Selected cancer information Web sites | |
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| Choosing a search engine | |
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| Choosing a reliable site | |
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| Listservs, newsgroups, and chatrooms | |
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| Forums | |
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| Latest cancer news | |
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| Searching medical journals on the Web | |
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| Searching libraries on-line | |
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| Checking doctor, hospital, and nursing home credentials | |
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| Genetic information | |
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| Environment | |
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| Insurance and Medicare | |
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| Selected Web sites for specific cancers | |
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| Choosing Your Doctor and Hospital | |
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| Basic facts to help in choosing doctor and hospital | |
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| Board certification | |
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| Major specialties | |
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| Judging your doctor | |
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| Choosing a surgeon | |
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| Getting a second opinion | |
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| Role of nurses | |
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| Health plans | |
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| Judging your hospital | |
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| Locations of Comprehensive Cancer Centers | |
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| Difference between Comprehensive Cancer Centers and other hospitals | |
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| Understanding research and teaching hospitals | |
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| Hospital records | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| What Is Cancer? | |
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| What you need to know about cancer | |
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| Difference between benign and malignant tumors | |
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| Different types of cancer | |
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| Warning signals | |
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| Suspected causes | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Cancer Controversies: What You Need to Know and Do | |
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| What's the story on hormone replacement? | |
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| What about PSA tests and the best treatment for prostate cancer? | |
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| Are some breast cancer patients getting treatment they don't need? | |
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| Do older patients get different treatments than younger patients? | |
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| Is the diagnosis correct? | |
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| Why does information about screening tests and causes of cancer change so often? | |
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| Are doctors following the guidelines for treating cancer? | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| How Cancers Are Diagnosed | |
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| How the diagnosis process works | |
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| Questions to ask your doctor when tests are being ordered | |
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| Questions to think about during diagnosis period | |
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| Laboratory tests | |
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| All the "oscopy" tests | |
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| Cytology | |
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| Imaging techniques | |
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| Ultrasound | |
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| Scans | |
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| X-rays | |
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| Upper and lower GI series | |
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| Mammograms | |
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| Different kinds of biopsies | |
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| How cancers are staged and graded | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Treatment | |
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| Questions to ask about treatment | |
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| Types of treatment | |
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| How treatment is determined | |
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| Finding newest treatments through PDQ and the Internet | |
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| Adjuvant treatment | |
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| Palliative treatment | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Surgery | |
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| Questions to ask before surgery | |
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| Discussing fees | |
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| Guidelines for choosing a surgeon | |
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| Types of surgery | |
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| Surgical techniques | |
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| Anesthesia | |
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| Questions to ask in the hospital | |
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| What happens before and after operation | |
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| Possible problems after surgery | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Radiation Treatment | |
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| Understanding radiation | |
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| Questions to ask your doctor before radiation treatment | |
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| Radiation team | |
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| Types of radiation | |
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| External radiation | |
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| Getting your radiation treatments | |
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| Possible side effects of external radiation treatments | |
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| Internal radiation (brachytherapy) | |
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| Costs of radiation treatment | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Chemotherapy | |
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| What you need to know about chemotherapy | |
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| Questions to ask about chemotherapy | |
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| Different kinds of chemotherapy | |
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| Charts of major chemotherapy drugs, their uses, and most common side effects | |
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| What to do about side effects | |
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| Hair loss | |
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| Less common and investigational chemotherapy drugs | |
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| Chemotherapy costs and insurance | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| New Advances and Investigational Treatments | |
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| Participating in a treatment clinical trial | |
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| New diagnostic devices | |
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| Tumor markers that may spot cancer | |
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| Less invasive surgical techniques | |
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| New radiation techniques | |
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| New chemotherapy treatments | |
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| Hyperthermia | |
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| Photodynamic therapy | |
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| Biologic response modifiers | |
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| Monoclonal antibodies, tumor growth factors, colony-stimulating factors, interferons, interlukins | |
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| Gene therapy | |
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| LAK cells | |
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| Uses of biological response modifiers | |
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| Genetic counseling | |
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| Questions to discuss before having tests | |
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| Participating in a treatment clinical trial | |
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| Bone marrow transplants and peripheral stem cell support | |
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| New prevention techniques | |
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| Chemoprevention trials | |
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| Questions to ask before joining a chemoprevention trial | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Understanding Complementary and Alternative Treatments | |
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| Be an informed consumer | |
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| The difference between conventional, investigational, complementary, and alternative treatments | |
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| Questions you should ask about alternative methods | |
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| The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine | |
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| Comparing standards for investigational treatments with alternative treatments | |
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| Some questionable alternative treatments | |
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| Antineoplastons and Dr. Burzynski | |
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| Cancell | |
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| Cell therapy | |
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| Coley toxin | |
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| Gonzalez protocol PC SPES/SPES | |
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| Greek cancer cure and Dr. Burton | |
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| Immunoaugmentative therapy | |
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| Laetrile | |
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| Livingston-Wheeler therapy | |
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| Macrobiotic diet | |
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| Shark/bovine cartilage treatment | |
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| Tea | |
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| Wheatgrass diet | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Breast Cancer | |
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| What you need to know about breast cancer | |
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| Understanding breast cancer and mammograms | |
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| Who is at risk for breast cancer? | |
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| Mammograms, breast exams, and breast self-exams | |
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| Lumpy breasts | |
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| Difference between a mastectomy and lumpectomy | |
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| Major decisions you'll have to make | |
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| Kinds of treatments | |
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| Questions to ask about your type of breast cancer | |
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| Second opinions | |
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| Biopsies | |
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| One-step procedures | |
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| Frozen sections | |
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| Estrogen and progesterone receptor tests | |
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| Questions to ask yourself before deciding on a breast operation | |
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| Histiologic and tumor grades | |
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| Understanding the operations for breast cancer | |
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| When is a lumpectomy not recommended? | |
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| Treatments that preserve the breast | |
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| Timing breast operation to menstrual cycle | |
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| Stages and treatments | |
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| What's involved in the operation | |
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| Lymph node surgery | |
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| Postoperative care | |
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| Lymphedema | |
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| Radiation treatment after surgery | |
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| Questions to ask before starting chemotherapy and hormone treatments | |
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| Chemotherapy ports | |
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| Peripheral stem cell support | |
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| Bone transplants | |
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| Prostheses | |
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| Reconstruction | |
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| Support groups | |
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| Sexual problems | |
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| Pregnancy and breast cancer | |
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| Follow-up | |
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| Recurrence | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Prostate Cancer and Other Male Cancers | |
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| If your PSA is not normal | |
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| Things you should know about your prostate | |
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| Who is at risk? | |
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| Symptoms | |
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| Questions to ask before deciding on a treatment | |
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| Testing for prostate cancer | |
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| Meaning of Gleason grade | |
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| Partin tables | |
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| Stage and treatment choices for prostate cancer | |
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| Learning about prostatectomy operations | |
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| The two kinds of radiation treatment--external and internal | |
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| Questions to ask before radiation treatment | |
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| Laprascopic lymphadenectomy | |
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| Long- and short-term side effects of external radiation treatments | |
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| Radiation seeding | |
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| Questions to ask your radiation oncologist about radiation seeding | |
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| Cryosurgery | |
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| Risks and side effects of cryosurgery | |
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| Hormonal treatments for prostate cancer | |
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| Orchiectomy | |
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| Treating bone metastases | |
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| Sexual problems, incontinence, and other side effects | |
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| Dealing with urinary problems | |
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| Support groups | |
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| Cancer of the testicle | |
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| Cancer of the penis | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Lung Cancer | |
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| New tests for finding lung cancer earlier | |
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| What you should know about lung cancer | |
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| Causes | |
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| Benign lung tumors | |
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| Shoulder pain and lung cancer | |
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| Symptoms | |
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| Diagnostic tests | |
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| Stages of lung cancer | |
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| Questions to ask about treatment choices | |
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| Lasers and photodynamic treatment | |
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| Radiation seeding | |
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| Cryotherapy | |
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| Clinical trials | |
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| Breathing problems | |
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| Preventive radiation of the brain | |
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| Radiation treatment | |
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| Chemotherapy | |
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| Side effects of combination treatment | |
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| Major types of lung cancers | |
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| Stages and treatment of nonsmall cell cancer | |
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| Stages and treatment of small cell cancer | |
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| Breathing exercises | |
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| Types of operations for lung cancer | |
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| Mesothelioma | |
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| Damage from smoking | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Gastrointestinal and Urinary Cancers | |
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| What you need to know about gastrointestinal cancers | |
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| Symptoms | |
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| Tests | |
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| Questions to ask your doctor | |
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| Who is most likely to get colon and rectal cancers | |
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| Warning signs | |
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| Polyps | |
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| Stages and treatment of colon and rectal cancers | |
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| Ostomy | |
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| Stages and treatment of stomach or gastric cancer | |
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| Cancer of the esophagus | |
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| Liver cancer | |
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| Pancreatic cancer | |
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| Gall bladder, bile duct, and anus cancer | |
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| Bladder cancer | |
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| Kidney and ureter cancer | |
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| Cancer of adrenal gland | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Skin Cancer | |
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| What you should know about skin cancers | |
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| Different kinds of skin cancers | |
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| Sweat-gland cancers | |
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| Xeroderma | |
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| Limpomas, warts, papillomas, hemangiomas, ganglions, fibromas, tattoos | |
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| Noncancerous skin conditions | |
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| Nonmelanoma skin cancers | |
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| Precancers | |
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| Mohs surgery | |
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| Cryosurgery | |
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| Electrosurgery | |
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| Radiation | |
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| Topical treatment | |
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| Laser | |
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| Accutane | |
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| Melanomas | |
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| How biopsy should be done | |
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| Skin grafts | |
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| Unusual skin cancers | |
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| Merkel cell carcinoma | |
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| Skin cancer prevention hints | |
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| Signs of skin cancer | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Adult Leukemia | |
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| Not a children's disease | |
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| What you need to know about leukemia | |
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| Tests | |
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| Blood counts | |
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| Bone marrow biopsy | |
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| Types of leukemia | |
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| How diagnosis is made | |
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| Acute leukemia | |
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| Acute lymphocytic leukemia | |
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| Remission induction | |
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| Chronic leukemias--CLL, CML, HCL | |
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| Philadelphia chromosome | |
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| Rare leukemias | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Hodgkin's Disease, Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, and Multiple Myeloma | |
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| What are lymphomas? | |
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| Diagnostic tests | |
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| Questions to ask if you have Hodgkin's or non-Hodgkin's | |
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| Hodgkin's disease | |
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| Reed-Sternberg cells | |
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| Lymphograms | |
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| Staging and treatments for Hodgkin's disease | |
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| Non-Hodgkin's lymphomas | |
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| Staging and treatments for non-Hodgkin's | |
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| New treatments for non-Hodgkin's | |
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| HIV- and AIDS-related lymphomas | |
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| Indolent and aggressive lymphomas | |
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| Low, intermediate, and high-grade types | |
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| Primary lymphoma of the stomach, anaplastic, and mantle cell | |
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| Cutaneous T-cell | |
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| Multiple myeloma | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Gynecological Cancers | |
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| What you need to know about cancers of the female reproductive organs | |
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| Risks and preventive factors | |
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| Gynecological operations | |
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| Cervical cancer | |
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| Papilloma virus | |
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| Understanding the Pap test | |
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| HPV conization | |
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| Uterine cancer | |
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| Hyperplasia | |
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| Endometrial cancer | |
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| Uterine sarcoma | |
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| Fibroid tumors | |
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| D&C | |
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| Ovarian cancer | |
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| Second-look surgery | |
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| Vaginal cancer | |
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| Radiation implants | |
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| Cancer of the vulva | |
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| Pregnancy and gynecological cancer | |
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| Gestational cancers | |
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| DES-related cancers | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Bone and Soft-Tissue Sarcomas | |
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| What you need to know about adult bone and soft-tissue sarcomas | |
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| |
| Avoiding inappropriate biopsies | |
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| Difficult to diagnose | |
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| Choosing the right doctor | |
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| Bone cancers | |
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| Adult soft-tissue sarcoma | |
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| Kaposi's sarcoma | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Cancer of the Brain and Spinal Cord | |
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| What you should know about brain and spinal-cord tumors | |
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| Primary brain cancer | |
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| Symptoms | |
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| Kind of doctor | |
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| Different kinds of adult brain cancers--features, symptoms, treatments | |
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| Questions to ask before starting treatment | |
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| Brain mapping | |
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| Neuroendoscopy | |
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| Laser surgery | |
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| Stereotactic surgery and radiation | |
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| Photodynamic therapy | |
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| Spinal-cord tumors | |
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| Cancer of the pituitary gland | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Head and Neck Cancers | |
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| Special treatment centers | |
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| Questions to ask before treatment | |
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| |
| Radical neck dissection | |
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| Possible side effects | |
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| Reconstructive surgery | |
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| Maxillofacial prothestics | |
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| |
| Intensity-modulated radiation therapy | |
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| Costs of external facial prosthetic devices | |
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| p53 gene | |
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| Thyroid cancer | |
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| Larynx | |
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| Pharynx | |
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| Oral cavity | |
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| Nose | |
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| Nasal cavity and sinus cancers | |
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| Salivary gland | |
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| Occult neck cancer | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| When a Child has Cancer | |
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| What you need to know about childhood cancers | |
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| Who should be treating the child | |
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| Second opinion from NCI | |
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| Aid for air travel | |
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| Emotional aspects | |
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| Childhood leukemias (ALL, AML) | |
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| Childhood brain tumors | |
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| Childhood Hodgkin's disease | |
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| Childhood non-Hodgkin's lymphoma | |
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| Wilms' tumor | |
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| Neuroblastoma | |
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| Accutane | |
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| |
| Soft tissue sarcoma | |
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| |
| Rhabdomyosarcoma | |
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| |
| Retinoblastoma | |
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| Osteosarcoma | |
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| Ewing's family of tumors | |
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| |
| Childhood liver cancer | |
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| Treatment of side effects | |
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| |
| Candlelighters and other support services | |
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| |
| Web pages to check out | |
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| Dictionary of Unusual Cancers | |
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| When Cancers Recur or Metastasize | |
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| Recurrence | |
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| Questions to ask if a recurrence is suspected | |
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| Where cancers spread | |
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| Treatment for cancers that metastasize | |
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| When a primary tumor can't be found | |
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| Medical emergencies that can occur | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Living with Cancer | |
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| |
| Eating well | |
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| Finding a nutritionist | |
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| |
| Dealing with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and constipation | |
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| |
| Outside help | |
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| |
| Complementary therapies | |
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| Relaxation techniques | |
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| Spirituality | |
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| Imagery | |
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| Visualization | |
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| |
| Ayurveda | |
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| |
| Yoga | |
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| Biofeedback | |
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| Hypnosis | |
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| |
| Verbal therapy | |
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| Therapeutic touch | |
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| Qigong | |
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| Reiki | |
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| Myotherapy | |
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| Polarity therapy | |
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| Laugher | |
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| Holistic medicine | |
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| Exercise | |
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| Feelings | |
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| Sexuality | |
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| Pain | |
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| Money matters | |
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| Setting up records | |
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| Insurance policy checklist | |
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| Appealing a claim | |
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| Checking hospital bills | |
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| Job discrimination | |
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| Home care | |
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| Thinking about dying | |
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| Wills | |
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| Living wills | |
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| Medical power of attorney | |
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| Suggestions for family and friends | |
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| Home care | |
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| Hospice services | |
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| Signs of death | |
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| Care for the caregiver | |
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| Web pages to check out | |
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| Where to Get Help | |
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| Quick reference for essential phone numbers | |
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| Major information sources | |
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| Patient service organizations | |
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| Doctors and other health professionals and hospitals | |
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| National Cancer Institute programs | |
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| Money matters | |
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| Publications and database services | |
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| Cancer fund-raising organizations | |
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| Index | |