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Many people aren't aware when they are hit by a stroke, according to a study by Mayo Clinic. As a result, they do not seek treatment until their condition becomes very serious.

Scott Silvers, the Chair of the emergency medicine department at Mayo Clinic's Florida campus says that time is crucial in treating stroke, adding that this will ensure that the effects of the stroke are limited and the patient's condition can be kept under control to prevent further damage and improve recovery.

Immediate treatment of a stroke can prevent a major disability. Here's some of the symptoms:

Sudden numbness, weakness, or paralysis of your face, arm or leg — usually on one side of the body
Sudden difficulty speaking or understanding speech (aphasia)
Sudden blurred, double or decreased vision
Sudden dizziness, loss of balance or loss of coordination
A sudden, severe headache or an unusual headache, which may be accompanied by a stiff neck, facial pain, pain between your eyes, vomiting or altered consciousness
Confusion or problems with memory, spatial orientation or perception

If you are experiencing any of the above, please seek IMMEDIATE medical help. It's better to be safe than sorry.

Source: Mayo Clinic. http://www.mayoclinic.org/news2008-jax/5123.html

Nanotechnology is the way of the future. These particles are so miniscule that they can be used to build pretty much anything we want, from biological constructs to space elevator ropes.

As you might imagine, this new technology is also being used on the cancer frontier and research is currently being carried out with it in this aspect.

For example, recently MIT engineers have found a way to turn carbon nanotubes into sensors for cancer drugs and other DNA-damaging agents inside living cells.

Sensors like these could be used to gauge the effectiveness of chemotherapy treatments, a measure which can prove to be useful in providing a greater degree of control of these treatments as chemotherapy makes use of extremely potent drugs, which kills both cancerous and healthy cells alike.

These sensors are safe because they are wrapped in DNA, which makes them living cell-friendly. The interaction between the DNA and DNA disruptor changes the intensity and/or wavelength of the fluorescent light emitted by the nanotube.

On top of being programmed as sensors, nano-organisms are also being used to deliver cancer drugs more effectively to deal with cancer cells, going by the research being performed at Penn State's Hershey Medical Center and University Park campus in Pennsylvania.

Scientists there have reported success in using nanoparticles 1/5,000 the diameter of a human hair encapsulating an experimental anticancer agent, to kill human melanoma and drug-resistant breast cancer cells growing in laboratory cultures. Going further down this avenue could see the development of new anti-cancer drugs that are more specific in their anti-cancer drug delivery, thus being safer and more effective.

However, the research still has some way to go in-terms of seeing practical results as many of the nanoparticles used are unable to dissolve in body fluids and are toxic to cells as well.

Source: CancerNews, http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081215151147.htm,
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081214190951.htm

Most of us know that cancer is a persistent threat, and I'm sure many of us would want to know all that we can about it. Of course, you can try to read up on cancer in books and on the net, but it can be quite confusing -especially with all the jargon being thrown around.