Barts Take A Strong Line Against Smoking
This story in the Standard has the headline.
Hospitals warn smokers: no treatment and £75 fine if you light up
I can’t why this isn’t in force all over the country.
More On Immunocore
I found this excellent article on Immunocore, which is the company behind the possible cancer cure, I mentioned yesterday. \Here’s a flavour of the article.
In all probability, Immunocore is the only company worldwide that has been able to develop a way to harness the power of the immune system’s natural-born killer cells: the T-cells of the blood that kill invading pathogens, like viruses and bacteria, the Independent reported.
Obviously, it’s too late for my wife and son, but hopefully it will bring a pathway to help others in the future.
Is This Bad News For Cancer?
This report from the Independent headlined, Exclusive: Cancer – A cure just got closer thanks to a tiny British company – and the result could change lives of millions, was flagged up on BBC Radio 5 this morning and is a fascinating read.
It seems that researchers may have found a way to get the body’s T-cells to attack the cancer cells.
I think everything in the report sounds feasible and the company in Oxford; Immunocore, have now got masses of backing from two of the largest pharmaceutical companies. So money for the research won’t be a problem.
In some ways, this research all fits with my belief that if you have a healthy immune system, you are less likely to get cancer. Hence my gluten-free diet and abhorrence of smoking.
Is It Goodbye To Trafford General Hospital?
Trafford General Hospital is going to be downgraded in phases according to this report. Here’s the first three paragraphs.
Campaigners fighting to save a hospital A&E department where the first NHS patient was treated say they will challenge the decision in court.
Health secretary Jeremy Hunt said on Thursday that Trafford General Hospital was to be downgraded in phases.
He said the decision had been taken because there were too few patients using the department.
My son was in that hospital several times, a few months before he died and they had no idea he had pancreatic cancer.
I certainly won’t miss its passing and I suspect as it seems to be suffering from Stafford Syndrome, with a lack of patients, neither will any of the people who live near the hospital.
But then as long as I can remember, NHS patients have always chosen to go to a better hospital a few miles away. When I lived in Suffolk, my local hospital was at Bury St. Edmunds, but I always drove to Addenbrooke’s at Cambridge. I suspect the good people of Trafford, go to somewhere in Central Manchester.
But then the first sentence in the BBC report says it all. It treated the first NHS patient. But we don’t want to keep hospitals as museums!
Did The Hot Weather Cause A Jump In My INR?
The last few readings of my INR have been.
Monday, July 8th – 3.2
Sunday, July 7th – 2.3
Saturday, July 6th – 2.4
Friday, July 5th – 2.6
Thursday, July 4th – 2.3
Wednesday, July 3rd – 2.2
Tesday, July 2nd – 2.5
Monday, July 1st – 2.8
Sunday, June 30th – 2.6
Saturday, June 29th – 2.6
I don’t think anybody would complain at those figures, as I’m supposed to keep the INR between 2 and 3, with a target value of 2.5.
I know from past experience, that in the summer, my Warfarin level is around 4 mg. a day. So generally, I take this amount every day, but if the INR is 2.8 or over, I take 3 mg. and if it is 2.2 or under I take 5 mg. It is a classic simple algorithm of the type I learned at Liverpool University in my degree in Control Engineering.
But notice how today, after the very hot and sunny day yesterday, my INR rose sharply. I shall be watching the figures intently.
Is It Cheaper To Use An Out Of London Dentist?
I’ve gone to the same dentist in Felixstowe off and on for nearly thirty years. I don’t have any specific problems, but I felt that because of this long and excellent experience, that it would be best for me to return, as my previous dentist in London has sold his business and retired.
Today it cost me £33.25 for the First Class ticket to Felixstowe and the private check-up was £18. That was all I spent, although when I visited my London dentist, I usually treated myself to lunch in Carluccio’s round the corner from his surgery.
Testing My INR On A Hot Day
The temperature in my house is 29.1 °C and as I had one test strip left in the current batch, I used it to test my INR,this afternoon when I came in from the heat outside.
The value was 2.3, which is only a little bit lower than the 2.6, it was this morning, when I took my daily check, the values of which are here.
Obviously, one test doesn’t give a conclusive result, but despite the heat, my INR has probably only changed within the limits of experimental error.
Thoughts On My Left Arm
My left arm isn’t good and it has never been since the humerus was broken by the school bully. My son asked me why I don’t floss my teeth and I think the answer is that my left hand can’t do it. After all, the only thing it’s done successfully with it, is fly an aircraft. A friend told me, that when she met me, she was surprised at the way I typed. I also always used to sit in the cinema or theatre with C to my right, so as that was for forty years, I’ve probably protected that arm all the time. One eminent doctor, said I was suffering from neglect syndrome, which is generally stroke-related. But I’ve avoided using my left arm for years and I’m very right-handed. Even playing tennis, I tend to run round my backhand and if I ever do a backhand it is two-handed.
I can remember going back to around twenty and when I drove my old Morris Minor, I’d often do the gear-changing without using the clutch. Did this mean that my left arm didn’t have to apply so much pressure?
A New Approach To Fighting Alzheimer’s Disease
Last night, I received my alumni e-newsletter from Liverpool University. There was this article about a new approach to fighting Alzheimer’s Disease. This is a key sentence.
We are using a new approach, harnessing the natural ability of sugars, based on the blood-thinning drug heparin, to block the action of BACE.
BACE is an enzyme, which according to the article causes some of the problems of Alzheimer’s Disease.
Let’s hope that the research succeeds.
Hopefully Farewell To University College Hospital For A Bit
In March last year I spent a couple of days in University College Hospital, after I collapsed at home on a very hot day.
Today, I went for a check-up and they told me to get lost, as my heart had now returned to normal. Obviously, I’ll have to keep taking the tablets for the rest of my life, but it does mean that I can live a much more normal life.
The consultant said that only a third of those, who end up in the hospital with the heart problem I had, make this sort of recovery.
So perhaps, I’ve been lucky. But then, I put it down to the luck that gave me a double dose of survival genes at conception. If the Jewish genes don’t poke a stick in the Devil’s eyes, the Huguenot ones will get her. Egging them on is a good helping of Devonian stubbornness.
I hope, there’s a few more years in this old London mongrel yet!
The Anonymous Widower 