Singapore PM has successful operation for cancer

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has successfully undergone surgery for prostate cancer and is expected to make a full recovery, his office said on Monday.

On Sunday, Lee's office announced he would have an operation on Monday to remove his prostate gland and would take a week of medical leave, with Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean heading the government.

"The surgery went very smoothly, and he is expected to recover fully," Professor Christopher Cheng, the lead urologist at the Singapore General Hospital, was quoted as saying in a statement.

Lee, 63, was previously diagnosed with lymphoma in 1992 but the cancer went into remission after successful chemotherapy.

Cheng said there was no relationship between the previous lymphoma and the current prostate cancer.

Lee's illness raises questions about the need for a public succession plan should he step down in future, as his ruling People's Action Party has not named a successor.

"Given that prostate cancer is not uncommon among people of a certain age and is, indeed, easily treated, the issue is not urgent," said Manu Bhaskaran, Singapore-based partner at Centennial Asia Advisors, a policy advisory group based in Washington, D.C.

"However, more people could well focus on the issue now."

But the strength of political institutions and the durability of the national consensus was more important to political stability, he said.

"On both these scores, Singapore does well," Bhaskaran said.

Singapore's two previous changes of prime minister since independence in 1965 involved well-flagged transitions to previously anointed successors.

Lee hinted in an interview with domestic media last month that his successor could be a member of his cabinet.

"Yes, he may already be in the Cabinet, but it is not entirely certain, because I will bring in some MPs and some new people with leadership calibre in the next general election," he said.

The next election must be held by January 2017, but media and internet blogs have speculated it could come as early as this year, after celebrations in August of Singapore's 50th anniversary of independence from Britain.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Why an annual prostate checkup is important

MANILA -- Men who are already in their 40s must get their prostate checked for any irregularity or enlargement, according to a urologist.

The prostate is a small gland located near the bladder, which secretes hormones that are essential for reproduction.

Just like other types of cancer, early detection of prostate cancer gives a patient a higher chance of cure.

On Tuesday's episode of DZMM radio show "Magandang Gabi Dok," Dr. Samuel Yrastorza, a urologist and chairman of the Prostate Health Awareness Committee, Philippine Urological Association, Inc., said the prostate gland normally gets bigger when men reach the age of 40.

"Mayroon tayong tinatawag na benign prostatic hyperplasia, lumalaki ang prostate gland pero hindi siya cancer," he said.

Yraztorza added that the risk for prostate cancer peaks around the age of 60 to 70.

The problem with prostate cancer, however, is that it does not exhibit symptoms in its early stages.

"Kapag maliit pa (ang prostate), pwede pang gamutin, pwedeng tanggalin ang cancer," Yrastorza said.

He added that recent studies showed that prostate cancer can be genetic. "Kung meron kang tatay, kapatid na lalaki, lolo na may prostate cancer, mataas ang chances mo na magkaroon din ng cancer," he said.

Thus Yrastorza encouraged men above the age of 40 to go on an annual exam to have their prostate checked, noting that most men refuse to do this because they find the digital examination painful and even awkward.

Although there are other ways to have the prostate checked, he said a digital examination, or inserting the fingers through the anus, is the best way to check the prostate for any regularity.

"Ang daliri naming mga urologist, mas sensitive pa kaysa sa ultrasound o MRI," Yrastorza boasted.

source: www.abs-cbnnews.com

Vitamin C supplements tied to men's kidney stones

NEW YORK - Men who take vitamin C supplements are at higher-than-average risk of developing kidney stones, a new study from Sweden suggests.

The findings don't prove the vitamin itself triggers stones to form. But researchers said that because there are no clear benefits tied to taking high-dose vitamin C, people who have had stones in the past might want to think before taking extra supplements.

"I don't think I would hold this up and say, ‘You shouldn't take vitamin C, and here's the evidence,'" said Dr. Brian Matlaga, a urologist who studies kidney stones at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore.

But, "When you talk to patients, a lot of times you'll find patients are taking non-prescribed medications, like vitamin supplements… and there may not be great evidence that there's an actual health benefit associated with these," he told Reuters Health.

The new finding "suggests that stone formers who take regular vitamin C may actually place themselves at increased risk," said Matlaga, who wasn't involved in the study.

Researchers led by Laura Thomas of the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm used data from a large study of middle-aged and elderly Swedish men who answered a series of questions on their diet and lifestyle, then were tracked for an average of 11 years.

The current analysis included 907 of those men who said they took regular vitamin C tablets and more than 22,000 who didn't use any nutritional supplements.

Of the vitamin C users, 3.4% developed kidney stones for the first time during the study, compared to 1.8% of non-supplement users. Men who took vitamin C supplements at least once a day had the highest risk of kidney stones, researchers reported Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine.

"It has long been suspected that high doses of vitamin C may increase the risk of kidney stones as some of the vitamin C absorbed by the body is excreted in urine as oxalate - one of the key components of kidney stones," Thomas told Reuters Health by email.

Stones are made up of tiny crystals, which can be formed by calcium combining with oxalate. They usually pass on their own, but can cause severe pain in the process. Larger stones occasionally require surgery.

Men are more likely to form stones than women.

‘An important part of a healthy diet'

The findings don't mean people shouldn't get plenty of vitamin C through fruits and vegetables, researchers said. The antioxidant is important for bone and muscle health - and severe deficiency can cause scurvy.

"Vitamin C is an important part of a healthy diet," Thomas said. "Any effect of vitamin C on kidney stone risk is likely to depend both on the dose and on the combination of nutrients with which it is ingested."

Swedish supplements, like those the study participants would have taken, typically contain about 1,000 milligrams (mg) of vitamin C per tablet, she noted. Most vitamin C supplements sold in the US contain either 500 or 1,000 mg.

The US Institute of Medicine recommends 90 mg per day for men - the amount in a small glass of orange juice or a cup of broccoli - and 75 mg for most women.

Matlaga said more research is needed to determine for certain whether reasonable doses of vitamin C may increase the risk of kidney stones. For now, he said people who haven't had kidney stones before shouldn't worry about any related risks tied to the vitamin.

source: abs-cbnnews.com