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| | | Welcome to the Family Caregiver Web! This year we had hoped to bring you even more useful information and some fun along the way. However, there will be changes soon. We will keep you posted as things develop.
Please feel free to become a part of our family web. Send us feedback at caregiver@infohiwy.net. Tell us what you would like to see more of. Sign up for our newsletter which will let you know when we have new articles, headlines, surveys, or other useful information. None of us knows it all, but none of us is alone. Join the family!
See our new tip below!
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The Gift of Giving - to Ourselves
by Evangelina Vela | As caregivers when we think of gifts at the holidays, we probably think of the obvious: a cure or treatment or healing for our loved ones. But, let's get selfish for just a minute and fantasize about what we want for ourselves. It's all in fun - for the holidays!
|  | November is National Family Caregiver's Month
by Evangelina Vela | If you've been feeling overworked and underappreciated, here's your chance to let people know how you feel and to begin to feel honored. It's time to "Share the Caring"!
|  | How to Handle the Insurance Flood
by Evangelina Vela | You're finally out of the hospital! You're getting used to the new daily, weekly, and monthly routines. All of a sudden, you notice that there is a lot more mail than there used to be. Envelopes that look like bills are arriving from Dr. So and So, Chemistry Lab, or City Medical Practice. Other strange envelopes are starting to show up with important sounding return addresses. Some may say, "Explanation of Benefits" on the outside. What does all this mean to you, the overworked caregiver?
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Neural Stem Cells Can Develop into Functional Neurons | A new study done at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and at The Salk Institute shows that adult stem cells can become working brain cells. The investigators said that these cells (neurons) seem to be exactly like normal adult neurons. One difference was that the stem cell derived neurons did not have as many synapses, or connections, as normal neurons. They are not sure whether this anomaly is due to the adult stem cells which they used or to a fault in the experiment protocol. Much more study will be required before it is known whether adult stem cells can be used as effectively as embryonic stem cells in treating cases of damage to the brain and nervous tissue. Howard Hughes Medical Institute - HHMI.org |  | Transplant Drug "Protects Against Cancer" | Transplant patients have been found to be more likely to develop certain cancers. Cyclosporine, a common anti-rejection drug, has been linked to an increased risk of cancer. A new drug, rapamycin, seems to handle the anti-rejection qualities needed by transplant patients, and it also seems to control and prevent the growth of tumors in tests on mice. BBC News |  | Alzheimer's Patients Get Lost From Motion Blindness | Disorientation in Alzheimer's patients may be due to more than the patient forgetting where he is going or where he lives. New evidence suggests that there is a part of the brain that detects self-movement. Patients seem to have lost function in this part of the brain and do not realize that they are moving. Therefore, they are surprised to find themselves in a different place, and they don't know how they got there. UniSci.com |  | Drug Transforms Life for Lung Patients | Tests with a new drug, tiotropium, have found that it not only improved lung function in COPD patients, it also reduced the number and severity of attacks that patients experienced. Researchers are still cautious about recommending this new drug, though, for the general population of lung patients. BBC News |  | FDA Approves Leukemia Drug for Gastrointestinal Cancer | The serious cancer drug with the funny name is now approved for use against another type of cancer. The Dallas Morning News/DallasNews.com |  | Altered Images for Brain Damage Patients | Brain injury occasionally causes an unusual condition known as visual agnosia. This condition can cause people to have trouble recognizing faces, objects, or animals. For some, a family member may not be recognizable - until they speak or move! Others don't recognize familiar animals as real and believe that fantasy animals are real. Interesting photos of invented animals accompany the article. BBC News |  | New Test Detects Colon Cancer Gene | A non-invasive test for colorectal cancer has been tested in a small group of patients. The test looks for mutations in a specific gene. These mutations are known to initiate the cancer, so finding evidence of them can lead to an early diagnosis while the cancer is more easily cured. While the percentages of mutations found in patients with the cancer are not high, the number of false positives was zero. This alone can make the test more attractive to those who may fear the results of tests. Howard Hughes Medical Institute News |  | E. coli Could Provide Alzheimer's Clue | The same bacteria that cause food poisoning also produce plaque-forming amyloid fibers similar to those found in Alzheimer's patients. While this discovery gives researchers an easier way to study the amyloid production process, it also leads to some interesting questions, such as, can bacterial infection cause plaque formation? BBC News |  |
Little Things That Make a Big Difference: | "If you have a choice of a handicapped license
plate or a hanging placard for your car, choose
the placard. This is particularly important if
you are a woman and use the car for other travel.
When you travel alone, you will be less likely to
be singled out as a potential target for crime.
But please remember to remove the placard from
the rear-view mirror when you are not parked in
a handicapped parking space." FCW
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Cancer Counseling, Inc.
| Cancer Counseling is a non-profit health-care agency that provides free professional counseling
for cancer patients, their families, and friends.
|  | Home Health Helper
| This site explores Medicare, Medicaid, and what regulation changes mean to home health care
and how we as caregivers or professionals can change them. Also, resources, tips and timesavers
for home health care and support for burned out caregivers.
|  | AlzheimersUpdate.com
| Latest studies, news, and information on Alzheimer's Disease for medical professionals as well
as caregivers and the general public.
|  | CareThere.com
| Resource for medical, legal, and financial information, as well as products and services and
emotional support.
|  | The Caregivers Advisory Panel (tm) - TCAP
| TCAP is a healthcare market research and consulting firm that specializes in family
caregiver research. By translating your needs, wants and opinions into meaningful information,
TCAP helps to improve the lives of family caregivers. Make a difference.
|  | Today's Caregiver Magazine
| "America's Magazine for Family & Professional Caregivers"
|  | National Family Caregivers Association - NFCA
| NFCA is a national organization dedicated to supporting family caregivers and to speaking out
for family caregivers' needs. Free membership for family caregivers. NFCA also sponsors
National Family Caregivers Month every November.
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"There are
only four
kinds of
people in
this world -
those who
have been
caregivers,
those who
currently
are
caregivers,
those who
will be
caregivers
and those
who need caregivers."
--- Former
First Lady
Rosalynn
Carter |