Kidneys and Liver

Would you give a piece of your liver to someone who needs it? It is rumored it’s dangerous to do so. Well, it’s not that dangerous, they want to assure us. People who donate a piece of their liver to someone in need of a transplant can still live a long and healthy life, according […] The post Be A Liver Donor appeared first on Dr. Keith Scott-Mumby.

It’s a persistent story: that somebody falls asleep (maybe drugged) and wakes up to find a kidney missing. It’s been grabbed by some crooks, to sell on the black market. But is there any truth in this? I found the following at TheStraightDope.com… The facts: There are no documented cases of kidneynapping, or for that matter any killing, abduction, or mutilation for purposes of organ theft in the United States. The National Kidney Foundation, which fears this persistent myth will scare off donors, has asked victims of organ theft to step forward. So far no takers. While I suppose it’s possible to remove somebody’s kidneys with a paper plate and an X-acto knife, as a practical matter it can’t be done. The operation customarily takes a five-person surgical team working for three or four hours in a sterile operating room. Much of the equipment required (anesthesia machines, operating tables) is bulky and not the sort of thing you could readily sneak into an apartment, hotel room, etc. The tissue and blood types of the donor and donee must be precisely matched; you can’t just grab the first mope you see in a bar.

It’s a persistent story: that somebody falls asleep (maybe drugged) and wakes up to find a kidney missing. It’s been grabbed by some crooks, to sell on the black market. But is there any truth in this? I found the following at TheStraightDope.com… The facts: There are no documented cases of kidneynapping, or for that matter any killing, abduction, or mutilation for purposes of organ theft in the United States. The National Kidney Foundation, which fears this persistent myth will scare off donors, has asked victims of organ theft to step forward. So far no takers. While I suppose it’s possible to remove somebody’s kidneys with a paper plate and an X-acto knife, as a practical matter it can’t be done. The operation customarily takes a five-person surgical team working for three or four hours in a sterile operating room. Much of the equipment required (anesthesia machines, operating tables) is bulky and not the sort of thing you could readily sneak into an apartment, hotel room, etc. The tissue and blood types of the donor and donee must be precisely matched; you can’t just grab the first mope you see in a bar.

Two new studies from the Mayo Clinic find that hepatitis B and C infection and obesity could be to blame for a surge in liver cancer cases, which have tripled over the last 30 years. If you want to keep a healthy liver, you need to keep your weight in trim. It’s vital—for this reason […]

Two new studies from the Mayo Clinic find that hepatitis B and C infection and obesity could be to blame for a surge in liver cancer cases, which have tripled over the last 30 years. If you want to keep a healthy liver, you need to keep your weight in trim. It’s vital—for this reason […] The post Liver Cancer Cases Tripled appeared first on Dr. Keith Scott-Mumby.

Fatty Liver Disease Fatty liver is a common liver condition that occurs in over one-third of adults in the U.S. and with similar alarming frequency elsewhere in Western societies with poor diets. In some cases, the condition is mild and causes no noticeable symptoms, but in other cases it can lead to permanent liver damage […]

Fatty Liver Disease Fatty liver is a common liver condition that occurs in over one-third of adults in the U.S. and with similar alarming frequency elsewhere in Western societies with poor diets. In some cases, the condition is mild and causes no noticeable symptoms, but in other cases it can lead to permanent liver damage […] The post Fatty Liver Disease appeared first on Dr. Keith Scott-Mumby.

You need to keep your body filters cleared of dirt! Do you ever stop to think, when taking a pee, where that golden liquid comes from and how precious it is to you? Kidney cancers are significantly on the rise. In fact up by 50% in the years between 1991 and 2006. Not surprisingly, since most cancers are caused by xenobiotics and our kidneys have to filter more and more hostile chemical junk to protect us. It’s not just a boomer thing: the cancer increase is across all age groups, as you would expect if environmental toxins were to blame. In fact more younger people are getting diagnosed now than ever before (up from 45.9% in 1991 to 55.3% in 2006. It has been suggested that some of the rise comes from an increased rate of detection, due to CT scans. Today practically everyone who comes into ER with a complaint such as a belly ache is given a CT scan. Small kidney cancers that might have gone unnoticed are thus being detected. But that can’t explain the trend entirely, because the rise in cases began before the use of CT scans became prevalent. It’s a genuine trend.

You need to keep your body filters cleared of dirt! Do you ever stop to think, when taking a pee, where that golden liquid comes from and how precious it is to you? Kidney cancers are significantly on the rise. In fact up by 50% in the years between 1991 and 2006. Not surprisingly, since most cancers are caused by xenobiotics and our kidneys have to filter more and more hostile chemical junk to protect us. It’s not just a boomer thing: the cancer increase is across all age groups, as you would expect if environmental toxins were to blame. In fact more younger people are getting diagnosed now than ever before (up from 45.9% in 1991 to 55.3% in 2006. It has been suggested that some of the rise comes from an increased rate of detection, due to CT scans. Today practically everyone who comes into ER with a complaint such as a belly ache is given a CT scan. Small kidney cancers that might have gone unnoticed are thus being detected. But that can’t explain the trend entirely, because the rise in cases began before the use of CT scans became prevalent. It’s a genuine trend.