Contraception and birth control Archive

The FDA approved a new medication that may help some women experiencing low sexual desire, but there are restrictions on who can take it, and side effects to consider.

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Q. I've heard that calcium deposits can form in the prostate gland. What are they, and can they indicate cancer?

A. Calcium deposits can occur anywhere in the body; however, they often appear where there has been an injury, infection, or inflammation. Calcium deposits also can be seen with some types of cancer. When calcium deposits appear within the breast on a mammogram or in the lungs on a chest x-ray, their pattern helps the radiologist interpret the results. Certain patterns suggest possible cancer.

In the journals

Excess weight not only raises your risk of prostate cancer, it can also mean more aggressive and fatal cancer, according to a study published online June 10, 2019, by Cancer.

Scientists found that the accumulation of visceral fat (the hidden kind that lies deep in the abdomen and surrounds the major organs) and subcutaneous fat in the thighs (which lies just under the skin) were both associated with a greater chance of developing advanced prostate cancer as well as dying from the disease.

Avoid boredom and boost the benefits you gain from exercise with these simple tips to wake up your weight or treadmill workout.

If a man has an enlarged prostate, there’s a good chance he’ll be treated with a type of drug called a 5-alpha reductase inhibitor (5-ARI). These drugs shrink the gland to improve urinary flow, and the approved forms used for treating enlarged prostates come in two varieties: Proscar (finasteride) and Avodart (dutasteride). However, a side […]

Research shows that older people who are socially engaged and keep their minds active are more likely to remain mentally sharp. But what specific activities should people do? And does it matter if they start late in life or sooner?

Lifestyle changes may not always be enough to control biologically driven body changes.

You spend hours in the gym every day. You eat nothing but grilled chicken, fish, and salads. Yet the numbers on the scale don't budge — or worse, they slowly creep up, along with your waist measurement.

Welcome to menopause.

"The change" actually does bring changes for many women, including weight gain that can resist even the most diligent efforts to reverse it, says Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford, instructor in medicine at Harvard Medical School.

In men without cardiovascular disease, erectile dysfunction (ED) pills are safe. The three rivals -- Viagra, Cialis, Levitra and Stendra-- have similar side effects, including headache, facial flushing, nasal congestion, diarrhea, backache, and, in a few Viagra or Levitra users, temporary impaired color vision (men with retinitis pigmentosa, a rare eye disease, should check with their ophthalmologists before using these medications).

Headaches and blue vision are one thing, cardiac abnormalities, quite another. Are ED pills safe for the heart?

By now most of us are familiar with Brexit, the UK’s pending divorce with the European Union. But in a play on that term, British doctors are also moving towards an exit they’ve dubbed “TRexit” from the most common sort of prostate biopsy: the transrectal ultrasound guided biopsy, or TRUS. Men who test positive on […]

Human papilloma virus (HPV) causes about 40,000 cases of cancer every year. A long-term study of the HPV vaccine finds it offers protection against many strains of the virus, yet many teens haven’t had this safe, effective vaccine.