Can Herbal Medicines Cause Kidney Failure?

Medicine is a very interesting subject that many people are interesting. While most people tend to rely on the opinion of their doctor or even just the basic truths of rational science, there is a growing section of society that are underwhelmed or unhappy with what they hear and prefer to make up their own minds on what medicines work and the best way for them to feel better. On a basic level this seems to be a fine, as long as people aren’t endangering themselves by taking harmful substances. That’s why so many people have now been moving onto herbal medicines.

 

Indeed, recently there has been a strong uptake in herbal medicines. This is likely down to people want to believe in the cures and treatments that a number of herbal medicines claim to make. While this is a highly controversial subject, as doctors and experts often assert that herbal medicines can do nothing to help your if you have an illness, more and more people still seem to be taking up these medicines as they feel desperate for relief from their conditions or hope to find a cure for whatever disease that they might have.

 

Herbal medicines and other natural remedies are especially popular in India, and this is a part of the world that is highly interested in the concept of alternative treatments. But now it seems that these therapies that are so popular now might actually be causing more harm than good. This is a very worrying development and could mean some troubling times for anyone who uses herbal therapies. So what exactly is the problem?

 

Well it seems that there may be an issue surround a compound called aristolochic acid which is found in a number of common herbal medicines. It appears that it can lead to a condition known as aristolochic acid nephropathy (AAN) which is a form of kidney failure that occurs when the body takes in too much of the aristolochic acid. It has also been linked to other kidney based problems such as kidney diseases and urothelial cancer. Given that these are obviously extremely serious conditions it can be no surprise that many people are now claiming that aristolochic acid should be avoided at all costs by anyone who wants to use alternative therapies that make use of herbal medicines.

 

The substance has now been officially banned from a number of national agencies that oversee the regulation of compounds such as aristolochic acid. In fact the FDA went as far as to say that any herbal medicine bottle contains the ingredients such as ‘Aristolochia,’ ‘Bragantia’ or ‘Asarum’ listed as ingredients on the label needs to be discontinued immediately and that if you have any of these medicines that you should dispose of them as soon as possible.

 

If you’re worried about the possibility of having them, this acid is commonly found in many Chinese medicines as a way to combat diarrhoea, coughing and joint pain, and also as an aid to weight loss, to improve the immune system and to relieve the pain of childbirth. If you have bought any Chinese medicines for these conditions it could be well worth looking at the labels to check if they use this acid as one of the ingredients. If so you should stop using this and talk to your doctor about potentially having kidney problems. It’s also a great idea to speak to your doctor generally if you’re thinking about unusual non-standard medicines as many can have other hazards for your health that you may not even know about.

Categories: acid, Aristolochic acid, chinese medicines, doctor, herbal, herbal medicines, kidney, kidney failure, medicines, medicines nbsp, people

What Happens To The Kidney During Cancer?

There are two main types of cancer which affect the kidneys in adults, which are known as renal cell cancer and transitional cell cancer. The former is a cancer which arises from the main body of the kidney, and while it is not known what causes the normal cells to undergo a malignant change, it can occur in certain hereditary conditions. Transitional cell cancer develops from within the drainage system in the kidney, and is the same cancer which can commonly form in the bladder. The two most prominent risk factors for this form of cancer are cigarette smoking and kidney damage from prolonged use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory painkillers. Both of these cancers rarely arise in people under the age of 50 and as we age, they become more prevalent. Studies also show that they are two to three times more common in men than women. The most common symptoms of kidney cancer are blood in the urine, discomfort in the flank, and non-specific symptoms such as fever, loss of appetite and weight loss. If your GP suspects that you may have kidney cancer, you will undergo a microscopic examination or the urine for abnormal cells, an ultrasound of the kidneys, an x-ray of the kidneys, and a CT scan. Depending on the severity of your condition, your treatment will vary. It is usually required that your surgeon will remove either the whole or part of the kidney – no other treatments for cancer, such as radiotherapy, have been proven to be effective for this form of cancer.

 

Cancer of the kidney is a very serious condition for which early detection is hugely important. Your long-term outcome depends on how advanced the cancer is at the time of your surgery, so the earlier it can be spotted the better. New surgical techniques offer ways to preserve as much of the kidney as possible, without the need to remove the whole organ. Surgery is usually the first step for treating this disease, and the new data being sourced questions whether there is a possibility of removing just the tumour as opposed to the whole kidney. This could preserve the tissues which will reduce the likelihood of future kidney failure. Researchers compared the incidences of moderate kidney dysfunction, kidney failure and kidney disease from two groups – 255 people had partial nephrectomy and 259 people had a radical nephrectomy. The latter of these treatments involves removing the whole kidney, adrenal gland and the surrounding tissues. All of the people who were tested had been diagnosed with a small kidney cancer and had a normal-functioning second kidney.

 

The study found that the frequency of moderate kidney dysfunction was 20 lower in patients who had the partial nephrectomy. However, researchers noticed that while the overall kidney function was better in the partial nephrectomy group, it didn’t improve the level of survival. In fact, there were fewer deaths in the radical nephrectomy group according to the results of the study. The most common form of kidney cancer is a renal cell carcinoma, which develops in the lining of the tubes which filter the blood and waste from the body. It’s thought that 65,000 new cases of kidney cancer are diagnosed every year in the US alone, and around 13,700 deaths are expected to occur from this amount. In order to reduce this amount, you should be aware of the symptoms of kidney cancer so that you can detect it early and benefit more from the treatment. If you suspect that you have kidney disease or kidney cancer, you should seek advice from your GP as soon as possible.

Categories: cell cancer, kidney cancer, kidney disease, kidney dysfunction, kidney failure, moderate kidney, partial nephrectomy, radical nephrectomy, renal cell, Symptoms, treatment