Women with breast cancer often seek immediate breast reconstruction after a mastectomy to help them regain a semblance of their body and for their psychological peace of mind.
As part of Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital is re-airing its webcast on one of the most often performed breast reconstruction surgical procedures, using muscle tissue from a patient's back.
The webcast, featuring Jefferson breast cancer surgeons performing immediate breast reconstruction after mastectomy, can be seen at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, October 18, on www.OR-Live.com
The 60-minute webcast will not only include a pre-taped surgical reconstruction, but breast surgeon Anne Rosenberg, M.D., clinical professor of Surgery, Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University and plastic reconstructive surgeon Steven Copit, M.D., clinical assistant professor of Surgery, Jefferson, will be on hand live to answer questions online from viewers.
"Breast Cancer Awareness Month is an opportune time to again make women aware of the latest and best options for diagnosing and treating breast cancer," said Dr. Rosenberg. "This webcast will demonstrate simply and clearly what a patient can expect if she is diagnosed with breast cancer."
During the webcast, the Jefferson surgeons will demonstrate latissimus dorsi flap surgery, in which tissue, sometimes including underlying fat and muscle, is taken from the back and tunneled to create a breast mound to reconstruct the breast.
"So when the patient wakes up from surgery, there is a breast mound already in place and the patient is spared the experience of seeing herself with no breast at all," said Dr. Copit. "It looks better [to the patient] and offers them a psychological advantage."
Once the shell is in place, the plastic surgeon uses an expander, a balloon-like object, underneath the chest muscles. The expander is inflated to maintain the new breast's shape until an implant -- a silicone or saline filled implant -- can be put in about three months later, Dr. Copit said.
The patient is typically under general anesthesia for a total of four hours during both the mastectomy and reconstruction procedures.
Three months following the implant procedure, another procedure is performed to recreate the breast's nipple, said Dr Copit. The surgeon reconstructs the nipple and areola with tissue from the reconstructed breast. Tattooing is added to complete the nipple and areola reconstruction.
Dr. Copit said that not every patient is a good candidate for breast reconstruction using back tissue; it depends, for one thing, on the amount of tissue available to recreate the breast.
The patient may be in the hospital for three to six days after surgery, and it may take three to four weeks for her to heal completely.
Monday, October 29, 2007
Monday, October 8, 2007
The 22 Worst Place Names in the World
The 22 Worst Place Names in the World
(c) by Jane Copland
http://www.drivl.com/posts/view/851
Published on 24/5/07 in Culture
We looked at a map of Britain and realised that their towns' names read like an erotic novel. So we went looking for more certifiably retarded place names.
22. Cockburn, Western Australia
Although this name is often pronounced "Coburn" by those who stand to lose from its awfulness, who actually reads that when they see this word? Oh, how it burns.
21. Twatt, Orkney, Shetland Islands, Scotland
The Shetland Islands, pronounced "Shitland Islands" if you have an accent like mine, make up a happy little area north of Scotland where it's too cold for trees to grow. I am related to approximately half the population of the Shetland Islands, share a last name with a quarter of them, and can probably trace my ancestry back to Twatt if I try hard enough. The pride!
20. Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu, New Zealand
Locals call this hill in Hawke's Bay "Taumata" because... Well. Just because.
19. Muff, Ireland
We here at Drivl love puerile humour. They have a town called Muff. Har har har.
18. Looneyville, Texas, United States
Little Looneyville was named for storekeeper John Looney in the early 1870s. But who gives a shit. This is a hilarious name for a town in the state that brought us Dallas, the Bush Twins and Waco. How awkward must that be when you go to college? "Hey guys, my name's Sue and I'm from Looneyville!"
17. Titty Hill, Sussex, England
Falling squarely into the extensive Stupid Place Names From England category, Titty Hill is probably located just north of...
16. Thong, Kent, England
Which actually is south-east of...
15. Gravesend, Kent, England
Oh, come on, England. Graves End? What a nasty, depressing little name. You could have at least gone all the way with this one and called it Corpse Feet.
14. Wetwang, Yorkshire... yep! England again!
Okay, so I'll cut England some slack. It's an old country. You know, if the United States is Google, then England is IBM. Their country is older than fucking dirt. They can't be blamed for having names that sound funny in 2007. But this is kind of ridiculous. Wetwang? I'm surprised they don't have towns called Squishy Vagina or Infected Scrotum.
13. Spread Eagle, Wisconsin
If I were mayor of Spread Eagle, I'd be making diplomatic advances towards the city leaders over in Wetwang to form a Sister-City relationship. Or maybe more of a Platonic-Friends-City relationship. After that, we'd just take thing slow and see what happened.
12. Bald Knob, Arkansas, United States
Well, I guess it's better than Hairy Knob. I assume England already has that one covered.
11. Cockup, Cumbria, England
Cumbria is a county in the very north-west of England. What the backwoods of Alabama are to America is what Cumbria is to Britain. They talk funny up there. Thus, it isn't thoroughly surprising that they have a town called Cockup. What do you call someone from this place? A Cockupper? Cockupeleite? Cockuppian? Cockupican? I suppose it's mildly better than Wetwangger.
10. Whiskey Dick Mountain, Washington State, United States
As hard as America tries, it can't compete with Britain's high standards. This was a good effort, though. Well done, Washington.
9. Hookersville, West Virginia
Undoubtedly named before "hooker" meant "prostitute who picks men up on street corners," Hookersville combines two crimes of place-naming. One, a dirty sounding adjective (they couldn't have chosen "Pleasant"? "Sunny"? "Happy"?) And two, they added "ville" to the end of the town's name. Affixing "ville" to the end of a town's name is like dressing your silly little dog in a cardigan and letting him carry his leash around in his mouth. It just makes the poor animal look fucking stupid.
8. Hell, Michigan, United States
The people in this town at least seem to have a good sense of humour about their home's unfortunate name. Although, I'm sure there's some midwestern idiots in Hell who get all offended and defensive when the town shows up on lists like this. I'm looking forward to reading their insightful emails and comments.
7. Toad Suck, Arkansas, United States
So that's what they do down in the big AR.
6. Middelfart, Denmark
I guess it's not so funny to them, but how do we know that "Seattle" doesn't mean "Big Fat Stinking Turd" in Danish? That's right, we don't. And it probably does.
5. Horneytown, North Carolina, United States
Its proximity to Hookersville, West Virginia is no coincidence. I also assume that, like Hookersville, the naming of Horneytown took place before "horney" meant "aching for a hot piece of ass" with an extra "e". But I'm starting to wonder why, pride and tradition aside, the townspeople in these little places never saw it fit to change their homes' names? Do they enjoy being ridiculed by the entire English-speaking world?
4. Shitterton, Dorset, England
I wonder if they bleep out the first part of Shitterton's name if it's mentioned on TV in America?
3. Disappointment, Kentucky, United States
Le sigh. Never mind. You live in a small town in Kentucky. At least it was appropriately named.
2. Fucking, Austria
The idiots who live in Fucking, Austria had a vote in 2004 to determine whether or not they should change the town's name, and you know what they did? They voted against it, preferring instead to put up with international ridicule, numerous stolen road-signs and horrific Google results.
But the hands-down winner, again from New Zealand is:
1. Whakapapa
Why is this the worst place name in the world? In Maori, the native language of New Zealand, the "wh" sound is pronounced "f". Say it aloud in your office and see what happens.
(c) by Jane Copland
http://www.drivl.com/posts/view/851
Published on 24/5/07 in Culture
We looked at a map of Britain and realised that their towns' names read like an erotic novel. So we went looking for more certifiably retarded place names.
22. Cockburn, Western Australia
Although this name is often pronounced "Coburn" by those who stand to lose from its awfulness, who actually reads that when they see this word? Oh, how it burns.
21. Twatt, Orkney, Shetland Islands, Scotland
The Shetland Islands, pronounced "Shitland Islands" if you have an accent like mine, make up a happy little area north of Scotland where it's too cold for trees to grow. I am related to approximately half the population of the Shetland Islands, share a last name with a quarter of them, and can probably trace my ancestry back to Twatt if I try hard enough. The pride!
20. Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu, New Zealand
Locals call this hill in Hawke's Bay "Taumata" because... Well. Just because.
19. Muff, Ireland
We here at Drivl love puerile humour. They have a town called Muff. Har har har.
18. Looneyville, Texas, United States
Little Looneyville was named for storekeeper John Looney in the early 1870s. But who gives a shit. This is a hilarious name for a town in the state that brought us Dallas, the Bush Twins and Waco. How awkward must that be when you go to college? "Hey guys, my name's Sue and I'm from Looneyville!"
17. Titty Hill, Sussex, England
Falling squarely into the extensive Stupid Place Names From England category, Titty Hill is probably located just north of...
16. Thong, Kent, England
Which actually is south-east of...
15. Gravesend, Kent, England
Oh, come on, England. Graves End? What a nasty, depressing little name. You could have at least gone all the way with this one and called it Corpse Feet.
14. Wetwang, Yorkshire... yep! England again!
Okay, so I'll cut England some slack. It's an old country. You know, if the United States is Google, then England is IBM. Their country is older than fucking dirt. They can't be blamed for having names that sound funny in 2007. But this is kind of ridiculous. Wetwang? I'm surprised they don't have towns called Squishy Vagina or Infected Scrotum.
13. Spread Eagle, Wisconsin
If I were mayor of Spread Eagle, I'd be making diplomatic advances towards the city leaders over in Wetwang to form a Sister-City relationship. Or maybe more of a Platonic-Friends-City relationship. After that, we'd just take thing slow and see what happened.
12. Bald Knob, Arkansas, United States
Well, I guess it's better than Hairy Knob. I assume England already has that one covered.
11. Cockup, Cumbria, England
Cumbria is a county in the very north-west of England. What the backwoods of Alabama are to America is what Cumbria is to Britain. They talk funny up there. Thus, it isn't thoroughly surprising that they have a town called Cockup. What do you call someone from this place? A Cockupper? Cockupeleite? Cockuppian? Cockupican? I suppose it's mildly better than Wetwangger.
10. Whiskey Dick Mountain, Washington State, United States
As hard as America tries, it can't compete with Britain's high standards. This was a good effort, though. Well done, Washington.
9. Hookersville, West Virginia
Undoubtedly named before "hooker" meant "prostitute who picks men up on street corners," Hookersville combines two crimes of place-naming. One, a dirty sounding adjective (they couldn't have chosen "Pleasant"? "Sunny"? "Happy"?) And two, they added "ville" to the end of the town's name. Affixing "ville" to the end of a town's name is like dressing your silly little dog in a cardigan and letting him carry his leash around in his mouth. It just makes the poor animal look fucking stupid.
8. Hell, Michigan, United States
The people in this town at least seem to have a good sense of humour about their home's unfortunate name. Although, I'm sure there's some midwestern idiots in Hell who get all offended and defensive when the town shows up on lists like this. I'm looking forward to reading their insightful emails and comments.
7. Toad Suck, Arkansas, United States
So that's what they do down in the big AR.
6. Middelfart, Denmark
I guess it's not so funny to them, but how do we know that "Seattle" doesn't mean "Big Fat Stinking Turd" in Danish? That's right, we don't. And it probably does.
5. Horneytown, North Carolina, United States
Its proximity to Hookersville, West Virginia is no coincidence. I also assume that, like Hookersville, the naming of Horneytown took place before "horney" meant "aching for a hot piece of ass" with an extra "e". But I'm starting to wonder why, pride and tradition aside, the townspeople in these little places never saw it fit to change their homes' names? Do they enjoy being ridiculed by the entire English-speaking world?
4. Shitterton, Dorset, England
I wonder if they bleep out the first part of Shitterton's name if it's mentioned on TV in America?
3. Disappointment, Kentucky, United States
Le sigh. Never mind. You live in a small town in Kentucky. At least it was appropriately named.
2. Fucking, Austria
The idiots who live in Fucking, Austria had a vote in 2004 to determine whether or not they should change the town's name, and you know what they did? They voted against it, preferring instead to put up with international ridicule, numerous stolen road-signs and horrific Google results.
But the hands-down winner, again from New Zealand is:
1. Whakapapa
Why is this the worst place name in the world? In Maori, the native language of New Zealand, the "wh" sound is pronounced "f". Say it aloud in your office and see what happens.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
The war on Burma's women, License To Rape
CHARM TONG
The war on Burma's women
By Charm Tong | June 28, 2005
IT HAS BEEN three years since the report ''License to Rape" exposed to the world how troops of the Burmese military regime have been committing systematic sexual violence against women in Shan state, one of the ethnic regions of Burma where civil war has been continuing for more than four decades. The report, by the Shan Human Rights Foundation and the Shan Women's Action Network, documented the rape of more than 600 women by Burmese troops.
Regrettably, despite increased international awareness of the problem of state-sponsored sexual violence in Burma following the report, the suffering of women in the wartorn ethnic areas of Burma is continuing. The Burmese regime is still using rape as a weapon of war to terrorize, demoralize, and control local communities. Hundreds more women have been raped during the last few years.
Burmese military personnel, including high-ranking officers, are raping with impunity. Women who are seven months pregnant are being gang raped. Girls are being kept for forced labor during the day and raped at night for periods of months. Mothers and daughters are being raped together. Girls as young as 4 are being raped.
Some stories are hard for many of us today to imagine. A woman, now insane, weeps over the photo of her 14-year-old daughter, who was raped and burned alive by Burmese troops.
Another woman tells how a commander dragged her to a bed in a hut, raped her, then beat her unconscious. She awoke to find herself lying naked and her sister's dead body outside the hut.
The sexual violence is happening not only in Shan state but in other ethnic areas. Last year, the Karen Women's Organization released a report detailing 125 incidents of rape by the regime's troops in Karen state. The Women's League of Burma, an umbrella organization of 12 women's groups, also released a report entitled ''System of Impunity" exposing a nationwide pattern of sexual violence by the regime's troops.
Women and girls throughout the country are increasingly at risk from military sexual violence, whether they are in civil war zones, cease-fire areas, or ''nonconflict" areas.
The recent rape and murder of the young daughter of a Burmese Army soldier by a fellow officer in April 2005 has shown that even families of the regime's army are now suffering the consequences of the ''License to Rape" policy.
The countries of the Association of South East Asian Nations and other neighboring states bordering Burma continue to disregard human rights abuses in their dealings with Burma. There have been constant calls by women of Burma, particularly ethnic women, to condemn the regime and push for genuine political reform in Burma. This is the only way to end the regime's rape policies.
Some ASEAN countries have properly felt compelled to debate in public whether the junta should assume the chairmanship of ASEAN in 2006. The ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Caucus, composed of members of parliament from throughout the region, is calling for political reform. If the ASEAN legislators want a real change in Burma they must not ignore sexual violence authorized by the military junta.
Political repression in Burma has intensified in recent months. Last February, Hkun Htun Oo, chairman of the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy, and other Shan state leaders were arrested by the junta and remain imprisoned. Ethnic resistance leaders who had made cease-fire agreements with the regime are now being forced to disarm and surrender. Fierce military offensives along the Thai-Burmese border are causing increased numbers of internally displaced persons and unabated flows of refugees into Thailand.
But does this mean we will surrender to this regime, with its battalions of rapists? The answer is no. We owe this to the women who have dared speak out about the sexual violence committed against them. Women who relate their stories say that each time they talk about rape it is like they are being raped again. Yet they have been brave enough to speak out in order that one day the violence can end.
Rape survivors say that all they want is to return home and to live in peace, without fear of the regime's troops. Last week we marked the 60th birthday of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who remains under house arrest in Burma's capital. Let us be inspired to continue the struggle to restore democracy and peace in Burma, and to fulfill the wishes of these brave women.
Charm Tong is an advocacy team member of the Shan Women's Action Network and recipient of the 2005 Reebok Human Rights Award.
© Copyright 2005 Globe Newspaper Company.
The war on Burma's women
By Charm Tong | June 28, 2005
IT HAS BEEN three years since the report ''License to Rape" exposed to the world how troops of the Burmese military regime have been committing systematic sexual violence against women in Shan state, one of the ethnic regions of Burma where civil war has been continuing for more than four decades. The report, by the Shan Human Rights Foundation and the Shan Women's Action Network, documented the rape of more than 600 women by Burmese troops.
Regrettably, despite increased international awareness of the problem of state-sponsored sexual violence in Burma following the report, the suffering of women in the wartorn ethnic areas of Burma is continuing. The Burmese regime is still using rape as a weapon of war to terrorize, demoralize, and control local communities. Hundreds more women have been raped during the last few years.
Burmese military personnel, including high-ranking officers, are raping with impunity. Women who are seven months pregnant are being gang raped. Girls are being kept for forced labor during the day and raped at night for periods of months. Mothers and daughters are being raped together. Girls as young as 4 are being raped.
Some stories are hard for many of us today to imagine. A woman, now insane, weeps over the photo of her 14-year-old daughter, who was raped and burned alive by Burmese troops.
Another woman tells how a commander dragged her to a bed in a hut, raped her, then beat her unconscious. She awoke to find herself lying naked and her sister's dead body outside the hut.
The sexual violence is happening not only in Shan state but in other ethnic areas. Last year, the Karen Women's Organization released a report detailing 125 incidents of rape by the regime's troops in Karen state. The Women's League of Burma, an umbrella organization of 12 women's groups, also released a report entitled ''System of Impunity" exposing a nationwide pattern of sexual violence by the regime's troops.
Women and girls throughout the country are increasingly at risk from military sexual violence, whether they are in civil war zones, cease-fire areas, or ''nonconflict" areas.
The recent rape and murder of the young daughter of a Burmese Army soldier by a fellow officer in April 2005 has shown that even families of the regime's army are now suffering the consequences of the ''License to Rape" policy.
The countries of the Association of South East Asian Nations and other neighboring states bordering Burma continue to disregard human rights abuses in their dealings with Burma. There have been constant calls by women of Burma, particularly ethnic women, to condemn the regime and push for genuine political reform in Burma. This is the only way to end the regime's rape policies.
Some ASEAN countries have properly felt compelled to debate in public whether the junta should assume the chairmanship of ASEAN in 2006. The ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Caucus, composed of members of parliament from throughout the region, is calling for political reform. If the ASEAN legislators want a real change in Burma they must not ignore sexual violence authorized by the military junta.
Political repression in Burma has intensified in recent months. Last February, Hkun Htun Oo, chairman of the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy, and other Shan state leaders were arrested by the junta and remain imprisoned. Ethnic resistance leaders who had made cease-fire agreements with the regime are now being forced to disarm and surrender. Fierce military offensives along the Thai-Burmese border are causing increased numbers of internally displaced persons and unabated flows of refugees into Thailand.
But does this mean we will surrender to this regime, with its battalions of rapists? The answer is no. We owe this to the women who have dared speak out about the sexual violence committed against them. Women who relate their stories say that each time they talk about rape it is like they are being raped again. Yet they have been brave enough to speak out in order that one day the violence can end.
Rape survivors say that all they want is to return home and to live in peace, without fear of the regime's troops. Last week we marked the 60th birthday of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who remains under house arrest in Burma's capital. Let us be inspired to continue the struggle to restore democracy and peace in Burma, and to fulfill the wishes of these brave women.
Charm Tong is an advocacy team member of the Shan Women's Action Network and recipient of the 2005 Reebok Human Rights Award.
© Copyright 2005 Globe Newspaper Company.
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