When Does Persistent Canker Sores or ‘Singaw’ Require Medical Attention?
Though it typically measures less than a centimeter, a canker sore (known by its medical term as aphthous ulcer and colloquially as singaw) can ruin your entire day. Found on the lips, cheeks, gums, or tongue, these non-contagious small, shallow, and white lesions with a white or red tip and red border are so painful, […]
Get to Know the Rare and Serious Condition “Mirror Syndrome” Among Women
As the parent designed by nature to carry a baby to full term in her womb, a mother has the great responsibility of taking good care of herself. Her overall health, after all, has a direct effect on the health of her unborn child. If she has the Zika virus, HIV/AIDS, or Hepatitis B […]
How Breaking Free from HIV Stigma Improves Treatment Outcomes
When it was first diagnosed in the early 1980s, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) was a looming death sentence that took approximately two (2) million lives annually during its peak from 2004 to 2006. Today, as experts continue to fine-tune potential cures to the disease in clinical trials, breakthroughs in suppressing the virus have allowed […]
Viral Gastroenteritis: What Causes the “Stomach Flu” and How to Prevent It
Never underestimate the power of handwashing. Each time we practice the simple task of cleaning our hands thoroughly with soap and water, we protect ourselves against a myriad of diseases—from respiratory illnesses like the common cold, pneumonia, influenza, and COVID-19, to gastrointestinal infections like hepatitis A, cholera, E. coli, salmonellosis, parasites, and stomach flu Not […]
How to Live Longer with Lung Cancer: 4 Doctor-Backed Tips
If Lung Cancer is the number one cause of cancer death in the Philippines and worldwide, it is because its symptoms—a persistent cough, blood in the phlegm, shortness of breath, unexplained fatigue and weight loss, hoarseness—do not show in its early stages. “The challenge is diagnosing Lung Cancer,” concedes Antonio Ramos, MD, Thoracic and […]
Sunscreen 101: A Dermatologist’s Guide to Smart Sun Protection
Want to build strong bones, boost your immune system, and cheer up? Get some sun exposure. Catching rays signals the skin to produce vitamin D, which absorbs calcium that fortifies our bones. Vitamin D can also help prevent the onset of diseases like type 2 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and certain cancers by strengthening our […]
Constant Ear Discharge and Hearing Loss: When to Worry About Cholesteatoma
Imagine a non-cancerous, pearl-like cyst measuring a few millimeters in diameter. Harmless, right? Not when it develops in your middle ear. Left untreated, it can throw your whole body out of whack—and can even lead to serious, irreversible complications. That, in a nutshell, is cholesteatoma, defined as a benign or abnormal growth of skin […]
The Importance of a Safe & Efficient Swallow
Case 11 : DNR and No CPR
Case Study 8 : PERSONALIZING HEALTH CARE Challenges A 45 year old male lay in a comatose state, attached to a respirator for the past three years. The doctors say he no longer holds any hope for recovery. Furthermore, the patient’s wife and children are now unable to find resources to help pay for the […]
Painful Intimate Contact Is Not Normal: A Doctor Explains Vaginismus
For Paul Quetua, MD, a Cardiologist at Makati Medical Center (MakatiMed), the troubling trend these days is not just that there are more Filipinos diagnosed with hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, fatty liver, cancer, and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) that impact the heart. Rather, it is that many of these Filipinos are in their 30s […]
Screen For Cancers Now
Heart Disease Prevention Starts Early: What Young Adults Should Know
For Paul Quetua, MD, a Cardiologist at Makati Medical Center (MakatiMed), the troubling trend these days is not just that there are more Filipinos diagnosed with hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, obesity, fatty liver, cancer, and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs) that impact the heart. Rather, it is that many of these Filipinos are in their 30s […]
