A newspaper article

Milk – a possible reason for prostate cancer

Göran Asker was 59 years of age when the PSA test gave verdict. After eight years of different treatments he is now testing a brand new promising inhibitor drog. “I keep my self going with hunting and I like to do carpentry but I feel more tired and sometimes I fall asleep in a chair”, he says.

A string of mortal prostate cancer is reaching out through the Scandinavium. The number of cases has increased for 50 years and Swedish men are among the most affected in the world. The answer to the riddle is in our way of life – maybe it´s in our milk glass.

In the beginning there was nothing special about that day when Göran Asker had gone to donate blood. But this time the nurse reacted to the high blodpressure and she sent him to a doctor who took a pile of tests.

- I got a whole sheet of A4 paper with test result. Everything looked fine according to the doctor, but there was one thing. The PSA level was elevated.

The biopsies that were taken on his butt hurt a lot and afterwards he bled like a pig. The test results showed the value 7 on a 10 degree Gleason scale where a verdict under 4 is manageable but anything above 6 is reason for concern.

A growing tumour had been attached to Göran Asker´s prostate.

- In a year or so you will not be able to pee, the doctor said.

There are two options: operate or radiate?

- Take the crap away, I said.

The winter sun is shining through the window in the apartment in Marieberg, where he and his wife Elisabet moved in the year 2003, the same year that Göran Asker got his diagnoses. On the wall hangs the horns of the 16-tagger that he shot in the woods outside of Lycksele last year.

- You only get one shot.

Last year 2398 Swedish men died of prostate cancer.

(The article continues...)

Mjölk möjlig orsak
till prostatacancer

Göran Asker var 59 år när PSA-provet gav utslag. Efter åtta år som präglats av olika behandlingar testar han nu en helt ny lovande bromsmedicin. ”Jag håller igång med jakt och tycker om att snickra men jag känner mig tröttare och ibland somnar jag i stolen”, säger han.

Ett band av dödlig prostatacancer sträcker sig över Skandinavien. Antalet fall har ökat i 50 år och svenska män är bland de mest drabbade i hela världen. Svaret på prostatagåtan döljer sig i vår livsstil – kanske rent av i mjölkglaset.

Från början var det inget speciellt med den där dagen då Göran Asker hade gått för att lämna blod. Men den här gången reagerade sköterskan på att blodtrycket var högt och skickade honom till en läkare som tog en massa prover.

– Jag fick ett helt A4-ark med provresultat. Allt var bra, tyckte doktorn, men så var det en sak. PSA-värdet var förhöjt.

Biopsierna som togs i baken gjorde rejält ont och efteråt blödde han som en gris. Provsvaren visade värdet 7 på den 10-gradiga Gleasonskala där ett utslag under 4 är hanterbart men där allt över 6 ger skäl till oro.

En växande tumör hade fått fäste i Göran Askers prostata.

– Om ett år kan du inte pinka, sa doktorn.

Det fanns två alternativ: operera eller stråla?

– Ta bort skiten, sa jag.

Vintersolen skiner in genom fönstret i lägenheten i Marieberg där han och hustrun Elisabet flyttade in 2003, samma år som Göran Asker fick sin diagnos. På väggen hänger hornen från 16-taggaren han fällde i skogarna utanför Lycksele i fjol.

– Man får bara en chans.

Förra året dog 2398 svenska män av prostatacancer. (….artikeln fortsätter)

http://www.svd.se/nyheter/inrikes/mjolk-mojlig-orsak-till-prostatacancer_6716791.svd

Researching a country

Researching a country

Syllabuses from the curriculum.
• The Swedish, Nordic and other European natural and cultural landscapes. Underlying processes and their characteristic features and extent.
• Names and location of different countries in Europe, and also more important islands, water, mountains, regions and places.

Pick out a country that you find fascinating or that you have visited and now want to know more about. The country must be in Europe.

1. a) Draw and paint a map of the country. Place cities, mountains, rivers etc.
   b) Make a small fact box (inhabitants, capital, language, polity, coin etc.).
2. Describe the nature!
   Write about:
   * the country´s industrial and natural resources
   * agriculture
   * facts about the capital city
3. Other interesting things:
   * Famous people and places.
   * What is the country famous for?
   * Some facts about the country´s history.
4. Research:
   * Special animals or...
   * special plants.
   Remember to draw pictures of what you find.
5. Read through your facts.
6. Write a sketch on a peace of paper, leave it to me, the teacher, for corrections.
7. Transcribe your facts.
8. Assemble everything on a poster. (Think carefully about your layout!)

Remember to write with your own words. If you don´t understand a word it is pointless to have it on your poster. Look it up in a dictionary and try to explain it with other words in your text. .

The work will be presented with an oral presentation in which you display your poster.

Goals from the curriculum:

• make geographical analyses of the surrounding world, and evaluate the results by using maps and other geographical sources, theories, methods and techniques, and

I will look at:

• Your ability to take out the key from the texts you read.
• Your ability to take responsibility for your own work.
• The layout of your poster.
• How you make your oral presentation.

Best of luck!

Therese

I don´t want to be mashed potatoes. (2)

Once upon a time there where two potatoes called Old and Fresh. They where the best of friends. Old and Fresh lived in a refrigerator and the thing they were most afraid of where mashed potatoes. They where absolutely terrified of ending up as mashed potatoes.

One day the mother of the house said: “Let´s eat mashed potatoes.” Old and Fresh got really scared and decided that they had to escape. When the door to the refrigerator opened, they quickly rolled out, down on a bench and finally through an open window. When they landed on the street, a taxi pulled up and they quickly rolled on. The taxi drove them to the beach.

On the beach Fresh said: “Let´s lay in the sun for a bit.” “What a good idea!” Old replied. But after a while in the sun they noticed that they had become soft. “What has happened?” Fresh asked frightened. “I don´t know, we have to ask a doctor.” said Old.

They went to a doctor and asked him: “What´s wrong with us? Why are we soft?” The doctor answered them that they had become baked potatoes. “Oh no,” said Old. “Is there nothing to be done?” “Yes,” the doctor replied, “You can become mashed potatoes.” Terrified they rolled away.

Suddenly they hit a sign. On the sign it said “Bath-house”. They rolled inside but Old didn´t look out so he fell into the pool. Fresh laughed at him and Old got angry so he said to Fresh “Hop in, it´s warm and wonderful.” So Fresh jumped in the pool. Now they where both cold and wet so they went in to the sauna to get warm again. But Old and Fresh had never been in a sauna so they laid on the lava stones. “Aooo!!!” they both screamed and ran as fast as they could to another doctor.

“Please, help us.” they asked the doctor. “What has happened to us?” The doctor answered that they had become grilled potatoes. “Is there nothing to be done?” Old asked. “Yes,” said the doctor. “You can become mashed potatoes.” Terrified they rolled away.

They were in such a hurry so they happened to roll in to a Chinese restaurant and the chef got hold of them. Before they realised what had happened the chef had chopped them up into wedges. Now they had to get out before someone ate them. They hopped out in to the street and there they found a bottle. They thought that they perhaps could hide inside the bottle so they opened it.

Out of the bottle came a jinni. The jinni said that they had freed him so for this they got three wishes. “Oh, then I wish that we where whole potatoes again,” said Fresh. “And I wish that we where home again in out refrigerator.” said Old. “Okey, done,” said the jinni, “but what is your third wish?” “We wish that we never again have to hear about mashed potatoes” they both said at the same time. Poof!!

Old and Fresh then lived happily ever after in their refrigerator... but after about a week they started to mold so the mother of the house through them out, but that is another story all together.

All is well that ends well!!