An Effective Test

CA-125 and TVU Tests for Ovarian Cancer
From an article by David Johnson, Ph.D., and David Sandmire, M.D. with Daniel Klein

The carcinogenic antigen (CA) 125 blood test measures levels of a protein that is normally confined within a cell. Ovarian cancer cells may produce an excess of these protein molecules, and therefore the CA-125 test can help in diagnosing and monitoring this disease. It’s important to remember that simply measuring blood levels of CA-125 alone cannot effectively find early ovarian cancer. In many early-stage ovarian cancers, this molecule is not necessarily released in large amounts. In conjunction with a transvaginal ultrasound (TVU) screening, however, the CA-125 test can be very effective. A transvaginal ultrasound, also known as an endovaginal ultrasound, involves the use of sound waves to delineate internal structures. The transducer produces images that can be seen on a video monitor, and a hard copy can be made on film.

The test is completely painless and does not take much time.

A letter to all our skin care professionals.

I’ve just lost one of my closest friends to ovarian cancer. She’d been my buddy for almost 30 years. We met as mini-skirted Brits in New York. There wasn’t much we didn’t share. I remember how she comforted me on an early failed romance by giving me a cup of tea, hot-buttered cinnamon toast and a good ego-boost. Later, it was my turn when she went through the misery of divorce from a man she always loved. The day she called me about her illness was just another day at my desk. Me, “How are ya?!” Her, “It isn’t good, Jane.” I went for a long walk in a cloud of disbelief trying to imagine what things would be like without her. It took eleven years. She beat the odds by six. I put that down to her indomitable spirit. Even after forty sessions of chemotherapy she would often tell me how grateful she was for everything she had in life. She turned her hospital visits into parties for the nurses. Then she pulled her own plug. “That’s it,” she declared over the phone from her hospital bed. “No more chemo, no more prodding and pulling.” And she checked herself out. Preparing me, she said, “You’ll be shocked at how thin I am.” And I was. Two weeks before she died, she had thirty people over for a party she called, “A Celebration of Life.” This is the time of the year I’ll miss her the most because she especially loved the holidays. She began the ramp up at Thanksgiving and moved into Christmas like Santa driving a Porsche. Christmas trees, lights, gifts, mince pies, crown roasts and candles. Candles — she never put two candles on the table when ten would do. Why am I telling you all this? Because I want you to know that what she looked forward to most of all during her illness, the thing that gave her the biggest lift, was a visit to our local salon for the works – facial, manicure, pedicure, waxing (she didn’t have a hair on her head but her body hair flourished) and getting her various wigs styled. She had one long blonde one that made her feel sexy. So, as we approach the holiday season and get caught up in its commercialism, always remember that the gift of your hands can, for a moment, help a woman forget that she’s dying and make her smile. “Jane, I feel like a million bucks!” A million was cheap. The happiness in her voice was worth much more than that. I’ve always felt proud to be part of this caring industry. Now the gratitude swells my heart. Thank you for everything you do for all the women out there who need to forget something for a while. Our appreciation and gratitude for your partnership with us. We all wish you a holiday season full of satisfaction and hope.

Talk to you soon, Jane

Moscow

I just came back from a trip to Moscow where Bob and I opened up our new distributorship. It was my first time in Russia and so I was amazed at the huge scale of everything including the Kremlin, which is very beautiful. So are the women, by the way. Now I’m beginning to understand why so many of our top models are Russian. The Guild of Professional Beauty in the UK just rated us as the number one makeup brand in the professional industry there. All thanks to our hard-working distributor, David Alpert. Kevin Mendelson, our gifted national trainer, was invited to New Zealand and Australia to show off his talents. He was a huge success. We’re now in 43 countries and counting!

Did you know?

Water fluoridation has been officially banned in Austria, Denmark, France, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, West Germany and Yugoslavia. The FDA classifies fluoride as a prescription drug and a poison more toxic than lead. The United States Pharmacopoeia and the Physicians Desk Reference report numerous side effects caused by fluoride including headaches, nausea, vomiting, gastric distress, skin eruptions, weakness, pain or aching of bones, mottled teeth and thyroid disorders. Could fluoride be the next tobacco?

Dry lips.

Chaffed or cracked lips are a call for moisture. Since lips don’t have oil glands and are just an extension of the delicate membranes in our mouth, they’re sitting ducks for abuse. We abuse them more by using petrolatum-based lip balms which interfere with the lips’ ability to hold on to the moisture they do have. (Ever wondered why the more you apply lip balm, the more you need to apply.) The answer is to use lip products without petroleum-derived ingredients. That also goes for lip gloss, by the way. Most glosses get their shine from petrolatum. Ours comes from a mix of organic vegetable oils.

We know that if you wear lipstick every day you’ll end up eating five tubes a year. We think we’ve inadvertently added to the statistic. Our newest exfoliator/plumper Sugar&Butter contains organic brown sugar and is so lip licking good that we’ve had reports of people snacking on it.

But it’s so much more than a snack. It’s a sure fire way to luscious lips. First, slough off any flakiness with the organic brown sugar lip scrub which also adds its own moisture and then get ready for the plumping.

Flip the tube over and feel the way the shea butter coats, moistens and protects your lips. In a few seconds, you’ll feel the plumping begin. Formulated with delicious ginger extracts and a natural peptide which has been clinically proven to stimulate collagen synthesis, I can promise you that the feeling it gives your lips is addictive. You honestly will see and feel the difference..

Emmy Gift Suite

Olivia Wilde from NBC’s “The Black Donnellys” with LA Sales Consultant, Leilah Seif

We participated in an Emmy Gift Suite on September 13th and 14th, during which a number of celebrities made appointments for an exclusive makeover with jane iredale products.