The case of Harold Shipman True Crime Nightmare

The Case Of Harold
Name of the Student
Name of the Tutor
Author Note
Name of the student Student Number 1

THE CASE OF HAROLD
Prevention and Screening
Question no. 1
The Australian government initiated a breast screening program called “BreastScreen” to
address the issue of breast cancer among the majority of Australian women. This program
allows free screening of mammograms, particularly for women aged over 40 years. This
breast screening helps to reduce the mortality rates from breat cancer through early detection
of the disease and also educating the people about the risk factors and health complications
that are associated with breast cancer and ways to overcome them(Armes et al, 2017)
Question no. 2
Screening tests are performed for early detection of cancer in suspected patients, so that early
treatment and prevention strategies can be performed for restricting the further spread of
cancer. The screening tests are available for lung cancer, breast cancer and colorectal cancer.
Breast cancer can be screened with the help of mammography which checks for the presence
of any tumor or abnormalities in the breast, followed by clinical examination of the breast
and observing for change in the breast size and shape. MRI test can be also performed to
detect the presence of lumps in the breast(Weber et al, 2019).
Colorectal cancer can be screened by performing colonoscopy which is used to detect the
presence of polyps or cancer in the colon by inserting a flexible tube called colonoscope into
the rectum. Fecal occult blood test helps in the detection of blood in the stool, which may be
an indication of colorectal cancer(Miranda et al, 2017).
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THE CASE OF HAROLD
Diagnosis and Treatment
Question no. 3
The clinical manifestation of non-small cell lung cancer include coughing, sneezing and often
there is chest pain when a person coughs too much. There is a noticeable hoarshness in the
voice. The individual may also undergo rapid weight loss due to low apetite. The person also
feels shortness of breath and there is a chance of chronic lung problem like bronchitis and
pneumonia(Postmus et al, 2017).
Question no. 4
a) Lung cancer is caused by the abnormal and uncontrolled growth of cells in the lungs,
which invades the nearby tissues and forms tumors. There are two types of lung
cancer: small cell lung cancer and non-small cell lung cancer. The rate of spread of
small cell lung cancer is more than that of non-small cell lung cancer. The non-small
cell lung cancer is a type of epithelial cancer affecting the squamous epithelial cells of
the lungs, which spreads through the nearby lymph nodes and then further proceeds to
infect the other parts of the body(Reck & Rabe, 2017).
b) The diagnosis options available for Harold, who is suffering from non-small cell lung
cancer includes Chest X-ray, CT scan, PET scan, MRI and lung biopsy. CT scan
produces a detailed 3D image which helps the physician to understand the size and
location of lung cancer. PET scan is used to detect the structure of the lungs and the
nearby tissues and helps to understand the spread of cancer. MRI scan can also be
performed to detect the presence of tumor in the lungs(Zappa & Mousa, 2016).
The prognosis of lung cancer depend on which stage the cancer is present. Eraly
stages of lung cancer have better prognosis than the later stages. For non-small cell
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THE CASE OF HAROLD
lung cancer, stage 0-1 are more favourable for prognosis than the stages 2,3 or 4. Non
small cells lung cancer spread which spreads to the adrenal glands have better
prognosis when compared to its spread in the brain or liver. People who had
undergoes 5% of their weight before treatment initiation, has less favourable
prognosis than the people who did not lose enough weight(Yu et al, 2016).
c) The cancer patients living in the rural areas face many issues and difficulties
regarding proper access to high quality treatment due to their lower avaibility, along
with financial issues where the poor people cannot afford such high treatment cost.
There are also significant transportation barriers in the rural places and there are not
enough healthcare providers and palliative care specialists available for those rural
people(Jenkins et al, 2018).
Question no. 5
a) People who are treated with chemotherapy for treating cancer have been found to
suffer from hospital acquired infection, since chemotherapy lowers the immunity of
the individual greatly by decreasing the number of white blood cells required to fight
infection, making their immune syatem weak. So the chance of getting an infection or
sepsis increases for the individual(Pearce et al, 2017).
b) Harold who had been undergoing chemptherapy has started to show some side effects.
After the chemotherapy session were over, he used to feel very tired, fatigued and
weak. He also suffered a rapid weight loss due to poor appetite, was more likely to get
infected owing to lowered immunity. Also he suffred from hair loss and bowel
problems such as constipation or diarrhoea(Pyszora et al, 2017).
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e of the student Student Number 4