The Disease with No Cure
Approximately 30,00 people on the united states have Cystic Fibrosis. Cystic Fibrosis is a lung disease that limits your ability to breathe overtime. There is no cure but, the disease can be controlled with treatments and a management team. In CF a gene causes a thick buildup of mucus that blocks the airways. Today the life expectancy for people with CF who live past child hood is 37 years. Cystic fibrosis is very unpredictable in the ways it affects your body. It is hard to manage and difficult to live a normal life with.
Cystic Fibrosis affects your body in very harsh ways. According to Dr. Hopkins, "CF is characterized by recurrent pulmonary problems like shortness of breath, increased cough and sputum production, fatigue and occasionally hemoptysis, or coughing up of blood. " (Hopkins 2) Common traits of CF is not being able to breathe easily and coughing all the time. Breathing with CF is like being sick and breathing through a straw. In the article Effects of CF, Dr. Hopkins says, In CF, faulty transport of electrolytes across airway tissues lead to abnormal mucus production along the respiratory tract...Eventually, the mucus obstructs the airway,...resulting in chronic lung infections." (Hopkins 2) CF attacks the lungs constantly causing lung infections. There are very few treatments for this and a lung transplant is a last resort. According to Dr. Hopkins, " In CF, the altered transport of electrolytes across pancreatic tissue leads to abnormal production of digestive enzymes...These abundant enzymes damage the pancreatic tissue, eventually leading to fibrosis of the pancreas until it is no longer able to produce enough enzymes to properly digest food." (Hopkins 3) People with CF usually have pancreatic failure. They have to take enzymes before every meal to replace the enzymes that aren't being made by their pancreas. Without these enzymes they wouldn’t be able to digest their food properly. Cystic Fibrosis affects the respiratory, gastrointestinal, musculoskeletal, genitourinary, and reproductive systems. CF affects 5 out of the 11 systems in your body. Cystic Fibrosis is hard to manage. According to Judy Monroe, "Treatment for Cystic Fibrosis is not simple because each person is different. Doctors design a treatment plan to fit each person's needs." (Monroe 1) Patients with CF aren't all the same. The disease affects people in different ways. It is very unpredictable in how aggressive it is. The treatments for each patient are constantly changing. According to Judy Monroe, "Many children and teens need various people to help manage their cystic fibrosis. The team may include doctors, nurses, therapists, teachers, social workers, a pharmacist, and a dietitian." (Monroe 4) One person can't manage their CF alone. They need emotional support and help with keeping up with all of their treatments and medications. That’s why people with CF have management teams. According to Judy Monroe, "Cystic Fibrosis has no cure, but various treatments can help to improve breathing and digestive problems."(Monroe 1) …show more content…
In the article, Young People Living with Cystic Fibrosis: An Insight to their Subjective Experience, Kathryn Badlan says, "Dealing with cystic fibrosis is a complex task and in reality there are many factors involved in coming to terms with living with this time-consuming disease." (Badlan 269) There are many things that have to be done with CF. People with CF have to take their medicine every day, do their treatments, keep up with doctor visits, and manage their health. According to Judy Monroe, "Also, teens with cystic fibrosis often take a lot of medicine and use inhalers. They usually need therapy each day. They must be on the outlook constantly for any changes in their health." (Monroe 2) Treatments such as inhalers, breathing vests, medicines, vapors, and machines at nights are a daily occurrence with cystic fibrosis. In the article Young People Living with Cystic Fibrosis: An Insight to their Subjective Experience, Kathryn Badlan states, "The time constraints and increasing complexity of the long-term health care management of cystic fibrosis makes living a 'normal' life difficult." (Badlan 269) A normal life is not an option for people battling cystic fibrosis. Managing CF is very time consuming. People with CF have to do daily treatments and take medicine multiple times a day. Also they have to stay in the hospital frequently making it hard to have what is considered to be a normal life. CF is a very aggressive disease.
Approximately 30,00 people on the united states have Cystic Fibrosis. Cystic Fibrosis is a lung disease that limits your ability to breathe overtime. There is no cure but, the disease can be controlled with treatments and a management team. In CF a gene causes a thick buildup of mucus that blocks the airways. Today the life expectancy for people with CF who live past child hood is 37 years. Cystic fibrosis is very unpredictable in the ways it affects your body. It is hard to manage and difficult to live a normal life with.
Cystic Fibrosis affects your body in very harsh ways. According to Dr. Hopkins, "CF is characterized by recurrent pulmonary problems like shortness of breath, increased cough and sputum production, fatigue and occasionally hemoptysis, or coughing up of blood. " (Hopkins 2) Common traits of CF is not being able to breathe easily and coughing all the time. Breathing with CF is like being sick and breathing through a straw. In the article Effects of CF, Dr. Hopkins says, In CF, faulty transport of electrolytes across airway tissues lead to abnormal mucus production along the respiratory tract...Eventually, the mucus obstructs the airway,...resulting in chronic lung infections." (Hopkins 2) CF attacks the lungs constantly causing lung infections. There are very few treatments for this and a lung transplant is a last resort. According to Dr. Hopkins, " In CF, the altered transport of electrolytes across pancreatic tissue leads to abnormal production of digestive enzymes...These abundant enzymes damage the pancreatic tissue, eventually leading to fibrosis of the pancreas until it is no longer able to produce enough enzymes to properly digest food." (Hopkins 3) People with CF usually have pancreatic failure. They have to take enzymes before every meal to replace the enzymes that aren't being made by their pancreas. Without these enzymes they wouldn’t be able to digest their food properly. Cystic Fibrosis affects the respiratory, gastrointestinal, musculoskeletal, genitourinary, and reproductive systems. CF affects 5 out of the 11 systems in your body. Cystic Fibrosis is hard to manage. According to Judy Monroe, "Treatment for Cystic Fibrosis is not simple because each person is different. Doctors design a treatment plan to fit each person's needs." (Monroe 1) Patients with CF aren't all the same. The disease affects people in different ways. It is very unpredictable in how aggressive it is. The treatments for each patient are constantly changing. According to Judy Monroe, "Many children and teens need various people to help manage their cystic fibrosis. The team may include doctors, nurses, therapists, teachers, social workers, a pharmacist, and a dietitian." (Monroe 4) One person can't manage their CF alone. They need emotional support and help with keeping up with all of their treatments and medications. That’s why people with CF have management teams. According to Judy Monroe, "Cystic Fibrosis has no cure, but various treatments can help to improve breathing and digestive problems."(Monroe 1) …show more content…
In the article, Young People Living with Cystic Fibrosis: An Insight to their Subjective Experience, Kathryn Badlan says, "Dealing with cystic fibrosis is a complex task and in reality there are many factors involved in coming to terms with living with this time-consuming disease." (Badlan 269) There are many things that have to be done with CF. People with CF have to take their medicine every day, do their treatments, keep up with doctor visits, and manage their health. According to Judy Monroe, "Also, teens with cystic fibrosis often take a lot of medicine and use inhalers. They usually need therapy each day. They must be on the outlook constantly for any changes in their health." (Monroe 2) Treatments such as inhalers, breathing vests, medicines, vapors, and machines at nights are a daily occurrence with cystic fibrosis. In the article Young People Living with Cystic Fibrosis: An Insight to their Subjective Experience, Kathryn Badlan states, "The time constraints and increasing complexity of the long-term health care management of cystic fibrosis makes living a 'normal' life difficult." (Badlan 269) A normal life is not an option for people battling cystic fibrosis. Managing CF is very time consuming. People with CF have to do daily treatments and take medicine multiple times a day. Also they have to stay in the hospital frequently making it hard to have what is considered to be a normal life. CF is a very aggressive disease.