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True love: 98-year-old shows his devotion to sick wife by walking 10km every day to see her

<p>At 98 years old Luther Younger, a Korean War veteran, walks 10 kilometres each way to visit his wife, who is currently paralysed and hospitalised according to <em><a rel="noopener" href="http://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/rochester/news/2018/08/17/elder-man-walks-miles-to-be-alongside-hospitalized-wife" target="_blank">Spectrum News Rochester</a></em>.</p> <p>Having been married for over 50 years, Luther’s devotion to his wife Waverlee is inspiring to say the least.</p> <p>“I ain’t nothing without my wife,” Luther told Spectrum News. “It’s been a rough pull. It’s been tough.”</p> <p>Luther and his wife both live with their daughter, Lutheta Younger. Working with her sister Joyce Johnson, they both have taken responsibility for their parents and vouch to take care of them the same way their mother did when she and her siblings were younger said Lutheta.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en-gb"> <p dir="ltr">Luther Younger and his wife, Waverly, have been married more than 50 years. Due to health issues, she's been hospitalized for nearly two weeks. Even in the rain, he walks to be by her side. <a href="https://t.co/O1NbFS9hOP">pic.twitter.com/O1NbFS9hOP</a></p> — Spectrum News ROC (@SPECNewsROC) <a href="https://twitter.com/SPECNewsROC/status/1030296964968140800?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">17 August 2018</a></blockquote> <p>“I moved them out of their house, moved them in with me,” she said.</p> <p>According to Lutheta, her father has been making the 10-kilometre trip for a long time now.</p> <p>“He doesn’t have to, but he wants to. I can drive him. He just doesn’t want to wait; he’s impatient.”</p> <p>Waverlee has suffered from brain cancer since 2009, but Luther still remembers the good times they shared together.</p> <p>“She’s the best cup of tea I ever had,” he said.</p> <p>“She would come in and kiss me and say ‘baby’ and feed me in bed, and this is what I need right here.”</p> <p>“The whole time she was sick, he would stay overnight [in the hospital],” Lutheta said, “You know, he just wants the best for my mom.”</p> <p>A <em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.gofundme.com/luther-and-waverlee-yonger" target="_blank">GoFundMe</a></em> page has been set up for Luther and his family to help with hospital expenses and travelling costs to and from the hospital.</p>

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Queen Elizabeth’s doctor killed in accident

<p>A physician to Queen Elizabeth II has been killed by a truck as he cycled through central London, England.</p> <p>The Metropolitan Police force said 67-year-old Peter Fisher was pronounced dead at the scene of Wednesday morning's accident.</p> <p>University College London Hospitals, where Fisher worked, said he was an expert in homeopathy "and physician to Her Majesty the Queen".</p> <p>Fisher was one of several doctors appointed to the royal household.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img style="width: 500px; height:281.25px;" src="/media/7820313/image_.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/158f5fd941304dd7844cf0353ba44a11" /></p> <p>Medical Director Gill Gaskin said Fisher was "an international figure in homeopathy who was committed to holistic and compassionate care for his patients".</p> <p>Buckingham Palace said Thursday (local time) that the Queen had been informed.</p> <p>Police say the truck driver has been questioned but not arrested. Safety campaigners say four cyclists have been killed in the past five years near where Fisher died.</p> <p><em style="font-weight: inherit;">Republished with permission of <a href="http://www.stuff.co.nz"><strong><u>Stuff.co.nz.</u></strong></a></em></p>

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Do you breathe through your mouth? It could be seriously affecting your health

<p>If you breathe through your mouth, then chances are your health could be at risk. Sydney-based dentist, Dr Lewis Ehrlich, believes in the holistic approach when treating patients, one that focuses on the link between oral health and their overall well-being. He is also responsible for informing people of the<span> </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/health/body/dentist-reveals-the-scary-impact-of-one-gin-and-tonic" target="_blank">dangers gin and tonic have on teeth enamel.</a></em></p> <p>While it is known that breathing through the mouth can cause damage to teeth enamel and be responsible for tooth decay, the habit can also make you sick.</p> <p>According to Dr Ehrlich, breathing through the mouth causes an influx of bacteria and toxins to enter your body that your nose would usually filter out.</p> <p>“Nose breathing gives us the best possible chance of dealing with this challenge because within the nasal passages there are many filtration mechanisms at play,” he told<span> </span><em><a rel="noopener" href="https://www.bodyandsoul.com.au/health/health-advice/why-breathing-through-your-mouth-can-make-you-seriously-sick/news-story/66b84012a0eb46e01dd0aed3c2c64a69" target="_blank">Body + Soul</a></em>.</p> <p>The nasal filtration system is a mechanism that is made up of fine hairs inside the nostril, the adenoids, turbinates (which regulate the airflow in nasal passages) and mucous membranes of the sinuses.</p> <p>Dr Ehrlich says that breathing through the nose instead of the mouth helps “warm, filtrate and humidify” the air.</p> <p>According to him, this will minimise several health risks, such as breathing problems, allergies, hay fever, enlarged tonsils and other chronic respiratory issues.</p> <p>He also emphasises how breathing from the mouth can have a negative effect on the body overall. And breathing from the nose allows for a balanced flow of both oxygen and carbon dioxide (CO2) and prevents people from over breathing.</p> <p>“When we 'over-breathe', CO2 levels decrease, and it makes it difficult for oxygen to be released from the bloodstream into our tissues for use,” he said.</p> <p>Plus, there are also many psychological benefits of breathing through the nose. Dr Ehrlich says research has proven that feelings of stress and anxiety can be regulated with the use of deep nasal breathing techniques.</p> <p>“This is the basis of many meditation practices, and has been established by numerous studies,” he said.</p> <p>If you struggle with breathing through the nose, elevating your head while you sleep and sleeping on your side or stomach is known to help. Also, removing any allergens present in the house and maintaining a good posture are great ways to get into the habit of breathing through the nose.</p> <p>Do you breathe from your mouth or nose? Let us know in the comments below.</p>

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Michael J Fox reveals he "drank heavily" after Parkinson's diagnosis

<p>He was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1991 when he was only 30, and now Michael J Fox has opened up about the shock of the news and how he struggled to cope with illness.</p> <p>In the new issue of <a href="https://people.com/tv/michael-j-fox-tracy-pollan-happy-marriage/"><strong>People</strong></a>, the 57-year-old star, who has been married to actress Tracy Pollan since 1988, revealed that he took to drinking soon after he was diagnosed – and it got so bad that he was hiding wine bottles from his wife.</p> <p>“I was isolating myself from my family,” said the Back to the Future star, adding his drinking caused friction in his marriage.</p> <p>Tracy added: “It was scary because you just don't know how it is going to turn out.”</p> <p>Michael recalled the tipping point came when Tracy found him passed out on the floor one morning. She let him know she was “over it” and instead of being angry, she looked “bored”, he said.</p> <p>Tracy asked him: “Is this what you want? Is this what you want to be?” And then she walked out the door.</p> <p>It was a turning point for Michael, who cleaned up his act, and started on his path to help others with Parkinson’s.</p> <p>He launched his foundation to raise awareness and money for Parkinson's research, which has so far raised nearly $1 billion. Michel believes that in five years doctors will be able to 'predict' Parkinson's.</p> <p> </p>

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“I thought I’d broken my back”: Natarsha Belling suffers terrible fall

<p><em>Ten Eyewitness</em> newsreader Natarsha Belling has suffered a fall that has left her with multiple cuts while grocery shopping in Sydney.</p> <p>The 48-year-old took to Instagram to share a photo of her wounded left leg on Tuesday.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/BmcYNOWA4ts/?utm_source=ig_embed" data-instgrm-version="9"> <div style="padding: 8px;"> <div style="background: #F8F8F8; line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding: 50.0% 0; text-align: center; width: 100%;"> <div style="background: url(data:image/png; base64,ivborw0kggoaaaansuheugaaacwaaaascamaaaapwqozaaaabgdbtueaalgpc/xhbqaaaafzukdcak7ohokaaaamuexurczmzpf399fx1+bm5mzy9amaaadisurbvdjlvzxbesmgces5/p8/t9furvcrmu73jwlzosgsiizurcjo/ad+eqjjb4hv8bft+idpqocx1wjosbfhh2xssxeiyn3uli/6mnree07uiwjev8ueowds88ly97kqytlijkktuybbruayvh5wohixmpi5we58ek028czwyuqdlkpg1bkb4nnm+veanfhqn1k4+gpt6ugqcvu2h2ovuif/gwufyy8owepdyzsa3avcqpvovvzzz2vtnn2wu8qzvjddeto90gsy9mvlqtgysy231mxry6i2ggqjrty0l8fxcxfcbbhwrsyyaaaaaelftksuqmcc); display: block; height: 44px; margin: 0 auto -44px; position: relative; top: -22px; width: 44px;"></div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BmcYNOWA4ts/?utm_source=ig_embed" target="_blank">So, someone once said shopping can be dangerous... here’s proof! Very sore and sorry today after falling 12 steps down an escalator. And I was sober! Thank you to all the kind people who helped me and to the wonderful doctors and nurses for putting me back together! 😬 P.S Please excuse the crutches and hopping as I co-host @curecancerau fundraiser tonight!</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/natarshabelling/?utm_source=ig_embed" target="_blank"> Natarsha Belling</a> (@natarshabelling) on Aug 13, 2018 at 7:59pm PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Speaking to <a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/entertainment/sydney-confidential/natarsha-belling-on-crutches-after-falling-down-stairs-while-shopping/news-story/0a97f34ca89e19372e4190368967546a"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>Confidential</strong></em></span></a>, she said: “I thought I'd broken my back and I have cuts all down my leg, it looks like a shark has attacked me. I am very lucky and I am OK.”</p> <p>She also quipped: “I am sober.”</p> <p>Natarsha explained that she only had been rushing down an escalator on Monday when she tripped and fell down 12 stairs.</p> <p>“I was rushing around and I had heels on and missed the first step and fell down the whole lot of them,” she said.</p> <p>When asked by Confidential if she was going to take legal action against the unnamed shopping centre, she said “of course not”.</p> <p>In her Instagram post, Natarsha captioned her photo: “So, someone once said shopping can be dangerous... here’s proof!'</p> <p>“Very sore and sorry today after falling 12 steps down an escalator... And I was sober!” she joked.</p> <p>“Thank you to all the kind people who helped me and to the wonderful doctors and nurses for putting me back together!”</p> <p>“P.S Please excuse the crutches and hopping as I co-host the Cure Cancer Australia fundraiser tonight!”</p>

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My Health Record: Why deleting your personal information is harder than it sounds

<p><strong><em>Robert Merkel is a lecturer in Software Engineering at Monash University. </em></strong></p> <p>Since the period for opting out of My Health Record began on July 16, experts in health, privacy and IT have raised concerns about the security and privacy protections of the system, and the legislation governing its operation.</p> <p>Now federal health minister Greg Hunt has <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="http://www.health.gov.au/internet/ministers/publishing.nsf/Content/health-mediarel-yr2018-hunt100.htm">announced</a></strong></span> two key changes to the system.</p> <p>First, the legislation will be amended to explicitly require a court order for any documents to be released to a law enforcement agency. Second, the system will be modified to allow the permanent deletion of records:</p> <p><em>In addition, the Government will also amend Labor’s 2012 legislation to ensure if someone wishes to cancel their record they will be able to do so permanently, with their record deleted from the system.</em></p> <p>But while this sounds like a simple change, permanently and completely deleting information from IT systems is anything but straightforward.</p> <p><strong>Systems designed for retention, not deletion</strong></p> <p>The My Health Record database is designed for the long-term retention of important information. Most IT systems designed for this purpose are underpinned by the assumption that the risk of losing information – through a hardware fault, programming mistake, or operator error – should be extremely low.</p> <p>The exact details of how My Health Record data is protected from data loss are not public. But there are several common measures that systems like it incorporate to greatly reduce the risks.</p> <p>At a most basic level, “deletion” of a record stored in a database is often implemented simply by marking a record as deleted. That’s akin to deleting something on paper by drawing a thin line through it.</p> <p>The software can be programmed to ignore any such deleted records, but the underlying record is still present in the database – and can be retrieved by an administrator with unfettered permissions to access the database directly.</p> <p>This approach means that if an operator error or software bug results in an incorrect deletion, repairing the damage is straightforward.</p> <p>Furthermore, even if data is actually deleted from the active database, it can still be present in backup “snapshots” that contain the complete database contents at some particular moment in time.</p> <p>Some of these backups will be retained – untouched and unaltered – for extended periods, and will only be accessible to a small group of IT administrators.</p> <p><strong>Zombie records</strong></p> <p>Permanent and absolute deletion of a record in such a system will therefore be a challenge.</p> <p>If a user requests deletion, removing their record from the active database will be relatively straightforward (although even this has some complications), but removing them from the backups is not.</p> <p>If the backups are left unaltered, we might wonder in what circumstances the information in those backups would be made accessible.</p> <p>If, by contrast, the archival backups are actively and irrevocably modified to permit deletion, those archival backups are at high risk of other modifications that remove or modify wanted data. This would defeat the purpose of having trusted archival backups.</p> <p><strong>Backups and the GDPR's 'right to be forgotten'</strong></p> <p>The problem of deleting personal information and archival backups has been raised in the context of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (<span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/priorities/justice-and-fundamental-rights/data-protection/2018-reform-eu-data-protection-rules_en">GDPR</a></strong></span>). This new EU-wide law greatly strengthens privacy protections surrounding use of personal information in member states.</p> <p>The “right to erasure” or “right to be forgotten” – <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="https://gdpr-info.eu/art-17-gdpr/">Article 17</a></strong></span> of the GDPR – states that organisations storing the personal information of EU citizens “shall have the obligation to erase personal data without undue delay” in certain circumstances.</p> <p>How this obligation will be met in the context of standard data backup practices is an interesting question, to say the least. While the legal aspects of this question are beyond my expertise, from a technical perspective, there is no easy general-purpose solution for the prompt deletion of individual records from archived data.</p> <p>In an <a href="https://www.acronis.com/en-us/blog/posts/backups-and-gdpr-right-be-forgotten-recommendations"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>essay</strong></span></a> posted to their corporate website, data backup company Acronis proposes that companies should be transparent about what will happen to the backups of customers who request that records be deleted:</p> <p><em>[while] primary instances of their data in production systems will be erased with all due speed … their personal data may reside in backup archives that must be retained for a longer period of time – either because it is impractical to isolate individual personal data within the archive, or because the controller is required to retain data longer for contractual, legal or compliance reasons.</em></p> <p><strong>Who might access those backups?</strong></p> <p>Data stored on archival backups, competently administered, will not be available to health professionals. Nor will they be available to run-of-the-mill hackers who might steal a practitioner’s credentials to gain illicit access to My Health Record.</p> <p>But it’s not at all clear whether law enforcement bodies, or anyone else, could potentially access a deleted record if they are granted access to archival backups by the system operator.</p> <p>Under amended legislation, such access would undoubtedly require a court order. Nevertheless, were it to be permitted, access to a deleted record under these circumstances would be contrary to the general expectation that when a record is deleted, it is promptly, completely and irrevocably deleted, with no prospect of retrieval.</p> <p><strong>Time required to work through the details </strong></p> <p>In my view, more information on the deletion process, and any legislative provisions surrounding deleted records, needs to be made public. This will allow individuals to make an informed choice on whether they are comfortable with the amended security and privacy provisions.</p> <p>Getting this right will take time and extensive expert and public consultation. It is very difficult to imagine how this could take place within the opt-out period, even taking into account the <a href="https://www.news.com.au/national/breaking-news/ehealth-records-opt-out-period-extended/news-story/d245f3601ee494959b854eb9b8c8ae15"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>one-month extension</strong></span></a> just announced by the minister.</p> <p>Given that, it would be prudent to pause the roll-out of My Health Record for a considerably longer period. This would permit the government to properly address the issues of record deletion, as well as the numerous other privacy and security concerns raised about the system.</p> <p><em>Written by Robert Merkel. Republished with permission of <a href="https://theconversation.com"><strong><u>The Conversation.</u></strong> </a></em></p> <p><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/100962/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /></p>

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Early warning signs of cataracts that you shouldn’t ignore

<p>Cataracts are one of the most common eye conditions in the world.</p> <p>Around 20 million people in the world are blind from cataracts, making it the leading cause of blindness across the globe, according to statistics from <a href="http://www.who.int/blindness/causes/priority/en/index1.html"><strong><u>WHO.</u></strong></a></p> <p>The disease involves the clouding of the lens of the eyes which prevents clear vision, with sufferers likening it to living life behind a foggy window.</p> <p>According to the US National Eye Institute (NEI), there are six warning signs of cataracts that people need to look out for.</p> <p><strong>1. Cloudy or blurry vision</strong></p> <p>While the blur from cataracts may seem small initially, the effect usually increases over time.</p> <p><strong>2. Colours appear faded</strong></p> <p>Cataracts can cause colours to appear faded or even cause a yellow tint as the disease progresses, this is because the clumps of protein clouding your lens may turn yellow or brown.</p> <p><strong>3. Glare</strong></p> <p>Do you see a halo appear around lights? If you have issues with headlights, lamps or the sunlight being too bright, this could be a symptom of cataracts.</p> <p><strong>4. Poor night vision</strong></p> <p>Cataracts can even impair your ability to do activities at night such as driving. A <a href="http://news.curtin.edu.au/media-releases/cataract-surgery-reduces-car-accidents-and-economic-costs/"><strong><u>study</u></strong></a> from Curtin University in Australia found that treating cataracts reduced the risk of car accidents by 13 per cent.</p> <p><strong>5. Double vision or multiple images in one eye</strong></p> <p>Although double vision can be caused by various things, the lens clouding in a cataract can cause diffraction.</p> <p><strong>6. Frequent prescription changes in your eyeglasses or contact lenses</strong></p> <p>If your eyesight is changing rapidly, it is recommended that you visit your eye doctor to find out the cause.</p> <p>Luckily, cataracts are generally straightforward to treat and those who suffer from them can visit their doctor to receive information about surgery.</p> <p>However, those who live in the world’s poorest countries are unable to access affordable eye-care and surgery.</p> <p>While the risk of cataracts increases as you get older, certain diseases, personal behaviour and the environment are risk factors to the eye disease, which means that even young children can develop a cataract. </p> <p>Children get cataracts from genetic disorders, infections, malnutrition, trauma in the eyes and water-borne infections.</p> <p>Research from <a href="http://www.vision2020australia.org.au/our-work/eye-health-in-our-region"><strong><u>Vision 2020 Australia</u></strong></a> also shows that those in poverty are the group of people in most dire need of eye surgery, with 90 per cent of vision-impaired people living in developing countries.</p> <p class="embed-responsive embed-responsive-16by9"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/24NBntmhzv4" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen=""></iframe></p> <p>Nhung, 6, lives with her family in a remote village in Vietnam.</p> <p>Nhung, like most little girls, loves to run around with her friends and dreams of being a writer one day.</p> <p>She is an enthusiastic student at school but struggles to read the blackboard due to complications from a cataract in her eye, which causes her pain.</p> <p>Because she lives in a remote village, the closest hospital is hours away.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="http://cbm.org.au/miraclesday">Miracles Day</a></strong></span>, an annual initiative by international aid organisation CBM Australia, aims to give sight-saving surgery to children and adults like Nhung, and those suffering from cataracts in poverty-stricken areas.</p> <p>For just $33 Australians can donate to fund a life-transforming 12-minute cataract operation.  </p> <p>“We are working extremely hard to ensure our supported eye health services are inclusive of and accessible to the poorest and most marginalised people,” CBM Australia wrote in a statement.</p> <p>“This includes people with disabilities, disadvantaged women and girls, minority groups, those who have missed out on education and those who live in isolated geographic regions.”</p> <p>The <span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><a href="http://cbm.org.au/miraclesday">fundraising day</a></strong></span>, held on August 16, has a goal to fund 35,000 people in the world’s poorest countries to receive the Miracle gift of sight, which will require Australians to band together to donate $1,155,000.</p> <p>Last year, $1,081,112 was donated and as a result 33,785 people in some of the world’s poorest countries had their eyesight restored and lives changed because of it.</p> <p>If a priority was placed on tackling the two major causes of vison impairment by providing refractive services and offering cataract surgery across the world, two thirds of vision-impaired people would recover their sight.</p> <p>Will you be part of the solution?</p> <p><strong><em>Give the Miracle gift of sight by calling 131 226 or visiting </em></strong><a href="https://www.cbm.org.au/miraclesday"><strong><em><u>cbm.org.au/miraclesday</u></em></strong></a><strong><em>.</em></strong></p> <p>THIS IS SPONSORED CONTENT BROUGHT TO YOU IN CONJUNCTION WITH CBM.</p>

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10,000 Aussie dental patients urged to get blood tests for HIV and hepatitis

<p>Health experts have urged up to 10,000 dental patients in Sydney to get tested for serious blood-borne diseases, including HIV, after a dentist was found to be breaching hygiene standards.</p> <p>NSW Health has warned patients of dentist Dr James Pok-Yan Ng, who worked in Ramsay St, Haberfield, to visit a GP for blood tests.</p> <p>Any patients who have ever visited the Haberfield dentist in the past 35 years, even if they saw a different dentist, have also been encouraged to get screened.</p> <p>The Dental Council suspects up to 10,000 patients may be affected by the hygiene breach.</p> <p>In July, an investigation found evidence of filthy dental equipment and a poor practice environment.</p> <p>Acting director of Sydney Local Health District’s Public Health Unit, Dr Zaina Najjar, said so far, no patients had acquired a blood-borne virus because of the dental clinic.</p> <p>“Precautionary testing for hepatitis B, C, and HIV is recommended for anyone who attended the clinic over the past 35 years, especially those who had invasive procedures,” Dr Najjar said.</p> <p>“This would have involved a needle or other instrument piercing the skin, gums or tooth root, or where bleeding may have occurred, but we recommend any patient of this practice sees their GP.”</p> <p>“The council carries out inspections of dental practices when a complaint is made which raises a possible concern about compliance with our infection control guidelines,” said Dental Council of NSW president Dr Shane Fryer.</p> <p>“Overwhelmingly, the majority of dental practitioners comply with infection control guidelines, procedures and obligations but if anyone has concerns, we urge you to contact the HCCC or the Dental Council.”</p> <p>Dr Pok-Yan Ng has since had his registration suspended and has been barred from practicing as a dentist in Australia. </p>

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Aussie golfer Jarrod Lyle dies aged 36

<p>Australian golfer Jarrod Lyle has died from cancer aged 36.</p> <p>It comes less than 10 days after he made<strong><u><a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/health/caring/world-in-shock-over-aussie-golfers-tragic-decision"> the heartbreaking decision</a></u></strong> to move into palliative care after deciding his body could no longer handle active treatment.</p> <p>He spent his last days at home with his wife Briony and two daughters.</p> <p>Mrs Lyle said in a statement today: "It breaks my heart to tell everyone that Jarrod is no longer with us.”</p> <p>Mrs Lyle said he died at 8:20pm Wednesday evening, surrounded by friends and family in Torquay.</p> <p>"He asked that I provide a simple message: 'Thanks for your support, it meant the world. My time was short, but if I've helped people think and act on behalf of those families who suffer through cancer, hopefully it wasn't wasted'."</p> <p>The 36-year-old golfer had been fighting his third cancer battle since last year, after there was a recurrence of acute myeloid leukaemia.</p> <p><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FJarrodLyleGolf%2Fposts%2F1765179523531356&amp;width=500" width="500" height="734" style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media"></iframe></p> <p>Before he passed away, Lyle issued a touching message to all his supporters.</p> <p><strong><u><a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/health/caring/aussie-golfer-s-touching-message-to-supporters-as-he-enters-palliative-care">In an interview</a></u></strong> with friend and Golf Australia media manager Mark Hayes, Jarrod said: “To have so many friends around the world, whether they’re spectators, golfers, marshals, whatever, to have that kind of support (at) every tournament, is a great feeling.</p> <p>“It’s going to be hard to leave that behind, but they know that I love them, they know that all the fighting that I did was to get back out and play golf again.</p> <p>“To have the support from all those people was just a tremendous feeling.</p> <p>“It’s going to be hard, but at some point it’s going to happen and they’ll get on with their lives, and I just feel very, very lucky.”</p> <p>The sad news about Jarrod, widely considered one of the most likeable figures in world sport, prompted an outpouring of love and support from around the world, especially Aussie golfers Adam Scott, Jason Day and Marc Leishman.</p>

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Deadly superbug strikes Australia

<p>A Victorian man has been isolated after doctors diagnosed him with the deadly and uncommon fungal superbug Candida auris (C. auris).</p> <p>As this is the first known case of C. auris in Victoria, authorities were quick to put him in quarantine to prevent an outbreak in the Melbourne hospital.</p> <p>The patient, who is in his 70s, is believed to have contracted the infection while in a UK hospital, revealed Victoria’s deputy chief health officer, Brett Sutton.</p> <p>Victoria’s health department is working with the healthcare facility where the patient was admitted to screen any patients who have been in contact with the virus.</p> <p>The state’s health department revealed that the superbug causes serious bloodstream infections and even death “particularly in hospital and nursing home patients with serious medical problems”.</p> <p>“More than 1 in 3 patients with invasive C. auris infection (for example, an infection that affects the blood, heart or brain) die,” the department stated.</p> <p>The superbug is transmitted via person-to-person contact and through medical equipment, such as axillary thermometers.</p> <p>“Candida auris can cause problems in hospitals and nursing homes as it can spread from one patient to another or nearby objects, allowing the fungus to spread to people around them,” the department said.</p> <p>Those at risk include those who have diabetes mellitus, use antibiotics, have had recent surgery or been admitted into an overseas healthcare facility – mainly in the UK, US, South Korea, India, Pakistan, South Africa, Kuwait, Colombia and Venezuela.</p> <p>The man was in a Melbourne hospital for a pre-existing condition when he was diagnosed with the superbug, reported <a href="https://www.thesun.co.uk/"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><em style="font-weight: inherit;">The </em><em style="font-weight: inherit;">Sun</em></strong></span></a>.</p> <p>Dr Sutton said that no other patients are believed to have been exposed to the superbug as he was in a single room.</p> <p>Dr Sutton revealed that the fungus is often highly resistant to medicines, which makes it hard to treat.</p> <p>While most people do not get sick from C. auris, it can be severe and potentially fatal for vulnerable patients.</p> <p>The organism was first discovered in 2009 and since then, outbreaks have occurred in more than 20 countries.</p> <p>A warning has been issued advising health services of the case and informing them of the steps they should take if they suspect a patient has the fungus.</p> <p>Any confirmed cases of C. auris should be reported to the Department of Health and Human Services on 1300 651 160.</p>

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Carrie Bickmore breaks down while speaking about late husband

<p>Carrie Bickmore broke down while speaking about her late husband Greg Lange’s battle with brain cancer on ABC’s <em>Anh’s Brush With Fame</em>.</p> <p>Speaking to Anh Do on an episode set to air on Wednesday, the 37-year-old was overcome with emotion as she said their son Ollie, now 10, reminded her of Greg every day.</p> <p>“One of the things we chose to do was have our son Ollie,” Carrie explains in a preview clip of the episode.</p> <p>“It’s probably the greatest thing we ever did together. He’s a gorgeous boy and he’s so much like him in so many ways,” she continues, struggling to fight back tears.</p> <p>“This sounds so weird but often I’ll see him in the shower, the back of his body and his frame is just a miniature version of Greg. They’re very, very similar.</p> <p>“It was a great thing for both of us to have him and have that focus.”</p> <p>Carrie and Greg welcomed Ollie in 2007, three years before Greg tragically passed away from brain cancer in 2010.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"> <p dir="ltr">"We were about hope and positivity." - <a href="https://twitter.com/BickmoreCarrie?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BickmoreCarrie</a> joins Anh to share how she has dealt with personal tragedy and triumph in the public eye. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AnhsBrushWithFame?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AnhsBrushWithFame</a> <a href="https://t.co/v2zsnnQW6I">pic.twitter.com/v2zsnnQW6I</a></p> — ABC TV Australia (@ABCTV) <a href="https://twitter.com/ABCTV/status/1025863954575314944?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 4, 2018</a></blockquote> <p>When Anh asked if Greg ever spoke about the possibility of dying, Carrie said it wasn’t his or their family’s focus.</p> <p>“We didn’t speak a lot about what might happen,” she explained. “We were about hope and positivity.</p> <p>“Sometimes you can be defined by diagnosis and that’s the wrong way to go because I think treatments change, science changes along the way and what you’re told one way can be completely different the next week.”<img style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" class="slideshow-image Maw(100%) Mah(100%) M(a) W(a) StretchedBox" src="https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/rukhtOV98EN9DOfwv2hQMA--~A/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjtzbT0xO3c9OTQxO2g9NTIy/http://media.zenfs.com/en/homerun/feed_manager_auto_publish_494/35c0c5e632f232d113862b88b4c9a37c" alt="" /></p> <p>In May 2015, Carrie dedicated her TV Week Gold Logie speech to her late husband and launched her charity Beanies 4 Brain Cancer foundation.</p> <p>Earlier this year in June, Carrie announced she was pregnant with her second child to husband Chris Walker. The couple also share three-year-old daughter Evie.</p> <p><em>Watch Carrie’s interview on Anh’s Brush With Fame, 8pm, August 8, on ABC and ABC iview.</em></p>

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Terminally ill Perth father “overwhelmed” by strangers’ generosity to bring him home

<p>A terminally ill Perth father stuck in Bali could be returning home to Australia this week after strangers rallied around him to bring him home.</p> <p>Last year, Duncan Turner suffered a serious head injury, causing a blood clot on the brain followed by multiple strokes and seizures.</p> <p>After months of rehabilitation, Turner learnt how to walk and talk again, however, the injury caused permanent damage – meaning he sadly just has months to live.</p> <p>The 46-year-old father and his wife, Michelle Edgar, decided to take a holiday to create some lasting family memories with their five-year-old daughter Amelie.</p> <p>While they were in Singapore, Turner injured his knee after tripping over.</p> <p>"When we were in Singapore he had a fall," Michelle said.</p> <p>"With his bloods being how they are, his leg was extremely bad."</p> <p>Duncan and his family ended up stranded in Bali without travel insurance, but in just three days, strangers have donated $23,000 to the sick father.</p> <p>“It’s just so heart-warming,” Michelle told <a href="https://www.9news.com.au"><strong style="font-style: inherit;"><u>9NEWS.</u></strong></a></p> <p>“These are happy tears, not sad tears this time.”</p> <p>The donations are enough for Turner to return to Perth on a medevac flight. </p> <p>Turner is now waiting for doctors to give him approval to fly back home, however, he expects it will happen within the next day.</p> <p>“It’s very overwhelming, very emotional, but in the absolutely most positive way possible,” Michelle said.</p> <p>“I cannot be more grateful.”</p> <p>“A big thank you and lots of hugs,” Turner added.</p> <p>The family went to Bali to fulfil their daughter’s dream to swim with dolphins.</p> <p>Michelle said she was unsure if she regrets the trip.</p> <p>“That’s a really hard one because you wouldn’t want to take those memories away at the same time,” she said.</p> <p>“She does have those memories and those photos of all the good times and that’s what she’s going to remember and that’s priceless.”</p>

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Matt Golinski opens up about finding love again after house fire took his family

<p>Matt Golinski has given his first in-depth interview since a house fire claimed the lives of his wife and three daughters on Christmas Day in 2011.</p> <p>Speaking on <strong><u><a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-08-06/chef-matt-golinskis-extraordinary-transformation-after-fire/9906006">Australian Story</a></u></strong>, which will air tonight on ABC, the celebrity chef opened up about his road to recovery, both physically and mentally, and how he came to terms with the death of his entire family.</p> <p>“I probably spent four months crying and screaming and asking myself why and fighting it,” he said. </p> <p>Matt, who suffered burns to more than 40 per cent of his body and spent eight weeks in a coma, said he questioned why he was kept alive, despite not being a suicidal person.</p> <p>“God really? You spent eight weeks keeping me alive? Why would you bother?” he said. </p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"> <p dir="ltr">Australia grieved with celebrity chef Matt Golinski when he lost his entire family in a house fire. Now he’s sharing for the first time his ‘second go at life’. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AustralianStory?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AustralianStory</a> <a href="https://t.co/xeWelC4kDD">pic.twitter.com/xeWelC4kDD</a></p> — ABC TV Australia (@ABCTV) <a href="https://twitter.com/ABCTV/status/1026256538254491649?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 6, 2018</a></blockquote> <p>His father, Keith Golinski, said the first thing Matt asked for when he woke from his coma was his wife Rachael.</p> <p>“I remember the first thing I said was (well) … I couldn’t speak, I actually had to sort of use the board and I said, ‘Can you get me a mobile phone so I can call Rachael?’” Matt said.</p> <p>“(Dad) had to straight out just tell me, ‘Sorry mate, they’re all gone’.”</p> <p>Matt had a gruelling road to recovery, with ongoing operations and skin-grafting procedures, but he said the emotional pain was the hardest to deal with. He was still in hospital the day of his family’s funeral.</p> <p>“I didn’t even get to go to my girls’ funeral,” he said.</p> <p>“[But] all my family and all my friends were just incredible with the way they pulled together for me.</p> <p>“My sister and my Dad were bringing sackloads of cards and letters from people all over Australia. And some of them had money in them. Some of them were people that had held events at their house to raise money for me.</p> <p>“That’s the point where I changed. I went ‘Oh wow, people really want to see me survive this and get through it’. So I better bloody well do it.”</p> <p>It was during Matt’s physical rehabilitation he met his now-fiancee Erin Yarwood, a personal trainer.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/Blec68uluUq/?utm_source=ig_embed" data-instgrm-version="9"> <div style="padding: 8px;"> <div style="background: #F8F8F8; line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding: 62.5% 0; text-align: center; width: 100%;"> <div style="background: url(data:image/png; base64,ivborw0kggoaaaansuheugaaacwaaaascamaaaapwqozaaaabgdbtueaalgpc/xhbqaaaafzukdcak7ohokaaaamuexurczmzpf399fx1+bm5mzy9amaaadisurbvdjlvzxbesmgces5/p8/t9furvcrmu73jwlzosgsiizurcjo/ad+eqjjb4hv8bft+idpqocx1wjosbfhh2xssxeiyn3uli/6mnree07uiwjev8ueowds88ly97kqytlijkktuybbruayvh5wohixmpi5we58ek028czwyuqdlkpg1bkb4nnm+veanfhqn1k4+gpt6ugqcvu2h2ovuif/gwufyy8owepdyzsa3avcqpvovvzzz2vtnn2wu8qzvjddeto90gsy9mvlqtgysy231mxry6i2ggqjrty0l8fxcxfcbbhwrsyyaaaaaelftksuqmcc); display: block; height: 44px; margin: 0 auto -44px; position: relative; top: -22px; width: 44px;"></div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/Blec68uluUq/?utm_source=ig_embed" target="_blank">If you’re in Brissy, make sure you call into #regionalflavours and check out the #gympie region stalls! @mattgolinski is serving up a delicious pork baguette, which is pretty darn tasty! 🌭@cooloolaberries are whipping up some amazing strawberry ice cream 🍓🍦 Aluna (and her Mum) devoured it pretty quick!!! Make sure you grab some of @ccs.kitchen to die for products! (And catch her on Landline tomorrow!!) I can’t wait to try the rosella quince paste!!! Follow your nose and find @purityessentialoils and all of their lovely products (the face serum is soooo good!!!) And treat yourself to some yummy maccas from @lindolsmacadamias (my drive home snack). Mmm 😋 Plus heaps more! 💚</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/efitness_cooroy/?utm_source=ig_embed" target="_blank"> E Fitness</a> (@efitness_cooroy) on Jul 20, 2018 at 6:47pm PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p>“We had lots of common interests,” Erin said.</p> <p>“I’d invite him and friends from work to see bands play and just try to get him out to get back to normal a bit.</p> <p>“We ended up hanging out a lot. We’d go for jogs together.”</p> <p>In 2017, Matt revealed he had proposed to Erin and that she was <strong><u><a href="http://www.oversixty.com.au/news/news/2017/08/celebrity-chef-matt-golinski-welcomes-new-baby/">pregnant with their child</a></u></strong>.</p> <p>“I never thought ‘I’m ready for another relationship now’. It wasn’t something that crossed my mind,” Matt said.</p> <p>“But I could see with [Erin] this sort of genuine compassion for all these people that were in a really vulnerable situation.</p> <p>“For me, I was kind of like ‘I quite like this girl’. Eventually I sort of went ‘I better snap her up before somebody else realises what a good catch she is’.”</p> <p>But it wasn’t easy for the couple to fall pregnant as they weren't able to conceive naturally.</p> <p>"Out of the millions or billions of sperm that guys normally have, the surgeon found 14 [in Matt]," recalled Erin. "So then we had a chance to try IVF, and we were successful the first go. She's a very special little one. And she's got Matt's dimples. She's definitely meant to be here."</p> <p>Their daughter, Aluna, was born on August 16, 2017.</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/BX9PzGpFwd3/?utm_source=ig_embed" data-instgrm-version="9"> <div style="padding: 8px;"> <div style="background: #F8F8F8; line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding: 50.0% 0; text-align: center; width: 100%;"> <div style="background: url(data:image/png; base64,ivborw0kggoaaaansuheugaaacwaaaascamaaaapwqozaaaabgdbtueaalgpc/xhbqaaaafzukdcak7ohokaaaamuexurczmzpf399fx1+bm5mzy9amaaadisurbvdjlvzxbesmgces5/p8/t9furvcrmu73jwlzosgsiizurcjo/ad+eqjjb4hv8bft+idpqocx1wjosbfhh2xssxeiyn3uli/6mnree07uiwjev8ueowds88ly97kqytlijkktuybbruayvh5wohixmpi5we58ek028czwyuqdlkpg1bkb4nnm+veanfhqn1k4+gpt6ugqcvu2h2ovuif/gwufyy8owepdyzsa3avcqpvovvzzz2vtnn2wu8qzvjddeto90gsy9mvlqtgysy231mxry6i2ggqjrty0l8fxcxfcbbhwrsyyaaaaaelftksuqmcc); display: block; height: 44px; margin: 0 auto -44px; position: relative; top: -22px; width: 44px;"></div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BX9PzGpFwd3/?utm_source=ig_embed" target="_blank">Introducing Aluna Bennie Golinski There's truly no words to describe how happy I am right now. She is perfect.</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/mattgolinski/?utm_source=ig_embed" target="_blank"> Matt Golinski</a> (@mattgolinski) on Aug 18, 2017 at 6:30pm PDT</p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Even though Matt has managed to start his life again, he will never forget his wife, Rachael, and their three daughters: twins Sage and Willow, who were 13 at the time, and Starlia, who was 10.</p> <p>He has a permanent reminder of his girls on his body in the form of tattoos: a sage plant for Sage, a willow tree for Willow and a star for Starlia.</p> <p>"I'll miss my girls forever," he said, "but there's nothing I can do about that, so all I can do is accept it."</p> <p><em>Watch Matt Golinski’s journey on Australian Story, on ABC and ABC iview at 8pm tonight, August 6.</em></p>

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Can you spot the child drowning in a public pool?

<p>Video footage has captured the horrifying moment an eagle-eyed lifeguard spots a child drowning in a public pool, packed with swimmers.</p> <p>The lifeguard immediately springs into action when she notices the swimmer in distress, in a pool that is believed to be in the US.</p> <p>The video, posted to the YouTube channel Lifeguard Rescue, shows the child losing their grip on an inflatable ring and then calling for help with their arms in the air.</p> <p>Can you spot the child in distress?</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img style="width: 500px; height:278.391167192429px;" src="/media/7820071/1.jpg?width=500&amp;height=278.391167192429" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/4de3d225a79d4ffd87a621c5f29408c1" /></p> <p>The child is in the deep end of the pool near the middle, between two groups of swimmers.</p> <p>The footage shows the lifeguard jumping into the pool with her emergency life float and dragging the child to safety.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img style="width: 500px; height:301.2618296529968px;" src="/media/7820072/2.jpg?width=500&amp;height=301.2618296529968" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/2835515ec11c45d0a0bb4e3d8355d16a" /></p> <p>According to the <a href="https://www.royallifesaving.com.au"><strong style="font-style: inherit;"><u>Royal Life Saving National Report</u></strong></a>, 291 people drowned in Australia in the 2017 financial year.</p> <p>The report reveals that 44 of those deaths occurred in a swimming pool.</p>

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Johnny Ruffo reveals how his girlfriend saved his life: “I was hours from death”

<p>Johnny Ruffo has revealed how his girlfriend's quick thinking saved his life hours before emergency surgery to remove a brain tumour last August.</p> <p>Twelve months after being diagnosed with a brain tumour, the Home and Away star has opened about his battle with cancer in a new interview with Who magazine's <strong><u><a href="https://omny.fm/shows/who-are-you/johnny-ruffo-final">Who Are You</a></u></strong> podcast with Pete Timb.</p> <p>"I was just at home and I had a headache, but everyone has headaches and you never think much of it," Ruffo said, adding that he had suffered from migraine-like headaches off-and-on over the years, but he never had them checked out.</p> <p>But as his symptoms got worse, his girlfriend of three years, Tahnee Sims, forced Ruffo to go to the hospital.</p> <p>"It had been ongoing and it just got worse and worse. It got to about 4 or 5 in the afternoon and I couldn't speak, I couldn't communicate with her [Tahnee] at all."</p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/BfK1pJWBkiu/?utm_source=ig_embed" data-instgrm-version="9"> <div style="padding: 8px;"> <div style="background: #F8F8F8; line-height: 0; margin-top: 40px; padding: 50.0% 0; text-align: center; width: 100%;"> <div style="background: url(data:image/png; base64,ivborw0kggoaaaansuheugaaacwaaaascamaaaapwqozaaaabgdbtueaalgpc/xhbqaaaafzukdcak7ohokaaaamuexurczmzpf399fx1+bm5mzy9amaaadisurbvdjlvzxbesmgces5/p8/t9furvcrmu73jwlzosgsiizurcjo/ad+eqjjb4hv8bft+idpqocx1wjosbfhh2xssxeiyn3uli/6mnree07uiwjev8ueowds88ly97kqytlijkktuybbruayvh5wohixmpi5we58ek028czwyuqdlkpg1bkb4nnm+veanfhqn1k4+gpt6ugqcvu2h2ovuif/gwufyy8owepdyzsa3avcqpvovvzzz2vtnn2wu8qzvjddeto90gsy9mvlqtgysy231mxry6i2ggqjrty0l8fxcxfcbbhwrsyyaaaaaelftksuqmcc); display: block; height: 44px; margin: 0 auto -44px; position: relative; top: -22px; width: 44px;"></div> </div> <p style="margin: 8px 0 0 0; padding: 0 4px;"><a style="color: #000; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none; word-wrap: break-word;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BfK1pJWBkiu/?utm_source=ig_embed" target="_blank">happy valentines day, thank you for always being there for me and thank you for spoiling me today @tahneesims</a></p> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">A post shared by <a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/johnny_ruffo/?utm_source=ig_embed" target="_blank"> Johnny Ruffo</a> (@johnny_ruffo) on Feb 13, 2018 at 11:50pm PST</p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Doctors initially believed Ruffo to be suffering a migraine, but he was kept overnight for testing. Then, the next morning, Sims received a call from doctors who said Ruffo had fallen into a coma, had a brain tumour and needed emergency surgery to remove it. He was admitted into the hospital August 6 and woke up two days later.</p> <p>"Next thing I know I wake up on Tuesday and they say, 'You've had a brain tumour removed,'" the actor recalled. "When I finally came to I was like, 'Holy shit this is serious.'"</p> <p>Doctors told Ruffo that had he not gone into the hospital when he did, it's very likely he would have died in his sleep at home.</p> <p>"I would have gone into a coma that night and Tahnee would have tried to wake up me the next morning and I just would have been out," he said.</p>

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Aussie golfer’s touching message to supporters as he enters palliative care

<p>Australian golfer Jarrod Lyle has described himself as the “luckiest golfer going around” in a touching message from his hospital bed, after he made the <strong><u><a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/health/caring/world-in-shock-over-aussie-golfers-tragic-decision">heartbreaking decision to end treatment and begin palliative care</a></u></strong> in his long fight against leukaemia.</p> <p>In an interview recorded on Tuesday with friend and Golf Australia media manager Mark Hayes, Jarrod, 36, spoke openly about what lies ahead.</p> <p>“I feel like I’m the luckiest golfer going around, because so many people took an interest in me, and took an interest in my fight,” the former PGA Tour player said on the <strong><u><a href="http://www.golf.org.au/newsdisplay/podcast-episode-54-out-now/101253">Gold Australia podcast <em>Inside the Ropes</em></a></u></strong><em>. </em></p> <p>“To have so many friends around the world, whether they’re spectators, golfers, marshals, whatever, to have that kind of support (at) every tournament, is a great feeling.</p> <p>“It’s going to be hard to leave that behind, but they know that I love them, they know that all the fighting that I did was to get back out and play golf again.</p> <p>“To have the support from all those people was just a tremendous feeling.</p> <p>“It’s going to be hard, but at some point it’s going to happen and they’ll get on with their lives, and I just feel very, very lucky.”</p> <p>Jarrod, widely considered one of the most likeable figures in world sport, suffered a recurrence of acute myeloid leukaemia last year. It’s the third time he’s been diagnosed with the disease.</p> <p>On Tuesday, his wife Briony passed on the devastating news that Jarrod’s body “cannot take any more” and he would enter palliative care.</p> <p>She wrote: "Earlier today Jarrod made the decision to stop active treatment and begin palliative care.</p> <p>"He has given everything that he's got to give, and his poor body cannot take anymore.</p> <p>"We'll be taking him closer to home in the next couple of days so he can finally leave the hospital.</p> <p>"We have done our best to 'control' the narrative surrounding Jarrod's illness and treatment, and as more and more people become involved in this final process I'm not sure how much longer this development will remain private.</p> <p>"Jarrod knows he is loved, and the thousands of prayers and well wishes that have been sent his way have kept him going through some incredibly tough times.</p> <p>"But he has reached his limit, and the docs have finally agreed that they can no longer strive for a positive outcome.</p> <p>"My focus as of today is on our girls and doing whatever I can to get them through the challenges ahead.</p> <p>"Jarrod will be closer to them very soon, and will spend as much time as he can with them.</p> <p>"When it's appropriate, I will post details of a memorial service. In the meantime we ask that you respect our privacy at this difficult time."</p> <p><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FJarrodLyleGolf%2Fposts%2F1765179523531356&amp;width=500" width="500" height="734" style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allow="encrypted-media"></iframe></p> <p>The heartbreaking news sparked an outpouring of emotion for the Lyle family, particularly from fellow Aussie golfers Adam Scott, Jason Day and Marc Leishman.</p> <p> “He is one of the best blokes there is,” Scott said.</p> <p>“Given all the difficulties he's had since his late teens, he has lived the best life he could with the tough cards he has been dealt.</p> <p>“He played such good golf while battling illness; he has been through it all.</p> <p>“His positivity and general demeanour has been so good and so infectious on others; it's a good way to think of how I should live my life.</p> <p>“It shouldn't have to have something like this to remember that's what it's all about.”</p>

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Common blood pressure pills recalled worldwide

<p>A popular blood pressure drug has been recalled worldwide after it was contaminated with a cancer-causing chemical.</p> <p>The drug Valsartan, made in a factory in China, was first recalled in 22 countries – including the UK and the US earlier this month – but the warning has now been issued worldwide.</p> <p>A cancer-causing chemical used in rocket fuel, N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), contaminated the drug’s production at Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceutical.</p> <p>Production of Valsartan has stopped, and experts believe the contamination could date back to 2012, when the company changed its manufacturing process.</p> <p>The drug, which has been commonly prescribed for 15 years, was recalled in the UK and then in the US two weeks later.</p> <p>Valsartan was first developed by Novartis and the Swiss company marketed it as Diovan, but it is now off patent and is used in various generic medicines supplied by numerous companies.</p> <p>Valsartan is prescribed to patients to treat high blood pressure and heart failure.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img style="width: 0px; height: 0px;" src="/nothing.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/7af655886d0b49a595b39d1ed2d16672" /><img style="width: 500px; height: 332.01892744479494px;" src="/media/7820027/1.jpg?width=500&amp;height=332.01892744479494" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/7af655886d0b49a595b39d1ed2d16672" /></p> <p>Zhejiang Huahai, which was one of the first Chinese companies to get drugs approved in the US market, also makes medicines to treat heart problems, depression, allergies and HIV, according to its website.</p> <p>The European Medicines Agency (EMA), which first issued the warning over Valsartan, said it was working to find out how long and at what levels patients might have been exposed to NDMA.</p> <p>The agency said: “It is still too early to provide information on the longer term risk NDMA may have posed for patients.”</p> <p>“EMA has made this aspect of the review a priority and will update the public as soon as new information becomes available," reported the <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong><em style="font-weight: inherit;">Daily Mail</em></strong></span></a>. <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/"></a></p> <p>The EMA said all medicines containing Valsartan from Zhejiang Huahai should be recalled and no longer available in pharmacies.</p> <p>The EMA believes the unexpected impurity, which was not detected by routine tests, may have been produced from manufacturing processes that were introduced in 2012.</p> <p>The EMA has informed patients that only some Valsartan medicines have been affected and recommended speaking to a pharmacist or doctor who can tell you if your medicine is being recalled.</p> <p>“You should not stop taking your Valsartan medicine unless you have been told to do so by your doctor or pharmacist,” the agency said in a <a href="http://www.ema.europa.eu/docs/en_GB/document_library/Press_release/2018/07/WC500251498.pdf"><strong><u>press release.</u></strong></a></p>

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Health Minister radically backs down on My Health Record

<p>Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has revealed the security changes coming to My Health digital records, amid privacy fears.</p> <p>Mr Hunt confirmed the My Health Record Act will be redrafted, following criticism over patients’ medical records being able to be accessed by police.</p> <p>“The amendment will ensure no record can be released to police or government agencies, for any purpose, without a court order," the statement said.</p> <p>"The Digital Health Agency’s policy is clear and categorical – no documents have been released in more than six years and no documents will be released without a court order. This will be enshrined in legislation."</p> <p>Mr Hunt said there has not yet been a record released without a court order, but the safeguard would be included in legislation – saying it would “remove any ambiguity on this matter”.</p> <p>"That just gives additional reassurance and additional protection for all Australians and it was important to the medical community," Mr Hunt told the <em>Today Show.</em></p> <p>Another change will see records be permanently deleted from the system if a patient opts out.</p> <p>Previously, medical records were to be kept for up to 130 years.</p> <p>“If you opt out, you either will never have a record or if you've had one, it will be deleted forever,” Mr Hunt said.</p> <p>While the President of the Australian Medical Association, Tony Bartone, welcomed the changes, he believes the opt out period for the system needs to be extended so people can make “an informed choice”.</p> <p>“In addition, we’ve also impressed upon the Minister that there’s a need to have some clear air, to ensure that the community has time to fully understand what is a My Health Record and what is entailed in the opt out process," Dr Bartone said.</p> <p>Shadow Health Minister Catherine King said the increased privacy protections were “completely adequate”.</p> <p>“Greg Hunt has completely bungled the roll out and he must do a great deal more to fully restore public trust in this important reform,” Ms King said.</p> <p>Are you concerned about the security or privacy of My Health Record? Let us know in the comments below. </p>

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World in shock over Aussie golfer's tragic decision

<p>Aussie golfer Jarrod Lyle will be surrounded by family and friends in his final days after making the heartbreaking decision to end active treatment in his fight against cancer and begin palliative care.</p> <p>The 36-year-old has been fighting his third cancer battle since last year, after there was a recurrence of acute myeloid leukaemia.</p> <p>Lyle’s wife, Briony, shared the decision on Lyle’s social media pages on Tuesday night, saying his “poor body cannot take any more”.</p> <p>Briony has been posting updates about her husband’s health in recent months, revealing that Lyle has partially lost his eyesight and is having speech difficulties.</p> <p>"Earlier today Jarrod made the decision to stop active treatment and begin palliative care," Briony wrote.</p> <p>"He has given everything that he's got to give, and his poor body cannot take anymore.</p> <p>"We'll be taking him closer to home in the next couple of days so he can finally leave the hospital.</p> <p>"We have done our best to 'control' the narrative surrounding Jarrod's illness and treatment, and as more and more people become involved in this final process I'm not sure how much longer this development will remain private.</p> <p>"Jarrod knows he is loved, and the thousands of prayers and well wishes that have been sent his way have kept him going through some incredibly tough times.</p> <p>"But he has reached his limit, and the docs have finally agreed that they can no longer strive for a positive outcome.</p> <p>"My focus as of today is on our girls and doing whatever I can to get them through the challenges ahead.</p> <p>"Jarrod will be closer to them very soon, and will spend as much time as he can with them.</p> <p>"When it's appropriate, I will post details of a memorial service. In the meantime we ask that you respect our privacy at this difficult time."</p> <p>Lyle first beat cancer as a teenager in 1998 and then again in 2012, allowing him to return to play professional golf.</p> <p>Fellow golfers and fans across the world have sent their heartfelt support to Lyle and his family during this time.</p> <p>Former world No. 1 Adam Scott said Lyle had been an inspiration to him for the past 20 years.</p> <p>"I can't imagine being in that position; it's unthinkable," Scott said.</p> <p>"He is one of the best blokes there is. Given all the difficulties he's had since his late teens, he has lived the best life he could with the tough cards he has been dealt.</p> <p>"He played such good golf while battling illness; he has been through it all.</p> <p>"His positivity and general demeanour has been so good and so infectious on others; it's a good way to think of how I should live my life.</p> <p>"It shouldn't have to have something like this to remember that's what it's all about."</p> <p>Three-time US Tour winner Marc Leishman also shared about how Lyle had impacted him.</p> <p>"I'm absolutely gutted for the whole family, Briony and the kids," Leishman said.</p> <p style="text-align: center;"><img style="width: 500px; height:497.46621621621625px;" src="/media/7820018/jarrod.jpg?width=500&amp;height=497.46621621621625" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/2f15da3270054e2bb959396c595aa6f3" /></p> <p>"It's been a hard road for Jarrod for so long, and he has fought so hard.</p> <p>"He has always been the life of the party. He is a larger than life character and an inspiration to so many of us."</p> <p>Former golf World No. 1 Jason Day, actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, rugby league player Ashton Sims and AFL star Mitch Duncan also joined the wave of people sharing tributes in honour of Jarrod Lyle. </p>

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M*A*S*H star Alan Alda reveals secret health battle: “I’m not angry”

<p>Actor and director Alan Alda, who is most well-known for playing Hawkeye Pierce in TV series <em style="font-weight: inherit;">M*A*S*H</em>, has revealed that he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease three-and-a-half years ago.</p> <p>The 82-year-old star revealed his secret health battle in an interview with <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/"><strong><u>CBS News</u></strong></a>, saying: “I’ve had a full life since then.”</p> <p>“I’ve acted, I’ve given talks, I help at the Alda Centre for Communicating Science at Stony Brook [University in New York].</p> <p>“I started this new podcast. And I noticed that — I had been on television a lot in the last couple of weeks talking about the new podcast — and I could see my thumb twitch in some shots and I thought, it’s probably only a matter of time before somebody does a story about this from a sad point of view, but that’s not where I am.”</p> <p>The award-winning actor said he’s “not angry” about the diagnosis, but instead chose to view it as a challenge.</p> <p>Alda revealed in the interview that he decided to share that he had Parkinson’s to encourage other sufferers that there are things they can still do and inspire them to “take action”.</p> <p>“If you get a diagnosis,” he wrote on Twitter, “keep moving!”</p> <p>The <em>West Wing </em>actor reiterated on Twitter that he was in good health.</p> <p>“I take boxing lessons three days a week, play singles tennis twice a week, and take a mild pill — all Dr. recommended. I even juggle a little. And I’m not entering dementia. I’m no more demented than I was before. Maybe I should rephrase that,” the star wrote.</p> <p>“Really, I’m good.”</p> <p>Actor Michael J. Fox was diagnosed with the neurodegenerative disorder when he was 29, and singer Neil Diamond, 77, revealed that he suffered from the disease earlier this year.</p> <p>Alda said he first asked his doctors for scans after he started “acting out” his dreams, which he read was an early sign of Parkinson’s.</p> <p>“I was having a dream that someone was attacking me and I threw a sack of potatoes at them, but what I was really doing was throwing a pillow at my wife,” he told CBS.</p> <p>“I didn’t have any (other) symptoms, the doctor said, ‘Why do you want a scan? You don’t have any symptoms,’ and I said, ‘I want to know if there’s anything I can do, I want to do it before things start to show up'.”</p> <p>Alda sent a message to those who are suffering from the disease.</p> <p>“This is not to short-change people who are suffering with really severe symptoms,” he said. </p> <p>“But in the very beginning, to be immobilised by fear and think the worst thing has happened to you, it hasn’t happened to you, you still have things you can do.”</p>

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