Cancer is a difficult disease to treat because it is hard to detect within the body. Cancer sneaks in to normal cells and changes them to cancer cells over time. The immune system mistakes cancer cells for healthy cells, so they are not attacked.

Osteoarthritis is one of the leading causes of disability in the US today. The disease occurs when articular cartilage in a joint degenerates. Articular cartilage is the smooth, white tissue that covers the ends of bones where they come together to form joints. It doesn’t regenerate in the same way as other tissue in the body. Articular cartilage allows the bones to glide over each other with very little friction, and it’s essential to movement. As osteoarthritis takes hold, it becomes progressively more painful and difficult to move.

Summary

The retina is a layer of nerve tissue lining the inside of the eye. Its job is to convert light into vision. Near the center of the retina is the macula, where the sharpest vision occurs. The macula is responsible for “straight ahead” vision, used for reading, driving, recognizing faces and more. Macular degeneration is an eye problem that causes the retinal cells in the macular area to break down.

For many patients with acute liver failure (ALF), the only option for a cure is a liver transplant. ALF is contracted when a normally healthy liver is injured due to an infection, drug overdose, or other problem. Despite the liver’s amazing ability to regenerate, liver failure has no effective therapy short of liver transplantation.