British TV presenter Davina McCall underwent neurosurgery to remove a colloid cyst – a variety of benign brain tumor.

McCall’s tumor was diagnosed by accident. In an Instagram video posted in November 2024, she explained:

A number of months ago I spoke to an organization about menopause and in return they offered me a health check-up, which I assumed was successful. However, it turned out that I had a benign brain tumor called a colloid cyst, which may be very rare – three in one million.

Colloid cysts are rare examples of fluid-filled brain tumors which might be liable for lower than 1% diagnosed brain tumors.

They develop within the ventricles – the system of fluid-containing chambers within the brain – that they produce cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Cerebrospinal fluid is ultrafiltered blood that enables nutrients and necessary chemicals to flow into in and across the brain, providing additional protection.

Normally, cerebrospinal fluid leaks back into the bloodstream, but various conditions – including cancer – can affect this. A growing tumor can block cerebrospinal fluid, so as a substitute of flowing back into the bloodstream, the fluid may begin to build up within the brain. It’s called hydrocephalus – otherwise generally known as “water in the brain”.

Because the skull resembles a stationary protective box, fluid buildup increases the pressure inside the pinnacle. It is that this increase in pressure that causes symptoms reminiscent of headaches, nausea and vomiting.

But colloid cysts are usually not the one disease that can cause such symptoms. Other types brain tumor can develop from neurons (nerve cells). Glial cellsthat support and insulate neurons may cause brain tumors to turn into more common generally known as gliomas.

Even cells that are usually not a part of the brain but surround it for extra protection can grow to be cancer. Layers of tissue called the so-called meninges (which turn into inflamed during meningitis) may grow to be meningioma. They can grow to considerable sizes. They are taken under consideration “giant” if the diameter is greater than 5 cm.

The the biggest brain tumor the recorded mass weighed 570 g, taken from a four-year-old boy in India in 2000.

Brain tumors are classified depending on whether or not they are benign – they grow but don’t spread – or malignant (cancerous) and can spread to other parts of the body. Some brain tumors may develop in consequence of the spread (metastasis) of other tumors body parts. It is more common within the breast, lungs, kidneys, colon and skin.

Symptoms

McCall appeared to have had no symptoms; nevertheless, brain tumors can cause noticeable symptoms and early recognition is crucial.

As with all cancers, the prognosis for a brain tumor varies depending on the variety of cancer, but in addition on how much it has grown or spread when it’s diagnosed. Therefore, it’s important to acknowledge any variety of cancer as soon as possible to forestall its progression.

Unfortunately, the symptoms of brain tumors are sometimes non-specific. Nauseavomiting and headaches are common symptoms. They can even be caused many other conditions.

The most suspicious headaches are people who suggest increased pressure within the brain. These headaches normally worsen once you get up within the morning, change your posture, or are accompanied by vomiting. If you notice a headache like this – or one which persists, gets worse, or changes – and any of the other symptoms I discussed, then contact your GP. Rest assured, nevertheless, that lower than 1% of headache patients will actually develop a brain tumor.

Brain tumors can also cause other general symptoms, reminiscent of changes in vision, dizziness, and latest seizures. In fact,
one in all the symptoms within the case of an urgent CT scan of the pinnacle, that is the primary epileptic seizure to envision whether a tumor is causing the seizure.

Other symptoms rely upon the placement of the tumor – as it’s going to interfere with the conventional functioning of this area of ​​the brain. For example, if the tumor is situated inside cerebellum situated behind the brain, you could have difficulty walking steadily or may notice tremors. This is since the cerebellum is liable for controlling balance and fine-tuning body movements. If the tumor develops in temporal lobewhich processes sounds and stores memories that the patient may experience hearing or memory loss.

A diagnosis of a brain tumor can cause fear and uncertainty. McCall’s experience shows that tumors can be hidden and silent, and should only be detected by probability. However, there’s growing hope in existing and developing treatment options for various sorts of cancer.

The final take home message: at all times contact your GP in case you experience any of the above symptoms.

Last week, the federal government announced the plan implement an anti-vaping program in schools across the country.

Educational program, the so-called Our futuregoals to forestall young people from taking over vaping. It was developed by experts from the University of Sydney’s Matilda Center for Mental Health and Substance Use Research, with input from teachers and young people.

So why do we want this program, what’s going to it involve and can or not it’s an efficient technique to stop young people from vaping? Let’s take a closer look.

Vaping is becoming increasingly popular

AND study of Australian secondary school students in 2022–2023 showed that just about one in three people admitted that they had tried vaping, while one in six had vaped in the previous month.

This represents a significant increase over time, with rates of each lifetime vaping and last month vaping greater than doubling since 2017.

However, since this data was collected, new laws to manage the supply of and access to vaporizers, with the goal of reducing the prevalence of vaping.

Growing evidence points to the harmful effects of vaping. AND Review 2022 found that vaping has been linked to a range of negative health effects, including poisoning, addiction, burns to the face, hands and thighs, lung damage and an increased likelihood of beginning to smoke tobacco.

It has been found that vaporizers, i.e. e-cigarettes, contain many known chemicals cause cancerincluding formaldehyde, acetone and heavy metals equivalent to nickel and lead. This means young vapers are inhaling chemicals found in nail polish remover, plastics, weed killers and industrial glues.

While we do not yet understand the long-term health effects of vaping, the evidence we have now to date shows that it’s vital to stop as many individuals as possible from taking over the habit.

What will the program involve?

OurFutures is designed for youngsters ages 7 and eight based on research findings. Students are guided by them 4 online lessonseach using a variety of activities and resources to coach them about the harms of vaping. Lessons also include information on the impact of social media, assertive communication, and the way and where to hunt help.

The government says the program will have the opportunity to succeed in over 3,000 schools throughout Australia.

Our research and this shows others that it is so optimal age reach young people because this is the time once they start experimenting and reach for a vaporizer.

This program is also extremely timely as young people they told us want vaping prevention messages in their schools to assist them make informed decisions. These young people realize that there is a lack of reliable information.

Similarly, school staff (equivalent to principals and teachers) admit they’re unable to take care of the problem of vaping amongst students aloneand called for support.

OurFutures is currently in a trial phase 40 schools in New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia.

Preliminary results were positive. Immediately after completing the program, students learned more about the harms of vaping and reported a reduced desire to vape.

However, to our knowledge, the full results of the study haven’t yet been published. It is also unclear whether these results will likely be maintained in the long run.

AND review of school vaping prevention programs found that although many interventions improved knowledge, attitudes, and intentions about vaping in the short term, these effects weren’t at all times maintained.

However, this review also found that multi-session programs, equivalent to OurFutures, were effective in stopping young people from vaping for long periods of time.

An essential element of any public health program is its adaptability to different populations. Australia is a culturally and linguistically diverse country, with urban, regional and distant populations. It is currently unclear whether and the way the program will take these differences into consideration.

The program must be part of a broader approach

Providing rational, evidence-based information in this fashion should help many young people taking part in this program higher understand the potential health risks of vaping and subsequently think twice before doing so.

However, school-based education programs are only one strategy in a set of strategies needed to deal with youth vaping. Relying solely on young people to vary their behavior is unrealistic and never best practice.

Young people operate in communities which might be influenced by family, social norms and social structures. Education is great, but we want to stop exposure to and access to those harmful products.

Fortunately, Australia’s crackdown on vaping is world-leading. Welcome recently announced vaping reformsincluding stopping the import of vaporizers, selling them only behind pharmacy counters, and limiting flavors that limit their availability and attractiveness to students.

Since these vape laws were introduced, the Australian Border Force has ceased operating a whole bunch of 1000’s vapes coming to Australia.

Recent Public Health (Tobacco and Other Products) Act 2023 also limits promoting and promotion of vaporizers, including on social media. This signifies that the same bans that apply to tobacco promoting now also apply to vaporizers.

Our research shows that vaping was present widely promoted to young people on social media. Social media firms must be certain that the health of their users comes before business interests.

Only last week the government demanded a “digital duty of care” that will require social media firms to take steps to create a safer online environment for all Australians.

Ultimately, a national vaping prevention program for Australian students is a positive step. However, these should be complemented by a range of strategies and continued government investment to support young people to avoid or stop vaping.

Keke Palmer is giving it her all and couldn’t be more thrilled. The Emmy Award-winning actress, singer, TV host and mother is preparing to release her second book, a memoir titled : : which is a continuation of her 2017 guide: “I am very excited. I feel like I didn’t know if I would write another one after the first one, even though it was a good experience,” she tells ESSENCE. “I just didn’t know when I would have something to say again. This time I was excited and inspired and I’m glad people are thinking about it.”

When she published her first book, she was in her twenties and located herself in Hollywood. But the lifetime of the star, who’s now over 30 years old and a proud single mother of her son Leodis, has modified lots. Still, she says her memoir, which focuses on working for peace even when life is “alive” and persons are talking, is a continuation of the message she shared in 2017.

“I think these works are very similar,” he says. “[] it was about separating yourself from people’s ideas about you, their perception of you and who they want you to be. it has that aspect, however it goes further in terms of self-control and what which means to me. It’s about my business, balance in my world, being an ambitious person coping with trauma, how trauma has impacted who I’m and the way I move and the way I would like to act otherwise, all of this stuff.

It’s also Palmer doing what he does best, which is telling his story. We talked to Palmer about what inspired her to release her memoir now, how boundaries have been a game-changer in her personal and skilled life, and why turning 30 has given her more clarity and confidence than ever before.

Essence: The title is . First of all, what does this mean? What does it mean that a person is his own master?

Keke Palmer: I imagine that life could be very unpredictable. It’s a bit like beauty and pain. There are so many things you’ve gotten no control over. No matter how much you prepare, you continue to won’t get it right. Life will show you and teach you something. So I feel preparing for that’s about self-improvement, knowing, accepting and surrendering to it and giving yourself the tools to have the opportunity to cope with it when those changes come.

What was the catalyst for these memories? What made you are feeling it was time for me to tell my story in full?

I feel probably turning 30 and having a baby and the whole lot that happened due to that actually allowed me to say, OK, well, I feel I even have something to offer or say because I’ve experienced so many things that I have not experienced myself. he was even prepared for it. So I feel that is literally the catalyst, all of the changes and realizations and things which have happened in the third decade of my life.

I do not think there may be any easy way to express how to create boundaries. I do not think it is simple and only you already know your limits and that is why it is so hard. In my opinion, selfishness is when you’ve gotten something and don’t need to share it, as opposed to if you haven’t got it and don’t need to share it. I feel self-preservation is very important to be useful and good to anyone. So in case you feel such as you haven’t got it, you haven’t got the energy, you’ll be able to’t do what’s asked of you, you’ll be able to’t grow in the best way someone’s asking you to, whether it’s professionally or personally or otherwise. I feel this can be a way to judge if you need to draw the road. What helped me overcome my boundaries, aside from having my son and providing one other level of self-care, was the conclusion that I can be no good to anyone if I didn’t learn to set boundaries, because not having boundaries would stop me from being my best self. So my love and concern for whether I might be the precise guide for my message and who I imagine I might be in the lives of the people I like and even with my audience, that is what has helped me set higher boundaries.

I’ve got you. Can you share one or two which can be essential for you?

I like not having to work on weekends, but I am unable to say it is usually promised. I feel crucial thing for me is to say no when I would like to say no. Straight. It won’t at all times be a particular time, day, thing or blah, blah, blah. No, I push boundaries every single day. When I’m done, it’s over. When I don’t need to do it, I don’t need to do it. I had a very crazy schedule last night. I had to fly from Atlanta to Los Angeles, get up at 7:00 a.m., and cope with press for a movie that will be released at the height of the yr. They asked me if I could do a fitting later once I landed to prepare for the subsequent day. I said, no, I am unable to try this. So I do not know if it’s really a particular thing or that I even have these wildly different rules. I feel that is what my book is about, that it has to be this manner. It’s just selecting you when you’ve gotten to select you.

And how has motherhood affected what you’ll and won’t allow yourself to handle when it comes to having your individual time?

Motherhood has modified my ability to do what I just described. Thanks to this, it was much easier for me to see what was necessary to me and what was not, what was taken from me and what I needed, and what was taken away from me and what was not needed because I had to be good to my son. So if something is stopping me from doing it, it is simple to get out of there. I just think having kids puts the whole lot in the precise light. What you were not sure was necessary or not becomes clear.

What I’ve at all times loved about you is how necessary it’s to have your individual narrative and never be influenced by what people say and do. This is difficult for many individuals because we live in the age of social media and need to be liked. Why was it so necessary for you to be sure that you were not influenced by what people said? You tell your story the best way you wish, whether it’s through a book or a podcast, you are each vulnerable and yet you’ve gotten full control over what you give to people. Why has this at all times been so necessary to you?

I feel due to the best way I got here into this industry; I used to be taught that I used to be a performer, that this was a platform. People look up to you, especially when the group you represent is underrepresented, so take it seriously. I used to be raised to take it very seriously. My sense of control relies, I’d say, not even on control, but my sense of self-management is rooted in the inspiration of taking my responsibility seriously. It’s not something everyone does or should do. I feel it’s just a part of me and why I do what I do. Everyone represents something different and unique, and as public figures, artists, all of them say something different. But for me it comes with a special sense of responsibility. That’s why I actually try to do my best.

I do know you mentioned that turning 30 was one among the catalysts for writing this book. It hasn’t been long because you turned 30, but what’s life like on this side?

I do not know if it’s 30 or 30 years, but for me it is a deep feeling that I even have so way more time, which is funny because I’m getting older, but I feel like I even have a lot time so way more time. Not the whole lot is an emergency. I feel like I even have a greater sense of patience and somewhat easier that the whole lot will work out. I feel by the point you are 30, you are going to have lots of ups and downs and different experiences where you are feeling like, oh my God, that is an emergency! Then the universe will show you that the whole lot will find its way. So I feel like that is something I actually, really feel at this age. I also feel that, as I said, I do know what’s most vital. This sense of clarity gives me a special sense of peace. I even have a deep sense of satisfaction and I’m open to the revelations that I’ll proceed to experience. I do know that is only the start of what life has to show me.