Category: L

A drug used in the treatment of prostate cancer. Leuprolide acetate (Lupron, Viadur) is used for people with advanced prostate cancer to decrease the production of testosterone, thereby reducing prostate cancer growth and relieving symptoms such as pain and difficulty in urinating. Leuprolide acetate is implanted in the upper arm once a year by a…

A drug used in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, an autoimmune disease. Leflunomide (Arava) can relieve some symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis, such as inflammation, swelling, stiffness, and joint pain. Leflunomide works by preventing the body from producing too many of the immune cells that cause the swelling and inflammation.  

An antiglaucoma agent. Latanoprost (Xalatan) is used to decrease the pressure within the eyeball, which if left unchecked can damage the optic nerve and lead to loss of vision. It is given as an eye drop and works by increasing the flow of fluid out of the eyeball, which reduces pressure in the eye. An…

An abnormal air sac attached to the larynx (voice box); an inherited condition. A laryngocele may become enlarged when there is pressure inside the larynx, such as when a person coughs. When enlarged, a laryngocele may protrude on the outside of the neck, resembling a tumor. The condition may recur. The only treatment is a…

An antiviral drug used to treat HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) and hepatitis B virus infections. Lamivudine (Epivir) is also known as 3TC and is one of a class of drugs called nucleoside analogue reverse transcriptase inhibitors. It is prescribed in combination with other antiretroviral drugs to suppress HIV; it works by preventing the virus from…

A volunteer organization that provides information and encouragement to women who breast-feed. The league was formed in the United States in 1956 by a small group of nursing mothers and has become an internationally recognized authority on breast-feeding. The league sponsors informal discussion groups, lectures, and conferences for parents and health care professionals, and it…

A gradual decline or loss of interest in eating and drinking that commonly occurs in older people. Because the organs of older people do not function with the same efficiency as those of younger people, consequences of loss of appetite can be serious. Older people need to follow a sensible and varied diet. Poor nutrition…

A decreased desire to eat even when there is a physical need for food. Loss of appetite can have a variety of causes, such as emotional upset, anxiety, loneliness, depression, school or work stress, fatigue, and acute infection or illness, such as the flu. Appetite can also be affected by drugs and medications, including amphetamines,…

Heating of a localized volume of tissue to therapeutic temperatures.  

Arrest of cancer growth at a site of treatment.