Spleen Diseases

Hello friends, I bring you special greetings from my own end. Trusting God you all are doing good? Yeah, I'm doing good too. It's a pleasure to participate in this contest #spleen organized by @afzalqamar.

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Spleen is an organ in the body whose roles cannot be overemphasized. It is located within the abdominal region just below where the diaphragm is. It is found just above the left kidney. Both the spleen and kidney are connected by ligaments and are protected by the ribcage.

Some of the major functions of spleen include filtration which involves removal of old, worn-out red blood cells and recycling of iron; immune functions which involves production of antibodies. Spleen is also responsible for activating immune cells to fight against infections. Another function of the spleen is storage of red blood cells, white blood cells as well as platelets.

Now, just imagine that the spleen is impaired..., how does the body survives? owing to the important role it plays in the body system?
Let's dive into some of the common diseases that affects the spleen.

What do you know about spleen diseases?

Some of the common spleen diseases include:

1. Leukemia: This is also known as cancer of the blood and bone marrow. Often times, people with such disease conditions also have their spleen infected.
2. Lymphoma: This is cancer of the immune system which could also cause collateral damage to the spleen.
3. Splenomegaly: This is an enlargement of the spleen which is often caused as a result of the following disease conditions: liver disease, blood diseases and other immune system related diseases.
4. Splenic cyst: This is a parasitic infection of the spleen. Here, there is usually a fluid filled sac that forms in the spleen. Trauma on the spleen could also result in splenic cyst.
5. Splenitis: This is an inflammation of the spleen which is caused as a result of infection or injury on the spleen.
6. Hypersplenism: This occurs when the spleen removes too many blood cells. This usually results in anemia, low white blood count and low platelets count.

Have you or someone you know has or had spleen problems?

Yeah, I've got a couple of people I know who had spleen problem. Though one gave up the struggle few years back. His was a case of leukemia which also affected his spleen. His family couldn't keep up with the medical bills and chemo sessions. He gave up the struggle months later.

Another person I know of was a case of splenic cyst. He always complain of being over-full each time he eats food and you can visibly see his stomach being bloated. Sometimes he complains of severe pain in the upper left side of his abdomen. It was a scan that detected what was actually wrong with him. He had a successful surgery and he's doing perfectly fine now.

What steps can we take to keep our spleen healthy and prevent it from diseases?

To keep our spleen health and prevent it from diseases, we ought take note of the following important key notes:

1. Eating a balanced.
2. Ensure to always stay hydrated as drinking enough water flushes out toxins and waste products from the system.
3. Increase antioxidants intake by consuming foods such as berries, leafy greens and fruits as they are found to be rich in antioxidants.
4. Avoid as much as you can, sugary foods as well as processed food. It is advisable to focus on whole unprocessed foods like while grains, lean proteins, fruits and vegetables.
5. Ensure to include spleen friendly foods such as garlic, onions, mushrooms in your meals.
6. Ensure to keep a very good hygiene.

I'm inviting my friends @ashley-p @deelyt @tripple-e to also make their contributions on spleen.