This essay and the information that follows on this important issue and a number of other CANCER RELATED ISSUES ARE INTENDED ONLY FOR YOU TO RESEARCH FURTHER AND TO DISCUSS WITH YOUR DOCTOR. (Please note that this site and all the links are intended for education purposes only to help the patient select and work with their doctor.)
CANCER TREATMENT IS A VERY DYNAMIC SUBJECT OPEN TO STUDY INTERPRETATION ERRORS. ONE EXAMPLE MAY BE THAT ANTI-ANGIOGENESIS DRUGS (WHICH IMPEDE CANCER BLOOD VESSEL GROWTH), COULD BE MUCH BETTER IN SAVING LIVES THAN REALIZED EVEN BY MEMBERS OF THE BROAD ONCOLOGY COMMUNITY, when the drugs are used as part of a combination therapy.
THE POTENTIAL OF ANTI-ANGIOGENESIS DRUGS/TREATMENTS CAN BE MISSED WHEN THE DRUGS ARE NARROWLY VIEWED AS THE ONLY MEDICAL ATTACK ON CANCER OR VIEWED OVER TOO SHORT A TIME FRAME. (THEY INHERENTLY ACT MUCH MORE SLOWLY.)
THEY POTENTIAL MAY ALSO NOT BE APPRECIATED BY SOME ONCOLOGISTS IF THEIR CRITERIA IS ONLY RAPID SHORT TERM TUMOR SHRINKAGE, WHEN THE ANTIANGIOGENESIS DRUGS MAY (IF USED ALONE) ONLY STOP TUMOR GROWTH OR CAUSE ABOUT A 15% PER YEAR REGRESSION. (There are situations where it may actually be better just to make the cancer static as contrasted to causing a temporary clinical regression in tumor size while making the remaining tumor stronger and possibly more malignant.)
Yes the tests of anti-angiogenesis drugs alone have been disappointing by standard analysis criteria, with existing short duration protocols and data analysis which are clearly marginal. There is no reason (that is of benefit to the patient), however, to use the drugs alone or to use them only in short term protocols. The need is for better protocols to evaluate antiangiogenesis drugs used in combinations and more importantly to use the drugs in combinations with other types of drugs, nutrition, and with metronomic dosing protocols.
"Antiangiogenic Strategies and Agents in Clinical Trials"
It is not surprising that there has been limited short term cancer regression success to date of solo drugs without metronomic dosing. There has been more success and the science says much more can be expected with combination drugs and metronomic dosing.
We suggest that you now Go to this University of Washington link about Anti-angiogenesis and cancer and find out about antiangiogenesis possibilities listening to (a noteworthy antiangiogenesis specialist cancer doctor (Dr. Folkman)) about anti-angiogenesis drugs. In some cases, metrnomic dosing and antiangiogenesis drugs can even make advanced cases of cancer a chronic rather than a life threatening disease.
Beating cancer at its own game. A relentless attack on tumor's blood supply.
Improving Conventional or Low Dose Metronomic Chemotherapy with Targeted Antiangiogenic Drugs
Some combination protocols utilizing certain nutrients offer hope of even higher probability response; "--impede tumorevoked angiogenesis with a nutraceutical program composed of glycine, fish oil, epigallocatechin-3-gallate, selenium, and silymarin--"
Our diets (if they contain such good nutrients) can be a combination attack on cancer and can cause cancer cells and very small tumors to be static! A profound finding from European, autopsies on accident victims have found an astounding 98% have pinhead sized cancers in their thyroid gland. Dr. Folkman has found that one key to understanding this is that the body can control cancer angiogenesis and do so long term thus limiting the cancer. There are other factors as well which are nutrition related. There is hope from nutrition as an adjunct to low toxicity therapy.
Dr. Folkman (first discoverer of a natural anti-angiogenesis substance in the body) in his lecture even outlines some cases where terminal cancer has been stopped in its tracks for extended time and become a chronic but livable condition.
Synergy between Angiostatin and Endostatin: Inhibition of Ovarian Cancer Growth
THERE IS ALSO NO REASON WE CAN FIND WHY THEY MUST BE USED ALONE! IN FACT, OTHER COMBINATION THERAPIES ARE BEING TESTED ALREADY AND INITIAL RESULTS ARE VERY PROMISING.
Evaluating Antiangiogenesis Agents in the Clinic
One of the bodies many natural anti-angiogenesis substances is called Thrombospondin-1 (TSP-1). It is known that vitamin A up-regulates TSP-1. It is known from animal studies that absent TSP-1 angiogenesis is not well controlled even by other anti-angiogenic substances. A similar dependence probably exists in humans and combinations of drugs and nutrients needs to be used.
We would suggest searching and discussing the trials for agent ABT-510 a peptide derivative of thrombospondin with your doctor. In one study, patients on ABT-510 had double the survival rate!
There are many anti-angiogenesis substances being found, many are natural substances; some of them common. "Angiogenesis inhibitors have been discovered from natural sources, including: tree bark, fungi, shark muscle and cartilage, sea coral, green tea, and herbs (licorice, ginseng, cumin, garlic)." (Our emphasis.)
In the case of an anti-angiogenesis drug or drug and nutrition combinations which only stops the tumor from growing, by conventional analysis is deemed to be ineffective, when it may in fact be able to save lives long term. This may be the case though it may not have proven what the clinical trial was designed to do. Especially Oncologists trying to understand the complexities of cancer, may tend to lose focus on the benefit of putting cancer on hold in as many patients as possible right now. In any case, anti-angiogenesis drugs do have a lot of promise, especially when combined with nutrition or other drugs at low dose. The therapy is improving rapidly and should always be a factor considered in the fight against cancer. It is beginning to be recognized that the therapy is cancer stage dependent and the trials of late stage patients may not be representative of the full potential of the unusual antiangiogenesis drugs.
"One reason these drugs are not working is that they usually suppress only one of the growth factors that cancer cells use to escape regulatory control. Scientists know of more than 20 growth factors used by tumors. Late-stage breast cancer cells, for example, may express as many as six different growth factors that induce angiogenesis." MAKING CHEMOTHERAPY DRUGS WORK MORE EFFECTIVELY
Again, do not allow your therapy to wait until the disease has progressed to get some anti-angiogenesis component treatment. The longer the cancer progresses, the more immunity it develops to antiangiogenesis treatment. (That is not to say that is will not work for some pateitns in that situation (there are patients of Dr. Folkman who have been on Endostatin for 2 years with advanced cancer which has been stopped.)
There is not even consideration being given to what is called dormancy therapy. Dormancy therapy has already been validated in numerous animal models!
We have been amazed to find that trials are only now beginning to be done with more than one anti-angiogenesis drug. It is known that the human body makes a number of different anti-angiogenesis substances. Why would someone then believe that any one of them or any one drug would do the job on a high percentage of cancer types? There is science that proves that the natural anti-angiogenesis substances are not redundant but act in different ways! If you can, try to get treatment with multiple anti-angiogenesis drugs. At least ask your doctor about adding Celebrex, which is in clinical trial as an anti-angiogenesis drug. (In at least 40 states, doctors can use drugs "off label", or for purposes for which the FDA did not specifically approve them. At least in those state, doctors can use any drug combination they believe to be beneficial.)
Nova Report; "Cancer Warrior" about Dr. Folkman and antiangiogenesis.
Part of this link report summarizes Dr. Folkman's findings in the report from the International Symposium on Nutrition and Cancer.
Again, note, our studies of clinical reports, again, did not find support for antiangiogenesis medicines alone as a sole treatment but rather support for it as a very important and possibly determinate adjunct treatment. We have found a few studies about the effects of the antiangiogenesis medicines when supplemented with nutritional additive therapy which are very promising.
Certain nutrition factors alone have been shown to have anti-angiogenesis properties; Flax meal and oil and the prevention/treatment of cancer.
Keep in mind that as medical science advances and becomes more sophisticated in treatments there is even a chance that the priority of just stopping the progression of the cancer as a way of saving the patient may not even be fully weighed by your cancer specialist. Cancer specialists have been trained to judge the effectiveness of a chemo therapy by how much it shrinks a tumor. At times, anti-angiogenesis treatments may only stop the cancer and not make it shrink and that might mislead experienced oncology doctors.
Antiangiogenesis medicines can also allow lower dose/less toxic chemotherapy of proven agents and has already given reasons to believe that it may turn out that scheduling of conventional therapies to a Metronomic profile has an antiangiogenic effect which could greatly improve the therapy. Antiangiogenic scheduling of chemotherapy improves efficacy against experimental drug-resistant cancer.
We would recommend finding a doctor who would evaluate a protocol like that at the following link (which we cannot vouch for, but which is presented as based on peer reviewed medical science.) A Broad Based Anti-Angiogenisis and Antioxidant Protocol. The protocol uses both an antiogenic drug and nutritional factors.
Even more promise can be seen when nutritional factor controls are included along with exercise for which a scientific basis of its anticancer biological effects are now becoming known and proven to be very important. Multifocal Angiostatic Therapy (which includes exercise and nutritional factors proven by science to have anticancer effects.)
We have spent a considerable amount of time studying scientific articles about cancer and its treatment in general and from that it seems very clear that it is likely that all or at least most cancer therapy for solid tumors should consider at least and probably include some form of antiangiogenesis medical treatment and nutritional treatment to attack the cancer. This issue should be discussed in detail with you doctor. Link here to a site which suggests that antiangiogenesis may apply to non solid cancers as well.
There are many nutrient factors in foods which are antiangiogenic or which inhibit to some degree metastasis or which cause cellular death of cancer cells and a combination of such nutrients together with antiangiogenesis medicines might well be much very effective in fighting cancer at any stage. There are even foods to avoid (such as liver) which contains a lot of copper which may enable cancer blood supply to develop. Copper Deficiency May Keep Tumors from Spreading, ACS. Copper-lowering drug stabilizes advanced cancer in anti-angiogenesis trial. (University of Michigan)
The Healing Power of a Wholesome Diet for Brain Tumor Patients (See the section on "Stopping Angiogenesis" about half way down the link page.)
There is even a new drug derived from Shark Cartilage to inhibit angiogenesis which is being tested. (Yes you can buy Shark Cartilage but it probably won't do much, at least not by itself.) Ask your doctor about Neovastat.
It is true that with the presently available protocols, anti-angiogenesis drugs alone (at least not as single drugs in ways now administered) are not yet the whole answer. Antiangiogenic drugs together with certain nutrition, or multiple Antiangiogenic drugs or with chemo agents, however, show great promise right now. "-- it may be feasible to impede tumor evoked angiogenesis with a nutraceutical program composed of glycine, fish oil, epigallocatechin-3-gallate, selenium, and silymarin, complemented by a low-fat vegan diet, exercise training, and, if feasible, a salicylate and the drug tetrathiomolybdate."
There is a lot of scientific evidence which says that other anti-angiogenesis drugs will likely also be synergistic with the known anticancer nutritional factors. (Vitamins and certain foods and drinks.) "--antioxidants act as an anti-angiogenesis agent--" (About 3/4 the way down the link page.)
Multiple drugs combinations (especially if metronomic (low dose more frequent)) including antiangiogenesis elements such as the following may provide the nearest term effective therapies. Trial of Four Schedules of Adjuvant Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer (It is important to note that there are now "chemo sensitivity" tests which can often tell in advance if the chemo has a good probability of working. Why suffer through the chemo (if it is highly and/or dangerously toxic) if it is not going to work!)
A Role for Antiangiogenic Therapy in Breast Cancer.
More hope on the near horizon in drugs alone; Drugs May Turn Cancer Into Manageable Disease from the N.Y. Times.
There should be a fast track for low toxicity treatments such as being proposed for Lymphoma. Call or write your congress person!
Until such treatments are widely available, the patient is, however, very dependent on their doctor to make an extra effort to find the best combination therapy. Sadly, the reality is that many doctors will either be closed minded or unwilling for various reasons to discuss multiple agent treatment or adjunct options (even common nutritional options.) The doctor will probably talk about studies which did not show benefits of nutrition, but the reality is that numerous scientific studies have shown benefit and a few studies which did not are not a reason to simply wave off the probable benefits of the right nutrition.
One should be prepared for all of this and not be easily put off. Your doctor must evaluate all factors which will affect the clinical outcome of the cancer or other serious disease for which conventional medicine does not have a high probability long term (more than 5 years) cure.
The way to use the link information made available in this site is to go to the link sites and make copies of the report clinical studies summaries and take them to your doctor.
There is now virtually no doubt that with your doctors approval, major dietary changes and the use of carefully chosen supplements and nutritional can greatly enhance the prospects of beating cancer long term. There are good scientific reasons for major hope right now in the fight. This is not only true in the case of enhancing your bodies anti-angiogenesis defenses but also enhancing your bodies many other cancer defense mechanisms as well.
Again, however, this information in web site and links is for educational purposes only. It is not intended as a substitute for the diagnosis, treatment and advice of a qualified licensed medical professional. This site offers people medical information and informs them of their alternative medical options, but in no way should anyone consider that this site represents the "practice of medicine." This site assumes no responsibility for how this material is used. Also note that this website frequently updates its contents, due to a variety of reasons, therefore, some information may be out of date. You need to do research before talking to your doctor. It must be understood that the statements and information regarding adjunct treatments for cancer have not been evaluated by the FDA.
We recommend not relying yourself on any information from any single website, especially those selling product. The sites we quote are mostly not selling anything or they at least reference scientific articles where at those links they are not selling anything, or at most only information. Our links (and information from health science sites such as the National Institute of Health (NIH), American Association for Cancer Research, the Society for Experimental Biology and Medicine, the Journal of linical Oncology, etc.) are intended to enable study of some of the promising science to allow seeing beyond commercial interests and/or fears of litigation which can severely bias some health providers. Your doctor who may not have found the most recent/pertinent information for your treatment and should appreciate any science based information you can provide in assistance to them.
Note that almost all of the links we provide are to sites where positive results were shown to be feasible at least with either certain vitamins or nutritional adjuncts. Do not lose site of the fact that some studies (generally a minority) show no benefit. A very few in special cases do in fact even indicate a possible negative effect. Our contention is that such would be expected especially in single element studies if in fact multiple factors are needed to have a major effect. There is clear scientific reasoning and evidence that such is the case and we believe the links we provide are meaningful enough to at least discuss this possibility with your doctor.
We would like, at this point, to note that the continuity of reading the essays in this site is not always very good. This results from an ongoing effort to update the essays and links and that results in many insertions which sometimes disrupt the reading flow.
There is, in any case, good chance, right now, for beating cancer via standard therapies used in conjunction with at least some of the many nutritional elements known to fight cancer. There is great benefit possible but also some harm that can be done by the wrong diet and supplements. (For example, prostrate cancer patients should usually not take calcium supplements or drink a lot of milk beyond the MDR, but should probably take vitamin D, vitamin E (gamma or succinate) and selenium, but also only take limited amounts of zinc (50mg/day.) (There is evidence that a zinc supplement of more than 100mg a day can be bad for prostate cancer, but there is also science which says; "The restoration of high zinc levels in premalignant/malignant prostate cells will arrest and/or abort prostate malignancy.)
Even with nutrients, there is risk if taken to a very high and unbalanced level, but medical therapies are not without risk either. From the National Cancer Institute; Second Cancers Caused by Cancer Treatment. We have to wonder how many cancer patients are told that such is the case? How many would insist on lower toxicity treatments which are now often available?
There is also the chance that the medical therapy will kill off all but those cancer cells that are the most malignant. (It is almost certain that tumors mutate during therapy and may even do so in response to the chemotherapy itself which can make them more difficult to eliminate. Something like this happens when cancer develops multi-drug resistance.) The following link talks about a second (additional) mutation found only after chemothearpy. Cancer cells not killed are in essence selected to be resistant to chemo in general since those that are not are killed can actually be those that are resistant to a range of drug types. Harsher chemo is not likely to be the answer to that problem. There are scientific reasons to believe that nutrition can help prevent or at least reduce that problem. "-- it is now becoming evident that multi-drug-resistant tumors can be effectively targeted by antiangiogenic chemotherapy (also called metronomic) chemotherapy." There is also evidence that natural nutrients may help; Modulation of human multidrug-resistance MDR-1 gene by natural curcuminoids. Curcumin is found in the common herb Tumeric!
There is good scientific information and logic, in essence, to simultaneously attack the cancer in a multiple ways at the same time where possible. Certain nutrients such as Tumeric for example and vitamins are known to enable the body to join in on the attack. There is a relatively unknown form of vitamin E that is known to kill (or at least enable the cancer cell kill itself by a genetic program called apoptosis.) There are, however, many forms (eight) of vitamin E and not all are equally effective but we may need a range of all of them to fight cancer.
We believe that it is very profound that even though breast cancer is often treatable to a level where there is no detectable cancer, it often comes back anyway! This is probably not just a matter of the detection test not being sensitive enough, it is probably that the conditions which caused the cancer in the first place (nutrition levels, general cellular damage, and DNA mutations, etc.).
Even for this one vitamin (with eight forms) it can make a big difference if all are not present in the right amount range. The is not single accepted value for any of the forms which is known to be optimum and various vitamins interact. Certainly, there needs to be a balance and not isolated large amounts of only one or two of them, unless under a doctors direction to supplement a chemo or radiation therapy or their recommendations before or after therapy and even sometimes during therapy.
Most cancer patients would, in any case, probably be wise to avoid foods with a high copper content such as liver and shellfish. "--depriving cancer tumors of the copper supply they need to form new blood vessels, researchers at the University of Michigan report they have stopped the growth and spread of the disease in a small group of advanced patients for more than a year--" "The copper strategy is not limited to a single type of cancer, as is the case also with other anti-angiogenesis agents."
Even the National Cancer Institute is beginning to place more emphasis on nutrition.
Creating a New Paradigm in Nutrition Research within the National Cancer Institute.
NIH Opens CAM database to Public (CAM means complimentary and alternative medicine.)
While the new anti-angiogenesis drugs are very promising, they are not yet usually a sufficient stand alone treatment and do not alone yet often cure cancer in terms of eliminating solid tumors in a higher percentage of patients. A number of combinations of anti-angiogenesis factors such as Endostatin, Angiostatin, and Celebrex have not yet been tested much in combinations or with many other logically synergistic drugs for instance and when that happens, it is likely to be much more potent than single elements stand alone treatments. "A combination of anti-angiogenesis agents with drugs activated by hypoxia may also be useful, because anti-angiogenesis alone may not kill cells, whereas activation of hypoxic drugs could synergize."
One such combination was reported by CBS which indicates the potential of combining antiangiogenesis drugs with other drugs.
One wonders whether or not the less than expected activity of Endostatin (by itself) could be due just to insufficient Zinc in the patients. Zinc-binding of endostatin is essential for its antiangiogenic activity. We would certainly ask our doctors if it OK to take vitamin A and Zinc during an anti-angiogenic treatment.
Why aren't co-factors like zinc or some other vitamin or nutrient always, or at least often, incorporated into clinical trials? (Such is not usually the case, but it is becoming more common.) One reason may be that there in this case, there is at least one report that seems to say that zinc is not necessary for endostatin to work, but the point is that there are no reports (we are aware of, at least) which says that zinc interferes with endostatin, and then the question boils down to there seeming to be a possible if not probable great gain (in study subject survival) and no known loss; so again why not try it with zinc to begin with? It is also just possible that the researchers are concentrating on a step by step approach which may be the best for learning and writing a study report, but is more likely to allow patients to die while the learning is going on!?!
(We do in fact have a major problem with double blind studies where there are higher fatalities in the placebo group and that is not quickly detected by modern statistical methods and the trial stopped. Far too often, you read that the placebo group died many months sooner which is inexcusable beyond a short time period with modern computers and statistical techniques.)
In any case, while we do not know of any trial of endostatin together with zinc supplementation, at least one test of Endostatin together with Angiostatin has shown exciting results; " a combination regimen using equal amounts of Angiostatin and Endostatin showed more than additive effect in tumor growth inhibition when compared with treatment with individual angiostatic protein--" It is probably very meaningful that the effect was beneficial "more than additive"! That is probably often the case, but not commonly tested in most trials. Those conducting the trial, again, frequently seem more focused on learning than saving patients. SAVE THE PATIENTS IF AT ALL POSSIBLE SHOULD BE THE MANTRA.
There is, then very limited, but already some clinical evidence that at least those two substances can in combination at least offer a much improved chance of stopping the cancer from progressing.
There is, also what appears to be a growing recognition that drugs which just stop the cancer from progressing have major value even if they don't by themselves "cure" the disease. Such drugs are called "cytostatic". What are cytostatic drugs? Where can I get the new cytostatic drugs I've heard about?
Cytostatic drugs and cancer therapy
Highlights of NCI's Prevention and Control Programs
There is also now evidence that a number of natural nutrients have some antiangiogenic or other anticancer properties and will probably be helpful at least in those patients where the cancer has not spread and the highest level of angiogenesis protection may not be needed. Two such nutrients are Zinc (Acetate) and N-acetyl cysteine. There are reasons to believe that these two nutrients may help prevent the return of some cancer, especially discuss these two nutrients in detail with your doctor. N-Acetyl-Cysteine Promotes Angiostatin Production and Vascular Collapse in an Orthotopic Model of Breast Cancer.
N-acetyl-L-cysteine enhances chemotherapeutic effect on prostate cancer cells.
Copper-lowering drug stabilizes advanced cancer in anti-angiogenesis trial; especially note comment about zinc acetate which is available from vitamin sources. (Again discuss use with your doctor first.) Zinc, other nutrients and antiangiogenesis. (Read the three articles links, especially the article about the problems with copper intake and cancer.) Foods high in copper such as liver, oysters, crab, and lobster are probably best avoided in the fight against cancer. Low copper diet.
Find an alternative doctor- M.D.'s, D.O.'s, and other health professionals who practice Integrative Medicine. Targeting Angiogenesis With Integrative Cancer Therapies
It may even be possible that a high level of cholesterol will inhibit angiogenesis which could explain why there has been a concern about cholesterol lowering drugs possibly increasing the risk of cancer or the progression of the disease. (Note that this is from an article in the New England Journal of Medicine!) Cholesterol Plays Cancer-Prevention Role at Cellular Level.
Formerly hyped drugs that starve tumors show new promise in use with chemotherapy.
Journal of Clinical Oncology, Vitamin studies search results. (Promising results with vitamins on health problems, induced by chemotherapy, which could be indicative of benefits.)
Anti-tumor drugs show progress. American Cancer Society
Inhibition of tumor angiogenesis by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs: emerging mechanisms and therapeutic perspectives. (Even over the counter medicines can help.)
NCI antiangiogenesis clinical trials.
Myocardial Protection and Vascular Biology, Hypercholesterolemia Inhibits Angiogenesis
American Cancer Society's Guide to Complementary and Alternative Cancer Methods
Antioxidants in Cancer Therapy (Journal of Clinical Oncology)
Rationale for Using High-Dose Multiple Dietary Antioxidants as an Adjunct to Radiation Therapy and Chemotherapy (Needs further research as can be seen by the following statement; "Vitamin A and ß-carotene at high doses, administered daily before x-irradiation and during the entire observation period, produces a >90% cure rate in mice with transplanted breast adenocarcinoma; whereas treatment with radiation alone or antioxidant alone is ineffective. Yes mice are different than people, the question is, where is the study on humans? It has been known for 25 years that vitamin A is protective of radiation.
We found a study only a few years old referencing essentially the same findings on mice. That seems to say that no human study was done in the prior 20 plus years on humans! Where are the studies on humans of that combination and why don't doctors tell mammography patients to take vitamin A before the test, for protection. (There is scientific evidence that there is no absolutely safe level of radiation. If this is true, there is no excuse for the medical profession not to recommend to women to take protective nutrients before a mammogram! Similar measures should be taken before any X-ray including CAT scans. There are many sources which question the safety.) There is no reason not to take vitamin A, at least the MDR if not somewhat more, before a ionizing radiation test.
In another test; the administration of multiple dietary antioxidants (vitamins A, C, and E) reduces myelosuppression without protecting cancer cells in mice treated with radioimmunotherapy." Yes, results in mice often do not translate to humans, however, discussing studies such as this with your doctor might be very important. (There are many studies pointing to the probability that the vitamin combinations could be of major benefit in many health situations.)
The reality, in any case, is that cancer is an extremely complex subject and one either needs to get multiple medical opinions or to study the subject in some detail in order to make the best treatment choices. We recommend reading the books written by Ralph W. Moss Ph.D. an internationally known medical writer to understand the questions which should be asked and the options which are available in addition to standard medical therapies. We do not, however, advocate his positions as necessarily being correct but only put his books out there as representing questions which should be asked. Our studies of scientific articles also find some serious questions as to whether or not standard medicine alone is always the best option.
ANTIOXIDANT UPDATE (A doctor reporting on the benefits of melatonin in chemotherapy.)
Vitamin A produces astonishing leukemia cure rate, even without chemotherapy
Easing side-effects of radiation (King 5 TV on LED adjunct therapy.)
Nutrition can make the difference between life and death. We recommend the book; "Recalled by Life." This book was written by a doctor who beat terminal cancer via nutrition.
Surveys show "High cholesterol level makes a long life" (What if this is a correct conclusion? Would it be even more true for those fighting cancer? How does this relate to test which show Statin drugs (taken 5 plus years) apparently do not increase cancer risk and might even help? Even if they help in some cancers, is that true of all cancers? Statins and cancer.) One still wonders about 10 or 20 or more years of Statin use impacting overall health.
Questions For Your Oncologist in addition to the basic question of; Would there be any harm or risk in adding an anti-angiogenesis drug to my treatment?;
Resource Guide & Medical Database;: A Non Profit, Christian Medical Ministry
Tumors Without Disease (Sounds strange, but read paragraph "Tumors without disease" about half way down link page.)
New cancer drugs no 'magic bullet,' but promising, Source: Reuters News
Angiogenesis and preventing metastasis
New Website Launched To Help Cancer Patients Find Pain Relief
Study points to puzzle of calcium/cancer link. Milk (at least if not whole milk) may be bad for men because of prostate cancer calcium associations. From the link; " while low-fat milk showed some increased risk (RR of the third tertile over the first was 1.5 and 95% CI 2.2 compared with 1.1), no real increase was seen in whole milk consumers--" Note that the problem is with low fat milk alone and there is protection for women from colon cancer from whole milk and it is doubled when calcium supplements are also taken. (We would not, however, recommend calcium supplements or even drinking a lot of milk without also taking a vitamin D supplement. (We would also, not recommend milk at all unless it is organically produced (no hormones, etc.) by grass fed cows.) Calcium intake may lower ovarian cancer risk, some level of calcium is needed (but not too much) even to fight prostate cancer; Calcium fights prostate cancer. Calcium is a double edged sword, however, and if you have cancer getting more of it should only be done with a doctors approval. Men (prostate concern) should be especially careful with calcium.
Calcium and other nutrients and Colon Cancer (Again, with calcium, make certain it is OK with your doctor before taking calcium supplements, calcium is a vital role player in some cancer protection but also can be a negative in some cancers, and it is, however, not to be taken lightly and not by itself without your doctor's approval.)
Vitamin D boosts cancer treatment We are aware that another recent study gave no evidence of a benefit in cancer prevention by taking calcium and vitamin D supplements. That flies in the face of New England Journal of Medicine 1999; 340:101-107Understanding Angiogenesis which in a large double blind trial showed a very positive effect of calcium supplementation on colorectal adenomas. One wonders in the negative test what type of vitamin D was used (D2 or D3 or both (milk is fortified sometimes with D2 and sometimes with D3 (this later form the type made by your body with exposure to sunlight) and what amount of vitamin D was used (there is evidence that more than the MDR is required)). The best way to get vitamin D is to get sunlight on your skin and then not to wash your skin off for awhile. Sunlight and Vitamin D Vitamin D research may have doctors prescribing sunshine. Note that the benefit is limited to 10 to 20 minutes a day of unprotected exposure (if you don't get any sunburn) and note that to benefit from sun exposure one must have ergosterols from plants in the body to convert to vitamin D.
Sun : Good and Bad for Cancer (Studies indicate it is net good, considering all cancers.)
Sunlight Actually Prevents Cancer (Article by an M.D.)
Dietary Supplement Fact Sheet: Vitamin D (NIH office of dietary supplements.)
There is also the issue of whether or not a natural form from fish oil would have given a positive study result since the oil is important to absorption and utilization of vitamin D. and also the form of the calcium (powder capsule or hard pill) which can strongly effect absorption. D3 in fish oil form is good and additional good oils may also be necessary in the diet. Fish oil hope for breast cancer.
The Synergistic Approach: The Future of Nutrition Therapy.
Role of Copper in Angiogenesis (Some indication that Copper in our diet (eating liver for example) is more dangerous for cancer patients at least than generally realized.) About 3/4 way down link page. Zinc and N-Acetyl-Cysteine are copper antagonists which have antiangiogenesis activity. Definitely discuss the possible benefits or risks of these supplements with your doctor if you have cancer.
Cancer: Should Patients Take Dietary Supplements?
DO HERBS, VITAMINS, AND ANTIOXIDANTS ADVERSELY AFFECT CANCER THERAPIES?
Be careful even with unusual food. Soy is not always healthy if one has cancer. One needs to be especially careful with nutrition in the case of hormonal cancers (breast, uterine, ovarian, and prostate) as the following link study indicates; Physiological Concentrations of Dietary Genistein Dose-Dependently Stimulate Growth of Estrogen-Dependent Human Breast Cancer. Genistein has been proven to be of major benefit in other cancers but even though this study was with the tissue in mice, it would be prudent to rely on some of the other (many available) nutrients proven to be beneficial in the hormonal cancers. (This link can be found down the page on the above link and shows the benefits of Flaxseed in the same type of breast cancer.) Yes the study was only with breast cancer, but there are some molecular similarities with the other hormonal cancers and prudence says to avoid Soy and Genistein until science proves it to be OK in those cancers and Flaxseed would be a better choice of a beneficial nutrient.
Melatonin: From Basic Research to Cancer Treatment Clinics
Enhancing Antitumor Immunity Perioperatively.
Is Vitamin C Harmful to Cancer Patients?
How to Take Care of Yourself During Chemotherapy
Breast cancer research and treatment.
(The Dangers of Low Blood Cholesterol.)
This commercial site has some very interesting things to consider.
Dr. Folkman's War: Angiogenesis and the Defeat of Cancer.
Prostate Cancer Marker May Be Part Of Cancer Defense
Novel, Even Unlikely Drugs May Curb Childhood Leukemia
Cancer detection and prevention online. (International Society for Preventive Oncology)
The Future of COX-2 Painkillers in Cancer Research (Read paragraph on evaluating risks.)
Celebrex Antiangiogenesis Clinical Trials
Anti-Angiogenic Therapy for Sarcoma (See middle column on page 6.)
Adjuvant treatment of stage I lung cancer with high-dose vitamin A
Antioxidant Therapies And Radiation Treatment
Vitamin E succinate suppresses melanoma, The December 2002 issue of the Annals of Surgical Oncology (About half way down page.)
Another vote for calcium - colorectal cancer risk factor.
Use of aspirin or other NSAIDs increases survival for men with prostate cancer.
Food That Fights Off Cancer: What Science Knows Today
Beating Cancer With Nutrition (Nutrition as an adjunct to medical treatment only.)
The Real Health Risk Is NOT Taking Antioxidants Note the three dozen article references at bottom of link page.
NCI Clinical Trials Remember, while it could save your life, a double blind clinical trial is near a last resort, half of those enrolling may receive a placebo which may mean no treatment at all!
Researchers eyeing alternative pain treatment. Nerve-destroying chemical may offer new approach to ease intractable pain. (Ref. about half way down page of link.)
NIH pain related research. Refer to promising new approach "RTX" about half way down link.