Navigation MenuPart I - Cancer Industry Overview:
Part II - Initial Diagnosis of Cancer: Part III - Cancer Therapy Options: Part IV - Nutrition for Cancer: Part V - More Cancer Resources: Part VI - Cancer Medical Terms: Part VII - Survivor Characteristics: Part VIII - Self-help Approaches: Part IX - Testimonials of Survivors: Part X - Forum for Patients: Part XI - What I would do: Part XII - Recent Developments: Part XIII - Other Cancer Info: |
Part XI - What I would do if I was diagnosed with cancer?Because cancer treatment is such a sensitive issue, I need to first make some caveats before I tell you what I would do if I was diagnosed with cancer. What follows is what I personally would do. It is not a recommendation for what others may want to do, and should not be considered as such. The choices to be made in treating cancer are not easy ones because there are so many therapy options available and there are no guarantees that any particular or combination of therapies will result in a cure. Speaking of a cure, it should be noted that a cure does not necessarily have to mean killing all the cancer cells. Putting cancer into remission and living with cancer, similar to living with other diseases such as arthritis, can be considered a cure and may not be the ultimate cause of your inevitable passing. The course that someone chooses to take in fighting cancer is a very personal one reflecting that person’s beliefs, degree of cancer involvement and location, knowledge of treatment options, and confidence in their healthcare provider.
So in this hypothetical example, if I was diagnosed with cancer, I would take the following actions: 1) First, I would get a second opinion from a different medical center, preferably one that is well known for treating cancer in general, and if possible one that is considered a leader in treating that particular type of cancer and then attempt to work with the leading oncologist at that site. I have provided a list of the top overall cancer centers elsewhere in this website, and as an example of the latter, if I was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma (NHL), I would go to the University of Nebraska Medical Center and want to meet with Dr. Julie Vose: University of Nebraska Medical Center (however, you need to be diagnosed with NHL before you can schedule an appointment with her) or if I was diagnosed with Prostate Cancer, I would want to consult with Dr. Stephen Strum in Ashland, Oregon, one of the leading authorities on that type of cancer: Us TOO Intl. 2) Secondly, I would request a cancer report for that type of cancer from Ralph Moss, Ph.D., a former employee at Memorial Sloan Kettering in New York City, who is one of the most knowledgeable writers in the world on complementary therapies and “Integrative Cancer Care”. These reports are available at: CancerDecisions. After reading that report, I would schedule a phone consultation with him to discuss therapy options. 3) Next, I would develop a comprehensive “cancer battle plan”, which I describe in great detail elsewhere on this website. 4) Lastly, having already researched where to get a second opinion, which is where and with whom I might seek conventional treatment, I would begin to research other medical centers that provide “Integrative Cancer Care”, many of which have links included in this website . I would also find the Physicians Data Query (PDQ) on the Internet for my type of cancer, which is published by the National Cancer Institute and provides information on conventional treatment typically given for various stages of that type of cancer. 5) I would then attempt to obtain a tissue sample of my cancer, either from surgery or a biopsy, to send to Dr. Robert Nagourney’s Rational Therapeutics Labs in California for chemosensitivity or predictive testing to see what chemo drugs would kill my cancer: Rational Therapeutics. If I decided to have chemotherapy, in addition to using the results of chemosensitivity testing, I would seriously consider the cronomodulated approach to administer the chemo used by Dr. Keith Bloch at his cancer center in Evanston, ILL. A link to his center and a discussion of the efficacy of this approach is shown at the following link: Block Center. As an alternative, I would also give serious consideration to using Insulin Potentiation Therapy (IPT) for delivery of the chemotherapy at the EuroMed Foundation in Phoenix, AZ. http://www.euro-med.us/ Before chemo or radiation therapy I would also begin taking glutamine and WobenzymeN supplements, the former to reduce the side effects of chemo and radiation and the latter to assist the immune system in identifying the cancer cells. I would also begin taking Vitamin C and gradually building up the dosage to 20,000 mg. It’s important to note that you can’t take high dosages at the outset as it will cause serious cramping and possibly diarrhea. Many alternative cancer centers give Vitamin C intravenously. This is based on the work of Linus Pauling and later research at Johns Hopkins, the latter being described at this link: ScienceDaily. 6) Depending on the stage of the cancer, I would likely elect surgery with “clear margins” if either stage I or II, and possibly a debulking surgery (a reduction in tumor mass) if stage III or IV. This is when I would request that cancer tissue be preserved per the instructions from the testing lab mentioned above. In the event of a stage III or IV diagnosis, I would also be giving serious consideration to going to one of the German Clinics mentioned in the following link: German Cancer Clinics. 7) I would make a final decision on the course of treatment based on the consultations with those mentioned above and my personal research. 8) I would immediately adopt a nutritional diet that is most beneficial for cancer patients. One of the leading authorities in this area is Dr. Patrick Quillin, formerly associated with the Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA). His book “Beating Cancer with Nutrition” is an excellent nutritional guide for cancer patients: 4nutrition.com. 9) Lastly, I would attempt to find ways to reduce stress and request being put on a prayer chain. There have been studies done that prove the negative effects of stress and the positive effects of prayer on healing. |