You probably are not ready to read what I learned about traditional chemotherapy today. I have learned enough to know that if I ever am diagnosed with the big "C" word...I won't be going that route. No chemo, and especially no radiation...the later of which just kills the good cells in "their" attempt to wipe out the bad. Nope...there are alternative methods, and chemo has only had positive response with less than a handful of cancer types, including testicular (which is why Lance Armstrong makes such a good "poster child"), some lymphomas, childhood leukemias and Hodgkins.
Now, to verify what the word "respond" means when an oncologist says, "you have a good chance your tumor will respond"... Per the National Cancer Institute the official definition of response is a "50 percent decrease, or regression, in tumor size that last 4 weeks". Isn't it comforting to know that you go through that debilitating and nauseating treatment for a diagnostic such as that? I personally, don't care for the odds, the side effects, and subsequent illnesses from the treatments...i.e. radiation necrosis.
There certainly is a lot of hype about chemo - doctors are all set to push the "chemo button" as soon as the big C is diagnosed...of course that is how they are trained, so one cannot totally blame the doctors for being so one-sided when it comes to cancer treatment. Our friend Marv knew what the treatments would do to him, and he opted for quality of life in his last year. I don't blame him, and have actually learned from him.
Because of the books I am reading, my family may begin to think I am obsessed with cancer, and perhaps I am. Four friends were diagnosed in 2010, two had a scare. There is no doubt cancer is an epidemic with our pension for poor food quality and nutrition, exposure to toxins in our environment and radioactivity from our many gadgets. My real goal in all this reading is to PREVENT cancer in the first place. And should I, or a loved one ever get that dreaded diagnosis, I will already know the options of treatments available to us. I could not imagine going blindly into a diagnosis, in shell shock and robotic nodding of yes to whatever the doctor recommends. There is no way you can think clearly once such news is received, and I don't think there are too many people who would say, "hold on doc, I need some time to research this". Simply, we are not wired that way. We panic, freak out and yell, "get that alien form out of me!"
Today I read an inspirational story by a man who was diagnosed with stage IV brain cancer and was told nothing could be done. You can read Paul Leverett's story, and others at Cancer Guide: Inspirational Patient Stories. Paul survived, thanks to alternative treatment by a man the conventional medical community has labeled a quack, Dr. Stanislaw Burzynski, who treats patients in Texas. Thanks to Dr. B Paul's tumor shrunk, and disappeared. Unfortunately, he did end up with complications from the conventional treatment he had undergone first, including radiation necrosis which resulted in official disability.
I have read a number of other most grateful letters from parents, patients who consider themselves cured by alternative treatment. Traditional methods do not even dare use the word "cure" - there are no statistics to side with a cure claim for chemo/radiation. In fact, when a German scientist by the name of Abel was asked to compile cancer treatment statistics in a non-biased manner, having no association with big Pharma or cancer treatment centers, his report is what disclosed the four types of cancer that actually responded favorably to chemotherapy. The statistics were not favorable for other cancers, however, and his report was banned from the United States. Does that make you wonder, at least a little bit, about why?
My biggest wish this day is to put Suzanne Somers book, KNOCKOUT, into the hands of every person I know, and stand over them until they read it cover to cover. Of course this is not feasible, and unfortunately I realize so few will read this book, which could someday save your life. If Oprah wants to pick a book for her club that is worthy of reading and one that could impact lives, it would be KNOCKOUT. I urge you to see if your library has the book, or pick up a paperback copy for $15 (almost always on sale somewhere).
This book offers real hope, especially for those who have so little from their diagnosis, or who wish to be prepared for when their cancer comes out of remission. For people like me, it is more than an ounce of prevention... it is one more burning log on the fire to take control of my health and continue my journey to purely living.
My word for 2011 ...WELLNESS. It is my vision, my mantra, and a goal I intend to reach.
God bless,
Rita
No comments:
Post a Comment