Natural Health and Herbal Remedies Blog

There is a pre-cancer stage for lung cancer too but it is probably shorter and the cells are not often seen in cytology specimens. The next thing is that effective treatment is more possible if pre-cancer or cancer cells are found: part of or all of the cervix can be removed. We can remove part of the lungs but we can’t remove them all, for obvious reasons. Thus with cervix cancer it is fairly easy to get comprehensive samples for cytology tests, it has a longer and more readily identified precancer stage and it can be effectively dealt with once diagnosed (by complete surgical removal). These are the factors which result in screening picking up a higher proportion of curable cases than happens if we wait until patients get symptoms. While mentioning Pap smears, I’ll just take the opportunity to tell you that a clear Pap smear (when properly taken) only really rules out cancer of the cervix. Cancers of the uterus (womb) and ovaries are rarely diagnosed on Pap smears — it is a screening test only for cancer of the cervix.

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These X-rays and scans show up cancer lumps but do not help much when looking for meningeal involvement. To check for this a lumbar puncture is necessary. Under local anaesthetic, a fine needle is inserted into the fluid which surrounds and cushions the spinal cord and brain (the cerebro-spinal fluid or CSF). The pressure in the CSF can be measured through the needle and is an indication of the pressure throughout the central nervous system. A sample of fluid can be withdrawn for testing, including examination under the microscope for cancer cells. When done correctly, a lumbar puncture is not much more painful than a blood test. Headache can occur after a lumbar puncture. These headaches are thought to be due to CSF continuing to leak out through the tiny hole in the meningeal covering. To reduce the chance of this happening, you may be advised to lie flat for some hours after the lumbar puncture.

Central nervous system symptoms can also result from cancer deposits pressing on a part of the central nervous system from the outside.

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Bee Pollen

Bee pollen is a powder-like material produced by the anthers of flowering plants and gathered by bees. Bees collect this powder, moisten it with nectar and pack it into ‘pollen baskets’ or sacs on their backs. Then they hand over their precious load to the ‘nurse bees’. This pollen is then made into royal jelly, to feed the young developing bee larvae. It is composed of 10 to 25 per cent protein and also contains 18 amino acids, 28 minerals, 11 enzymes and 14 fatty acids, as well as  complex vitamins, vitamin C, carotene, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, potassium, manganese, sodium, plant sterols and simple sugars. Many health promoters now advertise bee pollen as a ‘perfect food’.

Bee pollen has anti-microbial and antibiotic properties. It is useful for combating cancer, pollution, radiation, fatigue, depression and colon disorders. It also has a strengthening and stimulating effect on the body’s immune system. Bee pollen is believed to prevent cancer and may reduce the possibility of tumours if taken regularly. Research indicates that beekeepers as a whole display lower rates of cancer compared to other occupations studied.

The Chinese have used bee pollen for centuries to prevent prostate enlargement, slow down the ageing process, reduce radiation sickness in cancer patients and to boost endurance and strength. Scientists are only just beginning to unlock the amazing disease-prevention properties found within this unique pollen.

Some people can be allergic to bee pollen. It is best to try a small amount first and determine if a rash, wheezing or any other signs of discomfort occur. If allergic symptoms occur, discontinue use.

Bryostatins

Bryostatins are ocean invertebrates called Bugulaneritina (sea mats or corallines). Scientists have isolated a chemical from bryostatins called lactones. Lactones boost immunity through interleukin-2 and T-type white blood cells. They are believed to inhibit the growth of cancerous cells, especially leukaemia. Bryostatins decrease cell growth and spread in some forms of cancer.

Chlorophyll

Chlorophyll is an effective blood builder, cleansing agent, a natural antibiotic and is also able to chelate heavy metals and toxins from the body. Chlorophyll is the substance that makes plants green and is responsible for photosynthesis. Chlorophyll is a rich source of beta-carotene, folic acid, vitamin Ê (needed for blood clotting) and enzymes. The molecular structure of chlorophyll resembles that of haemoglobin, the oxygen-carrying protein of red blood cells.

The key difference between haemoglobin and chlorophyll is the metallic atom in the middle of each molecule of human haemoglobin is iron and the metallic atom m the middle of chlorophyll is magnesium. Blue-green algae, spirulina, chlorella wheat grass, parsley, barley grass, broccoli and dark green leafy vegetables are rich sources of chlorophyll.

The active ingredient in chlorophyll, chlorophyllin is known to have strong anti-muta-genic, anti-tumour and antioxidant properties. Research carried out at the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), in the United States, tested a variety of complex, cancer-causing substances. These included fried beef, shredded pork, red wine, cigarette smoke, tobacco snuff, chewing tobacco, airborne particles, coal, dust and diesel emission particles. Chlorophyllin stopped mutations in eight out of 10 of these tests. In 1991, scientists at the Center for Health Sciences and Toxicology, in the United States tested chlorophyllin against one of the most potent carcinogens known, aflatoxin. Results showed that chlorophyllin almost completely inhibited the mutagenicity of this carcinogen. This makes chlorophyll useful in the prevention of many different types of cancer.

Chlorophyll has a soothing and healing effect on the mucosal lining and it has been used for skin ulcers, as a blood builder for anaemia, and to help detoxify the liver and kidneys.

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Nutritional support is essential to feed your immune system, to beat cancer and to give you the strength to better tolerate cancer treatments. Eating a wholefoods diet composed of fresh fruits and vegetables will provide important vitamins, minerals and fibre necessary to reduce tumour size and eradicate unwanted cancer cells. Certain foods provide specific cancer-fighting biochemicals, called phytochemicals.

I found diet to be one of the most important supporting therapies available to me in my fight against cancer. Not only did it decrease my tumour size very rapidly, but also provided the right nutrients to maintain good energy levels, balanced emotions and prevented a variety of side effects caused from orthodox medical treatment. Follow the dietary recommendations listed below to prevent and conquer cancer, and to support your body’s immune system:

• Remove all refined, processed and devitalized foods from your diet. For example, aged, bruised, mouldy and deep-fried foods. Remove foods with additives, colours, flavours, white flour products, low/no nutrient foods and sugar-rich foods. Be aware of the effects of certain preservatives and colourings found in foods.

• Reduce or avoid the intake of foods that contain natural carcinogens such as smoked, pickled or barbecued foods. Avoid foods that contain artificial sweeteners such as saccharin, artificial colours, nitrates and nitrites.

• Reduce or avoid fat and deep fried foods – a high intake of these foods has been linked to breast, colon, ovarian and prostate cancers. A low-fat diet is thought to slow the spread of non-melanoma skin cancers. Always use olive oil in your cooking and flaxseed oil on your salads. Use avocado instead of margarine.

• Avoid tea and coffee. Tea (over three cups/day) depletes the body of zinc and iron. Coffee (over two cups/day) depletes adrenal gland function and congests the body’s liver. Use herbal teas as an alternative. Specific herbal teas used to fight cancer include red clover tea, pau d’arco tea, astragalus tea, dandelion tea, echinacea tea, essiac tea and green tea. Green tea contains polyphenols which stop the enzymes of cancer-producing substances. Chaparral tea is believed to have potent anti-tumour properties (use in moderation under professional guidance).

• Avoid alcohol, cigarette smoke and drugs.

• If you are in an occupation where you are exposed to chemicals or man-made electromagnetic frequencies, for example, farmers working with pesticides, miners and plastic makers in factories etc. try to avoid. If you cannot leave this occupation, take plenty of antioxidants and glutathione to detoxify heavy metals.

• Try to buy organic produce. Avoid all hormonally treated meats such as poultry and beef. Try to buy free range poultry, eggs and grain fed meats.

• Avoid irradiated foods and pesticide sprayed foods.

• Do not consume peanuts, junk foods, soft drinks, salt and sugar. Instead of salt use kelp, sea salt or a natural salt substitute.

• Try to avoid most yeast foods such as Vegemite, Promite and yeast powders.

• Limit your consumption of full fat dairy products. A small amount of natural acidophilus yogurt, ricotta cheese and cottage cheese is recommended. Fermented foods that contain lactobacillus acidophilus such as yogurt are essential to good digestive health. Sauerkraut is also very good. Soy milk is beneficial as it contains a compound called genistein, which is believed to inhibit oestrogen and hormonally sensitive tumours, particularly breast tumours.

• Foods to be eaten in high amounts include broccoli, soybeans, shitake mushrooms, mung beans, red dates, lentils, olives, organic citrus peel, sesame seeds, almonds, parsley and seaweeds.

• Eat five to six small meals per day to keep blood sugar levels balanced and to allow for plenty of nutrient-rich variety in your diet.

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Discovering you have cancer or any serious illness is both a shocking and life-altering experience. It tends to stir up a whirlpool of mixed emotions that swirl around inside your head, making your normal thinking processes cloudy and unfocused.

There are so many stages we must go through to fully accept the fact that we have developed a possible life-threatening condition. We all experience these stages at different times and in varying degrees. I may feel immediate denial, whereas someone else may feel immediate anger and blame. Every person is different, which is what makes us unique and individual in our responses, reactions and healing capacity.

As soon as you hear the word cancer, it is natural to panic. Don’t panic, it is not going to kill you today or tomorrow, as many people believe, and don’t let anyone rush you into any decisions. Cancer can be such an overwhelming and all-consuming experience; it is easy to let others make your decisions for you about which direction is best suited to your needs, right then and there. You do have time. Take a deep breath, sit down, make every effort to relax and write down your possible options.

If you know something is going to happen, don’t just watch it and let it control you – take charge and control it. Take control of the direction of your illness, your cancer and your health. For instance, if you plan to undergo chemotherapy and you know you are going to lose your hair, go out and get a beautiful short hairstyle that you may have been too afraid to try before. Or if you are aware that you are going to have an operation, take steps to build up your strength, nutritional levels and health before the operation to ensure a more rapid and successful recovery. By making the first move and controlling your destiny, you have not given your personal power away to anyone.

Letting someone else make all of your decisions about your health forces you to lose your confidence, decision-making ability, self-worth and personal strength. It can leave you feeling weak and at the mercy of the course of the illness, as preordained by those in so-called authority or more knowledgeable positions. No one is more knowledgeable about your body, than YOU! Your body is your temple; you have lived in this beautiful place since the day you were born. Ultimately you know what works best for your body, what feels great and what enhances your health, more than someone who has spent a few minutes with you on several occasions.

You may have slipped off the path a little in some way or overburdened your body, forcing it to go into a state of illness. But this is the perfect chance to re-grasp your power and natural self-healing knowledge. Find out every detail about your condition and make positive steps to walk ahead on the right path to health, happiness and self-fulfillment.

Many times we do need the expert opinions of medical professionals who have spent many years working with cancer and other chronic illnesses. It must also be understood that many doctors who work with cancer know only limited and tried treatment protocols, and many do not want to stray from this set regimen. Never hand your decision-making ability over to anyone else.

Often we have pushed our bodies to the limit and forced them to go into a state of serious collapse or illness. You have the ability to work hand-in-hand with the practitioner of your choice, whether you choose an orthodox practitioner or an alternative therapist, to discover the treatments that work best for you and to guide your body and spirit back towards better health and well-being. What a fulfilling and satisfying experience it is, to have taken part in the process of your own self-healing!

If you are worried about whom to trust when dealing with your cancer, learn to trust yourself first. Use your own intuition; let it guide you in the direction that is right for you. Listen to all avenues, all arguments and advice, seek knowledge about your condition and ask yourself whether the practitioner working with you has the ability to treat a condition such as yours and why. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to arm yourself with knowledge, find out everything about your condition and available treatment options. If you go into this forearmed with the right information, you will maintain your self-confidence and personal power without having to feel helpless. Make sure you understand all of the good news about your cancer and that you are happy with your treatment, so you remain positive and optimistic throughout.

Taking control, even in the smallest way, enables us to learn how to master other areas of our lives. Very often when we are sick, we are caught up in a feeling of helplessness or uselessness. We need to take a part in our own healing process in order to feel useful and essential in life. All too often we give this power away and block ourselves from feeling pride in our accomplishments, our achievements and in our mastery over our health.

Having cancer is a turning mark in one’s life. It is an opportunity to grasp change in a positive and life-transforming way, to release hurts, past traumas and long standing resentments. It enables you to take charge of your life and to ride on life’s back like a wild tiger. Life is a daring adventure, giving us opportunities to change and grow. We often only get one chance. By taking an active role, no matter how small, in your own healing you open the doors to health, happiness and contentment. What a beautiful and ever-changing experience life can be! Seize this opportunity to take part in your own healing process and watch the miracle and magic of life unfold.

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Diet

• Try to eat small amounts of food often. Eat six small meals a day instead of three large ones. Take at least one bite of food each hour to keep food in your stomach. An empty or full stomach can cause discomfort.

• Avoid greasy, fatty or fried foods. Plain foods are better tolerated than spicy foods.

• Do not eat large amounts of food prior to treatment.

• Regular sips of cool, clear drinks are useful, especially if you don’t feel like eating solid food. Drink plenty of liquids, especially energy-dense vegetable juices, fruit juices, ice cubes and soups.

• Fresh salads are easy to digest.

• Barley water is also useful.

• Try blending your meals into liquid form, warming and eating like soups.

• Treat yourself to your favourite healthy foods. Small meals eaten frequently will prevent nausea and maintain energy levels.

Beneficial Foods

• Ginger is great for nausea. You can chew on ginger or use it in your soups or cooking.

• Mustard seeds in cooking have also been used to decrease nausea.

• Olives helps to dry the mouth and minimize excess liquid that adds to stomach queasiness.

• Crackers or dry toast in the morning is helpful if you can’t face a large meal.

• Eat fresh fruits such as papaya, pineapple, apples, grapefruit and watermelon if you feel queasy in the stomach.

• Try drinking water mixed with baking soda to ease nausea. This reportedly works by neutralizing stomach acids. Alternatively, try a glass of water with a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar.

Vitamins and Nutrients

• Try supplements containing slippery elm, glutamine, glucosamine, fructo-oligosaccharides, acidophilus, citrus pectin, aloe vera and pysllium husk – take 1 teaspoon in water 3 to 4 times/day. These nutrients in combination provide quick relief from the dreaded nausea; they also help to protect and repair the gut lining and prevent diarrhoea and constipation.

Take 120 mg of zinc and 50 mg of vitamin B6 per day

Herbs

Ginger root (1 to 3 grams of the dried root per day) will decrease nausea. Cinnamon sticks and cardamom seeds (approximately 8 seeds) may alleviate nausea. Use a nut or coffee grinder, place mixture in a jar and use one teaspoon in boiling water.

Goldenseal root (1 or 2 capsules 3 to 4 times/day – do not take for more than one week) is believed to ease nausea.

• Swedish Bitters formula (contains gentian, calamus, angelica, turmeric and many more) – 1 teaspoon in 60 ml of water, sipped over 20 minutes.

• Cloves taken as an infusion or take 1 to 2 drops of essential oil on food or clove powder sprinkled onto food.

Herbal Teas

• Ginger tea made with fresh grated ginger (1 teaspoon in boiling water) is very helpful in easing nausea.

• Other useful herbs include peppermint tea, meadowsweet tea, grapefruit (the tea is made from fresh grapefruit peel), peach tea, chamomile tea, raspberry leaf tea (600 ml of boiled water poured over 2 rounded teaspoons of dried raspberry leaves or chamomile leaves. Steep, strain and drink throughout the day.)

Homeopathics

• Ipecac is effective (prescribed by a homeopath).

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Cancer almost inevitably involves some type of surgery – although not always. For example, cancer of the cervix is normally removed with laser treatment, depending on the severity of the cancer.

Before surgery, very little information is given to the patient as to the side effects, symptoms, emotions experienced and lack of movement felt after surgery. It is important to find out how you can be best prepared for surgery to ensure a rapid and successful recovery. Yet again, remember to ask as many questions as possible concerning your treatment.

Some common questions and answers concerning surgery are below.

Q. Will my bowels function normally after surgery?

A. NO, not immediately. The doctors give you a surfactant before the surgery to clean out the bowels and basically shut them down. You may find it difficult to go to the toilet for a number of days after the surgery. This can be very painful, as gas accumulates in the bowel due to lack of movement. Many believe this is more painful than having a child and very little orthodox treatment is given to ease this pain. Solid food should be avoided until the first gas release, as it simply makes the gas worse. Peppermint herbal tea, ginger tea, aloe vera juice or chamomile tea is very good for flatulence and gas.

Q. Will my body movement be normal after surgery?

A. NO, not immediately. It can often take three months to fully recover from cancer surgery, depending on a person’s age and health before surgery. As the skin and muscle tissue are being cut open and internal/external stitches inserted, body movement is often very painful and limited following surgery. Pain relief is given in the form of drugs. However, this can limit your movement further. It is advisable to work with a physiotherapist on gentle exercises to rebuild muscle strength and to avoid damaging the wound. Yoga and Tai Chi postures are also very useful. Remember, the healthier you are before surgery, the healthier and quicker you will recover after surgery.

Q. Will my energy levels return to normal after surgery?

A. YES, in time. Anaesthetics and other drugs, coupled with the stress of a major operation, tend to exhaust the body’s energy levels. You must give your body time to regain its energy levels by sleeping as much as the body requires, and by supporting the body with good nutrition and natural supplements.

If you have taken time to enhance your body’s immune system, strength and energy levels before surgery, you will find your energy levels will improve rapidly following surgery. For many people it can take up to three months to fully regain energy levels after surgery. If you provide the body with the right nutrients, including a high protein intake, plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds, the appropriate natural supplements and adequate rest, your energy levels will improve much faster.

Q. Are there any other medical procedures I should be aware of?

A. YES. You are rarely informed that a catheter may be inserted into your body to drain fluid. This is a long metal or plastic tube inserted into the body (anywhere from three centimeters to 10 centimeters long) and used to drain unnecessary fluid out of the body. When this is removed, you are given little warning. In my case the nurse held me down and quickly pulled the metal tube out. It became stuck due to the skin healing around it and she merely pulled harder a second time. I was offered no pain relief or warning. No doubt I screamed ‘blue murder’, as the pain was quite intense.

A tube connected to a bag may also be inserted into your vagina/penis to eliminate urine. A drip is put into your wrist, to feed your body with the right nutrients, saline and pain medication, usually morphine, although pethidine is also used. Therefore, be aware – you may wake up with many tubes running from your body into bags and this can be shocking for you and also your family and friends. To be forewarned is less of a shock for all involved.

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