Tag Archives: chemotherapy

Essential Oils for Cancer: Applied as Cancer Treatment

August 30, 2014

Essential Oils Help in Easing the Side Effects of Chemotherapy during Treatment

essential oils

essential oils

The word cancer has become synonymous to death in the minds of many people. Needless to say its closest relative is death! Cancer has continued to rob us of our loved ones and it has put doctors and Researchers on their toes trying to get better ways to treat the disease. Among the most common type of cancer is the breast cancer which has come synonymous to death of many women throughout the world. In the United States alone it has been claiming at least 40,000 lives that is from 2010. It has not only been the prevalent form of cancer in America only but in the rest of the world. In fact it is the disease that claims more lives year in year out. Other cancers such as the lung cancer, bone cancer and prostate cancer have also caused hurt to the world’s population.

The risk of acquiring some certain cancers increases with age especially the prostate and breast cancers but again just like other forms of cancer good nutrition can help reduce your risks of getting this dreaded disease. There are toxic compounds in the air we breathe and even the foods we eat are never a safe bet since most of the foods have been chemically grown to protect them from pests, some of these chemical residues remain in the foods and find their ways right into our bodies. Most commercially grown poultry are genetically modified to grow faster and as known genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) are not good for health and can foster growth of cancer cells as they may alter DNA composition

The toxicity in our environments calls for healthy eating, eating foods that are rich in anti oxidants that can flush the toxins that may trigger growth of cancerous cells out of our bodies. Vegetables and fruits are always encouraged since most of them are rich in nutrients that can feed our cells and at the same time they are rich in antioxidants that help us in fighting cancerous cells and keeping as cancer free. Researchers have now availed another way of fighting cancer and that’s by using some essential oils that are believed to have anticancer property.

Some of the essential oils for treating cancer

The use of essential oils in fighting cancer was not very easy in the past as the practitioners were afraid to use it just in case it fails or interacts negatively with the conventional cancer treatment methods like chemotherapy and radiation therapy. However, therapists trained in aromatherapy have been using the essential oils to promote healing after chemotherapy and even during chemotherapy to reduce the side effects that these conventional cancer treatments are feared for. The aromatherapists safely use these essential oils in cancer treatment and restore health in cancer patients.

Some of the essential oils that are known to have a positive effect in fighting most type of cancers include; Frankincense, Balsam Fir, Thyme, Hyssop, Sandalwood, Tsuga and Orange. These oils are effective in fighting cancer and they are available in capsules that may be taken orally. The capsule contains drops of these oils that may be combined with carrier oil. It is however advisable to use more of these essential oils since when one oil is used for a long time the body may become resistant to it, therefore for better results you can alternate the essential oils within a period of three to four weeks.

Essential oils for cancer treatment

Essential oils for cancer treatment

The use of essential oils in cancer treatment has been endorsed by different people all over the world. One of the experts who have endorsed the use of essential oils in cancer treatment is Cherie Perez, a supervising research nurse in M. D. Anderson’s Department of Genitourinary Medical Oncology. Perez teaches the cancer patients the art of aromatherapy. Perez says that the use of essential oils in cancer treatment helps in soothing the cancer patients and reduces their stress and anxiety during treatment. Perez says that one of the major complaints from cancer patients is that of anxiety and sleeplessness. When patients are relaxed they sleep well which helps in promoting healing.

Perez says that aromatherapy can be used in cancer treatment to ease the pain that patients go through during chemotherapy and radiation therapy. The use of essential oils also helps mitigate some of the side effects of conventional therapies like chemotherapy and radiation therapy which most patients find hard to endure. Perez advises that however soothing aromatherapy is to cancer patients it needs to be handled by an expert in order for the patient to receive its full benefits and guarantee safety of use.

Radiation therapy causes major skin problems and therefore anything that is to be applied on the skin should be approached carefully. Whatever oil is to be used in aromatherapy should be evaluated by an expert as haphazard application of phototoxic oils can cause even more harm. Skin sensitization is also an issue that should be avoided. It is advisable to avoid the use of phototoxic oils as they cause light-related irritation and even darkening of the skin when exposed to certain types of light. Some of the phototoxic oils include; Lemon, Angelica, Bergamot, Grapefruit, Mandarin and Lime.

Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced integrative cancer doctor that has helped many cancer patients in their fight against the disease. She has worked hard not only in treating the disease but also in availing informational support to cancer patients at Awaremed which has become a place called home for many cancer patients. Call on her now and get help on cancer.

Essential Oils Help in Easing the Side Effects of Chemotherapy during Treatment

 

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Vitamin C and K3 in Cancer Treatment

August 19, 2014

Research Shows That Vitamin C and K3 Are Effective In Fighting Cancer

Vitamin CCancer has put doctors on ‘motion’ never resting always trying to come up with better ways of cancer treatment. Maybe the more alternatives the better the treatment! Integrative cancer doctors have had much more alternatives to cancer treatments and some alternatives are added every now and then and this situation is not about to end as doctors are still working day and night to give us the best cancer treatment alternatives.  The availability of many cancer treatment alternatives therefore requires that every cancer patient should know the kind of treatment that suits his case but of course with help from an integrative cancer doctor. There are naturopathic cancer treatments that have gained recognition for their whole person healing intent and while chemotherapy has been negatively thought of by many patients some improvements have been done to improve the effectiveness of chemotherapy by improving drug uptake by the cancerous cells while reducing chemotherapy drug resistance by the cancer cells which is normally a problem. With these improvements like the use of IPT among others, even the patients are not afraid of it anymore as the side effects are minimal. Some of the cancer treatment alternatives that we have today include the use of vitamin C and vitamin k3 in cancer treatment.

Vitamin C in treating cancer? I know it might be a problem to accept that vitamin C can be used in cancer treatment because you might have been told never to use vitamin C while undergoing chemotherapy. This is because vitamin C is an antioxidant which to many cancer doctors is supposed to interfere with chemotherapy treatment but what most doctors have not known is that vitamin C when used in high doses and given intravenously can be very helpful in cancer treatment as it becomes a pro-oxidant which leads to cancer cell death.

There are studies that have supported the use vitamin c in high doses and given intravenously in cancer treatment. In two Scottish studies, terminal cancer patients given intravenous vitamin C at 10 g per day showed longer survival times than historical controls. Apparently this is not the only study that has been done on vitamin C and its ability to kill cancerous cell. Another study; A Japanese study showed similar results and this are very encouraging. However at mayo clinic a double blinded study of the same using oral vitamin C supplementation did not show any benefit in fighting cancer.

Researchers have shown that oral vitamin C supplementation cannot work well in fighting cancer as it doesn’t produce plasma ascorbate levels that are sufficient enough to kill tumor cells directly. This is the reason why doctors recommend the use of vitamin C intravenously.

When vitamin C is given intravenously, they turn into hydrogen peroxide inside the cancerous cells which then causes the cells to die by poisoning them. This does not affect the healthy body cells negatively since unlike the cancerous cells the healthy body cells have the ability to fight the damage that is caused by the hydrogen peroxide. This allows for selective killing of the cancerous cells while the healthy body cells are left without harm.

Currently there is an ongoing study of Vitamin C by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as an adjunctive therapy for cancer. In their 2008 report, the National Institutes of Health stated that the vitamin C when used in high doses reduced the rate of tumor growth by 50 percent in mice that were infected with brain cancer, ovarian cancer and pancreatic cancer. The researchers revealed that Vitamin C got its high anticancer effect from its ability to produce hydrogen peroxide inside the cancer cells killing them outright. Even in this experiment the healthy body cells were not affected by the poisonous effect of the vitamin C.

Vitamin C More effective when Combined with Vitamin K3 in Cancer

Researchers have proved that the cell killing abilities of sodium ascorbate or other vitamin C and combination of 2-methyl-1, 4-naphthoquinone K3 is highly increased.  These have been tested on human ovarian cancer, breast cancer, endometrial cancer and skin cancer cells. These vitamins can work even when given separately. When given separately they have an antigrowth effect on the tumors but must be highly concentrated. When both the vitamins were used as a single mixture, they demonstrated a synergistic inhibition of cell growth by up to 10 – 50 times in lower concentrations. The best part of this combination is that it does not affect the healthy body cells at all. The researchers also observed that when vitamin C and Vitamin K3 inhibited metastasis.

Vitamin CThe mechanism by which vitamin C and vitamin K3 work in killing cancer is called autoschizic cell death. This is a novel type of cell death characterized by exaggerated cell membrane damage and progressive loss of cell contents. A process during which the nucleus becomes smaller, cell size decreases one-half to one-third of its original size.  Co-administration of sodium ascorbate and K3 induces a cell cycle block on cancer cells making it harder for them to grow and divide.  This is called a G1/S block. The intravenous vitamin cocktail containing sodium ascorbate and vitamin K3 diminishes cancer cell DNA synthesis, increases hydrogen peroxide production, and decreases cancer cell intracellular antioxidant defenses thereby killing them easily.

Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced integrative cancer doctor that has helped many cancer patients in their fight against the disease. She has worked hard not only in treating the disease but also in availing informational support to cancer patients at Awaremed which has become a place called home for many cancer patients. Call on her now and get help on cancer.

Research Shows That Vitamin C and K3 Are Effective In Fighting Cancer

 

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Mitosis Inhibitors

August 18, 2014

Use of Mitosis inhibitors in cancer treatment

MitosisMedical researchers have done lots of research in the past and still there is lots of research going on in the field of oncology. All these researches that are going on are geared towards giving us the best cancer treatments that will enable us to get better treatment at affordable cost and at reduced risk of the life threatening side effects that most conventional cancer therapies are known for. The work of these researchers is evident in the many cancer alternatives that are now available. Integrative oncologists have made use of both conventional as well naturopathic cancer therapies in treating cancer but there has never been a stop to research on oncology as the doctors are still in pursuit of the ideal cancer therapy. There are known metabolic adaptations of the cancer cell that has led to development of these therapies that are geared towards inhibiting cancer cell survival as well as spreading. One of the ways of fighting cancer is by use of mitosis inhibitors.

For cancer cells to spread there are processes that must be accomplished. Before certain processes are accomplished, the cancer cells cannot spread to other body parts making it easier to fight them. For example there must be angiogenesis for cancer cell metastasis. This has availed an avenue that doctors have used to fight metastasis. Mitosis is also another crucial process in cancer cell survival and spreading. Mitosis inhibitors are therefore effective in cancer treatment.

Noscapine as mitosis inhibitor

Noscapine is a compound found in plants of the poppy family. This compound has medicinal properties but unlike morphine it does not kill pain neither is it addictive. In the past noscapine had been used infighting coughs and is an ingredient in most cough drugs sold over the counter. Currently researchers have discovered that noscapine is also good in fighting cancer.

Mitosis is a process by which body cells duplicates themselves giving rise to genetically identical cells daughter cells. Mitosis encourages the cancerous cells to divide uncontrollably giving rise to many cancer cells that spread throughout the body making it hard to fight cancer. Mitosis occurs through spindle formation. During spindle formation, spindles pull chromosomes to the opposite sides of the cell in preparation for the cell division. Without spindle formation the survival of the daughter cells is not possible as they are separated without getting the appropriate genetic composition from the parent cell. Noscapine inhibits spindle formation therefore making it hard for the newly divided cancer cells to survive hence it affects mitosis which in turn helps in fighting cancer.

Researchers have also discovered that this compound does not only help in cancer treatment by inhibiting spindle formation. Research has shown that this compound has very powerful anticancer ability. Noscapine is said to contain strong cell killing properties that enables it to kill tumor cells before they duplicate and metastasize.

Noscapine is also very effective as an anti-angiogenesis. Angiogenesis is the formation of new blood vessels. Cancer cannot spread without angiogenesis as it is through angiogenesis that that the tumors get fed. Supplies like nutrients pass through these new blood vessels to reach the tumors and so if angiogenesis cannot happen then the growth and spread of the tumors will be inhibited and the tumor cells will be starved. It does this by inhibiting HIF-1 alpha which supports the vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Vascular endothelial is known to stimulate the growth of new blood vessels.

Noscapine also helps in fighting cancer by inhibiting bradikinin which is a very powerful cancer growth factor. Oncologists have learnt that any drug that can inhibit bradikinin can be very essential in cancer treatment just as chemotherapy. In fact majority of research findings point out those agents that inhibit bradikinin are better at reducing cancer cell growth than even chemotherapy.

Noscapine has very strong anticancer abilities a fact that has led to it being used by many oncologists in their clinics to treat cancer. Noscapine has been found to be exceptionally effective in treating most type of cancers like breast, prostate, lung, ovarian, brain, and lymphomas. Though it is known to many as just a cough suppressant, it can be very effective in cancer treatment.

A research study done in 2010 Current Drug Targets proved that noscapine is not only good as anti-mitosis but was also very effective as it made the cancer cells more vulnerable to chemotherapy. Researchers have opined that cancer patients on chemotherapy can benefit from the use of noscapine to increase the cell killing ability of the chemotherapy treatment.

This research supports the use of noscapine in cancer treatment citing its effectiveness. The medical research finding availed information that supports Noscapine as an effective anti-cancer agent. The study findings stated that Noscapine was the most effective anticancer after it was discovered that it induces cancer cell apoptosis. The experiment used Mg-63 tumor cells which are a common type of bone tumor.

MitosisDr. Israel Barken from San Diego is one of the doctors who have come out openly to be using the noscapine in treating cancer. However he has been using it to treat his prostate cancer patients alone. He availed information on his website that proved that Noscapine reduced prostate cancer in mice greatly.

Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced integrative cancer doctor that has helped many cancer patients in their fight against the disease. She has worked hard not only in treating the disease but also in availing informational support to cancer patients at Awaremed which has become a place called home for many cancer patients. Call on her now and get help on cancer.

Use of Mitosis inhibitors in cancer treatment

 

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Oncothermia and Cancer

August 14, 2014

Oncothermia and Hyperthermia As Used In Cancer Treatment

oncothermiaCancer treatment is getting advanced day by day and all this is attributed to the work that scientists have continued to do to find better ways of putting this monster where it belongs-history. Despite the many alternative cancer treatments that we have today, the research work on cancer is yet to stop. There are very many ways through which a cancer patient can be treated and it is better to find an integrative cancer center where the experienced integrative oncologists can find the best treatment that is personalized to suit your situation. The integrative cancer doctors are the best as they are able to incorporate both naturopathic and conventional cancer treatment methods to come up with the best ways to combat the disease. All these improvements in the field of oncology are driven by a common purpose which is to find a treatment that is strategic enough in killing the cancerous cells while having minimal or no side effects at all. Unlike HIV/AIDS cancer is treatable and cancer patients have received treatment even with the conventional cancer treatments but the cancer treatment duration is synonymous to pain due to the hurt that is caused by these treatments. Conventional chemotherapy affects the healthy cells as well as the cancer cells and this leads to side effects that threatens the lives of the cancer patients who have since opted for better ways of cancer treatment that are devoid of all the life threatening side effects that are always the result of haphazard conventional chemotherapy. Some of the improvements that have been made in the field of oncology include. Oncothermia and Hyperthermia.

Hyperthermia

Hyperthermia is a condition in which the body temperatures are higher than the normal degrees. Hyperthermia can be caused by certain diseases but it can also be created by medical experts to help in treatment of certain diseases especially cancer. In this case it is referred to as heat treatment. Higher than normal temperatures are known to cause various health complications but in hyperthermia the heat is under careful control of qualified medical personnel hence cannot kill the patient but only kill the cancerous cells.

Thermal treatment helps in making the cancer cells more vulnerable to treatments like chemotherapy and radiation therapy. High temperatures may also kill the cancer cells instantly. Hyperthermia is very effective in treatment of cancer but it may also lead to the death of healthy cells for this reason it needs to be handled by doctors who are well versed in the area and can take good control of the heat so as to avoid harm to the patient.

The cancer cells are killed when the proteins in them get coagulated and the blood vessels that supply them with nutrients are killed. This leaves a place that is cooked hence no living cancer cell. Various sources of energy can be used in this process including Radio waves, microwaves, and ultrasound waves.

Hyperthermia can be either internally or externally. When done external the source of heat is focused on a specific area of the patients body while in internal ablation involves using a needle that is pricked into the tumor. The needle releases lots of heat at the tip killing the cancerous cells.

Hyperthermia can be used in treatment of cancers that are deeply rooted in the internal organs. It is the method that is used in killing cancer cells in brain tumors. This technique is called Interstitial and it releases lots of heat than the external thermal ablation. Needles that release heat are used in the tumor to kill the cells in it.

Oncothermia

Just like hyperthermia, Oncothermia also involves increase in temperatures of the patients but of course this is a more improved approach towards killing the cancerous cells. Oncothermiahas cell-selective focus on the tumor and it is free from dangerous hot spots. The main advantage of Oncothermia as a cancer treatment alternative is its self-selective ability and its apoptosis oriented cell-killing mechanism. It induces apoptosis in the cancer cells inhibiting their destructive functions. This is not a new alternative to conventional cancer treatments as it has been used in cancer treatments over the past centuries. It is a common cancer treatment in Asia and Europe among other continents.

Oncothermia uses modulated and filtered frequency in a bid to destroy the cancer cells more selectively. Researchers have proved that when the frequency of heat is modulated precisely, energy focus is increased which increases the effectiveness of this method in killing the cancerous cells as well as the safety of the healthy cells. This method is more strategic in targeting the cancerous cells. The tumors are exposed to high temperatures that are regulated by experienced doctors to destroy the blood vessels that the tumor depends on as well as killing the cancerous cells outright. It is not solely about increasing the temperatures but is about how those temperatures can be focused on a tumor for a given time.

oncothermiaThe controlled heat is focused on the organ or region affected by the tumor. The process may involve use of capacitive deep hyperthermia device to stimulate energy absorption by the malignant cells after which the tumors are heated to induce apoptosis. Oncothermia can also be used with conventional cancer treatment methods like chemotherapy as it increases the vulnerability of the cancerous cells to Chemotherapy drugs.

Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced integrative cancer doctor that has helped many cancer patients in their fight against the disease. She has worked hard not only in treating the disease but also in availing informational support to cancer patients at Awaremed which has become a place called home for many cancer patients. Call on her now and get help on cancer.

Oncothermia and Hyperthermia As Used In Cancer Treatment

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Cannabis and Cancer

August 12, 2014

Safe Use of Cannabis In Cancer Treatment

CannabisNature has always given the best of cancer treatments that are often safe to the users. Integrative cancer doctors, cancer researchers and other nutritionists have recommended the use of natures given herbs and fruits to help in cancer treatment as they are free from chemicals that may cause collateral damage. Most greens are packed with antioxidants that are useful in fighting cancer. Most of the greens are also very good in boosting the immune system and help in fighting disease causing pathogens. Some of the proposed cancer treatment alternatives are not very welcomed by many states and even the cancer patients are afraid to try them. But cancer is a disease that can render anyone helpless and even ready to try the formidable. Use of narcotics in cancer treatments has been met with lots of controversy. It is not only narcotics that have been met with controversy in cancer treatments but even the safe use of marijuana in cancer treatment has been attracting lots of controversy. This is because in most federal states the use of marijuana has been prohibited- even for medical purposes.

Marijuana also known as Cannabis sativa is plant that grows widely in warm tropical climates. This plant has been used in the past for its medicinal value. Due to its ready market and wide use for non medical purposes, this plant has been produced in large scale for commercial purposes. There are 66 biologically active components of marijuana that has been identified by doctors. These are called cannabinoids. However the most noted component as potent is known as the delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol often shortened as THC. The potency of this delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol has been discovered to be useful in fighting cancer.

However potent these components are, there has been lots of problems with research on marijuana as the legislators classified marijuana as a narcotic drug denying access to marijuana even for medicinal purpose. This restriction came in 1970 thereby barring reasonable research to be done on the medicinal abilities of this plant.

The use of marijuana in cancer treatment began long ago even before most states allowed it to be used strictly for medicinal purposes. In a research that was done by Harvard Medical School in 1991discovered that nearly 50 percent of doctors in the United States recommended cannabis sativa to their cancer patients as a means of easing their pain and to reduce the side effects of chemotherapy and other conventional cancer therapies.

Use marijuana in cancer treatment got a thumb up after the favorable review of the Institute of medicine that stated that marijuana can be used effectively as an alternative to conventional cancer treatments. . The review reasoned that in some cancer patients that are already experiencing such side effects as nausea and vomiting swallowing pills becomes a problem thereby making it hard to continue with medication.

The release of the Institute of Medicine report seemingly opened ways for many research works to be published on the effectiveness of marijuana as an alternative cancer treatment. A review of clinical studies that was conducted in several states in 2001 found out that in 768 cancer patients marijuana was very effective anti-emetic in chemotherapy. Other studies that have also been done on the effectiveness of cannabis as cancer treatment found that the biologically active components in marijuana helped in preventing nausea, vomiting and pain in cancer patients. These studies also found that it helped improved the appetite of cancer patients.

Through numerous laboratory tests, scientists have been able to prove the tumor-fighting properties of cannabinoids. Researchers have discovered that the cannabinoids inhibit growth of tumors in animal models by modulating key cell-signaling pathways. However there have never been tests on humans. The researchers also reported that the cannabinoids are very well tolerated by the patients and their use do not produce the life threatening side effects that conventional cancer treatments are known for.

Today several studies have revealed that the active components of marijuana inhibit the growth of cancer cells and promote apoptosis; which is the programmed cell death in tumors. These components are able to accomplish all this by inhibiting angiogenesis. Without angiogenesis it becomes impossible for cancer metastasis. Researchers also noticed that unlike the haphazard chemotherapy that works by producing toxic free radicals, the active marijuana components work better by targeting the cancerous cells thereby evading the grave side effects.

Possible Danger

Cannabis is a drug that when used without observation of a qualified doctor can result in serious health problems. Smoking cannabis can result in such problems as irritating throat while increased exposure to such smoke can result in development of many cancers. To avoid the danger of smoke other ingestion methods such as capsules, food products and tinctures should be used.

CannabisMarijuana also increases the rate of heart beat which may beckon other diseases. Other complications that may arise from unsafe use of cannabis include; mental confusion, lack of concentration, anxiety, paranoia, panic, fear of loss of control, alienation or detachment, dry mouth, and reddened eyes. Excessive use of marijuana may also cause loss of memory and other grave complications. It is therefore advisable that no patient should try using marijuana as an alternative cancer treatment without the help of a doctor.

Dr. Dalal Akoury (MD) is an experienced integrative cancer doctor that has helped many cancer patients in their fight against the disease. She has worked hard not only in treating the disease but also in availing informational support to cancer patients at Awaremed which has become a place called home for many cancer patients. Call on her now and get help on cancer.

Safe Use of Cannabis In Cancer Treatment

 

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