Monthly Archives: March 2015

Cancer Care Tips

Don’t Say These Things When Your Loved One is Going Through Chemo

When a Caregiver Gets Cancer
Tips For Talking To Cancer Patients

Having a hard time taking part in an unconstrained conversation with a loved one who is undergoing chemotherapy cancer treatment? Issels® wants to help you avoid opening your mouth and inserting your foot.

Are you making these chemo conversational faux pas?

  • “You look great!”
    Patients puffy from steroids, sporting bald spots and raccoon eyes know this is phony baloney. Try for a, “Good to see you!” or a specific compliment pertaining to an outfit or piece of jewelry instead.
  • “When my friend So-and-so went through chemo…”
    You may be looking for a way to connect, but bringing up the chemo experiences of others is not a comfort. Your loved one may feel their feelings have been disregarded. Worse, they may experience anxiety regarding their much different chemo experience. Unless your comment involves a friend who is now living a happy, healthy life, keep it to yourself.
  • “I don’t know why you’re doing _______ anymore.”
    Negative thoughts can take a toll on your loved one’s immune system. Don’t make assumptions on what they can handle or put a timeline on activities. This can spotlight limitations and death. Encourage loved ones to develop new interests and friends instead, which puts the emphasis on survival.
  • “I’m so worried about you!”
    Anxiety is contagious. Keep stress-inducing thoughts to yourself.
  • “Chemo must be so hard! Do you feel sick?”
    Your loved one is already feeling down. Offer upbeat comments instead: “I’m so thankful the chemo is helping you get better.”

Are you or a loved one looking cancer treatment in the eye? We know how to handle it. Contact Issels®  today to learn more about alternative treatment options available to you.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Care Tips

Guard Your Bones While in Cancer Treatment

Thyroid Cancer
Guard Your Bones

Traditional cancer treatment is brutal on the human body and weakens the immune system. Patients often accept it as a lessor evil that is necessary to combat cancer. They may not know specifically how their cancer can spread or the importance of taking steps to strengthen and protect their bones after a cancer diagnosis. That is why at Issels® Integrative Immuno-Oncology, we provide individualized immunotherapy protocols and all the information you need to make informed treatment decisions.

Watch for bone metastases symptoms

Contact your doctor if you develop any new symptoms like bone pain, numbness, or weakness.

Prevent falls

Many cancer medications can make you weaker and light-headed, increasing the risk of you falling and fracturing a bone. Always use handrails on stairs; consider using a walker and getting a professionally installed handrail for your shower.

Exercise

Talk to your doctor about how much exercise you can and should being doing. Low impact exercises like walking or swimming can build strength and improve your balance and coordination to help you prevent falls.

Bone medications

Discuss available bone medications with your doctor. Medications can strengthen bones, decrease or delay fractures of people with bone metastases, and relieve pain associated with bone cancer.

Supplements

Be sure your doctor is aware of any dietary supplements you take. This is especially important when you are treated for bone metastases. Some risky interactions can occur when supplements are combined with bone strengthening medications.

For more information on our non-toxic cancer treatments, contact Issels® Integrative Immuno-Oncology. You can receive the latest news on cancer research and advancements in treatment methods directly to your inbox by signing up for our free e-Newsletter.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Care Tips

5 Nutrition Tips for Cancer Patients

Eat Healthy And Avoid Metabolic Stress
Nutrition and Cancer

Caring for yourself is an important part of coping with cancer. When you eat the right foods, your body gets the nutrients and energy it needs. Some types of cancer treatments can make it hard for you to eat as you normally would, though. The following cancer care tips can help ensure that you’re able to eat healthy during treatment.

Limit Certain Kinds of Fruits

Eat smaller amounts of fruits with high levels of fructose, such as apples and melons, since your small intestine might have trouble digesting these. Focus on eating fruits with lower levels of fructose, such as berries and bananas.

Cook or Blend Vegetables

Raw vegetables with fiber can be hard to digest. Don’t limit these vegetables, but make sure you either blend them to make a smoothie or cook them. Cooking or blending them makes it easier for your body to digest them.

Be Cautious With Dairy

Some cancer treatments can make you lactose intolerant, although this doesn’t last. Eat small amounts of dairy at a time, and watch for signs of intolerance, such as bloating and gas.

Add Ginger

Ginger can help soothe an upset stomach in those undergoing cancer treatments. Ask your doctor about taking a ginger supplement, or put a small amount of ground ginger in tea.

Avoid Fried Foods

Fried foods that contain a lot of fat can be difficult for your digestive system to handle. Fill up on cooked vegetables and whole grains instead.

Nutrition is just one part of caring for yourself while dealing with cancer. For more help with feeling healthier, contact Issels® for information on personalized non-toxic cancer treatments, such as immunotherapy.

Alternative Cancer Treatment

Too Far to Visit? Distance Cancer Caregiving Tips

Too Far To Travel
Too Far To Travel

It’s rare to find families whose members all live close by, and this can cause a great deal of stress and anxiety when you find out someone you love has been diagnosed with cancer. You immediately feel as though you need to contribute in some way, but it’s difficult when you’re not there. Even so, there are many things you can do as a long distance cancer caregiver.

Stay Connected

You might not be able to get on a plane and go visit your relative, but thanks to modern technology, you can still stay connected in many ways. Skype or other types of video calling are great tools that can allow you to talk with each other and see each other at the same time. When used correctly and often, it can make you both feel like you are right by their side. Of course, you don’t want to forget the more traditional forms of communication too. A card or a phone call can go a long way to really brighten anyone’s day and let them know you’re thinking of them.

Take Care of Yourself Too

One of the most important things you can do for someone who cares about you is take care of yourself. If you’re not careful, feelings of worry and sadness can quickly turn into anxiety and depression. Allow yourself to cry, journal your feelings and seek counseling if you need to. All of these can help.

Here at Issels® we feel it’s important to offer support to long distance cancer caregivers. If you’d like to know more about how we can help you or your family member, please contact us.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Research

Expensive Biologic Drugs May Face Competition from the FDA and Biosimilars

Cancer Drug Research
Cancer Drug Research

Biologic drugs are often used to effectively treat serious, life threatening diseases. The downside, however, is cost – on average 20 times more than traditional chemical drugs – hundreds of thousands per year, per patient, annually. It’s not surprising that these costs are neither sustainable for the average household – or the government. At Issels® we know access to affordable medication, such as biologics, can be essential to your cancer treatment success, so we wanted to let you know about the latest efforts in making these medicines more reasonable for consumers.

Step in biosimilars…
Expensive to produce, biosimilars are to biologics what generics are to name brand chemical drugs. The hope is by allowing competition in the market through the production of biosimilars, a more affordable option will be available to consumers than current high-cost biologics.

What’s the holdup?
The 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) granted the FDA authority to develop a mechanism for approval of biosimilars, but guidelines have yet to be finalized. Interestingly, the FDA accepted its first application last week despite this fact. Many would-be manufacturers are dragging their feet, however, unwilling to take an investment risk without definitive guidelines and knowledge delays caused by biologics – the inventors of these medications – will halt development and approval.

How much will it save?
Similar programs in the E.U., who unlike the U.S. also regulates prices, have resulted in an average savings of about 30 percent less than branded biologics, keeping tens of billions in the pockets of the government and consumers.

Looking for an affordable, effective alternative to your cancer treatment medications?  Contact Issels® today.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Research

Could the Sea Cucumber be an Alternative Cancer Treatment?

Immune Cells
Whats So Special About The Sea Cucumber

There are many treatments for cancer and one that is leading the way for patients is immunotherapy. At Issels®, holistic integrative immuno-oncology treatment programs is their specialty.

With alternative cancer treatments the main focus at Issels®, the on-going research of sea cucumbers as an additional treatment for several types of cancer is good news.

The sea cucumber is a marine animal with a soft, pliable body and shaped like a cucumber. They range in size from several inches to several feet. Over one thousand species call all of the ocean’s of the world home.

Although extract from the sea cucumber has been used as folk remedies in the Asian culture for centuries, according to the American Cancer Society, “there is little reliable scientific evidence to support claims that the sea cucumber is effective in treating cancer, arthritis, and other diseases.”

With that said, research and studies have been on-going for many years with results indicating the extract from sea cucumbers has a dual effect on cancer patients. Studies are showing that the extract serves as a stimulant to the immune system and kills cancer cells.

Research shows the extract is effective in eradicating cancer cells in the colon, breast, pancreatic, lung, liver, and prostate due to a frondoside A, a triterpenoid glycoside from the sea cucumber and formulated into a compound.

Information about frondoside A, its effects on cancer cells and the immune system, and its future as a potential therapeutic option, is available in an article from the from the National Center for Biotechnology Information.

For more information about integrative immuno-oncology, call or contact Issels® about admission and the treatment programs we have available.