Category Archives: Alternative Cancer Treatment

Alternative Cancer Treatment

What Women Need to Know about BRCA and Breast Cancer

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month

With all the news stories appearing in support of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, BRCA is a hot topic. As we noted last time, the highly publicized decision of some celebrities who carry the BRCA gene mutation, including actress Angelia Jolie, to undergo preventive double mastectomies has influenced more women to seek the same treatment. But cancer treatment experts say that publicity surrounding celebrity cancer prevention and treatment choices has generated an outsized fear of BRCA that is leading some women to take more dire action than may be necessary.

Naturally, each woman’s medical history and prognosis are different; but according to the Mayo Clinic, the BRCA genetic mutation is a causal factor in only about 5% of breast cancers and 10% to 15% of ovarian cancers. Even if you do carry the BRCA gene mutation, a double mastectomy may not be necessary. If you are a breast cancer survivor who does not carry the BRCA gene, your risk of developing cancer in the other breast is typically so low that a double mastectomy may not be medically indicated.

There is concern in the cancer community that fear of BRCA is leading women to make treatment choices without fully exploring all their options. Cancer is a very individualistic disease and each person’s response to cancer and cancer treatment is unique. Your decisions about preventive measures and treatment choices should be made in consultation with your Issels cancer treatment team and designed to address your personal health needs; not based on the treatment that worked for your friend, a family member or a celebrity.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Survivors

Celebrity Cancer Choices Shouldn’t Influence Your Treatment Decision

Celebrity Sunglasses
Celebrity Cancer Choices Shouldn’t Influence Your Treatment Decision

The stars are coming out for cancer this month in support of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Television stars are appearing in public service announcements to promote cancer awareness. Celebrities from movies, TV and music are appearing on talk shows and granting interviews to share their personal stories about cancer. But celebrity cancer support can be a two-edged sword.

When celebrities such as Angelina Jolie, Sharon Osbourne and Wanda Sykes share their personal cancer stories, people listen — and they start talking about cancer. “When a celebrity comes out about their experience with breast cancer, it really invigorates the conversation,” Nancy Healey, executive director of the Central and South Jersey Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, told the Asbury Park Press.

The downside is that the public often places undo importance on celebrity statements which can lead people to base their own cancer treatments on celebrity experiences. After Angelina Jolie discovered she carries the BRCA gene linked to increased breast cancer risk and went public with her decision to have a preventive double mastectomy, cancer treatment centers noticed an increase in mastectomy requests.

But, as Healey points out, “Breast cancer is different for everyone. It is really a question of finding out what works for you.” In other words, just because a certain cancer treatment worked for your favorite movie star or your best friend or your sister, doesn’t mean it’s the right choice for you.

A leader in individualized immunotherapy, Issels Integrative Oncology creates personalized cancer treatment programs that are as unique as each patient’s response to cancer.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Immunotherapy

Personalized Cancer Therapies are the Future

Immunotherapy
Immunotherapy

Surgery, chemotherapy and radiation – for decades, these three treatments have represented the standard in cancer management, despite the risky side effects of each one.

Today, however, an alternative method to treat cancer is gaining attention from researchers, doctors and allied professionals. Cancer immunotherapies, including vaccines, is a therapy model based on a non-toxic approach that uses antibodies to stimulate the body’s own immune system to fight off malignant cells before they can form into dangerous tumors, reducing the rate of recurrence and increasing remission.

“The primary advantages of active immunotherapy are its relative lack of side effects, its specificity against target tumor cells and the generation a long-lasting memory response against tumor-specific antigens,” notes the National Institutes of Health.

Such personalized approaches have already made headlines in their survival-rate effectiveness in the treatment of some ovarian and prostate cancers.

Bringing personalized immunotherapy into the mainstream as an alternative or complementary cancer treatment has been the mission of many treatment centers. In recognition of the advancements made in this form of therapy, June has been declared “Cancer Immunotherapy Awareness Month” by the nonprofit Cancer Research Institute. “For 60 years, CRI has remained steadfast in its dedication to realizing immunotherapy’s potential to treat and cure cancer,” said Jill O’Donnell-Tormey, Ph.D., chief executive officer and director of scientific affairs at the Cancer Research Institute. “Because of this work, today safe and powerful new immune-based treatment options are finally available, and we are dedicated to increasing awareness and support to bring them to more patients sooner.”

Issels Integrative Cancer Treatment Centers specialize in targeted immunotherapy of cancer. We invite you to visit our website to find out more about how these cutting edge new therapies may be able to help you.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Care Tips

Heavy Metals Can Have Negative Impact on Cancer Treatments

Organic products and sustainable living reflect a modern recognition of the value of keeping life close to nature. A century or so ago nearly everyone lived a sustainable lifestyle and ate locally-sourced, home-grown food; there weren’t any other options. But since the Industrial Revolution man has been moving farther and farther away from his natural roots. In the process we have exposed our bodies to some very unnatural things: chemicals, plastics, petroleum distillates, nitrates, heavy metals, etc.

55 gallon waste drums
Toxic chemicals surround us.

Toxic substances have become part of our everyday lives. They are in the foods we eat, the clothes we wear, the construction materials used to build the homes we live in, the toys our children play with. Few of the items used to live a modern life seem to be completely free of toxicity; and in recent years many have been found to be carcinogenic.

Not so long ago, cadmium was found in children’s jewelry; and lead was discovered in the paint used on children’s toys. These and other high density metals are called “heavy metals.” In order to function properly the human body actually needs small quantities of certain heavy metals; but in excess even useful metals can be damaging. A large number of heavy metals are extremely toxic to the human body and can cause cancer and/or serious physical and mental degeneration.

Chelation therapy for cancer is a treatment that eliminates from the body harmful heavy metals and other undesirable substances that may interfere with cancer treatment and recovery. Find out more about chelation therapy for cancer on our website.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Research

Issels Cancer Vaccines Offer Non-Toxic Cancer Treatment Alternative

Sick Young Woman Lying in Bed --- Image by © Royalty-Free/Corbis
There are non-toxic treatments for cancer. Find out what we do

Chemotherapy and radiation can be so toxic to the human body that some cancer patients choose to halt treatment rather than live through one more day of pain and misery. Traditional medicine’s standard cancer treatment weapons — chemotherapy and radiation — work by flooding the body with aggressively toxic chemicals or battering it with caustic radiation. The problem is that while these traditional cancer therapies do kill cancer cells, they also kill healthy cells, weakening and even damaging the body. For many cancer patients the physical and emotional cost of chemotherapy or radiation is simply too great. Alternative cancer therapies offer effective non-toxic cancer treatment options that work with the body to battle cancer.

Issels autologous cancer vaccines are prepared from the patient’s own blood to be non-toxic and immediately compatible with the patient’s system. Our cancer vaccines work with the body’s immune system to strengthen the patient’s natural immunity against cancer cells. Every day we are exposed to all sorts of bacteria, viruses, pollutants, diseases and other potentially hazardous elements. As these agents invade our bodies, our immune system goes on the attack, producing disease-fighting antibodies. These antibodies remain in the blood stream, our immune system responds and creates a powerful barrier to future exposure.

Issels cancer vaccines work in much the same way. Prepared from the patient’s own blood, Issels autologous cancer vaccines intensify immune system response and enhance the body’s ability to fight cancer.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Living with Cancer

The Benefits of Exercise during Cancer Treatments

Two people running on a beach.
Exercising to Improve Quality of Life

Perhaps you’re curious about whether or not you should continue or begin an exercise regimen while you’re undergoing cancer treatments. Many patients wonder about this, and you’ll be happy to know that there are many benefits that go along with getting adequate exercise, even while you’re having chemotherapy or radiation or for that matter even the Issels Treatment.

Among those benefits, you can expect to experience:

* Improved quality of life

* More energy throughout the day

* Less fatigue

* Decreased anxiety

* Increased self-esteem

Exercise provides you with the tools you need to build a stronger body. When it’s paired with good nutrition, you’ll find that those two things alone help you feel better than you have in a long time. Check with Your Doctor Of course, before you begin any exercise routine, whether you’re currently having cancer treatments, or if you’re in remission, it’s important to check with your doctor. He or she will be able to provide you with some suggested exercises that will work well for you at the stage you’re in right now.

Workout Intensity

If you’ve been exercising for years, and you’ve been nervous about slowing down while you’re undergoing cancer treatments, don’t worry. Most likely, you’ll only have to decrease your intensity for a little while. Once you give your body an adequate amount of time to adjust to the changes, you’ll be able to build your intensity back up again. A solid exercise routine is a big part of the foundation to your good health. After all, you’re working to improve your health now, as well as in the future.