Category Archives: Cancer Research

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Breast Cancer, Cancer Care Tips, Cancer Research, Cancer Survivors, Immunotherapy, Immunotherapy for Cancer, News

Higher Vitamin D Levels May Boost Breast Cancer Survival

Higher Vitamin D Levels May Boost Breast Cancer Survival
Higher Vitamin D Levels May Boost Breast Cancer Survival

Vitamin D has long been known as an essential nutrient that aids your bones with calcium absorption. A recent study shows that there may also be a link between vitamin D levels and surviving breast cancer.

Examining the Link between Vitamin D and Breast Cancer Survival

The study, performed by a research team from the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo, began in 2006 with a group of women from California who had been diagnosed with invasive breast cancer. Participants were divided into three sub-groups based on blood levels of a particular vitamin D marker.

Women with more advanced cancers tended to have low levels of the marker. Over an average of seven years of follow-up, 100 of these women died compared to 76 women with high levels. There were approximately 1,600 women total involved in the study.

In addition, women with the highest vitamin D levels were 28 percent less likely to die of any cause, once factors such as tumor characteristics were accounted for. This link was the strongest among pre-menopausal women.

What Does This Mean for the Future?

According to lead author Song Yao, overall results showed “30 percent reduction of all-cause mortality” linked to vitamin D levels at the time of diagnosis. While the study supports previous research linking vitamin D with breast cancer survival, Yao said a randomized controlled trial would be needed to determine a direct cause-and-effect.

Immunotherapy for Cancer: Going Beyond Traditional Treatments

Immunotherapy for cancer has been gaining a lot of attention recently, but at Issels® we have a decades-long history of using these state-of-the-art methods successfully. Contact us for more information.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Research

Tobacco Use Still Dominates as a Cause of Cancer

image of used cigarettes in sand.
Tobaccos Link to Cancer

Thanks to wide-spread education about the dangers of tobacco use, smoking is at an all-time low in the United States. Despite this, tobacco is still linked to 40 percent of all cancer diagnoses, and these cases are not limited to just lung cancer.

Tobacco Use Continues to Be a High Risk Factor for Cancer

Disturbing information was reported in a recent article from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Tom Frieden, director of the CDC, stated that nearly half of the country’s 36 million smokers could die from tobacco-related diseases.

Of those 18 million potential fatalities, one-third is projected to come from cancer. Smoking is generally connected with lung cancer, but tobacco use is also tied to cancer in the throat, liver, pancreas, stomach, and eight other parts of the body.

Good News about Tobacco Use

A separate report issued by the CDC detailed the progress that’s been made in reducing cigarette smoking. In the 10-year period between 2005 and 2015, smoking among adults dropped from 45.1 million to 36.5 million for a change of more than five percentage points.

Reduction in tobacco use has not occurred across the board. Males, especially African-Americans, still account for a high proportion of smokers, while groups such as the low-income and less-educated have the highest smoking rates.

Cancer Treatment Is Not One-Size-Fits-All

Each cancer diagnosis arises from a unique combination of factors that can include lifestyle choices, such as smoking along with heredity and environment. Our immunotherapy for cancer treatments are designed to meet the specific needs of your case. Contact us to learn why Issels® is the leader in state-of-the-art immunotherapy for cancer.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Research

Gynecological Cancer Mortality Rates for Women Increases

Don't Let Stress Get To You! Take a Deep Breath.
Increasing Cancer Rates in Women

While billions of dollars are spent each year on the fight against cancer, the American Cancer Society projects that the number of female deaths from cancer will reach 5.5 million by 2030. That represents nearly a 60 percent increase from the 3.5 million totals in 2012.

What factors are driving this alarming increase? According to the ACS, where you live can make a big difference.

The Importance of Early Detection

Early detection and treatment greatly improves the odds of surviving cancer, but residents of economically disadvantaged countries don’t have access to high-quality health care. The highest mortality rates are in underprivileged nations such as Zimbabwe, Kenya and Mongolia.

Breast cancer survival rates also follow this pattern. The five-year survival rate tops 85 percent in high-income countries such as Canada and Australia, but the number drops to 60 percent or less in low- and middle-income nations including South Africa and India.

Lifestyles Can Increase Risk of Cancer

In addition, lifestyles vary from country to country, which play a part in the incidence of cancer. For example, women in China develop lung cancer at a higher rate than breast cancer, which is the most commonly diagnosed form in the world. Approximately 50 percent of Chinese men smoke, making second-hand smoke a likely cause of their high lung cancer rate.

Immunotherapy for Cancer: A Vital Weapon in the War against Cancer

At Issels®, we have successfully treated patients with all forms of cancer, including breast and lung. Contact us today to learn more about how immunotherapy for cancer boosts your body’s own natural defenses against the disease.

Cancer Research, Living with Cancer, News

Oral Cancer in Men Jumps 61%, Is there a Link to HPV?

Could HPV Be Linked to Oral Cancer?
Could HPV Be Linked to Oral Cancer?

In the past, oral cancer was usually tied to use of tobacco, alcohol or both. But a sharp spike in oral cancer insurance claims among American men seemingly points to a surprising new cause.

A Dramatic Shift in Oral Cancer Numbers

FAIR Heath is a national non-profit corporation that serves as a resource for information regarding healthcare costs and health insurance claims. A recent FAIR Health report, compiled from a database including more than 21 billion privately billed claims, showed a 61 percent increase in oral cancer claims between 2011 and 2015.

The largest increases were seen in cases of throat cancer and tongue cancer. Breaking the claims down further by gender; a startling three-quarters were filed by men.

Searching for Answers

While oral cancer rates have remained relatively steady, smoking rates have fallen over the years, so what’s behind these numbers? Healthcare professionals suspect a link to human papillomavirus, or HPV, which is the most common sexually transmitted infection according to CDC.

HPV infects the skin and membranes that line areas such as the mouth, throat and sexual organs. The virus has already been determined to be a cause of cervical, vaginal and penile cancers, and now experts are turning their attention toward HPV as a possible factor in some of the 50,000 cases of oral cancer that will be diagnosed this year.

Immunotherapy for Cancer: Boosting Your Body’s Natural Defenses

Issels® has long been a leader in state-of-the-art immunotherapy for cancer treatments. Contact us to learn more about our non-toxic, personally tailored programs that strengthen and support your body’s own immune response.

Cancer Care Tips, Cancer Caregivers, Cancer Research, Living with Cancer

What Are the Healing Benefits of the Human Touch for Cancer Patients?

Human Touch

If you’ve been diagnosed with cancer, “the human touch” is more than just a figure of speech. Hands-on therapies can help reduce stress, boost your spirits, and reduce physical pain.

How “Healing Hands” Boost the Fight against Cancer

There is scientific research to back up the positive claims of touch therapy. One widely publicized study involved a group of married women who were threatened with a mild electric shock, but their anxiety levels dropped instantly with a touch from their husbands’ hands.

Chronic stress and depression inhibit your body’s immune system, making it more vulnerable to invading cancer cells. Touch therapy can improve your overall wellness so you’re better equipped to fight the disease.

3 Popular Touch Therapy Techniques:

  • Body psychotherapy goes beyond talk therapy, helping you tune in to bodily sensations that uncover deep emotional traumas. Methods focus on various elements such as muscle contraction, breathing and posture.
  • Physical therapy addresses pain and limited movement in muscles, joints and other tissues. According to one study, women who had undergone breast cancer surgery and worked with a physical therapist had less pain and better quality of life than others who exercised on their own.
  • Massage therapy may seem like a luxury, but it actually triggers brain activity that increases serotonin, a mood-elevating chemical, and reduces the stress hormone cortisol.

Immunotherapy for Cancer: An Integrative Approach

At Issels®, our innovative immunotherapy for cancer uses a comprehensive mind-body approach to attack cancer cells while restoring your natural immune response. Visit our website for more information about our non-toxic, personally tailored treatment programs.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Care Tips, Cancer Research, Living with Cancer

How to Lower Your Stress Level during Cancer Treatment

Lower Stress
Lower Stress

Psychological stress is a normal part of life, and moderate amounts can even help you perform better by improving focus and motivation. But stress can reach unmanageable levels when a person feels a lack of control over their life. How does extended stress affect cancer patients?

Physical Effects of Stress

At present, a direct link between stress and the development of cancer is weak at best. However, it can be an indirect cause due to unhealthy coping mechanisms such as smoking or drinking that carry an increased risk of cancer.

More significantly, chronic stress can weaken the immune system, thereby giving cancer a greater chance to gain a foothold. Studies on mice carrying human tumors have shown that the cancer was more likely to grow and metastasize when the mice were subjected to stressful conditions.

Stress Relief Methods

Stress-related depression and anxiety can seriously affect a cancer patient’s quality of life and even cause them to forgo treatment. Having a strong support system is an effective means of combating harmful stress.

Other techniques to release stress include:

  • Counseling and therapy, both individual and group
  • Cancer education sessions
  • Meditation and relaxation training, such as yoga
  • Exercise and physical activity
  • Medication to treat depression and anxiety

Immunotherapy for Cancer: Defense against the Effects of Stress

Stress is one of the lifestyle and environmental factors that make each cancer patient’s case unique. At Issels®, our individually tailored immunotherapy for cancer treatments boost the immune system’s ability to fight tumors naturally. Contact us to learn more about our state-of-the-art protocols such as cancer vaccines and hyperthermia.