Category Archives: Immunotherapy

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Immunotherapy

Integrated Immunotherapy: A Safer Way to Fight Cancer

A Safer Treatment is a Better Treatment
A Safer Treatment is a Better Treatment

“When 14-year-old Nick Wilkins’ leukemia resisted chemotherapy, radiation and a bone marrow transplant, his doctors turned to the real pros: Nick’s own immune cells,” John Bonifield of CNN recently wrote on Click2Houston.com. After two months of targeted immunotherapy, Nick’s cancer “went into complete remission.”

Nick’s experience was not unique. Eighteen of the 21 other young cancer patients participating in a University of Pennsylvania study on the effectiveness of immunotherapy-based advanced targeted therapies also experienced complete remission of their cancer.

“This is absolutely one of the more exciting advances I’ve seen in cancer therapy in the last 20 years,” Dr. David Porter, Penn hematologist and oncologist, told CNN. “We’ve entered into a whole new realm of medicine.”

While some of the approaches to targeted cancer therapy are certainly new – recent advances in cellular and genetic medicine have made it possible to target specific genes and cell functions at a level not previously available – employing the body’s immune system to target cancer is a tried and true, rather than a “new,” approach. Issels Integrative Oncology Centers have been using individualized immunotherapy to treat cancer for more than 60 years! (Learn more about Issels’ history.)

Penn cancer researchers are not the only ones belatedly recognizing the advantages the immune system offers in the fight against cancer. In an earlier post on targeted therapy, we quoted immunologist Gordon Freeman of Boston’s Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, who presaged the Penn findings when he said:

“The immune system is an evolutionary learning system. If you can engage it and get it to work successfully, it learns how to attack the cancer. And the wonderful thing is that it works.”

Visit our website to find out about integrative immunotherapy, a safe, effective, non-toxic way to treat cancer that is revolutionizing cancer treatment.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Immunotherapy

Immunotherapy Might Help Prevent Breast Cancer Overtreatment

Breast Cancer Diagnosis
Breast Cancer Diagnosis

The value of mammograms is a hotly debated topic these days. Proponents consider the breast X-rays to be a valuable diagnostic tool; however, opponents of annual mammograms criticize the high volume of false positives and high rates of overtreatment that cause women to undergo painful and expensive cancer treatments unnecessarily.

According to a recent New York Times article on the controversy, “some studies estimate that 19% or more of women whose breast cancers are found by mammography wind up being overtreated.” That means that nearly 1 in 5 women who receive a breast cancer diagnosis as a result of a mammogram are undergoing the emotional trauma, pain and expense of surgery, chemotherapy or radiation treatments they do not need.

Overtreatment occurs when mammography detects tiny, slow-growing cancers that are unlikely to develop into life-threatening problems during the patient’s lifetime. Left untreated, these small cancers might never impact the patient’s life. Treating these cancers, however, subjects women to traumatic surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatments that can have life-altering consequences. Prostate cancer and lung cancer have been subject to similar charges of unnecessary overtreatment.

Our own fear of cancer may be partly to blame for the high rate of cancer overtreatment in the U.S. Most people panic when they receive a cancer diagnosis and fail to explore all the treatment options available. For many patients, non-toxic integrative immunotherapy offers a viable alternative to more traumatic traditional treatment options.

An alternative cancer treatment, integrative immunotherapy bolsters the body’s natural defenses, targeting cancer cells and tumors as well as the surrounding tumor microenvironment which affects the growth and spread of cancer. Immunotherapy also targets both known and unknown cancer cells throughout the body, improving your chances of complete long-term remission. Visit our website to find out more about Issels integrative immunotherapy.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Immunotherapy

New Focus on Colorectal Cancer Treatments

Cancer Treatment
Cancer Treatment

Integrative medical treatments for colorectal cancer were the subject of a recent episode of Fox News’ Sunday Housecall. Advancements in integrative immunotherapy, cancer vaccines and advanced targeted therapies have more patients – and their doctors – incorporating alternative cancer therapies into their treatment protocols for colorectal cancer and many other forms of cancer.

Patients are looking for non-toxic cancer treatment options that don’t have the debilitating side effects of the big three treatment standards — surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. They are finding the options they seek in individualized cancer therapies grounded in integrative immunotherapy. The unique complexities of colorectal cancer and other forms of gastrointestinal cancer particularly lend themselves to individualized cancer treatment protocols. Also of note is the effectiveness of cancer vaccines in the treatment of colorectal cancer, specifically autologous dendritic cell vaccines.

While considered a largely preventable cancer, colorectal cancer often goes undetected in its early stages. It may be several years before patients present symptoms. Symptoms can vary with the location of the tumor but may include fatigue, weakness, abdominal pain, weight loss, shortness of breath, spastic colon, diverticulitis, Crohn’s disease, peptic ulcers, bloody stool, diarrhea or constipation.

Diet education is part of Issels’ holistic approach to cancer treatment. To help prevent colorectal cancer, a diet rich in fiber and colorful fruits and vegetables is recommended. Choose deeply pigmented foods such as blueberries, cranberries, pomegranates, carrots, red peppers, kale, broccoli, spinach and red cabbage.

Visit our website to find out more about Issels integrative immunotherapy program for the treatment of cancer and other immune diseases. We offer a full spectrum of alternative cancer treatments and immune disease therapies at our inpatient clinic in Tijuana, Mexico and the comprehensive immunobiologic core treatment at our outpatient medical center in Santa Barbara, California.

After Cancer, Immunotherapy, Stage Four Cancer Treatment

Stage 4 Lung Cancer Patient 10 Years Cancer Free after Issels Integrative Immunotherapy

Lung Cancer
Lung Cancer

Lung cancer is the No. 1 cancer killer in the U.S. and the world, and small cell lung cancer is considered its most lethal form. Diagnosed with recurrent small cell lung cancer, Jim Gibson felt he was facing a certain death sentence when he sought treatment at Issels alternative cancer treatment centers in 2003. When standard cancer treatments did not work, Jim decided to try non-toxic integrative immunotherapy as a last resort. The decision saved his life. After just four weeks of exclusive Issels immunotherapy that included dendritic cell vaccine, Jim achieved complete tumor remission. Jim has now been cancer-free for 10 years and enjoys a healthy, active life. (Click to hear Jim’s story in his own words.)

As reported in the Sacramento Bee, “In recent years the surge of immunotherapy has given cancer sufferers new hope.” A leader in integrative immunotherapy for more than 60 years, Issels Integrative Oncology has been at the forefront of the immunotherapy movement that is now being embraced by practitioners of traditional medicine as “amazing” and “a game-changer” in the treatment of cancer. Many cancer researchers now believe that immunotherapy is the future of cancer treatment and our best hope for an eventual cure.

Immunotherapy enhances and harnesses the power of the body’s own immune system to target and destroy cancer cells. A non-toxic alternative cancer treatment, integrative immunotherapy does not batter the body with toxic chemotherapy or radiation so it does not produce the debilitating side effects that so many cancer patients fear. The non-toxic aspect and strong track record of immunotherapy is leading more cancer patients to consider it as a first choice for treatment rather than a last resort. As Issels patient Nicole Tupper says, “Try this first … it’s an amazing option.”

Immunotherapy, Living with Cancer

Why Cancer Patients Should Consider Immunotherapy

The Issels Inpatient Hospital in Mexico
PR Newswire billboard headline on Issels (including the hospital photo) in Time Square, New York City

“The immune system is an evolutionary learning system. If you can engage it and get it to work successfully, it learns how to attack the cancer. And the wonderful thing is that it works,” immunologist Gordon Freeman of Boston’s Dana-Farber Cancer Institute recently told the Washington Post in an article about a new immunotherapy cancer treatment called immune checkpoint blockade. While still in the trial phase, the therapy shares distinct similarities to advanced targeted cancer therapies that are already being successfully used at Issels Integrative Oncology Centers in Mexico and California.

Freeman was attempting to explain why U.S. cancer researchers have started looking beyond the traditional cancer treatment trinity – surgery, chemotherapy and radiation — that has ruled Western medicine for decades. “Cancers are like the Road Runner cartoon character,” Freeman explained. “If you choose one target in the cancer, it will sidestep it eventually by mutating. Chemotherapy usually fails, eventually, because the tumor evolves a way to beat it.” Increasingly, U.S. cancer researchers are looking to the body’s own immune system for new and more effective cancer treatments and discovering a gold mine!

Individualized immunotherapy has been called “cancer’s kryptonite” and is now considered by many to be our best hope for beating cancer. By targeting not only cancer tumors, but also the microenvironments in which they develop, Issels integrated immunotherapy is redefining cancer treatment. By individualizing immunotherapy, Issels cancer specialists can fine tune treatment to maximize the patient’s immune system response. For many of our patients, our methods have resulted in a unique record of complete long-term remission of advanced and standard therapy-resistant cancers. The limited outcomes offered by surgery, chemotherapy and radiation are no longer a cancer patient’s only treatment options. Immunotherapy offers new hope. Visit our website to find out more.

Immunotherapy, Testimonials

Patients Call Results of Immunotherapy Cancer Treatment “Miraculous”

Alternative Cancer Treatment
Alternative Cancer Treatment

Cancer researchers and physicians involved in clinical trials are calling a new immunotherapy treatment for cancer “a breakthrough.” Patients are calling it “a miracle.” A form of immunotherapy, the new cancer treatment is called immune-checkpoint blockade. An advanced targeted cancer therapy, the treatment uses chemically produced monoclonal antibodies to target specific molecules on cell surfaces. The antibodies clear roadblocks created by the cancer cells themselves that can hinder the immune system’s natural ability to protect itself. With roadblocks removed, immune system cells are free to attack and annihilate cancer cells. The results have been impressive and appear to be long-term.

“Research activity is just going through the roof,” Johns Hopkins University cancer immunologist Suzanne Topalian told the Washington Post, noting that the therapy is being tested on melanoma, lung and kidney cancers with smaller trials on a laundry list of other cancers. In five years, many immunologists expect checkpoint inhibitors and other immunotherapy treatments to be used as primary cancer treatments for the majority of advanced cancer cases diagnosed in the U.S. That would be a considerable and welcome departure from American medicine’s current dependency on surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.

Immune-checkpoint blockade has startling similarities to the integrative immunotherapy that has been practiced at Issels Integrative Oncology Centers for decades. However, where the new technique uses chemically engineered antibodies, Issels’ integrative immunotherapy is completely non-toxic, using autologous vaccines prepared from the patient’s own blood to enhance the natural immune system response of cytokines, natural killer cells, LAK cells and T-cells. (Click the link for an explanation of how these immune factors interact.)

At Issels alternative cancer treatment centers we have been practicing integrative immunotherapy for more than 60 years, so it is naturally gratifying to see Western medicine walking in our footsteps.