Tag Archives: cancer care

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Research, Cancer Survivors, Cancer Treatment, Uncategorized

Coaches vs. Cancer Has Raised $100 Million for Cancer Research

Coaches and Teams Have Raised Millions for Research
Coaches and Teams Have Raised Millions for Research

Actors, athletes and other high-profile people often use their celebrity to help promote awareness of cancer research. One such program is Coaches vs. Cancer, which has raised more than $100 million to support the American Cancer Society (ACS).

Leading the Charge Against Cancer

As with most Americans, basketball coaches across the country have been affected by cancer, either personally or through a loved one. The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) has partnered with the ACS to form Coaches vs. Cancer, a program designed to empower the coaches to participate in the fight against cancer.

Coaches vs. Cancer: The “Battles”

Thanks to their personal and professional experiences and positions of leadership, basketball coaches are in a great position to raise awareness of cancer research among their teams and communities. Some of their creative initiatives have included:

  • In February 2017, their 3-Point Challenge let fans pledge an amount for every successful three-point shot made by their favorite team that month.
  • During Suits and Sneakers Week, coaches across the country wear sneakers on game day to symbolize the role of nutrition and physical activity in reducing cancer risk.
  • Hardwood Heroes is part of March Madness, the NCAA’s popular basketball championship tournament. 2017 marked the second year of this event in which a basketball team made up of cancer survivors took on a team of survivors from last year’s game.

Issels®: The Leader in Immunotherapy for Cancer Treatment

For decades, Issels® has raised the bar on cancer treatment with our non-toxic and integrative immunotherapy programs. Visit our website to read and hear testimonials from patients who have achieved long-term remission.

Cancer Caregivers

Help Survivors and Patients by Giving the Gift of Your Time – Ways to Volunteer Locally

Enrich Your Life By Helping Others.
Enrich Your Life By Helping Others.

If you’re like most people, cancer is a cause that’s near and dear to your heart. Almost everyone knows someone who has battled this dreadful disease, or is currently receiving cancer treatment. Maybe in your life, that someone is yourself.

Here at Issels®, we know the importance of volunteers in this field. This is why we want to offer you some incredible volunteer opportunities as a way to give back.

Volunteer Your Time for a Great Cause

There are many ways you can give your time to support cancer research and improved cancer treatments. Some of these include:

  • Road to Recovery – There is always a need for people to drive patients to and from their cancer treatments.
  • Making Strides Against Breast Cancer – This is a community event that raises money for breast cancer research.
  • The Relay for Life – This is another community event that you can participate in to raise funds for cancer research.
  • Look Good, Feel Better – This is a wonderful opportunity that allows you to personally touch the lives of cancer patients. You’ll help them learn various beauty tricks and improve the way they feel.

Ways You Can Make a Difference for Those Receiving Cancer Treatment

Maybe you’re not quite sure where you fit in. There is a need for all kinds of help. What are your strengths? Maybe you enjoy:

  • Administrative or clerical work
  • Promoting events online or through social media
  • Organizing recreational activities
  • Helping to raise money

Whatever you enjoy, there is a place for you.

If you would like to learn more about immunotherapy and its place in cancer treatment, please contact us.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Care Tips, Cancer Caregivers

Caregiving: Your Role in Their Recovery Makes a Difference

Happy family having fun outdoors in spring field against blue sky background
Let Others Help You While You Battle Cancer

If you are a caregiver for a patient who is in treatment for cancer, it can literally be a full-time job. The American Cancer Society quotes a study that shows more than 50 percent of cancer caregivers spend upwards of eight hours a day tending to the needs of their loved one.

Caretaking is most effective when you are at your best mentally and physically, but it’s easy to neglect your own needs in an effort to meet those of the patient. Use these helpful tips to maintain your own health and quality of life.

Schedule time for yourself

What activities relax you and renew your spirit? Whether it is exercise, reading, painting or any other pastime, plan time to enjoy simple pleasures in your schedule just like an appointment. Include activities that involve contact with others so you don’t feel isolated.

Seek individual and group support

No matter what emotions you are feeling, others have been through it as well. Contact the American Cancer Society or talk to healthcare workers about joining a support group for cancer caregivers. If you have outside employment, check your benefits to see if they include an Employee Assistance Plan or other provisions for individual counseling.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help

You’re not weak if you can’t do it all on your own. The demands placed on cancer caregivers are a challenge for even the strongest person. Keep your family and loved ones in the loop and ask for help when you need it.

Our newsletter contains valuable information for both cancer patients and caregivers. Visit our website to subscribe.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Care Tips, Cancer Research, Cancer Survivors

New Support for Cancer Treatment During Pregnancy

Happy mother, father and daughter in the park
Keeping Baby Safe Even With Cancer

Patients who receive a cancer diagnosis have some difficult choices to make regarding treatments such as chemotherapy or immuno-oncology. Pregnant women have two lives to consider, placing additional weight on their decision for cancer treatment. Is there any option that will not pose significant risk to the fetus?

Some doctors recommend erring on the side of caution, suggesting a preterm delivery or even termination. The results of a study that was presented at the recent European Cancer Conference in Vienna show that cancer treatment may not necessarily interfere with a healthy, full-term pregnancy.

Dr. Frédéric Amant of the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in Belgium was the lead author of the study, which involved more than 100 children born to women who underwent cancer treatment within the last two trimesters of their pregnancy. Results revealed no difference in cardiac and cognitive functions between these children and those in the control group.

Since birth defects are most likely to occur during the first trimester, none of the women participating in the study received treatment during that period. Premature delivery was found to have a greater impact on fetal development than cancer treatment. Each additional week in the womb added two points to a child’s score on the Bayley Scales of Infant Development, which was used in conjunction with a neurological exam to measure results.

Our non-toxic immuno-oncology therapies at Issels® are personalized to account for lifestyle and other elements of your individual situation. Visit our website for more information about our innovative, state-of-the-art treatments as well as testimonials from our patients.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Living with Cancer

Exercise Tips for Cancer Patients – When and If You Should Start an Exercise Program

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Ways to Reduce the Risk of Getting Cancer
Exercise

The benefits of daily exercise may be particularly beneficial to those undergoing cancer treatment and cancer survivors. At Issels® Center for Integrative Immuno-Oncology, we find that cancer treatments often work best when in conjunction with the overall health and wellbeing of the patient.

Dr. Colleen Doyle of the American Cancer Society recently explained the benefits of exercise to HemOnc Today. Below is a synopsis of her informative comments.

Should Cancer Patients Exercise?

Patients should discuss their condition, treatment, and previous activity levels with a physician before beginning physical activity. Those who exercised regularly before may need to place limits on exertion levels and duration. If you seldom exercised prior to diagnosis, minimal stretching and walking may be best.

Other considerations include the side effects of treatment and increased risks in those with compromised immune systems. You may need to avoid the germs at public gyms, for example. Those with weakened muscles and bones may need supervision when beginning exercise.

Benefits of Physical Activity During and After Cancer Treatment

For those dealing with cancer, exercise benefits the musculoskeletal system and may enhance one’s physical wellbeing and capabilities. Exercise also reduces stress levels, improving their mood and overall outlook in life. It can also fend off the fatigue of illness and treatment with a boost to energy levels.

Exercise can also bring a sense of normalcy and activity to life. One might consider physical activity to be a much-needed break from the rigors of undergoing treatment.

For many, exercise may be an important method of improving survivorship and quality of life. For more information about holistic and individualized cancer treatment, contact Issels® Center for Integrative Immuno-Oncology.

Alternative Cancer Treatment, Cancer Care Tips, Living with Cancer

Cancer Patient Tip: Focus on Improving Your Quality of Life

Four hands of the family, a baby, a daughter, a mother and a father. Concept of unity, support, protection and happiness.
Use Your Support Network to Care for Yourself

When you’re fighting cancer, your physical well-being can consume your focus to the exclusion of your emotional self. Improving your quality of life helps you maintain a positive frame of mind that can have a beneficial effect on your overall health. Use these tips to nurture yourself and enrich your spirit. 

Ask for support 

Despite what you may have seen in movies or read in novels, suffering in silence is not a noble attitude. Your loved ones want to help, but may not know how. Sharing your specific needs with them is a relief, not a burden.

Retain control wherever possible

Cancer creates a sense of helplessness, making you feel as though you’re at the mercy of this foreign being. Work with your doctor and caregiver to develop lifestyle modifications allowing you to maintain as much control as you are comfortable with. 

Talk to others who have been there

Even if you have a caring network of friends and family, cancer can make you feel isolated and “different.” Join support groups where you can share your deepest thoughts without fear of judgment and benefit from the wisdom of those who have shared your experience.  

Learn to relax

The idea of learning to relax may seem strange, but the stress of living with cancer can make you forget where your “off switch” is. Music, reading, meditation and light physical activity are just some of the methods you can use to decompress.

Our non-toxic immuno-oncology therapies work with your body’s own immune system, reducing side effects that can be physically and emotionally draining. Contact us to learn more about our personalized treatments.