What causes cancer?

molimoli

libby.sparks said:

"I think I'll have that Snickers now"

Hi Cindi, Don's Wife and Eldri!

Hello. My name is Libby, and I am a sugar addict.

I ran the Paris marathon April 12, 2015, three months before my diagnosis and surgery. I was running 30-35 miles a week. I enjoyed excellent health, high energy and maintained a normal weight. I ate something sweet every day, sometimes several dessert a day, and a couple of tablespoons (or more) of ice cream every day in the summer. Like Cindi, I have always eaten what I wanted.

 

I LOVE that you are so realistic about nutrition. Not too long ago, I was so darned nauseated that I couldn't imagine eating a snickers or a cookie. On a 5'7" frame, I was 130 pounds in July, just before being diagnosed with Stage IV B USPC. The big GYN surgery involved  placement of an ileostomy. Three weeks after surgery, I developed significant abdominal distention, nausea and vomiting. I was hospitalized and found to have massive ascites, infected with e coli. A drain was placed to remove the infected abdominal ascites. In one week, I lost 18 liters of Protein rich fluid. My weight dropped to 92 pounds, and i was told to eat and drink high protein foods and drinks. Honestly, I don't know how I survived those weeks. I had no appetite and had to force every swallow of food. And if that wasn't bad enough, I battled persistent and significant dehydration from a "high output" ileostomy. I developed painful abdominal spasms, which were later discovered were caused by several small bowel obstructions. Without an omentum to support the bowel and massive adhesions from the infected peritoneal fluid, the small bowel developed acute turns and knuckling, and nearly complete bowel obstruction. After surgery to release the small bowel, and several areas of small bowel resection, the abdominal pain has resolved and now I feel great. I am happy to say that my appetite has returned with more verocity than ever. I was able to resume the treatment plan, and completed the 6th cycle of Taxol/Carbo on Feb 2. I have been eating everything in sight! I'm hungry now...for a Snickers (thanks, Cindi for reminding me how tasty they are ).

But, I just finished reading the (audio) book "Anti Cancer. A New Way of Life". One of the four major components of living an Anti Cancer Way of life is diet. As I understand it, eating high glycemic snacks (refined sugar) causes a rapid rise in the blood sugar, a rapid rise in insulin, and release of IGF (insulin like growth factor). IGF is a systemic inflammatory substance that perpetuates cancer growth. So I have committed myself to eliminating refined sugar from my diet. Today is the 4th day of no refined sugar. I'm waiting for the cravings  to fade. I did use a bit of Agave Nectar in my Pomegranite Green Tea. Maybe tomorrow will be a better day.

The author did say, that eating a square or two of dark chocolate at the end of a meal would not be expected to result in a sudden rise in blood sugar, insulin and IGF. And that having one glass of red wine with dinner is good for us. Sounds good to me!

Hugs to all of you. 

Hi Libby,Oh ! so sorry to

Hi Libby,Oh ! so sorry to read of your journey but what an eye opener this is . It informs, scares the heck out of me but shows the measure of your strength.I admire your determination to not roll over and play dead,You weathered the storm, you  strengthened me and no doubt others that have read your post , I thank you for sharing,

It seems to me that you've earned and deserve many bottles  of red wine, oops! not for one day consumption though.

You deserve NED after all that, I pray that for you it will come .

Moli - sending healing vibes and plenty hugs.

molimoli

Abbycat2 said:

Like so many diseases, cancer is mysterious

I heard that we all get cancer, too, at least several times in our lifetimes. My doctor has told me and what I've read confirms it, that cancer is more than one disease that occurs due to a "perfect storm" of events or conditions in our bodies. I am convinced that genetics is a huge player, as cancer represents a genetic mutation. Science has discovered some causes such as smoking, obesity and pollution. However, ancient man developed cancer and I doubt if the greenhouse effect caused it or water pollution or obesity. So, I think the biggest culprit is genetics. My paternal grandmother died from uterine cancer and her daughter died from ovarian cancer. Is it such a surprise that I got it, too?

Oddly, elephants rarely get cancer. This is being studied. You might think that such a large animal with so many dividing cells would get cancer at a high rate. 

I hope some day we will know why we got cancer. More importantly, we will benefit from a complete cure.

I wish you all a wonderful day!

Cathy

 

Well Cathy , thanks for the

Well Cathy , thanks for the elephant info,All I know for sure is if they don't find a cure and I must come back this way again I want to come back as an elephant.

My sisters,brother and nephew had different kinds of cancer and I expected to have cancer ,although my parents died of stroke and heart attack, we can't find any history of cancer on their part indicating that it is not heriditary for us,it's a family puzzle, unless it is a case of  "your daddy ain't your daddy but your daddy don't know' LOL

Ok guys that was a joke,---I think.  I am not joking about the elephant thing though, I can't do this crud again, another time another place ,nope,elephant I am.

Moli- sending you all baskets of healing vibes.

pinky104

Eldri

Hemochromatosis can cause heart attacks and it runs in families.  My father had a heart attack at 42, but managed to live to 84 and died of congestive heart failure that caused renal failure then.  My brother dropped dead of a heart attack at 57, while I was going thru chemo.  He thought I'd be dying soon, but he was the one to go.  After I didn't stop being short of breath after chemo, I was tested for hemochromatosis, and was found to have a sky high iron level by my family physician's office.  My oncologist, who's also a hematologist, checked me at my next appointment for the genes for hemochromatosis, and I did have one abnormal gene that sometimes causes hemochromatosis.  I now think that is what probably caused my father's death back in 1984 and my brother's in 2008.  My father had twin brothers that both had terrible heart problems, and I found a descendant of theirs on ancestry.com who told me that all of the men of the family have died of it except for one in the 3 generations that have come along since my father and uncles lived.  I had blood letting (phlebotomy) to bring my iron level down to normal, and I have to keep getting ferritin tests every few months.  I used to have a lot of palpitations and they're gone now that the phlebotomy was done.  Maybe you should have people in your family get their ferritin levels checked, and if high, get a genetic test done for the genes (either C282Y or H63D gene defects can cause it).  Women are often okay until menopause, as their iron levels are decreased by their having periods.  After menopause, the iron starts accumulating in the body causing a lot of different symptoms and many conditions that can kill them.  Something like 3% of the population has hemochromatosis, and most don't even know it.  Getting checked and treated could save lives.

EZLiving66

pinky104 said:

Eldri

Hemochromatosis can cause heart attacks and it runs in families.  My father had a heart attack at 42, but managed to live to 84 and died of congestive heart failure that caused renal failure then.  My brother dropped dead of a heart attack at 57, while I was going thru chemo.  He thought I'd be dying soon, but he was the one to go.  After I didn't stop being short of breath after chemo, I was tested for hemochromatosis, and was found to have a sky high iron level by my family physician's office.  My oncologist, who's also a hematologist, checked me at my next appointment for the genes for hemochromatosis, and I did have one abnormal gene that sometimes causes hemochromatosis.  I now think that is what probably caused my father's death back in 1984 and my brother's in 2008.  My father had twin brothers that both had terrible heart problems, and I found a descendant of theirs on ancestry.com who told me that all of the men of the family have died of it except for one in the 3 generations that have come along since my father and uncles lived.  I had blood letting (phlebotomy) to bring my iron level down to normal, and I have to keep getting ferritin tests every few months.  I used to have a lot of palpitations and they're gone now that the phlebotomy was done.  Maybe you should have people in your family get their ferritin levels checked, and if high, get a genetic test done for the genes (either C282Y or H63D gene defects can cause it).  Women are often okay until menopause, as their iron levels are decreased by their having periods.  After menopause, the iron starts accumulating in the body causing a lot of different symptoms and many conditions that can kill them.  Something like 3% of the population has hemochromatosis, and most don't even know it.  Getting checked and treated could save lives.

On and off during my life

On and off during my life I've been anemic with low iron.  I'm getting tested again tomorrow for it along with a lot of other problems I had during chemo - anemia being one so I don't think they would test me for hemochromatosis.  But, my dad did have higher-then-normal iron levels.  He donated blood a lot and that's how they noticed it.  He always said he felt so much better after donating blood but back then there wasn't much genetic testing going on.  

My brother that died at 37 of a massive heart attack was frequently anemic or close to it.  He was nine years younger than me and I remember him taking iron pills and drinking grape juice as a kid - apparently way-back-when, doctors through grape juice would build red blood cells??  

When I went to see my GP last week we went through my lingering chemo symptoms.  She asked me if they're getting better.  She said she would start treating them when they DIDN'T get any better or were getting worse but not to be surprised if they linger six months to a year. Right now, I'm going through my "list" one side effect at a time - LOL - from life threatening (liver failure) to annoying (losing my fingernails) - and dealing with them. 

Love,

Eldri

survivingsu

I wondered about the cause too

Hi Eldri,

Such a good question!  I wonder to this day what caused mine.  Cancer does not run in my family, I was the first (my parents, grandparents, etc. had heart issues).  I was told that my particular small cell undifferentiated cancer was extremely rare and the cause was unknown.  I'm obese, but I'm working on that, that is something that definitely runs in my family.  Still, I cannot help but wonder what other factors are out there, including the environment.  At any rate, it's been 6 years since I was treated and as far as I know "cured", and I focus on the present.  Hope they keep learning more and more...I would love it if no one ever had to go through what we all did!!!!  I also feel very lucky to benefit from what they know so far.

Keep on asking those great questions!!!

Susan

Tethys41

Cause?

Cancer develops because of mitochondrial damage.  Mitochondria are cellular organelles that produce energy.  People who end up developing cancer, first have a reduction of mitochondria in their cells and mitochondrial damage.  As a result, cells struggle to produce energy and revert from using oxygen to produce it to fermentation, which relies on sugar and an environment with little or no oxygen.  This is a natural process that cells revert to in a last ditch effort to survive.  What causes mitochondrial damage are toxins and inflammation.  As a result of mitochondrial malfunction and damage, DNA mutations occur, which causes other cellular malfunctions which result in cancer cells - cells that multiply without limits and cells that don't self destruct when they should.  So, although there is a genetic component, it is not directly the cause.  This is where conventional research is failing us.  Researchers are looking for the genetic trigger for each cancer.  There are some genetic influences, those that contribute to inflammation and other variables that contribute to cancer.  But the body's internal environment is what leads to mitochondrial damage and ultimately to cancer. What supports mitochondria? Limiting exposure to toxins; managing stress; controlling inflammation; heatlhy exercise (not endurance type exercise, which causes inflammation and adrenal stress); clean diet - low in carbs and sugar, high in healthy fats.  There are many great resources out there if you want to understand what causes cancer.

Already mentioned - Anti-Cancer: A New Way of Life; by David Servan-Schreiber

Tripping Over the Truth: The Return of the Metabolic Theory of Cancer Illuminates a New and Hopeful Path to a Cure; by Travis Christofferson

Pottenger's Prophecy: How Food Resets Genes for Wellness or Illness; by Gray Graham, Deborah Kesten, Larry Scherwitz

Best wishes,

diagnosed: 7/2009

stage III ovarian cancer

NED since 2/2010

debrajo

Tethys41 said:

Cause?

Cancer develops because of mitochondrial damage.  Mitochondria are cellular organelles that produce energy.  People who end up developing cancer, first have a reduction of mitochondria in their cells and mitochondrial damage.  As a result, cells struggle to produce energy and revert from using oxygen to produce it to fermentation, which relies on sugar and an environment with little or no oxygen.  This is a natural process that cells revert to in a last ditch effort to survive.  What causes mitochondrial damage are toxins and inflammation.  As a result of mitochondrial malfunction and damage, DNA mutations occur, which causes other cellular malfunctions which result in cancer cells - cells that multiply without limits and cells that don't self destruct when they should.  So, although there is a genetic component, it is not directly the cause.  This is where conventional research is failing us.  Researchers are looking for the genetic trigger for each cancer.  There are some genetic influences, those that contribute to inflammation and other variables that contribute to cancer.  But the body's internal environment is what leads to mitochondrial damage and ultimately to cancer. What supports mitochondria? Limiting exposure to toxins; managing stress; controlling inflammation; heatlhy exercise (not endurance type exercise, which causes inflammation and adrenal stress); clean diet - low in carbs and sugar, high in healthy fats.  There are many great resources out there if you want to understand what causes cancer.

Already mentioned - Anti-Cancer: A New Way of Life; by David Servan-Schreiber

Tripping Over the Truth: The Return of the Metabolic Theory of Cancer Illuminates a New and Hopeful Path to a Cure; by Travis Christofferson

Pottenger's Prophecy: How Food Resets Genes for Wellness or Illness; by Gray Graham, Deborah Kesten, Larry Scherwitz

Best wishes,

diagnosed: 7/2009

stage III ovarian cancer

NED since 2/2010

cause

Always spot on Kate!  I think everything is tied to DNA and our own responce to outside influences.  Stress, I believe causes more damage than anything, but it is the "perfect storm" of all factors combined. Thank you for the informational post and for keeping an eye on us!  Debrajo

EZLiving66

survivingsu said:

I wondered about the cause too

Hi Eldri,

Such a good question!  I wonder to this day what caused mine.  Cancer does not run in my family, I was the first (my parents, grandparents, etc. had heart issues).  I was told that my particular small cell undifferentiated cancer was extremely rare and the cause was unknown.  I'm obese, but I'm working on that, that is something that definitely runs in my family.  Still, I cannot help but wonder what other factors are out there, including the environment.  At any rate, it's been 6 years since I was treated and as far as I know "cured", and I focus on the present.  Hope they keep learning more and more...I would love it if no one ever had to go through what we all did!!!!  I also feel very lucky to benefit from what they know so far.

Keep on asking those great questions!!!

Susan

Hello Susan!  I am so happy

Hello Susan!  I am so happy you have made it six year, still NED!!  My doctor told me after five years without recurrence I would be considered cured.  That is still a long time off for me but hopefully someday I will be able to say that too!!!

There are so many theories about what causes cancer.  People who do everything "right" get it along with those who did everything "wrong."  Does our body turn on itself as in an autoimmune disease?  I also think the environment has something to do with it yet people all over the world get it.  

What stage and grade of cancer did you have (notice my past tense?? LOL)

Love,

Eldri

Tethys41

Tethys41 said:

Cause?

Cancer develops because of mitochondrial damage.  Mitochondria are cellular organelles that produce energy.  People who end up developing cancer, first have a reduction of mitochondria in their cells and mitochondrial damage.  As a result, cells struggle to produce energy and revert from using oxygen to produce it to fermentation, which relies on sugar and an environment with little or no oxygen.  This is a natural process that cells revert to in a last ditch effort to survive.  What causes mitochondrial damage are toxins and inflammation.  As a result of mitochondrial malfunction and damage, DNA mutations occur, which causes other cellular malfunctions which result in cancer cells - cells that multiply without limits and cells that don't self destruct when they should.  So, although there is a genetic component, it is not directly the cause.  This is where conventional research is failing us.  Researchers are looking for the genetic trigger for each cancer.  There are some genetic influences, those that contribute to inflammation and other variables that contribute to cancer.  But the body's internal environment is what leads to mitochondrial damage and ultimately to cancer. What supports mitochondria? Limiting exposure to toxins; managing stress; controlling inflammation; heatlhy exercise (not endurance type exercise, which causes inflammation and adrenal stress); clean diet - low in carbs and sugar, high in healthy fats.  There are many great resources out there if you want to understand what causes cancer.

Already mentioned - Anti-Cancer: A New Way of Life; by David Servan-Schreiber

Tripping Over the Truth: The Return of the Metabolic Theory of Cancer Illuminates a New and Hopeful Path to a Cure; by Travis Christofferson

Pottenger's Prophecy: How Food Resets Genes for Wellness or Illness; by Gray Graham, Deborah Kesten, Larry Scherwitz

Best wishes,

diagnosed: 7/2009

stage III ovarian cancer

NED since 2/2010

Just saw this article today

Thanks, Pam.

https://thetruthaboutcancer.com/mitochondria-function-reduce-cancer-risk/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=partners&utm_campaign=draxe

 

survivingsu

EZLiving66 said:

Hello Susan!  I am so happy

Hello Susan!  I am so happy you have made it six year, still NED!!  My doctor told me after five years without recurrence I would be considered cured.  That is still a long time off for me but hopefully someday I will be able to say that too!!!

There are so many theories about what causes cancer.  People who do everything "right" get it along with those who did everything "wrong."  Does our body turn on itself as in an autoimmune disease?  I also think the environment has something to do with it yet people all over the world get it.  

What stage and grade of cancer did you have (notice my past tense?? LOL)

Love,

Eldri

Hi Eldri

Hi there Eldri,

Sorry for the delayed response, I visit this site less often when I get busy, but that doesn't mean I don't think about everyone on this site.  Thanks for the question and your interest.  I actually wasn't specifically told my stage or grade at the time, and didn't pursue it further, Im guessing stage 2.5 or 3?  At the time I was pretty sick and scared, and got into simultaneous chemo & radiation treatment right away.  I do remember my doctors telling me that I had three different kinds of uterine cancer cells and the treatment was based on the most agressive and rare form of the three, the small cell undifferentiated carcinoma cells.  Every day I consider myself mighty lucky that they were able to treat me and technology has come a long ways even from just a few years before I got my cancer.  I'm also glad I didn't look at studies online until I was well past treatment, as things get out of date fast and the survial rates were very discouraging, in my case it was good that I trusted in my doctors, nurses and techs and just focused on getting better.  I joined this group when I was feeling good, past recovery, and all these great people have been a wonderful resource and reminder that no one is truly alone in this experience.

Thank you again for your kind message and the NED wishes,

I am sending you and all our sisters on this site eternal NED vibes!!!

Susan