Ketogenic diet

Jenny2

Has anyone tried the ketogenic diet to help reduce/stop cancer growth during chemo treatments. I have read a few stories where women went into remission and credit part of it to their ketogenic diet. I think it might be worth a try but need to find a Doctor who believes in it to monitor my diet and health during chemo.

Arx001

I’d say definitely avoid it as it is quite risky. There’s published research which shows that on mice, keto diet leads to metastasis. The author states that when you starve cancer cells, they migrate!

https://www.cancer.columbia.edu/news/study-finds-keto-diet-could-contribute-cancer-metastasis

Jenny2

Thanks for the link, the article does show there is a great risk of making things worse, darn!!

NoTimeForCancer

Over the years I have seen Tethys41 on the Ovarian page talk about how a naturopath has helped her so much. If you go there and look at her post regarding 14 years of survival - it is amazing. Of course, everyone is different but you may try to reach out to her with questions. Just a sugestion.

MAbound

Hi,

I hope you agreed with what was said here about avoiding the Keto Diet to help you beat this cancer. Some people are determined to go their own way with alternative treatments, but they can be counterproductive while in active medical treatment and need to be held until you get that behind you. (emphasis on last bit of that sentence)

We tend to advocate that you check with your oncologist first before "going off the reservation" to improve your odds of a cure causing the opposite of what you are hoping to accomplish. This holds especially true for supplements and, yes, some diets. Alternative Care options to ease your way through chemo (i.e. Complementary Medicine) can be very helpful, though. Just don't put anything in your body without first consulting the doctor managing your chemo and/or radiation.

In the case of this keto diet, it's important to understand that many chemo drugs are designed to function by preferring cancer cells when they are in an active state. It can make them better targets than healthy cells that you don't want to kill. Doctors would rather that you eat a healthy diet, rather than an unconventional one for this reason. Attempting to starve your cancer during active treatment would make chemo less effective rather than more, so you really don't want to do that now.

Another bit of food for thought for you to chew on is that cancer is a complicated beast with many variables to deal with. You want advice from professionals who know what they are talking about, be they a medical specialist or a naturopath that specializes in treating cancer patients. What you read online or get as advice from others who mean well should be used as a starting point for asking questions and learning rather than something you need to hurry up and act on.

Personally, I tend to be skeptical of simple solutions being the answer to complex issues. For medical problems, it feels like they place blame on an individual for not having lived their lives a certain way for the circumstances that they find themselves in and hence why so many look for something that they can control going forward when it's often just not possible because of genetics, environmental exposures, etc. Don't fall into that trap for your cancer. Adopting a healthier lifestyle is never a bad thing, but getting cancer is not your fault.

Jenny2

Mabound,

Thanks for the feedback. I think I am already eating a Metabolic diet due to my digestive restrictions (chronic SIBO) and read the study that the keto diet actually causes wider spread on the cancer. Still searching for a doctor to help me with chemo side effects, will solider on!