Alternative therapies for breast cancer

jo jo said:

I have to admit when i found
I have to admit when i found out i had breast cancer i did conciter the alternative route cuz i refused to do chemo and my doctors and family were really upset with me that i would refuse chemo. Anyway my kids talked me into it and i finally did the chemo.
I dont know if the alternative would have worked or not but im blessed as much as i did not like chemo that today im in remission and very thankful for it.

KathyLQ said:

Outcomes
RE, I appreciate your response. For me, I want to hear all sides. There is so much to research, I'm sure I'll be learning for a long time to come.

Regretfully, my experience with some acquaintances I've known over the years, and most who took chemo have not survived. But I do know that treatment outcomes of 20 and 15 years ago are likely even different than they are today.

Sometimes I wonder if it is the power of the mind. I now have a close friend of recent acquaintance who has had two bouts of cancer, one uterine, and she took chemo, and is well today, at least she says so. She also had a very positive attitude about taking chemo, and I wonder if good outcomes are partly a result of your mindset.

My oncologists did not recommend chemo or radiation for me because 1) nothing found in sentinel lymph nodes, 2) I took the route of a mastectomy, 3) there were no additional cells found in the mastectomy, and a MRI showed my other breast to be clear as well.

But I am quite aware there are no guarantees and no one can say what could be my outcome in years down the road. I have seen a naturopathic doctor and changing my diet to become a permanent part of my lifestyle is one of my goals.

I am open minded enough to research other treatments as well. Chinese have a totally different approach to treatment and their society has been doing so for thousands of years; certainly worth trying to understand.

RE said:

Hi Kathy although I wish you
Hi Kathy although I wish you did not have cause need this site I am glad that you found it. For me alternative care should only be done to compliment traditional therapy. I have answered this question on several occasion's. I myself am a 3 time cancer survivor who most certainly would not be here had I not choose traditional treatment. My mom survived 3 battles with cancer and lived 26 years with it.

Below is the post I penned in 2009.

I am afraid I am not going to be very popular with my stance on this subject but I feel compelled to chime in. I have had three friends who all chose holistic care over traditional. These individuals choose not to have any chemo therapy or radiation, although they did have the surgery to remove the tumors. Two are no longer with us as they passed away less than two years after their surgeries, one was a stage 2 the other a stage 3. The third gal had her cancer spread from one breast to the bones and lung area, she has since had several infusions of chemo and is taking oral meds as well. Her doctor's tell her it will never be in remission they are treating it in hopes they can keep it at the stage it is at now. I am not sure is she is having rads or not. I have spoken with her on several occasions and she regrets her decision to forgo chemo and radiation the first time around.

Since I penned those comments the gal I mentioned who did not take chemo till way late has lost her cancer battle, very sad when you consider she had detected it so early but chose alternative care which did nothing to stop the cancer.

I know it is not for everyone and we each have to make our own choices, I just would not feel right if I choose only to share the uplifting information we all like to hear.

I wish you all well and hope this is received in the spirit of caring as is my intention.

RE

inkblot said:

Alternative therapies and Integrative Medicine
MY TWO CENTS WORTH...

For what it's worth, for myself, the best of both worlds was traditional medical treatment, together with complementary therapies. Many, many (too many!) medical docs just don't devote much (if any) time in our treatment regimens, to caring for our depleted immune systems, and/or avoiding us becoming so depleted, aside from using additional medical protocols, such as injections for low counts, infections, etc.. For those of us who believe we can keep some of those side effects at bay with other therapies, then we must discuss it with our docs, make a plan which is appropriate for our particular situation and then, include what is possible to include, along with the traditional drugs.

I chose surgery, chemo and radiation, in that order. Together with my oncologist, my chemo was more integrated. Not as fully as I would have liked, but then I trusted my med onc and therefore took her advise on what not to take. My med onc was wonderful and supportive of my using certain complementary therapies, while on chemo. She was very open to discussion of, aware of and supportive of many other things I wanted to include, along with chemo. She was wonderful with researching things she was unsure about and would then render her opinon, if she believed anything may interfere in any way with chemo. Very few things on my list were a threat to chemo and my immune system remained strong. I never needed any red or white cell boosters while on chemo. For what it's worth, I believe that my taking certain supplements, eating certain foods and maintaining a routine of Yoga and meditation, played a very positive role in my overall chemo experience.

The other side of this same coin, (one I'm passionate about) concerns our emotional health while undergoing traditional medical treatment. Medical personnel do not generally address this issue, aside from prescribing anti-anxiety/antidepressant therapies. They may ask how we're feeling, etc., but few of us may reveal how we really feel emotionally, to our medical oncs. Far too many of us suffer in silence, without resources to truly help ourselves to feel better. Chemo is tough. No question. But it certainly helps us to keep our spirits strong, when we have greater resources. Helping us to need fewer medications, and of course, that can mean fewer side effects of same. If they'd all just tell us to "nurture our spirits" and love ourselves, stress the value of relaxation and making time for ourselves, we'd at least have a good idea, at the outset, of what type things may help us to feel more emotionally balanced, through our storm or treatment(s).

Clearly, we all benefit from more than "just drugs" when undergoing cancer treatment. Our emotions are assaulted, in addition to our bodies. Traditional medical physician's do not generally integrate alternative/complementary methods into treatment. If we believe we may benefit from other means, then it is up to us to find out what's available, discuss it in detail with our medical docs and then decide. Be forewarned that some medical docs aren't open to such discussions. In which instance, you may either find one who is or make the decision to forgo any complementary measures at all. I would not advise anyone take any supplements, etc., without prior discussion with their medical docs.

The good news is that more and more medical docs are realizing and coming to appreciate the value of integrative therapies. As more and more people ask for and wish to include them into their traditional medical regimens, more and more docs will oblige and become educated and able to offer greater expertise/assistance to their clients. We benefit, they benefit and everyone is perhaps a little better for the effort. WE ARE WHOLE PEOPLE. We need to be treated from square one, as a WHOLE PERSON. That means we should be offered any and all treatment regimens which can benefit us best, BOTH PHYSICALLY AND EMOTIONALLY. Ideally, anything less than that approach, would become legislatively inhumane malpractice. In my dreams...

Here's to every medical doc becoming an integrative medicine doc, as well as one who will take 5 extra minutes at visits and find out how we're really feeling and getting along emotionally AND then offering us readily available resources for helping us to get along even better, when/if needed!!!!

Love, light & laughter,
Ink