Cancer Blog

My life has been one huge adventure which I grab with two hands and embrace. Everything isn’t always smooth sailing, but from my own insights, those of my mentors, and reading plenty of books, the tough times dwindle very quick.

Some people believe that my positive spin on life has a lot to do with facing very real life threatening illnesses and seeing past them.

As a toddler, I was run over by a reversing car, and luckily, only broke my femur and was consequently placed into a full leg cast. Being only 20 months old, no doubt this would’ve been quite detrimental to a young tot who recently learnt how to become mobile.

A couple of years later, it was evident, that you shouldn’t chase beach balls on grandstands. So, after falling off a grand stand in Julia Creek, (8 hours west of Townsville, Queensland), things weren’t looking crash hot. My mum is a registered nurse and knew that I wasn’t crying, just because I had fallen 12 feet and landed on a bindi patch. I was passing blood. This was something very serious. Now that may seem horrifying, however, this actually was a true blessing as I had cancer, and without my accident, the cancer probably would’ve gone on, undetected.

However, being a small town, there wasn’t anyone available to drive the ambulance to Townsville, which was the closest large regional city. Solution: Dad drove the ambulance, whilst Mum nursed.

After tests were conducted it was found that I had a wilms tumour cancer, and it was encompassing my right kidney. Immediately, I was flown to Brisbane for surgery to remove my right kidney, and to start radio-therapy treatment.

The year was 1975. Revolutionary things were going on in medical science. Time was drawing towards the festive season, and doctors were gearing up for the holiday break. Time to check on my progress before the break.

Sad news was delivered to my parents. The tumour had grown very aggressively and now they were told that my internal organs such as the liver and the bladder were riddled with cancer. More surgery wasn’t an option as the cancer was too wide spread.

“Take your child home to your families and enjoy your last Christmas together.”

With my impending death sentence, they figured that I would be as good a candidate as any, to be a guinea pig for a new drug, however, the outcome was doubtful so late in the game.

Family and friends from near and far prayed, whether they had a faith or not, and got into the true spirit of the Christmas season. Remarkably, I seemed to be doing okay and it was quite a surprise to doctors, to see me turn up to the mid-January appointment.

Excitement mounted as initial tests came up clear. Investigative surgery backed their assessment. Completely clear! Doctors were stunned. The word used was MIRACLE! Everybody was scratching their heads and asking the exact same question. “How did that happen?”

Over 30 years later, people still ask the same question. How did that happen?

Miracles occur everyday. Do what you can, believe what you can, and don’t give up!

(ARA) - One of the most exciting developments in modern medicine has been the discovery that cancerous tumors have the potential of being “starved” out of existence, or at least into dormancy. Scientists, doctors and, of course, patients, are all anticipating the prospect that cancer patients may take a drug that will stop a tumor in its track by cutting off the blood supply that nourishes it.

At the core of this medical breakthrough was the discovery that every tumor needs to “recruit” its own blood supply to flourish and grow. Scientists also found out that tumors actively “participated” in this process by secreting certain growth chemicals that would attract blood vessels to the tumor. Having identified this process, the next step was to determine if drugs could be created that could somehow arrest or reverse the progress of blood vessels amassing around a tumor.

The result has been a highly dynamic and exciting area of medicine called anti-angiogenesis (meaning “against the formation of new blood vessels̶ that focuses on inhibiting the growth of cancer by developing drugs that will prevent tumors from growing in size.

Currently, there are several drug companies that are on the cusp of introducing drugs that will work by the process of anti-angiogenesis. Generally speaking, the drugs seek to improve survival rates of cancer patients, as well as increase the length of time that patients survive. And unlike conventional cancer therapies that have punishing side effects, the new drugs seem to demonstrate few or no side effects for most people. Furthermore, some of the studies show that by utilizing both conventional treatments like radiation and/or chemotherapy in conjunction with anti-angiogenesis drugs, the cumulative effect is even more powerful.

One highly regarded company that is at the forefront of developing anti-angiogenesis drugs is Aeterna Laboratories, based in Quebec, Canada and traded on the Nasdaq market under the ticker symbol, AELA. The company’s premier product, Neovastat, is currently being tested in clinical trials for a variety of cancers including lung, renal (kidney) and multiple myeloma (bone marrow). The results for the renal and multiple myeloma tests are scheduled to wrap up by the end of 2002 and, if conclusive, will be submitted to the Federal Drug Administration for review.

Out of all the drugs under development, Neovastat is unique because of its multi-functionality, which is its ability to shut down two pathways recognized as being responsible for promoting angiogenesis (in contrast to other drugs which just block one pathway). In clinical trials, Neovastat has been shown to have no side effects in most people. This is obviously a big advantage for people who know the agony of nausea, exhaustion and/or hair loss that can accompany chemotherapy drugs. In tests, Neovastat has been given to people in liquid oral form, generally the preferable form of drug delivery for patients.

If you are a cancer patient interested in clinical trial participation, you can get information about current trials by calling (888)-349-3232 If you are an oncologist, please contact Claude Hariton, Ph.D., vice president of Clinical and Regulatory Affairs at (4 652-8525 ext. 306. To learn more about anti-angiogenesis drugs and Aeterna Laboratories, visit the Aeterna Web site at www.aeterna.com.

Had any Nutrasweet lately? If you have, you might like to know that a class action lawsuit is in the works against Nutrasweet manufacturer G.D. Searle.

A consumer rights advocacy group calling itself “Mission Possible” is leading this potentially explosive litigation. In their lawsuit they plan to expose evidence pointing to the fact that aspartame - also known as “Nutrasweet” - has been found to be a causative agent for brain tumors and that the FDA has known of these risks for years.

Mission Possible has amassed an impressive array of studies and reports proving that aspartame is not a bonafide food additive but a neurotoxic drug that spins off the deadly brain tumor agent: DKP (diketopiperazine).

The founder of Mission Possible, Betty Martini, explained the situation as follows: “Neither congressional hearings nor repeated petitions calling for a ban have stopped aspartame manufacturers from exposing the public to this sweet poison. In fact, aspartame producers are reporting increased sales and boasting the market place addition of Neotame, a new aspartame product.”

It is a matter of documented record that for sixteen years, the FDA tried to resist pressure to approve aspartame because of various studies that linked the artificial sweetener to a variety of adverse reactions. Among those reactions were brain tumors that occurred in animals that ingested aspartame.

In 1977, FDA investigator Jerome Bressler discovered that Searle had intentionally destroyed evidence of a large number of laboratory animals that had died from ingesting aspartame. Bressler later met with doctors H.J. Roberts, MD and Russell Blaylock, MD to brief them on his findings.

For quite a long period of time during the initial lab testing, the fate of aspartame was uncertain. The FDA had been resisting approval based on mounting evidence that aspartame was toxic.

Then - enter Donald Rumsfeld (yes, THE Donald Rumsfeld). In 1978, the Board of Directors of G.D. Searle recruited Rumsfeld to head up the company as CEO. Three years later, political wheels turned and the FDA reversed its longstanding opposition to aspartame and approved its sale.

Since then, the FDA has received thousands of complaints and has amassed a list of no less than 92 symptoms of aspartame poisoning. This list includes neurological problems, seizures, vision loss, blindness, headaches, cardiovascular problems, and death.

Of all the consumer complaints filed with the FDA each year, a whopping eighty percent of those complaints have to do with adverse reactions to Nutrasweet-related products. Eighty percent!

Fortunately for all of us, Martini has been collecting data about this controversy since 1992. She has tried executive and administrative remedies to have aspartame removed from the market place, but little has come of her efforts.

She is now of the opinion that: “Litigation is the only way to spare consumers from the misery of aspartame poisoning.” Her reasoning is supported by the outcome of recent product liability controversies such as the now famous Vioxx fiasco. In the case of Vioxx, it had become clear to many observers that the FDA wasn’t going to be part of the solution - at least not soon. It finally took a well-orchestrated class action lawsuit to get everyone’s attention and pressure the agency into taking corrective action.

To back up these allegations about Nutrasweet, there’s a large body of evidence in Mission Possible’s possession that accurately documents the history of aspartame from its initial discovery to its politically-engineered approval. That a product with so many known health risks continues to be allowed in over 9000 commonly consumed foods, beverages and medical products, is, well, food for some very disturbing thought.

Over the years it has been demonstrated that aspartame is a neurotoxic agent and that it interacts with other drugs and vaccinations in unexpected, harmful ways. For example, in one set of discovered documents, Searle conducted Nutrasweet experiments in six third world countries (1983-1984). During that period, some of the subjects who were given Nutrasweet developed brain tumors and others started to have seizures.

The bottom line is that large numbers of people who were asked to consume Nutrasweet in early Searle studies came down with brain and nervous disorders. The damaging results from these studies were statistically significant and yet, for reasons that are now becoming obvious, the FDA was not advised.

In 1999, an aspartame study was done by Dr. Peter Nunn at King’s College in England. Based on the results, Dr. Nunn concluded that: “…it is possible that the aspartame breakdown product may be capable of enhancing the rate of malignant progression of preexisting…tumors in the brain”. These results validated those of famed neuroscientist Dr. John Olney, who had also determined that there was a connection between brain tumors and aspartame.

Currently, about seventy percent of adults and forty percent of children consume aspartame in one form or another. Coincidentally, brain tumors in the United States have been steadily on the rise since the early 1980s when aspartame was approved.

In a powerful video documentary called “Sweet Misery: A Poisoned World”, aspartame investigator Cori Brackett pieces together key interviews with doctors, scientists, attorneys, and FDA investigators. Most troubling is the body of evidence pointing to the fact that Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld used his considerable political influence to cause the FDA to approve aspartame, knowingly putting hundreds of millions of people at risk.

So here it is in a nutshell: if you consume any product that contains aspartame (AKA: “Nutrasweet̶ you are in fact consuming a poisonous chemical known for its ill-effects on the human body. If you eat or drink products containing Nutrasweet (AKA aspartame) you’re just asking for it. For the sake of your health and for the sake of those who love you and want to see you around for a long time, please stop. Read the label. If it says “Nutrasweet” or “aspartame”, reach for something else.

Please consider forwarding this important health information to your email list.

Researchers are now making a strong association between alcohol use and cancers of the esophagus, pharynx, and mouth, whereas another study links alcohol with liver, breast, and colorectal cancers. Together, these cancers kill more than 125,000 people annually in the United States. For the first time scientists have demonstrated how alcohol stimulates tumor growth.

Their study, published in the January 15, 2005 issue of Cancer, says alcohol fuels the production of a growth factor that stimulates blood vessel development in tumors. For almost a hundred years mounting evidence has linked alcohol use to an increased risk of cancers of the stomach, esophagus, liver, breast, and colon. Researchers were never able to explain how alcohol may cause cancer.

Theories suggests that the acetaldehyde found in alcohol, dietary imbalances, and impaired nutrient metabolism and the inability of the body to detoxify due to alcohol consumption, activation of precancerous enzymes, and suppression of the immune system.

8 Times More Cancer Cells

The investigators found that compared to their control group, the subjects who had been exposed to high alcohol consumption experienced increases in tumor size, tumor blood vessel density, cancer cell infiltration of blood vessels. Tumor volume and vascular volume more than doubled.

They had more than eight times the level of cancer cell invasion of blood vessels compared to the control group.

These findings support the hypothesis that alcohol represents an important mechanism of cancer progression associated with alcoholic beverage consumption. A recent study indicates that as few as two drinks per day can suppress any beneficial effects of a “correct” diet on decreasing risk of colon cancer. Although the study suggests that a diet high in folic acid, a B vitamin found in fresh fruits and vegetables, decreases the risk for colon cancer, it also warns that alcohol consumption may counter this protective action and increase the risk for colon cancer by reducing folic acid levels.

Suppression of immune response. Alcoholism has been associated with suppression of the immune system. Immune suppression makes chronic alcohol users more susceptible to various infectious diseases, and to cancer.

by Dr Laurence Magne, publisher of Alternative Health Ebooks and Author of Cancer Free for Life

For centuries, asbestos was used. Thousands of workers were exposed to the risks of this mineral that has several beneficial properties, but on the other hand can lead people to death.

First, the relation between asbestos and death of some workers wasn’t made clear. The Greek geographer Strabo and the Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder noticed something wrong regarding asbestos workers. Both found a sickness in the lungs of slaves that worked with asbestos.

Despite the evidence, the diseases related to the asbestos use were ignored for a long time. Only in the year 1931, the first laws were created in England in order to create preventative measures.

The use of asbestos

The Greek people named this mineral asbestos uniting two words in Greek: a, for non and sbestos, for extinguishable. So, asbestos means inextinguishable, which can be easily understood after reading about the effects of this mineral on the lungs of workers.

Asbestos was largely used due to its various properties. This mineral is resistant to fire, to some chemical effects and it also is waterproof. Due to this characteristic of being resistant to fire, it was used by unreliable merchants that used to sell crosses - that were supposed to be pieces of the cross where Jesus Christ was hung - made of asbestos. Since asbestos may have an appearance of old wood it could be easily sold and the fire resistance was the perfect excuse to sell it.

During the 1800s, the use of asbestos increased due to the Industrial Revolution. It started to be used worldwide, without any regard to working conditions. More than 3000 branches of industrial production used asbestos in the manufacturing of its products, which just contributed to the development of a disease commonly diagnosed in people that were exposed to asbestos.

The health conditions regarding asbestos exposure

For centuries, asbestos was used. And for decades, its effects were simply ignored. Doctors related some deaths to the exposure to asbestos, but it took years until the first measures were taken.

During the Industrial Revolution and the following years, working conditions were highly despised. By that time, it didn’t matter what conditions people worked under, but how fast and efficiently they could do their job. This situation only contributed to the increase in the number of people who had respiratory problems.

The problem and the risk to the health regarding asbestos lies in a simple action: inhaling the particles spread by this mineral. If the particles are not inhaled, it does not represent a risk. But the truth is that, working with asbestos, it is almost impossible not to inhale particles.

These particles inhaled get stuck in the lungs’ tissues, causing a type of cancer that is known as mesothelioma or asbestosis. Mesothelioma is the cancer of the pleural and peritoneal linings. When it is diagnosed, it is in general too late to do something: it’s often fatal. Besides, mesothelioma has a long period that it remains in a latent state: it can remain unnoticed for 15 up to 60 years.

Asbestosis is a condition that compromises the elasticity of the lung tissue, which makes it difficult for the organs to exchange gases, resulting in a low level of oxygenation of the blood. It restricts breathing and can be unnoticed for up to 30 years.

Even with the preventative measures assured by laws, the number of deaths related to the exposure to asbestos has increased. In 1968, there were 153 deaths caused by mesothelioma but in 2003, statistics shows 1874 deaths. And it is not a world number: it was registered in Great Britain.

An exciting new treatment that has given hope to mesothelioma victims is called gene therapy. Gene therapy attempts to decipher why proteins within certain cells cause them to be resilient to cancer while some cells do not. A while back it was believed that genes were complete upon birth, and that they couldn’t affect conditions afflicted during life. This however, turned out to not be the case. Since then we have learned that smoking, sunlight and certain foods can all affect our DNA and make changes to our genetic code. These new insights provided by these conditions have allowed doctors to view many conditions like malignant mesothelioma in a new light.

There are many factors that contribute to Mesothelioma. Asbestos exposure is the primary contributing factor, but genetic mutations in individuals also worsen it. Gene therapy is a revolution in mesothelioma treatment because it replaces cancer-causing genes with genes that are medically constructed to die when exposed to cancerous growth. These ‘suicide genes’ are a possible way to slow and possibly stop the rapid replication of cancerous cells. Studies are also starting to begin experimenting with replacing cancer generating genes with genes susceptible to certain drugs. This would allow the cancer to be potentially eliminated with few side effects.

Gene therapy treatment is still in its beginning stages and is not yet 100% safe. However, this desperate situation suffered by mesothelioma victims, sometimes calls for various experimental treatments. Any hope for surviving mesothelioma outweighs many of the dangers involved.

(Liz, dressed for hiking, enters with a walking stick in hand and wearing a backpack.)

Hi! My name is Elizabeth Andra Shaw and I’m on a great adventure — a journey called Life, a journey to answer the question, “Who am I?”

The first 44 years of my life, I lived in a place called Hatville. It was an exciting place. Everyone was very busy because they were wearing many different hats. In Hatville, hats are very popular. People collect hats, and some hats are so rare that they confer great status on their owners. There is competition and envy surrounding high status hats.

I picked up a few hats myself while I lived in Hatville, including the Daughter Hat, the Sister Hat, the Physical Therapist Hat, the Medical Editor Hat, and the Wife Hat. In fact (Liz shrugs off her backpack and extracts a hat) here is my favorite, the Phoenix Mercury Fan Hat! (Liz excitedly models the hat for the audience.)

(Liz turns suddenly serious and leans on her walking stick with both hands.) There came a day, however, when I received word that I could no longer stay in Hatville. I was told I would need to go to the neighboring country. Well, I didn’t want to go! I had heard about that country, its rough terrain, the pain and suffering that were commonplace amongst its residents. But I was given no choice, and so I set off from Hatville to Cancer Land.

I was interested to learn when I arrived that the residents of Cancer Land also collect hats, but there is no status attached to them. Hats are merely a way of keeping the sun off a tender bald head. There was less hustle and bustle there, but just as much activity. Instead of chasing status, the residents of Cancer Land kept very busy counting their blessings. A gorgeous sunset that God painted just for me. The whirr of a dragonfly passing by. The softness of a kitty’s belly. As I became busy counting my blessings, the terrain didn’t seem quite so rough and the suffering didn’t seem quite as unbearable as I had heard it would be. I learned to be content in Cancer Land by living in the moment and receiving all of its blessings. I also met my inner child, and here is one of her favorite things. (Liz extracts a stuffed animal from the backpack.) This is Gideon, my chemokitty. He went with me to treatment because my other cats weren’t allowed. Yes, Gideon and I did a lot of tough stuff together.

After about 2 years, I was healthy enough to leave Cancer Land. I could have gone back to Hatville, but by this time, I had no desire to do so. I ventured instead into the unknown territory beyond Cancer Land, and I found myself in a vast open area with choices open to me for miles around. Infinite choices. But there was no road, no path, no direction. I didn’t know what to do! I scrambled around, trying to find a path and found myself going in circles. Finally I found a wise woman who said to me, “It’s time to stop DOing and to simply BE.” It was at that moment that I realized that this part of the journey would mean going deep inside, into the core of my Self, to discover the treasure within. Once grasped, the treasure would enlighten my choices and the path would appear. (Liz lays down the hat and the stick, and takes a deep, cleansing breath.) Let me introduce my core Beingness to you tonight.

I am Liz.

I am courage and hope.

I am laughter and joy.

I am sorrow and tears.

I am pain and forgiveness.

I am compassion and empathy.

I am responsibility and integrity.

I am a child and I am an adult.

I am freedom and respect.

I am paradox.

I am The Beloved.

I am a song that God sings in the shower every morning and then can’t get off His mind all day long.

I… am… Liz.

Cancer treatment and medication is a multi-billion dollar industry–so why would hospitals and pharmaceutical companies want a cure?

Have you ever heard of a doctor giving someone with stage 4 or 5 cancer a 90-100% chance of success at beating the disease? I didn’t think so. Well, there is a way you can beat these dismal odds. If you, a friend, family member, or even an acquaintance has cancer, wouldn’t you like to know the cure?

If you want to know how to beat cancer, you may need look no further than cancercuresecrets.com. They provide information that has been put under wraps for years. Did you know there is a doctor in Mexico who has a 98% success rate with curing bone cancer? Did you know clinics exist that can offer a 90-100% success rate with curing 4 and 5 stage cancers? Did you know there is a new form of super supplement that helps people quietly cure themselves of cancer? Most of us didn’t know that there exists a cancer treatment so effective, it kills cancer cells 100% of the time, anywhere in the body, with no toxic side- effects! Unfortunately, most cancer patients don’t know about this treatment… and they continue to suffer through hours of debilitating chemotherapy.

For decades, pharmaceutical companies have developed new drugs to help treat the symptoms of diseases such as cancer and AIDS. What about the cause? Why haven’t their efforts been aimed at prevention, the cure before the disease? The answer is simple. If you have cancer, the average cost of treatment is $250,000-$750,000. If people didn’t get cancer and other serious diseases, these companies would lose huge amounts of money. Their main interest, right or wrong, is staying in business.

Many people scoff at these disturbing ideas. They want to believe that they are in control of their own lives. But if you believe there aren’t immoral and unethical people out there just sitting around thinking of ways to make money at the expense of others, you are wrong. We live in a world where people cannibalize their neighbors and blow up buildings full of people, so is it that hard to believe that there are people willing to let you stay sick so they can make billions of dollars?

The answers you need may have been suppressed, but they are out there.

We all know someone that either has cancer now or has died from it. Cancer is the Bubonic Plague of our times and despite billions of dollars in research, chemotherapy remains one of the most popular forms of treatment within the established medical community.

With all of their shiny new buildings and fancy equipment, doctors still resort to this “shotgun” approach and others that are equally ineffective. This is probably why an astounding 96% of cancer patients die of complications relating to treatment—not even the cancer itself!

What is wrong with this picture? What is it about their nice clean lab coats that makes us believe that doctors hold all of the answers when it comes to our own bodies? Don’t believe for a second that they are unaware of the odds of a successful chemotherapy treatment regimen! What use is it to kill the cancer when they also destroy all of the surrounding tissues?

Is it at least possible that when they are advising patients of their treatment options they first took the time to investigate the insurance plan first because how could they ever recommend such costly and painful procedures when they know—know that the odds of success are 4%?

But, what if there were another way?

What if those highly improbable yet costly procedures were not the only option? For those tens of millions of Americans without the luxury of medical insurance (and yes, even those of you that do have it!!), is it possible that alternative cancer treatments are an option?

People, it is not just an option, it is the solution you have been seeking! The doctors won’t admit that they are almost powerless to help you or your loved one because then they can’t use all of that fancy, expensive equipment and charge equally expensive rates! They certainly won’t admit that there are proven, effective alternative cancer treatments out there because the insurance companies don’t reimburse for such “unscientific” options—and who suffers in the process??

Ultimate Cancer Breakthroughs is a compilation of the 12 most effective alternative treatments in existence. With an investment of over 780 hours of research, the authors have assembled all of the information you will need to find the treatment solution best for you! Don’t wait and don’t let the doctors play God with your body—take back control of your life and your treatment!!

Cancer symptoms and the importance of early detection

Cancer is like a curse for mankind and that too a life threatening one. Cancer will continue to be a monster for us until we are able to detect cancer symptoms in a more definitive manner and are able to find a fail-proof cure for it. So, we are faced with two challenges here – the ability to read/recognise cancer symptoms and the ability to treat cancer in a fail-proof manner. To understand cancer symptoms and the importance of early detection in a better way, let’s first start with understanding what cancer actually is.

What is cancer?

Put simply, cancer is a diseased condition of body which is caused by uncontrolled abnormal growth of cells. This growth might start in one organ and might quickly start spreading to other nearby organs. There are various types of cancer and these are generally named after the body organ where this uncontrolled and abnormal growth of cells occurs. So you have breast cancer, ovarian cancer, lung cancer and many other types of cancer. The cancer symptoms might vary based on what organ they affect.

Importance of early detection of cancer symptoms

Since the cancer cells grow at a fast pace, if you are not able to read cancer symptoms early enough, the cancer might become completely incurable. If the cancer symptoms are diagnosed in the early stages (and if the cancer is localised to just one organ), you might actually be able to get a cure for cancer. So, early detection of cancer symptoms is quite important in determining your chances of survival. Moreover, if the cancer symptoms are not recognised quickly and diagnosis sought, cancer can spread to other organs too (which might make it completely incurable). There are instances where early detection of cancer symptoms lead to complete cure too (e.g. early detection of breast cancer symptoms might make it possible to get a complete cure through surgery that involves removal of cancerous cells).

Pro-active detection of cancer symptoms

Cancer symptoms can be detected at a very stage by being proactive e.g. by going for cancer screening tests that help see the cancer symptoms early enough for curative action to be effective. In fact, too much of a delay could lead to curative action being not possible at all. Most hospitals and clinics stack free cancer symptom detection booklets which you can read to increase your awareness about cancer symptoms and cancer in general.