Study: Veggies may impact cancer recurrence

Chad Aschtgen, N.D., FABNO will be one of the presenters at the 2nd Annual Cancer Survivor Celebration. For more details on the event click here >> Registration is free for you and a guest.

Fear of recurrence is real, and something we spend a lot of time talking about with our patients.

Dr. Cobie Whitten has explored this topic in two posts:

• Understanding the fear your cancer will come back
• Five strategies for coping with fear of recurrence

Recently new research was presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2012. One study followed 1,807 cancer survivors for more than 18 years. Here are the facts:

• 1,807 cancer survivors followed for 18.2 years
• Over the course of the 18 year study, 776 individuals passed away, but only 51% of these individuals died from cancer. The other 49% died from other causes. Source.

So what does this mean?
As a cancer survivor it’s still important to pay attention to your overall health. How? A recent study at Vanderbilt University found modest results in decreasing recurrence among breast cancer survivors:

• Those who ate one or two servings a day of cruciferous vegetables were attributed a 21 percent decrease in recurrence risk.
• Those who ate more than two servings a day of cruciferous vegetables were attributed a 35 percent decrease in recurrence risk. Source.

Cruciferous vegetables include greens, cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli. However, there’s more to eating correctly than just adding in more green vegetables. If you are looking to improve your personal eating habits take a look at these other articles:

• A few guiding principles around food...
• Understanding whole foods

From Hollywood back to Olympia, PRCS welcomes new member

Focus on Oncology Massage: Oncology massage offers support to patients going through cancer treatment and recovery by providing a non-invasive, nurturing, gentle touch. Working with a trained therapist may help relieve pain, nausea, fatigue, anxiety, and depression.

Introducing Cherie Hankal, LMP Born and raised in and around the Pacific Northwest, Cherie Hankal moved to Hollywood, CA right out of high school.

In Los Angeles Cherie fulfilled her childhood dream of becoming an actor by studying at The Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute. However, it was behind the camera where she found her niche working in production of commercials, television shows, and films, most notably as an assistant director on “Cheers” and “Seinfeld.”

But when her mother was diagnosed with cancer she returned to the Pacific Northwest. Cherie feels it was a gift to be able to give love, care and support back to the woman who raised her.

The experience of assisting with her mother’s treatment gave Cherie the desire to serve more people.

She enrolled in the Massage Program at University of Western States Chiropractic College in Portland, Oregon, with the intent of specializing in Oncology Massage. Her training included various massage modalities along with the required science. In addition, she had the honor of participating in an internship offered by Northwest Cancer Specialists in Portland.

Cherie is thrilled to be joining the team at Providence Integrative Cancer Care. She looks forward to bringing gentle comfort to people in treatment for cancer through the use of massage.

Starting this September Cherie will provide oncology massage on:

• Mondays at Providence Regional Cancer System- Centralia
• Tuesdays at Providence Regional Cancer System- Lacey

For more information or to schedule your appointment call either 360.754.3934 or 1.800.883.8990; option 3, followed by option 5

To find out why training in Oncology Massage is so important to a cancer patient’s safety, click here to read a short article by Gayle MacDonald, author of Medicine Hands: Massage Therapy for People with Cancer.

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• Still considering Integrative Care Services? Here's what others are saying
• What can naturopathic care do for me?
• Take a minute, and just breathe

Boosting your gut - Probiotics and chemotherapy

There’s a good body of research around probiotics helping with the side-effects of cancer treatment—especially those currently undergoing chemotherapy.

What are probiotics?
Formally, probiotics are live microorganisms existing in the human body. Informally, probiotics are the good bacteria found in our gut. While that may seem harsh, consider this. When our bodies are functioning correctly there is actually more good bacteria living inside us than there are actual human cells.

So how does this affect chemotherapy?
Chemotherapy is like a really big antibiotic treatment. Its mission is to try and kill as many rapidly dividing “things” in our body—which, unfortunately, includes probiotics. This is a common reason why those undergoing chemotherapy suffer from diarrhea.

There is evidence that a huge dose of probiotics following a chemotherapy session could reinvigorate your gut helping to get your body back on track.

Probiotics is in no way a universal cure for cancer, but it can drastically help the person going through the cancer.

If you think probiotics can help you talk with your doctor about how to safely build probiotics into your cancer treatment plan.

You might also like:

• A few guiding principles around food ...
• Integrative care basics and what others are saying
• Hirsch Holistic Family Medicine Blog (external link)

Have you considered acupuncture?

You’ve seen it in the news, you’ve seen it on television, you may even know someone who knows someone who’s done it. What is it? Acupuncture.

And while it’s still relatively new in the U.S. (only about 200 years) it’s been used for thousands of years as part of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).

So why should you try it?
I have personally treated patients diagnosed with cancer for:

• Nausea and vomiting
• Aches and pains
• Anxiety
• I have also been able to use acupuncture to help the newly diagnosed with insomnia and other sleep disorders.

But what really happens? Doesn’t it hurt?
Acupuncture is based on the idea that energy (qi) flows in channels (formally called meridians) through our bodies. TCM believes that qi, made up of two forces, yin and yang, can affect your spiritual, emotional, mental and physical condition “Yin and yang are opposite forces that work together to form a whole. The forces of yin and yang depend on each other and are made from each other in an unending cycle, such as hot and cold, day and night, and health and disease. Nothing is ever all yin or all yang, both exist in all things, including people. Many of the major organs of the body are believed to be yin-yang pairs that must be in balance to be healthy. When a person's yin and yang are not in balance, qi can become blocked. Blocked qi causes pain, illness, or other health problems.” Source.

Acupuncture needles are inserted at specific regions to access the qi. The biggest misconception is that an acupuncture needle is a normal needle … it’s not. The needles are about the size of a strand of hair, so small that instead of actually piercing the skin they just push apart the skin cells. Many of my patients report a soothing sensation as the treatment unfolds.

Does acupuncture really work?
In 1976 the FDA approved the acupuncture needle as a medical device. It’s important to note that acupuncture is meant to supplement your cancer treatment, not replace it. The best medicine is the type that’s going to work for you and, hopefully, improve your quality of life. Many people shy away from acupuncture because of the association of pain with needles. If you are suffering from any of the symptoms mentioned in this article I encourage you to give acupuncture a chance. For more information visit the Providence Integrative Cancer Care Website.

You might also like:

• Integrative care basics and what others are saying
• National Cancer Institute, Acupuncture
• American Cancer Society, Acupuncture

Just because it's natural doesn't mean it's safe

Do you head to the health food store to find out what natural remedies will boost your immune system, or help minimize the side effects related to cancer treatment?

If so, do you take the extra step to share this information with your cancer physician? Many people do not talk to their doctor about what supplements they are taking. Often they have no idea it’s a topic they even need to bring up with their physician. That may be due to the common misconception that if something is natural, it can cause no harm. However, sometimes the opposite is true.

A natural herb or mineral supplement can be processed by the same enzymatic pathways in our bodies as the medicines prescribed by your physician, including cancer treatments. This means, in some cases, an herb which is considered relatively safe to take on its own may lead to negative consequences when taken at the same time as a certain medication.

For example, the antidepressant St. John’s Wort can make the chemotherapy agent Irinotecan (Camptosar, CPT-11) less effective. The important take home message is this: Make sure to tell your physician about everything you ingest, whether it’s an over-the-counter medication, regularly prescribed medication, or an herbal supplement.

You may also like:

• Integrative care basics and what others are saying
• What can naturopathic care do for me?