Natural Treatment of Cancer Pain

Dr says .. My training in natural healing has taught me to approach cancer pain from a different

perspective. I regard it as a message, a desperate cry for help from the body, alerting us

that there is a severe toxic condition that the body's own detoxification system is unable to

eliminate. In cancer patients, this involves the buildup of one particular substance.

Studying the metabolism of cancer at the cellular level, Otto Warburg, a Nobel prize-winning

biochemist, demonstrated in 1930 that tumor cells prefer a particular form of metabolism

known as anaerobic (non-oxygen) glycolysis. The main byproduct of this inefficient metabolism

is a chemical called lactic acid. This is the same lactic acid secreted by your muscles

during a strenuous workout. When oxygen stores are depleted, muscle cells revert to anaerobic

metabolism and release lactic acid. This is the substance responsible for the localized pain

experienced the day following the workout. Lactic acid must then be metabolized by the liver

back into glucose. This process requires extra energy and can place a strain on the liver.

Lactic acid secreted by tumor cells accumulates in cancer patients, particularly when the

liver is too weak to eliminate it. This can be responsible for the intense chronic pain

plaguing cancer patients. If you recall those muscle aches the day after a workout, multiply

the pain a hundredfold, and you can better imagine the suffering that many terminally ill

cancer patients endure. That explains why powerful narcotics are often prescribed at this

stage of the illness.
In natural healing, my aim is to build up the body's ability to heal itself. Although with

advanced cancer I am focusing on quality of life, the process still begins with nutrition.

With advanced stage of disease, the body is either depleted of digestive enzymes, or lacks

the energy and raw materials to produce them in sufficient quantities to permit the proper

breakdown and absorption of nutrients. So the key to nourishment in the terminal patient is

to stop eating—and start juicing. Fresh, raw, (preferably organic) fruit and vegetable juices

contain enough enzymes to allow them to pass through the stomach and enter the intestines

where they are quickly and easily assimilated. Fresh juices are concentrated nutrition and

are even more potent when we add a whole-food (SuperFood) supplement containing the naturally

occurring phyto-chemicals that are abundantly found in organic spirulina, wheat grass, barley

grass and alfalfa. Sometimes a terminally ill patient will have to start slowly, drinking

half a glass at time, diluted with water. The goal is to eventually consume one glass every

hour, or up to a gallon daily. In addition to the juices, a tablespoon of flaxseed oil is

also necessary as a source of alpha linolenic acid. This omega-three essential fatty acid

does not promote tumor growth and is noted for its anti-inflammatory effects. This

nutritional foundation will provide the nutrients required by the body to heal and begin the

detoxification process.

breast cancer

SEEK HELP

Unless you have a medical degree, you are understandably out of your element. Ask questions

and keep asking until you understand the answers. Write down the answers. No, they will not

think you are stupid. They work for you, remember?

GIVE HELP
You will feel better when you help others feel better. You have important experience and

unique wisdom to share with a support group, even from day one of your treatment. No one can

quite understand what you are going through like others who are struggling through the same

challenge. Participate in any studies that are pertinent to your condition. These studies are

usually nothing more than a brief phone interview. Your efforts will contribute to saving

others from going through this same experience.

KEEP RECORDS

It’s a bad idea to keep all pertinent phone numbers, chemo schedule, and various medications

on scraps of paper. It is astonishing how quickly you will gather up important information.

Buy a three-ring binder. Divide it into “lab reports,” “calendar,” “phone numbers,”

“questions,” etc. Stick a funny cover or cartoon on it. When you are all well again, file it.

FIND YOUR CENTER

If you have practiced meditation, breathing exercises, Ti Chi or yoga in the past, stay with

the practice so long as your doctors approve. Continue anything you do that absorbs you

completely like playing a musical instrument, needlework or painting.

Cancer: Between Diagnosis And Treatment

A cancer diagnosis knocks you flat and before you can get up off the floor, you are swamped

by a tsunami of strange medical lingo, perpetual appointments, costly medications, dreadful

treatments, possible surgery and an uncertain future. Everything moves along too fast to

afford you the luxury of finding your emotional balance.

Just a simple statement from your doctor instantly topples everything familiar and

comfortable. Your home, your relationships, your job and your future all change in an instant

and will never again be quite the same.

Unfortunately, you simply cannot afford a delay between the cancer diagnosis and the

treatment. The sooner you schedule chemotherapy, radiation and/or surgery the better.

Unfortunately, your cancer has no sense of fair play and will not wait for you to get your

bearings.

So you are suddenly forced to make incredibly important decisions, to re-organize your

schedule and to fight the battle of your life while you are still emotionally, intellectually

and physically off-center.

This is the worst possible time for you to lose your best, strongest and most stable inner

self. So, it is essential that you find a way to center yourself quickly in spite of the

turmoil in your life and to remember your former strong, confident, clear-thinking self.

Women's Oncology Program offered for cancer survivors

The Women's Oncology Program at Camp Good Days was started in 1996 and is focused on providing support and the opportunity for women dealing with cancer to share life experiences. Designed by women, for women, the Women's Oncology Program addresses the risks, fears, and barriers that women face during and after the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. All of the Women's Oncology Program sessions strive to help women strengthen and rebuild their physical and emotional well-being, through group and individual activities.

All of the Women's Oncology Program sessions are held at Camp Good Days' own, beautiful Recreational Facility, located on the shores of Keuka Lake, in Branch port, New York. The Camp Good Days' Recreational Facility includes six cabins, heated / air-conditioned Dining Hall, heated / air-conditioned Dormitory, a fully-equipped and staffed Infirmary, in-ground Pool, 625 feet of waterfront, Adventure Ropes Course, and many activity areas, such as Nature, Arts & Crafts and Woodworking.

All of the Woman's Oncology Programs are provided free of charge for the participants, which is only possible because of the generosity of so many individuals, businesses and organizations, and the success of special fund raising events.

The Woman's Oncology Arts & Crafts Program will be held May 21-23, 2010 and is a weekend camping experience open to all women, ages 18 and older, dealing with any form of cancer, from recent diagnosis to remission. The Arts & Crafts Program may include activities such as jewelry-making, scrap-booking, painting, and more.

The Women's Oncology Adventure Program will be held July 9-11, 2010 and is a weekend camping experience open to all women, ages 18 and older, dealing with any form of cancer, from recent diagnosis to remission. The Adventure Program may include waterfront activities such as, boating, fishing, and swimming, as well as rock wall climbing, Adventure Ropes Course, nature hikes, and other outdoor adventure experiences.

The Women's Oncology Wellness Program is open to all women, ages 18 and older, who are dealing with cancer, from recent diagnosis to remission. The Wellness Program may feature activities such as massages, manicures, makeovers, yoga, reiki, and other wellness-based experiences. The Women's Wellness I Program will be held September 10-12, 2010 and the Women's Wellness II Program will be held October 22-24, 2010.

In addition, Camp Good Days will also offer the Young Adult Program, June 18-20, 2010, which is for young women and young men, ages 18-39, who are dealing with any form of cancer, as well as the Supportive Spouse / Friend Program, which will be held September 24-26, 2010 and is open to all women and men with cancer, ages 18 and older, and their significant other / friend.


Camp Good Days and Special Times is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization, dedicated to improving the quality of life for children, adults, and families whose lives have been touched by cancer and other life challenges, founded more than 30 years ago, in Rochester, New York, by Gary Mervis, following the diagnosis of his youngest daughter, Teddi, with a malignant brain tumor. What was started to provide a residential camping experience for Teddi and 62 other children dealing with cancer, has grown to become one of the largest organizations of its kind in the country and many of the programs and services started by Camp Good Days have been used as models by other cancer treatment centers and organizations all over the world. Since its inception, Camp Good Days has served more than 42,000 campers from 22 states and 25 foreign countries.

Camp Good Days has received the coveted Four-Star Rating from Charity Navigator.org; has been inducted into the Safety 1st Hall of Fame by Markel Insurance Companies, and is Accredited by the ACA (American Camp Association.