Category: Breast Cancer

Her Breast Cancer Came Back After 14 Years

Last week (early March 2016) we had a call from a lady. Let’s call her Nancy.

Nancy called to say that her husband wanted to see us. Is her husband having any problem?  Her daughter explained that  was the one having problems and her mother wanted to come and see us with her husband. Okay come to the centre now if you like, was our answer.

Our Patient 14 Years Ago

Nancy was 54-years old when she was diagnosed with with Grade 2, infiltrating ductal carcinoma of the right breast in May 2002. After a lumpectomy, her doctor recommended a total mastectomy – just to be safe! The pathology report indicated no residual malignancy or lymph node metastasis. No chemotherapy or radiotherapy was indicated but the doctor wanted to put her on tamoxifen (for five years!).

Nancy and her husband were fully aware of the side-effects of tamoxifen and declined to take the drug. But her doctor told her: You have only one in a million chance of getting cervical cancer! Nancy responded: That one could be me! Nancy’s is a case of once bitten twice shy. Two years prior to her diagnosis, at the onset of her menopause, she was on hormone replacement therapy (HRT). She was well aware of the risk of breast cancer while on HRT. Her doctor checked and monitored her breast health every month to ensure that everything was under control.

But it was not to be. Two years on HRT, cancer reared its ugly head in her right breast. Nancy came to seek our help in May 2002 and was started on CA Care Therapy. Nancy was in excellent health since then. But after 5 years we never get to see her again.

After all Nancy learned from her doctor and friends that if you survive 5 years then you can be considered cured. You will now learn from this story that you-are-cured-after-five-years-doctrine is an illusion, faulty and without basis.

It was one morning in early March 2016 — Nancy, her husband and daughter were sitting in front of me with her CT scan report (19 February 2016)  which said:

  • There are lobulated mass lesion in the right breast 4 x 6 cm invading the pectoralis muscle and underlying chest well.
  • Multiple nodules seen in both lungs 5 to 15 mm.
  • Multiple enlarged right axillary lymph nodes seen.
  • Multiple enlarge mediastinal lymph nodes seen.
  • Mild right pleural effusion.
  • L2 compression fracture with spinal canal stenosis.
  • Multiple lytic bone lesons seen involving the sprine, sternum, ribs, pubic bones and left iliac crest.

Immunohistochemistry stains profile supports the diagnosis of high grade metastatic adenocarcinoma from the breast.

Blood test results on 19 February 2016

Platelet 353
Alkaline phosphatase 270  H
Aspaartate Transaminase   42  H
Alanine Transaminase   15
Gamma-Glutamyl Transferase    64  H
CA 125 50.7  H
CA 15.3 171.3  H

 

I was in despair not knowing what to say or feel. It was a frustrating morning indeed. It is hard to see apparently “successful” case turning rotten. Over the years we have warned our patients that there is no cure for cancer. One day if you do something “wrong”, the cancer will come back again. If you are well, continue to do what you are doing and don’t let go. For most people it is hard. They want to go back to their old lifestyle, they want to eat what they like again, they don’t want to take the herbs any more — in short, they just want to do whatever they like, believing in this faulty idea that the cancer is gone forever after surviving 5 years.

My aunty had cervical cancer. She survived 13 years and then started to cough for 2 years without anyone at home suspecting that something had gone wrong!  Most tragic of all. there was a doctor living in the house! A CT scan showed the cancer had spread extensively to both her lungs. It was too late. After 8 months on herbs, one morning aunty died peacefully without any pain.

Over the years, we have seen such tragedies being repeated over and over again. But not many people want to learn. Everyone wants to believe what their doctors tell them —You are cured after 5 years!

This is another story: Breast Cancer: When a so-called “cure” was not a cure. MT had breast cancer in 2005 and underwent a mastectomy followed by 6 cycles of chemotherapy and 30 radiation treatments. Then she was prescribed Tamoxifen, which she took for 5 years. MT was told by her doctor that her breast cancer was at an early stage and that she had a 90 percent chance of complete cure with the treatments that she had undergone.

MT believed her doctor and did exactly as what she was told to do. Each year she came back to her doctor in Melaka for routine checkup. At every visit she was told that she was fine. After 5 years, MT was told to stop Tamoxifen because she was already cured.

Barely a year later, in April 2011, MT started to have pains in her tail bone and shoulder blade. She ignored the problem and did not go back to see her doctor. Then she started to take “jamu” (Indonesian herbal). The pains did not go away but rather became more intense. Then her legs started to hurt as well. She became breathless and was unable to walk far. In February 2012, MT returned to her doctor in Melaka. Examination indicated her cancer had recurred.  MT asked her doctor why the cancer recurred when she was told earlier that she had been cured. The doctor replied,  I do not know why. But don’t blame yourself. It is your fate.  Also the recurrence has nothing to do with what you eat. It is just your fate. Yes, when modern medicine failed, God gets the blame!

Looking at things from a positive angle, at least Nancy was already lucky or blessed. Her cancer recurred only after 14 years. Many people even died 3 to 4 years after undergoing all the medical treatments of their cancer.

Nancy had radiation to her backbone and this helped ease the pains. She was told to undergo chemotherapy but she refused, prefering to take herbs again. We are out front with Nancy — we can only do our best to help her live a pain-free happy life but we cannot cure her. We urged her to seek medical help if necessary (whatever that means).

(UPDATE: Nancy died on 9 June 2016)

Let me ask you to ponder what I wrote earlier in Understanding Cancer War and Cure.

cure 1

cure 2 cure 3

 

 

 

 

Listen, there is NO cure for metastatic cancer!

For the past few weeks, patients who came to seek our help presented with very depressing stories. For a start let us highlight two cases of breast cancer — among the many more other stories.

Patient from Sabah

This is an email.

Hi Dr Chris Teo,

How are you? I have heard of your cancer treatment through a friend, and would like to consult you for my mom. She is currently residing in Sabah and is 60 years old.

Please allow me to describe the situation for your understanding:

  1. Mom was diagnosed with Stage 4 right breast cancer on 09 May 2015, metastasis to axillary, supraclavicular nodes, right hilar nodes and lungs.
  2. Right mastectomy on 13 May 2015. Specimens report – Invasive ductal carcinoma, no specific type (NST), Grade 3 (Bloom and Richardson), largest tumour diameter 85mm, 9 out of 24 lymph nodes show tumour metastasis with largest tumor deposit of 20mm.
  3. Did not proceed with suggested chemotherapy. Did Gerson therapy for 6 months, including Essiac tea, with monitoring of blood tumor markers every 2 months. No improvement, tumor marker CA 125 on increasing trend, latest report dated 02 Feb 16 results is 316..
  4. Weakness and fatigue last week. Saw doctor and CT scan showed more metastasis to brain, lungs, lymph. Doctor prescribe Radiotherapy and Chemotherapy immediately. First Radiotherapy started today.

Can we arrange an appointment with you for consultation and your suggested treatment as soon as possible? Thank you for your time, please let me know as soon as possible.

Patient from Indonesia

This is a 57-year-old Indonesian lady. Sometime in 2010,  she found a small lump in her right breast. She came to a hospital in Penang for consultation. The doctor told her the lump was not cancerous. Happily she went home rest assured that it was all fine. With time, the lump grew bigger.In July 2014, she went to a hospital in Surabaya. By that time, the lump was already 5 cm in size. A biopsy confirmed that it was cancerous. Patient underwent 4 cycles of chemotherapy. The tumour shrunk and in November 2014, she underwent a mastectomy.

After the operation, patient received 4 more cycles of chemotherapy followed by 30 times of radiation. Then she was put on Tamoxfen and took this pill for 1 year.

A follow-up check in October 2015 showed normal results. But this turned out to be untrue because 3 months later, January 2015, patient had breathing difficulties and abdominal discomfort.

She went back to her oncologist again. Her CEA was 1.55 (normal) but her CA 125 was 88.8 (high). A PET scan showed extensive metastasis to the lymph nodes, lung, liver, bone and left adrenal. There was fluid in the lung and the pericardium.

Composite

Her cancer had metastasized extensively (images above). The patient was asked to undergo 12 cycles of chemotherapy. She had one cycle of chemo on 5 February 2016 and gave up. Her condition deteriorated ( dropped) after the treatment. One cycle of chemo cost her family IDR 12 million.

She also underwent pleural tapping — about 1000 ml of fluid was removed from her lung.

The daughter was told that her mother would have only six months to live.

In late February 2016, patient came to Penang for further treatment.  The oncologist in Penang suggested the following treatments:

  1. Undergo 6 cycles of chemotherapy. Each cycle cost about RM 14,000.
  2. Take injection for her bone.
  3. Take hormonal pill, possibly Fermara.

It was at this point that the daughter of the patient wrote us an email asking to see us. It was surprising that the patient was rather “healthy-looking” and did not have much complaints. She felt a slight tightness in her chest (previous operation site) and was breathless when walking.

Lessons We Can Learn From These Cases

  1. Dr. David Agus, an oncologist said this in his book, The End of Illness: Don’t put blind faith and trust in your doctor. Be your own doctor first. When this Indonesian patient found a lump in her breast, she came to Penang and consulted a doctor. There was nothing wrong! She went home with full faith that the doctor was right. But with time the tumour in her breast grew bigger. Why allow it to grow bigger? This is human attitude — people want to believe only in good news. They want to hear or believe what they only want to hear or believe. My doctor said this, my doctor said that — after all my doctor said I have no cancer. Within 3 years the breast lump grew to 5 cm. The doctor was wrong! That was what happen if you put blind faith and trust in just one so-called “expert”.

Kathleen Phalen, in Integrative Medicine, wrote: We’ve been misguided into thinking that our doctors … are deities capable of performing the greatest of miracles.

Our advice:  Don’t just doze off after hearing what you want hear. Watch out if your condition has turned worse or better. Go for second or third opinion.

  1. Ask this question before you undergo any treatment. What is the aim of the treatment being offered? This is what patients want to hear and believe. It is going to cure your cancer. It is going to stop the cancer from spreading. It is going to prolong your life. With such sweet assurance, patients are “bought” wholesale. They would jump into the “sea” when told to do so. Read the story of this unfortunate young man below.

a

c

d

e

f

So, evaluate what you are told carefully. It is good if you can tap into your own commonsense and ask — Is this guy after my cancer or my money? For all the promises made, ask — At what cost — physically, emotionally and financially?

Remember, cancer is a big business — there is plenty of money to be made in the cancer healing industry. The young man above, found out that he had been sold an empty promise after spending RM 500,000. And his wife died. An expensive mistake indeed.

  1. Surgery does not cure any cancer if it is done too late. And surgery could be just meaningless if the cancer has already spread. Take the case of this Sabah patient. She had 4th stage breast cancer. The cancer had already spread to the lungs. She underwent a mastectomy and was told to undergo chemotherapy which she refused. Ask — what is the aim of the surgery? Can it not make the cancer more aggressive? Can it spread more cancer?

The Indonesian lady also had surgery followed by chemo, radiation and Tamoxifen. These treatments did not work either.

  1. When first and/or second line of treatments failed, you may be offered more of the same treatments — more aggressive, more expensive drugs, more of the so called targeted “magic” drugs. Ask — would this make any difference to your condition? Are these “additives” going to cure you? Learn from the experience of the late Amy Cohen below:

4 Amy-Cohen-No-cure

  1. If there is anything we learn about the treatment of breast cancer, here are what the experts said:

13-Same-treatment-different

3 No-right-or-wrong-journey

  1. What then is the role CA Care with regards to the above two cases who came to seek our help?

These are what we usually tell patients when they come to us.

  • We cannot cure you. There is no magic bullet to cure your cancer — Worse still, most of you come to us when all those standard treatments failed! Nothing else worked, then you come expecting us to cure you. No way! We know many leave our centre disappointed. Yes, it is better to be blunt and honest rather than taking you for a ride.
  • At CA Care we try to help you heal yourself — we don’t cure any cancer because cancer is not the real problem. Cancer is just a symptom that something had seriously gone wrong within your. For that reason, just removing the tumour does not always work. And radiation or chemo does not work most of the time.
  • While you are told that chemo or radiation is done to kill all the remaining cancer cells or to stop the cancer cells from spreading, we believe you are being mislead. Diligent search of the medical literature shows that sometimes radiation makes cancer more aggressive! Similarly, chemotherapy has been shown to spread and makes cancer more aggressive!
  • Knowledge is power — it can save your life and your money. But it is up to you to work hard to find your own solution to your problem after you have read. But unfortunately, most patients or their loved ones who are not sick, don’t want to know or read. Sad.
  • At CA Care, we tell patients to accept reality and learn how to live with their cancer. If after following our therapy, you can eat, can sleep, can walk and have no pain — what else do you want? In a situation when no one can cure your cancer, perhaps that is the only alternative you have — to be able to lead a normal, pain-free life for the remaining time that you have on this earth. Remember, no one lives forever. All of us will have to die — irrespective of whether you have cancer or not.
  • Patients heal yourself. No one can heal you except you, yourself. We realise this is a tall order. Many patients just don’t know how to take care of themselves to get well while some don’t even want to put in any effort to get well — they just want to find the easy-to-swallow-magic bullet that does not exist! To be able to heal yourself means, you have to change your lifestyle, your diet and your mental attitude. After seeing cancer patients for well over 20 years, we came to a conclusion that healing cancer is about healing a human being, the tumour is secondary. There is something in you that is not right that creates the cancer. Are you prepared to change?

Let’s ponder the following quotations:

 10-Live-with-your-illness

4 Holistic-therapy-benefit

1 deVita 2-Medical-profession-which-

 

 

 

Breast Cancer: IDR 4 Billion Gone, One Breast Lost

Jenny (not real name) was 44 years old when she found a lump in her right breast. A mammography done in a Singapore hospital on 21 December 2009 indicated no mammographic evidence of malignancy.

An ultrasound done on 22 December 2009 in another hospital showed the following:

Right breast

  • 1 o’clock palpable nodule, 2.15 x 1.8 x 0.9 cm
  • 2 o’clock nodule, 0.72 x 0.56 x 0.39 cm
  • 12 o’clock nodule, 0.36 x 0.54 x 0.29 cm

Left breast

  • 4 o’clock nodule, 0.84 x 0.72 x 0.41 cm
  • 10 o’clock nodule, 0.45 x 0.74 x 0.22 cm

Bilateral axillary lymph nodes

  • Right – 1.07 x 1.35 x 0.66 cm
  • Left – 1.31 x 1.44 x 0.55 cm

A lumpectomy was done and the histology report showed:

  • Extensive high grade ductal carcinma-in-situ with foci of stromal invasion.
  • Largest grade 3 invasive ductal carcinoma is 12 mm across.
  • Lymphovascular involvement suspected.
  • Multiple resection margins involved.
  • Tumor is positive for estrogen and progesterone receptors.
  • There is HER2 and p53 over-expression.

In September 2010, Jenny and her husband came to seek our advice. We told Jenny to go and have her entire right breast removed. She hesitated and we did not get to see Jenny again until 5 years later.

In November 2015, Jenny and her husband came to seek our help again and shared with us her IDR 4 billion adventure with the oncologists in Singapore.

Listen to our conversation that day.

 

 

Gist of our conversation.

Chris: You came in 2010.

Husband: Dr. Chris asked to go for mastectomy. My wife did not want to go for the operation. She had chemo.

C: Wait, first there were lumps in her breast. Why did you not want to go for operation?

H: Afraid.

Chemo and More Chemo — Bleeding Financially

C: After you consulted us, you went home and then went to see an oncologist in Singapore. You had chemo. Did you ask if the chemo was going to cure you?

H: The doctor said, yes can cure — guarantee!

C: Oh, that oncologist guaranteed that the cancer could be cured? Another breast cancer patient also went to this same oncologist — also guaranteed a cure! But unfortunately, after chemo and more chemo the cancer went to her brain. She eventually died (see story under comment). So for you, chemo after chemo — also can cure?

H: The lump was gone.

Jenny: Normal.

H: Normal but the oncologist kept wanting us to have more chemo. So we ran away from that oncologist.

C: Why did you run away from that oncologist?

H: Cannot afford to pay anyway — we were bleeding financially.

C: Oh, you ran away because you could not afford paying for the treatments. That was after how long of receiving the chemo?

H: Almost one to one and half years of chemo like in the chart below (chart prepared by husband).

1-chemo-injections

Note: From 25 October 2011 to 14 June 2012, Jenny received:

  • 12 injections of Herceptin.
  • 16 injections of Navelbine.
  • 20 injections of 5-FU.
  • In addition, she was given Eprex and Gran (self administered at home) to deal with her low blood counts. Refer to comment section to know what this blood boosting injection is all about.

Another oncologist: Don’t worry. We have a lot of medicine to treat you!

C: You ran away from the first oncologist and found another one. This oncologist once told a patient, “Don’t worry, we have a lot of medicine to treat you!” And this oncologist gave you one drug after another? When one medicine is not effective, change to another one? So you were started on oral drugs. Was it cheaper?

H: Ya, much cheaper because my wife just need to swallow the pills.

Jenny: Cheaper!

C: Did you ask the oncologist if the medicines were going to cure you?

J: Just to control.

C: How long were you taking these medicines — one type after another?

H: A long time, from January 2013 to November 2015. When the first round of oral drugs failed, the oncologist started her on Herceptin injections as well.

2-Oral-1

  • January 2013 to November 2013: On Cyclophosphamide + MTX. PET scan showed failure.
  • December 2013 to July 2014: On TS1 + Herceptin injection.
  • July 2014 to October 2014: On Herceptin injection + Kadcyla (Trastuzumab emtansine)
  • October 2014 to November 2014: Back to oral drug TS1 again + Tykerb (lapatinib).

3-Oral-2a

  • January 2015 to June 2015: On Herceptin injection + Tykerb (lapatinib) again.
  • July 2015 to September 2015: On Herceptin injection + Perjeta (pertuzumab) + Taxotere + Filgratim (Gran).
  • November 2015: On Aromasin (exemetane).

C: What happened after taking all those oral drugs for more than a year?

H: The cancer came back again. The oncologist then started her on Herceptin injection again. She had a total of 7 injections.

C: Did you ask if this kind of injection was going to cure her?

H: The oncologist said the medicine given earlier did not work. Because of that the medicine had to be changed and changed. After one medicine failed another different medicine was tried. Then the doctor tried Kadcyla injection. This too did not work and the doctor changed to lapatinib. After lapatinib failed it was back to chemo injection again.

C: Then what eventually happened?

H: When the cancer did not go away in spite of all those treatments, Jenny had to remove her breast. After the mastectomy the doctor wanted to continue giving her chemo again — more Herceptin and pertuzumab (Perjeta).

Confused

C: I am really confused!

H: Me too. I also know that Herceptin can adversely affect the heart.

C:  When you first came to see us, I asked you to remove your breast. But you did not do that. You opted for chemo. Then after chemo and more chemo and also spending a lot of money you also lost your breast. How much did you spend for all those treatments?

H: A lot of money, about IDR 4 Billion.

C: Do you think the oncologists are good?

H: They spin money!

J: More and more chemo, until we have no more money!

Comments

When injecting toxic chemo drugs into patients, the oncologists also gave their patients Eprex and Gran. These are blood boosting shots. Perhaps this was done as a precaution because chemo could make the platelets, red and white blood go down. Perhaps too this is also a way to keep patients happy and well. Of course patients pay for such injection. But what is not known to patients is that this “red juice” and “white juice” may encourage tumor growth! Dr. Otis Brawley is an oncologist. Read what he wrote below:

Read juice

Different Oncologist, Different Business Model but Similar Pathetic Story

  1. Cure Guaranteed!

APT 1 APT 2 APT 3

From: http://bookoncancer.com/productDetail.php?P_Id=76

 2. We have a lot of medicine to treat you!

Hw 1

Hw-Composite-1 Hw-Composite-2

Hw 2

From: http://bookoncancer.com/productDetail.php?P_Id=75

One final note. IDR 4 billion — I could not imagine how “big a sum” this is. A patient who went to China for treatment of his lung cancer also spent a similar amount. And he came home just as disappointed. According to his wife, IDR 4 billion is worth 2 bungalow houses if you live somewhere around Medan.

 

 

 

Breast Cancer: Cut out your healthy ovaries and add 2 to 3 percent to your survival

Thirty-six-year-old Lisa and her husband flew from a distant country to tell us this pathetic story.

Sometime in 2013, Lisa felt a small lump in her left breast.

  • Bilateral mammography and ultrasound of both breasts on 12 April 2013 showed suspicious lesion in the left breast at 12 o’clock axis.
  • Ultrasound of whole body on 13 April 2013, showed no significant abnormality.
  • MRI on 16 April 2014 showed multi-focal malignancy in the left breast. The lesions noted in the right breast at 12 and 1 o’clock axis, have low suspicion of malignancy.

A FNAC biopsy indicated highly suspicious for malignancy.

Lisa underwent left breast conservation surgery with reconstruction on 22 April 2013.

Histopathology reports showed invasive ductal carcinoma, multi-focal Nottingham grade 1, left breast, regional lymph nodes showed reactive changes (0/17), pT1pNoMo.

ER / PR postive and Her-2-Nue Negative (1+) (Please take note of this statement).

Her case was discussed in tumour board and planned for External Beam Radiotherapy to left breast. Lisa received 32 radiation treatments starting from 17 October 2013. Lisa also received 6 cycles of chemotherapy using FEC — 5-FU + Epirubin + Cyclophosphamide.

Discharge medications after chemotherapy were:

  1. Tab Crocin, Tab wysolone before Peg-grafeel injection
  2. Peg-grafeel once — 24 hours post chemotherapy.
  3. Cap Aprecap, once daily for 2 days.
  4. Hafooz Cream – apply locally.
  5. Ointment Thrombophobe – apply locally.
  6. Tab Graniset, twice daily for 5 days.

For vomiting:

  1. Tab Emeset
  2. Tab Domstal

For Indigestion:

  1. Tab Pantocid
  2. Syp Digene

For Fever:

  1. Capol / crocin

In case of loose motions:

  1. Cap Imodium / Tab Lomotil one every 5 hours
  2. Plenty of oral fluids
  3. R.S. / electral powder

In case of constipation:

  1. Syp Cremaffin

In case of pain:

  1. Tab Crocin

In case of ulcers:

  1. Tab Forcan for 5 days
  2. Boroglycerine with Tab Dexona – crushed and mixed together to be applied in mouth, thrice a day.

After all these treatments, Lisa was started on Tamoxifen. She has to take this drug for 5 years (aya, outdated! The new guideline is 10 years!). So Lisa has been taking Tamoxifen for the past one and half years, when she came to see us.

Routine medical checkup showed Lisa was doing alright. Her CA 15.3 on 16 September 2015 was at 6.2. Ultrasound of her abdomen showed no evidence of any anomaly. Her uterus showed normal echotexture.

However, Lisa complained of tiredness. She felt irritated easily. She still has per periods but during menses she had pains and her stomach was bloated. The doctor suggested that Lisa undergo an ovarian ablation! This procedure would add 2 to 3 percent to her survival.

While her husband and family were agreeable to this surgery, Lisa was not happy and wanted to have a second opinion. So she and her husband flew to Penang to seek our advice!

Listen to her conversation that day.

 

Comments

In premenopausal women, most of the estrogen in the body is made by the ovaries. Because estrogen makes hormone-receptor-positive breast cancers grow, reducing the amount of estrogen in the body or blocking its action can help reduce the risk of hormone-receptor-positive breast cancers coming back (recurring). Ovarian shutdown with medication or surgical removal is only for premenopausal women.

There many ways to shut down the ovarian function.

There are three different ways to stop the ovaries producing oestrogen:

  • surgery to remove the ovaries
  • hormonal therapy to ‘shut down’ the ovaries (ovarian suppression)
  • radiotherapy to stop the ovaries working.

Premenopausal women who had their ovaries removed and took Tamoxifen for 5 years after breast cancer surgery had a lower risk of the breast cancer coming back and better survival rates compared to premenopausal women who didn’t have their ovaries removed and took tamoxifen after surgery. While this is considered aggressive treatment because it puts you prematurely and permanently in menopause, it may be a good treatment option for women who don’t want to have any more biological children.

Side effects

Women whose ovaries are removed will have an early menopause straight away. The symptoms of this can start suddenly and may be more intense than the symptoms of a natural menopause.

Ovarian ablation using hormonal therapy or radiotherapy happens over a period of weeks or months and is a more gradual change.

The menopause can cause symptoms such as:

  • hot flushes
  • dry skin
  • vaginal dryness
  • lowered sex drive
  • psychological effects.

These symptoms can vary from being mild to severe. This can be difficult for women to cope with, especially when they’re already dealing with breast cancer and its treatments.

Deciding to have your ovaries shut down with medicine or surgically removed requires a lot of careful thought and discussion.

Source: http://www.breastcancer.org/treatment/hormonal/ovary_removal

http://www.macmillan.org.uk/Cancerinformation/Cancertypes/Breast/Treatingbreastcancer/Hormonaltherapies/Ovarianablation.aspx

Our advice to Lisa is simple: Follow what your heart says! Others around you — may have all the best of intentions — but they may NOT understand the trauma that you have gone through and would need to go through gain. At the end of it all, the consequences of such treatment will only be borne by you, and one else.

Think carefully, by undergoing ovarian ablation Lisa stands to benefit only 2 to 3 percent in terms of added survival time! Note, survival does not mean cure. Is the added survival worth it or is it just an added misery?

Professor Gershom Zajicek, of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel, wrote about a seemingly healthy lady, once diagnosed with cancer, would be given a CANCER mask to wear. And with that mask on you are expect to take on your new role – act and behave like a cancer victim. Never mind even if you are healthier than you grandmother!

Professor Zajicek said:

  • Yesterday, a woman felt healthy. Today, she discovers a small lump in her breast. Suddenly she becomes ill, realizing that she carries an evil disease. The lump is her death sentence. In reality, she is healthy. The lump does not pose an immediate threat to her. Nevertheless she panicked. It is not cancer that causes her misery, but society and doctors that promote this fatalistic perception.
  • Now this woman is alarmed and rushes to her doctor the next day. She undergoes a mammography and biopsy and is told she has cancer. The doctor tells her that she is very ill. Her world turns upside down.
  • Before detecting the swelling, this woman is otherwise a healthy person not until she is given the cancer mask to wear. Her doctor is now preoccupied with her cancer mask. Fear is generated. Everything needs to be done quickly and urgently to fight and save her life from this evil disease – the tumour! So this woman has to act, to conform to the roles of the mask that she wears. She now acquires a new disease called the mind-cancer. From then on she sinks into the abyss of misery, believing that she will die rather soon.
  • Ask these questions: Before the discovery of the lump, and before consulting her doctor – what was her life like? She was as fit as a fiddle, wasn’t she? The sudden change of fortune befalls her just because she had discovered a lump in her breast. What is the real cause of her misery? The lump in her breast or the perception of evilbeing spun by society and the medical establishment?

(Read more: https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2012/05/18/new-thinking-about-cancer-and-its-treatment/)

When Lisa felt a lump in her breast, she went through a series of traumatic experiences. She rushed to the doctors and underwent:

  1. Ultrasound
  2. Mammogram
  3. MRI
  4. Biopsy
  5. Surgery to remove the breast lump
  6. Reconstructive surgery
  7. Chemotherapy
  8. Radiotherapy
  9. Tamoxifen
  10. After all these, the game was not over yet. She was asked to remove her healthy ovaries.

From the above, it looks like the SOP for cancer was strictly adhered to.  Do you think all these are necessary? Can’t we skip a step or two?

All the imaging machines in the hospital were put to use — ultrasound, mammogram and MRI before a biopsy was ordered.

Then came the treatments — everything was thrown in. And many kinds of medications were prescribed to take care of the side effects — vomiting, indigestion, fever, loose stools, constipation , pain and ulcers! Indeed, Lisa was really sick!

But after all these treatments. was Lisa guaranteed of a cure? No one can be sure! 

Again, read what Professor Gershom Zajicek wrote:

  • Modern medicine fails to cure cancer. Medicine is in a conceptual deadlock … the basic tenets of cancer treatment are false.
  • After being diagnosed with cancer your mission is to train yourself to live with cancer in peace and harmony. The message your body is giving you is that your life needs to take a new course, with a new mission. It does not matter whether you were cured by surgery or not.
  •  Start a new life which is devoted to tilt the balance between cancer and your body in your favor.
  • You may turn to your doctor for advice on alternative approaches.  He may just look at you, laugh and say:  Who tell you all this nonsense? Don’t believe in such unscientific and unproven baloney!  For medicine it is inconceivable that other ways are better than their cut, burn and poison approaches.
  • You will have to trot this difficult path on your own. Medicine ignores its limitations and views what are being said by alternative healers as nonsensical.

 

 

 

Breast Cancer: You want a 100 percent chance of cure, right?

Fay (not real name) is 44-years-old. In July 2015, she found a lump in her left breast.

  • Mammogram showed a cluster of subtle heterogenous microcalcifications in the left breast, suspicious of malignancy.
  • Ultrasound confirmed the presence of a 1.5 x1.0 x 1.3 cm irregular lobulated hypechoic mass lesion at 2 o’clock of left breast.
  • A fine needle biopsy confirmed a ductal carcionoma.

Fay proceeded to have a mastectomy in September 2015. Histopathology of the left breast and axillary lymph nodes indicated:

  • Invasive micropapillary carcinoma, grade 3 with in situ carcinoma.
  • Lymphatic and vascular invasion by malignant cells seen with metastasis to 3 of 12 lymph nodes.
  • Nipple and excised surgical margins are free of neoplasia.
  • Receptor status: Tumour cells are positive for ER, PR and c-erb-B2.

The total cost of the operation was about RM 13,000 (inclusive of RM 2,000 surgeon’s fee).

Fay was asked to see an oncologist for further management. The breast surgeon told Fay that she did not have to do radiotherapy but chemotherapy is a must.  The surgeon said:

  1. If no chemo, the chances of survival is 57 percent.
  2. With Tamoxifen (take for 5 years) the chances of survival is 68 percent.
  3. With Tamoxifen and Chemo, the chances of survival is 81 percent.
  4. With Tamoxifen + Chemo + Herceptin, the chances of survival is 88 percent.

After being told the above, Fay decided not to go and see the oncologist. She also decided NOT to undergo chemotherapy. She came to Penang to seek our help instead.

Why did Fay come and see us?

  1. She had a friend who had breast cancer, similar like her cancer. She did not go for chemo and opted for alternative therapy. She remained well for many years. So Fay knew alternative therapy is effective.

2. Fay came to see us with her best friend whose sister-in-law is our patient. Let’s call this patient, Jane. Jane had breast cancer. The tumour was ER and PR negative and c-erb-B2 positive. She was asked to go for radiotherapy and chemotherapy with Herceptin. Jane refused after seeing her mother-in-law died after 2 cycles of chemo. Today Jane  is still very healthy — more than 5 years now after her diagnosis.  Breast Cancer: Does chemotherapy and radiotherapy make sense? https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2013/06/10/breast-cancer-does-chemotherapy-and-radiotherapy-make-sense/

  1. Fay also knows that her best friend’s father had prostate cancer. He also refused medical intervention and was on our herbs. He is still doing fine — almost two and half years now.

Why did Fay refused chemotherapy?

She knew about the side effects of chemotherapy. Fay said before coming to CA Care, she and her family had already decided that she would NOT go for chemotherapy! Why? Fay said even after doing all these treatments, as suggested by her surgeon, there is no guarantee of a cure!

Let us try to fully understand what the doctor told Fay.

  • If Fay does not go for chemo after the surgery, her chances of survival is 57 percent, or something like 50:50. So not going for chemo does not mean that she is going to die because of the cancer. She can still live a healthy life. Or, if she does not get it right, she dies. Her chance is like flipping a coin, head or tail.
  • If Fay takes Tamoxifen for 5 years, the chances of survival is bumped up to 68 percent. This means Tamoxifen provides only 11 percent benefit. But this comes with a price. Fay is aware that Tamoxifen has many side effects — and the greatest fear is getting another cancer! Read these:

1 Babara-Tamoxifen-does-not-c 2 Jane-Plant-No-to-tamoxifen

5 Sellman-Tamoxifen-initiate-

3 John-Lee-Tamoxifen-more-har

Ask yourself, are you happy to go ahead and take Tamoxifen with the hope of getting 11 percent benefit but exposing yourself to the many risks above?

Hang on. Read this: Breast Cancer: Do this chemo – 100 percent cure! You believe that? https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2014/07/30/breast-cancer-do-this-chemo-100-percent-cure-you-believe-that/

Now, they are asking women to take Tamoxifen for 10 year instead of 5 years! That means a longer exposure to side effects and risks?

  • If Fay takes Tamoxifen and undergo chemotherapy, the chances of survival is 81 percent.
  • If Fay takes Tamoxifen + Chemo + Herceptin, the chances of survival is even higher, 88 percent.  Take note, the addition of Herceptin to chemo provides a 7 percent benefit. But at what cost? Money wise, it is going to cost RM 150,000 for 1 year of Herceptin injection. In addition Herception has side effects. Check the internet if you want to know more about this. But here are some examples:  it can cause flu-like symptoms in 40 percent of patients. This include fever, chills, muscle aches and nausea.

WP can tell you what it is like after receiving Herceptin: https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2015/09/28/metastatic-breast-cancer-she-found-her-healing/

One danger which you may not be told is, Heceptin can damage the heart and its ability to pump blood effectively. This risk has ranged between 5% to 30%. The risk of severe heart damage is greater when Herceptin is given along with other chemotherapy drugs that are known to cause heart damage. Adriamycin is an example of a chemo-drug that can cause heart damage.  http://www.breastcancer.org/treatment/targeted_therapies/herceptin/side_effects

  • So you have to decide if getting an extra 7 percent benefit from Heceptin is worth it! Remember, you have to spend RM 150,000 in addition to enduring the side effects. Game for this?

Can chemotherapy cure breast cancer?

Fay was told that if she takes Tamoxifen and undergo chemotherapy, the chances of survival is 81 percent. So this cook-book treatment provides a 24 percent benefit over not undergoing chemo + Tamoxifen.

Are you happy with this 24 percent benefit? Fay said NO, because even if she does nothing after surgery, she still have a 57 percent chance of survival. So the benefit of 24 percent due to chemo + Tamoxifen is not good enough.  She wanted a 100 percent chance of cure, which unfortunately Fay knows no one can offer her!

Fay also knows that going for chemotherapy is not like going for a “honey moon.” It can be a hellish experience. If you are unlucky, you may be dead even before the schedule treatment is completed.  Just read this:

3 Chemo attempt to kill cancer before killing patient JohnLee

 

Read these stories:

2.3 cm Malignant Breast Lump: Surgery, Chemo and Radiation — Disaster. https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2015/04/25/2-3-cm-malignant-breast-lump-surgery-chemo-and-radiation-disaster/

Breast Cancer: Surgery, Chemo, Radiation and Tamoxifen Did Not Cure Them https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2015/03/22/breast-cancer-surgery-chemo-radiation-and-tamoxifen-did-not-cure-them/

 

We can’t cure Fay either!

When Fay came to see us, she and her husband have already decided what road to take — no more medical treatment after the mastectomy. She wanted  an alternative route. Let us be clear. When you come to us we would not tell you to go or not to go for chemo. That has to be your decision, not ours.

Of course, if you need to know more about chemo, radiation or Tamoxifen, we shall provide you with as honest information as possible. But do not make us a scapegoat if something goes wrong along the way.

Dr. Barbara Joseph is a medical doctor and she too had breast cancer. This is her advice to those who have cancer.

6 Babara-ASK

Dr. Susan Love is one of the world’s most outstanding breast cancer surgeon. Listen to what she has got to say below:

3 No-right-or-wrong-journey

 

 

 

Metastatic Breast Cancer: She Found Her Healing

WP is a 45-year-old lady. Within a period of LESS than a year, all these happened.

  • In November 2014, WP had a lump in the right arm pit. A mammogram showed multifocal clusters of micro-calcification. A surgeon did a bad, piecemeal excision of the lump. Test confirmed it was an infiltrating ductal carcinoma with DCIS margins involved.
  • A week later, another surgery was done to remove the other remaining half of the lump.
  • WP consulted an oncologist in Singapore. She was asked to do a PET scan.
  • PET scan results showed:
  1. Small focal areas of mildly increased FDG uptake seen in the right breast — foci of satellite tumours have to be considered.
  2. There are several hypermetabolic lymph nodes noted in right axilla and in the pre-carinal region of the mediastinum. These findings are suspicious of metastatic nodal disease.
  3. No definite scan evidence of FDG avid hepatic, pulmonary and skeletal metastasis is noted.
  • WP was told she had a Stage 4 cancer and needed chemotherapy. She received her first shot of chemo in Singapore — AC regimen costing SGD 6,000 per cycle.
  • Not happy with the first oncologist, WP decided to seek another oncologist.
  • She did a total of 6 cycles of chemotherapy in Singapore. Since her cancer was Her-2 positive, WP was given Taxol + Heceptin. One injection of Herceptin cost SGD 4,000.
  • All treatments were completed in April 2015. Another PET scan was done. The results showed:
  1. The foci of increased FDG uptake in the right breast have resolved.
  2. The FDG-avid lymph nodes in the right axillary region and precarinal region of the mediastinum show interval metabolic resolution.
  3. No new suspicious FDG-avid lesion is detected.
  • In layman’s language the first round of chemo was a great success! But this success did not last long.
  • Six weeks later, a lump was again found in WP’s right breast. FNAC confirmed cancer.
  • The oncologist wanted WP to continue receiving Herceptin. Each treatment cost SGD 4,000 and WP will need to continue receiving Herceptin for life!
  • CT scan was done and it showed lung nodules.
  • In simple layman language the first round of chemo was a failure. It did not cure her.
  • WP was referred to a lung specialist who suggested a surgical removal of the infected nodes.
  • WP consulted a breast specialist in Kuala Lumpur and had a mastectomy (total removal of right breast).
  • A PET scan was again done on 11 August 2015. The results showed:
  1. There is interval development of several FDG-avid lymph nodes in the lower cervical, right supraclavicular, left internal mammary and medistinal regions. A consideration would be nodal metastases.
  2. A stable subcentimetre subpleural lung opacity without FDG-avidity in the right lower lobe is non-specific.
  • The breast specialist suggested more chemotherapy — the same advice as the oncologist in Singapore.
  • 18 August 2015, the breast specialist wrote: “The consensus on treatment from our Tumour Board was for her to complete her Herceptin and have radiotherapy to the chest well … radiotherapy to include the SCLN and Mediastinal LN as well as continuation of Herceptin and Perjeta in combination.”

After a month on CA Care Therapy, WP returned and said she was happy, confident and looked prettier! Listen to her.

 

Knee and joint Pains Gone After e-Therapy

WP suffered two side effects after her medical treatment.

  • After her surgery and axillary lymph nodes removal she felt numbness in her right arm. This is a very common problem suffered by patients.
  • After the chemo with Herceptin she had pains in her knees, ankles and joints.

Since WP planned to stay in Penang for 3 days, we took the opportunity to put WP on our e-Therapy.

After 3 sessions of the e-Therapy (each session lasted less than an hour) the numbness and pains were gone! Let WP tell you her experience.

 

Comments

Many cancer patients came to see us after all their medical treatments have failed them. We are their “last one stop”.  We also reminded them: Don’t expect us to cure you! We don’t have any magic bullet. You learn how to heal yourself. In this case, we are indeed glad to know that we can help WP in many ways — If you can eat, can sleep, can move and have no pain, don’t ask for more! Be grateful and be happy. WP had demonstrated to us that she had found her way to healing!

We always tell patients to ask two questions before undergoing any treatment (medical or alternative).

Before undergoing chemotherapy (radiation or surgery), did you ask the oncologist if the chemo is going to cure you?

WP did not ask this question when she met the first oncologist. But the second oncologist did tell WP that chemo would cure her cancer — saying, Many of my patients lived for 5 years.  To the doctors, surviving 5 years or more means cure, which unfortunately is not true.

I learned about Amy Cohen Soscia from the internet. She had breast cancer when she was 43-years old. Amy underwent a mastectomy, reconstructive surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. She received treatments in one of the world’s outstanding cancer hospitals in the United States. In spite of the aggressive treatment,  Amy’s cancer spread to her liver and spine. She also received Herceptin. The cancer spread to her brain. More chemo drugs and radiation but these did not help her. Before she died, she wrote:

Capture2

In this case, WP had chemo with Herceptin. The treatment did not work. So, the oncologist’s respond was more chemo and top it up with radiation.  For the chemo, there is a new but expensive “bullet.”  This is the first time we heard about Perjeta.  What is it? Perjeta (chemical name: pertuzumab) is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to be used in combination with Herceptin (chemical name: trastuzumab), another targeted therapy medicine, and Taxotere (chemical name: docetaxel), a type of chemotherapy, to treat HER2-positive, metastatic breast cancer  (Perjeta was called Omnitarg in earlier studies).

Can Perjeta cure cancer? How much does it cost?

Perjeta helped patients with HER2-positive breast cancer live significantly longer. But how long is that?  According to a study rolled out at the European Society for Medical Oncology meeting, Perjeta helped half of patients live at least 15.7 months longer than patients in the control group, the study data shows. In the world of metastatic, HER2-positive breast cancer, that’s a whopping result.”We’ve never seen anything like this before,” lead author Sandra Swain of MedStar Washington Hospital Center told The New York Times. “It’s really unprecedented to have this survival benefit.” Perjeta’s U.S. list price is about $5,900 per month, and it’s used in tandem with Herceptin, which costs $5,300 per month. Source: Roche’s Perjeta helps breast cancer patients live a record-setting 15.7 months longer

“Most patients will take the combination of Perjeta and Herceptin until their disease worsens, which is about 18 months,” the spokesperson said. “The estimated cost for a course of treatment … for 18 months is approximately $188,000.” Source: FDA approves Roche’s pricey new Herceptin partner, Perjeta.

Put this in the context of a patient in Malaysia. You need to spend RM 827,200 (current exchange rate of 4.4) to live for 18 months. The treatment does not cure you — does it prolong your sufferings?

Not too long ago, a friend whose wife had breast cancer was told by a renown oncologist: If you have a million or so, this is the time to spend your money, to show your concern for your wife. But the big question is, Can the treatment cure her? The answer is NO. My friend told me, It was a disgusting advice! We never went to him again.

One Indonesian cancer patient asked her oncologist if he could consider giving some discount for her chemo treatment. After all she had been receiving so many cycles of chemo from him but he could not cure her. The oncologist replied, Ask your husband to go and rob the bank to pay me.

Read more about medical cost: https://cancercaremalaysia.com/category/medical-costs-technology/

Reflect on the wisdom below:

Capture1

WP came to see us a month ago. She decided to believe in her own body in wanting to get well. She did not want to go for anymore medical treatment. Would you regret for making this decision? WP said she is now happier, healthier and prettier! Will she make it to another two years without having to spend a million bucks? Time will tell.

Ella was told without chemo she had only three months and with chemo she would live for two and a half years (no cure!). Ella forgo chemo and made it to seven years. And today she is still healthy! At CA Care, we have seen many Ellas (and you don’t have to rob the bank!). Praise God, the Almighty Healer.

Click on this link to browse through the many cases of breast cancer that we wrote about https://cancercaremalaysia.com/category/breast-cancer/

 

 

 

 

Breast Cancer: Surgery, Chemo, Radiation and Hormonal Therapy Did Not Cure Her. Xeloda made her miserable! Patient, Only You Should Decide What You Want To Do!

Mdm PG was 59 years old when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in June 2009. She immediately underwent a right mastectomy. Histology report indicated:

  • Three lesions of invasive ductal carcinoma.
  • Focal lympho-vascular invasion is seen at the periphery of the 2 small lesions.
  • Resection margins, skin and nipple are not involved by tumour.
  • 4 out of 13 axillary lymph nodes contain metastatic carcinoma, with focal extracapsular spread.
  • pT2N2aMx, Stage 3A

Prognostic factors:

  • Oestrogen receptor –   Moderate reactivity
  • Progesterone receptor –   Moderate reactivity
  • C-erb-B2 –  No reactivity
  • P53 –  Weak reactivity

PG underwent follow up chemotherapy and radiotherapy. She was also on Fermara (for 5 years). At the same time, she started to take herbs. The following is a brief summary of her treatment progress (extracted from the e-mails from her daughter).

May 2013 – almost 4 years after diagnosis

My mum is doing extremely well and I thank God every day for you and His protection over my mum’s life.  My mum recently went for her blood test and check-up again.  The doc said that her bones are getting brittle due to the regular intake of this hormonal pill that she has been taking every day for the past 3 years to keep her condition under control.  It is one of the side effects of this pill.  He is advising her to go through a kind of treatment to strengthen her bones.

I found out the name of the bone strengthener that the doc recommended to my mum.  It’s called “Zometa.”  It is an injection.  The hormonal pills that she has been taking is called ” Femara.”

October 2013

I would like to update you with regards to my mum’s latest blood test.  Her tumor marker is 5.9.  Her usual is 3.5.

January 2014

I would like to give you an update of my mum’s latest tumor marker result.

CEA 7.1  H
CA 125 29.4  H
CA 15.3 24.1  H

Her CEA is out of the normal range and it has escalated from 5.9  last Oct to 7.1 this week.  Both her CA125 and CA15.3 have also gone up even though it is still within the normal range.

The doc is suggesting for mum to go for a pet scan to find out the problem.

My sis and I are personally not so comfortable with her having to go through another cycle of invasive treatment should we find out if there is another growth elsewhere in her body.  We are really hoping that we can help treat mum’s condition with your herbs and diet advise.

February 2014

I’ve attached my mum’s latest report to show it to you.  The doctor said that there is a relapse and the lymph nodes behind her lungs are affected but there is no spreading to her organs which is a good thing.

The doc has changed her oral medication to Tamoxifen because her Fermara  doesn’t work anymore.  She recently went for a jab to protect her bones from turning brittle.

May 2014

Tumor markers on 7 May 2014
CEA 13.5  H
CA 125 64.5  H
CA 15.3 33.5  H

My mum went for her medical appointment yesterday. Result is negative. ..conditions of marker has worsen. Doc said there is a high chance of relapse but he doesn’t know which spot … could be bone, liver or kidney. If my mum does not wish to find out the cause, the doc can’t prescribe proper medication for treatment but he will change her current medication to see if there is any improvement upon her next visit on 19th June.
The doctor explained that the life span of such case if the patient refuses finding and treatment,  usually won’t pull through. The cancer cells will multiply very fast within a year and she will not make it.

Mum’s tumour marker in January this year comparing to now has escalated from  a marker of 7 to 14 now and another two marker have also increased from positive range now all to negative range. She is  physically very well but result has shown otherwise.

Doc suggested mummy to go for PET scan to at least find out what’s the problem so we can seek early treatment since she is still healthy now. And not wait till she turns fragile and can’t proceed with any more treatment.

March 2015

My mum’s cancer marker has apparently gone up quite a bit recently and the doc said that there are tumours growing quite rapidly in her body that explains why the cancer marker is high. The doc asked if my mum has been taking any other medication that is causing interference with his. And he immediately changed my mum’s medication from tamoxifen to Exemestane Aromasin 25mg per tab and he is trying to see if the new medication can help control her tumour  growth.

The nurse warned my mum about all the side effects. My sister advised my mum to stop taking your herbs and see if there is any improvement with the western medication alone because she also believes that there could be that possibility of your herbs clashing with the oncologist’s prescription. I personally am against the idea of my mum stopping your herbs temporarily.

Doc mentioned since last year that cancer has spread to her bones and there are tumours found around her chest outside her lungs and other parts of her body too. He said it was a good thing that it didn’t spread to her organs. I’m a little worried that my mum will eventually feel the adverse side effects of her new medication if she continues with it and not take your herbs. I’m really concerned.. Anyways, no matter what the doctor said and her deteriorating condition, my mum is still in high spirits and her appetite is well and she still goes to church and play mahjong with her friends regularly like a healthy person. Her strong belief in God keeps her in good spirits too.

June 2015

I am wondering if I can bring my mum to come see you on. She has been taking Xeloda for the past one month and the sole of her feet started to turn black since last week.  I am not sure if it is due to Xeloda.  Would love to show you her feet. Blood test also showed that her glucose level is very high.  So I am not sure if she could be diabetic.

Not sure if Xeloda is the culprit? Just read the internet.

Side effects of Xeloda: Hand-Foot Syndrome

Hand-foot syndrome, also called palmar-plantar erythrodysesthesia, is a side effect of some types of chemotherapy.  In mild to moderate hand-foot syndrome, the following symptoms may occur on the palms of the hands and/or the soles of the feet:

  • Redness (similar to a sunburn)
  • Swelling
  • A sensation of tingling or burning
  • Tenderness (sensitive to touch)
  • Tightness of the skin
  • Thick calluses and blisters on the palms and soles

Symptoms of severe hand-foot syndrome include:

  • Cracked, flaking, or peeling skin
  • Blisters, ulcers, or sores on the skin
  • Severe pain
  • Difficulty walking or using the hands

The drugs that may cause hand-foot syndrome include:

  • Axitinib (Inlyta)
  • Cabozantinib (Cometriq)
  • Capecitabine (Xeloda)
  • Cytarabine (Cytosar-U)
  • Docetaxel (Docefrez, Taxotere)
  • Floxuridine (FUDF)
  • Fluorouracil (5-FU, Adrucil)
  • Idarubicin (Idamycin)
  • Liposomal doxorubicin (Doxil)
  • Doxorubicin (Adriamycin)
  • Sunitinib (Sutent)
  • Sorafenib (Nexavar)
  • Pazopanib (Votrient)
  • Paclitaxel (Taxol)
  • Vemurafenib (Zelboraf)
  • Regorafenib (Stivarga)

Not everyone who is treated with these medications develops hand-food syndrome. The severity of hand-foot syndrome can vary from person to person, even among people taking the same medication for the same form of cancer.

Source: http://www.cancer.net/navigating-cancer-care/side-effects/hand-foot-syndrome-or-palmar-plantar-erythrodysesthesia

Lisa Bonchek Adams  was 37 years old when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2007. After all the medical treatments in one of the world’s best cancer hospitals (in New York), she died in March 2015.  In her blog, Lisa wrote about her experience with Xeloda:  http://lisabadams.com/2012/11/

… the end of the (chemo) round ended up bringing hand/foot syndrome  from the Xeloda. Hand/foot syndrome is not the same as neuropathy (though it may include some of those symptoms), which many people on chemotherapy experience.Hand/foot syndrome is associated with a few particular drugs, Xeloda is one. The capillaries in your hands and feet leak and/or rupture, causing the chemo to spill into the extremities. This causes them to be extremely red, swollen, painful, sensitive to touch, cracked, peeling, and potentially ulcerating. Numbness and tingling also accompany the condition.For the past month I’ve been trying to keep these effects at bay, but eventually the toxicity builds up. Fine motor activities like tying shoes are hard at the moment, anything that touches/puts pressure on hands and feet. Thankfully I have some shoes with furry insides and cushioning. Socks must be worn 24/7 and slippers at all times. Holding the steering wheel is uncomfortable but doable, thankfully …

Our Meeting and Advice

We got to meet Mdm PG and her daughter in mid-June 2015. GP looked great but she felt miserable inside. She told us that she did not suffer any effects taking Xeloda during the first week. After the second week things started to get worse. She had sores in her mouth, both hands and soles peeled making walking difficult. Then she felt “tired” throughout the day.  She was not able to continue living the “good life” she had earlier on.

The daughter said, “before the Xeloda she was okay. Able to walk about, taking the bus anywhere she wanted to do. She can spend time playing mahjong, etc. Now she can’t do that anymore. She look good and healthy before that. But the doctor said, she was not healthy because the blood test was bad. Now, after the Xeloda her blood result was better, but she was feeling bad.”

PG reminded us that when she was diagnosed with (Stage 3) cancer, the doctor told her that she could last about 3 years if she did all the treatments. Now, it is already 6 years. She believed the herbs did help her. But now living such a miserable life after Xeloda, life has not much meaning anymore.

PG told us that she has 2 daughters – both love her very much and wanted her to live as long as possible. But unfortunately, these  2 daughters  have their own ideas about her treatment. One daughter wanted to strictly the doctor’s treatment while another daughter wanted her to go for herbs and was not happy with all those medical drugs. PG said, they started to “quarrel in front of me and that left me in a limbo — not knowing what to do and who to please!”

Indeed, we have “sensed” this feeling all along when we read the many emails the daughter wrote us. So, this meeting was a good opportunity for us to give our advice frankly and directly. These are what I told PG:

  • You have already understood that nobody on earth can cure cancer. Even with medical treatment the doctor already told you would only last 3 years. Now, it is 6 years. Look at it in a positive way. You have been well blessed. During these years, you did not suffer and have lived a good life (unlike now due to Xeloda). PG responded, I am aware of this. I have been taking your herbs and I felt well. Your herbs helped me a lot.
  • If you can eat, can sleep, can move around and have no pain, please don’t ask for more. Be ever grateful to God for this.
  • No one lives forever, even for those who are supposed to be healthy. One day, I too would return “home.” So let us not fear death because no one can escape this reality. I have read many books of people who have “gone” and saw “heaven” and came back to earth. They said, Up There, it is so beautiful – calm and peaceful, free from all miseries. So why are we so afraid to go there?  Don’t be afraid.
  • We fully understand the dilemma you are in — trying to please both daughters, but each wanting you to take a different path. I am afraid I cannot decide for you and tell you what to do. You will have to make your own decision. Let each of your daughter know what is important for you in life. Tell them how you feel and they must respect your wishes.
  • If you feel that you want to endure all the suffering undergoing more medical treatments, go ahead and tell your daughters you want to do exactly that. If you cannot endure these sufferings and want to just go on herbs, say that out clearly to your daughters. Your daughters should respect and honour your wishes.
  • You need to tell your daughters that what you want to do, is entirely your decision and they should not feel guilty or responsible for whatever the outcome. In this way, there would be “peace.”
  • The last thing — which is a real disaster — to have family members quarrelling among themselves.

23 June 2015

Thank you so much for taking time out to see my mum and I the other night.We are eternally grateful. Words cannot describe how grateful I am. I can never repay your kindness. My sis will still be bringing my mum to see the oncologist the next few days. Hopefully she will make a firm decision and not be swayed by their persuasion. She is recovering well, Dr.

============================================

5 July 2015

Hi Dr Chris,

Guess what?  My mum has decided not to continue with the Chemo treatment anymore.  She told my family and her friends that she will depend solely on your herbs to help stabilise her condition.  Praise The Lord!  She is very diligent in taking your herbs everyday now.

===============================================

 

 

 

Breast Cancer: Surgery did not cure. Recurrence and cancer spread extensively to her lungs. But does she want to live?

TTH is a 73-year-old Indonesian lady. In early 2014, she felt a lump in her right breast. If touched she felt pulling pains in her breast. She came to Penang for consultation.

USG on 26 June 2014, indicated a spiculated hypoechoic mass at 11.00 o’clock, 3 cm from nipple. The mass measures 17.7 x 16.3 x 24.0 mm. There are feeder vessels seen supplying this mass lesion. No axillary lymphadenopathy. Impression: Highly suggestive of breast cancer. Category 4.

Breast-USG-S596

A mammogram of both breast also showed similar results.

Chest X-ray showed slight increased reticular markings of both lung parenchyma. No lung nodule seen.

TTH came to seek our advice on 27 June 2014. We suggested that she remove her breast.

Mastectomy

TTH underwent surgery on 7 July 2014.  Histopathology report confirmed:

  • Invasive ductal carcinoma, Stage T1.
  • Resected margins, niple and areola: Free.
  • Right axillary lymph nodes: Sinus histiocytosis (4/4).
  • Tumour negative for estrogen, negative for progesterone and negative for c-erb B2 receptors.

The mastectomy cost RM 6,600. The doctor said no need for chemotherapy or radiotherapy. There was not medication.

TTH came to seek our advise again after the surgery.  We prescribed her some herbs and told her to take care of her diet. We did not get to see THH again after that.

Recurrence and Extensive Lung Metastasis After a Year

A year later, 3 June 2015, TTH and her daughter came to see us again. Why did she come and see us? A routine check up with her doctor on 2 June 2015  indicated extensive lung metastasis. Her CA 15.3 was elevated to 100.2. This time her doctor said she needed chemotherapy and it would be better for her to go home and receive the treatment in Indonesia.

A CT scan done on 2 June 2015 indicated:

  • focal nodule noted in right anterior chest well, on the pectoralis muscle. The nodule measured approximately 8 mm in diameter.
  • There is an adjacent skin nodule approximately 5 mm noted.
  • There are extensive intrapulmonary nodules and masses noted in right and left lungs. They measured approximately 12 to 45 mm n diameter each.
  • Nodular thickening of the interlobular septae noted in both lung bases, consistent with lymphangitis carcinomatosis.

Impresssion:  Local recurrence with extensive lung metastasis and lymphangitis carcinomatosis.

Composite-1

Looking at the above images, we felt real sorry for TTH. How could such extensive metastasis happened within a year? An X-ray done a year ago showed the lung was clear — could this result be wrong?

Chris: You came to see us last year and took some herbs?

Patient:  I took the herbs for a while and stopped. There was nothing wrong with me and I thought I was cured already.

C: Did you take care of your diet?

P: People told me if I don’t eat this and that, I would not have energy – no strength!

C: Your cancer has recurred and it has spread extensively to your lungs. Even if you take the herbs, I am sorry I  cannot cure you.

P: Okay, in that case, there is no need to take the herbs then.

Comment

Last month we posted an article, Breast Cancer: It is all about you — your human nature and attitude

Speaking to TTH, it appeared to us that this patient felt she is already old enough. There is no need to do anything beyond the normal routine that she has been accustomed to. Our experience through the years tells that only 3 out of 10 patients benefited from our herbs. Those who succeeded showed their commitment and wanting to help themselves. Others just came to find an easy way out. Such people are really depressing to work with. It is better that they don’t come and see us at all.

Look at the Bigger Picture Part 2. You don’t have to “swallow” everything that they offer you!

Look at the Bigger Picture Part 1. Misguided advice about your diet!

Ina called to ask if she could come to our house. She was so excited and wanted to share with us the “good” news after meeting her doctor.

Who is Ina?  She is our patient and also a friend. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in August 2012,  almost 3 years ago. She had a mastectomy but declined chemotherapy, radiotherapy and taking of Tamoxifen. Indeed a daring lady!

Ever since after her surgery to this day, Ina had been under pressure from her doctor urging her to go for chemo and radiation. Ina flatly refused! Then the doctor insisted that at least she should take Tamoxifen!

Why was Ina so excited and wanting to see us?  Two reasons.

Reason number two.  Her liver was just doing fine! Now, her doctor did not bring up the subject of her liver metastasis and this time did not “pushed” her to go for chemotherapy!

A misdiagnosed liver metastasis?

For the past two years Ina had been living under stress. After being diagnosed with breast cancer in August 2012 and had a mastectomy, her doctor insisted that she undergo chemotherapy.  Her doctor was unhappy that Ina was adamant not to follow his advice! In fact, the doctor was also not happy with a Chris Teo for not pushing Ina to go for chemo!

Ina’s doctor became more unhappy after the result of an USG on 20 January 2013. The doctor told Ina that her cancer had spread to her liver based on the result below:

A few hypoechoic cysts measuring 9.6 to 18.4 mm are seen in the right and left lobe of liver. No solid component is seen within these cysts. No other focal liver lesion is seen.

Ina was asked to go for a PET scan, and an X-ray. Ina refused these procedures.

Then, about a year later, a follow up USG showed the following:

  • The right lobe of liver shows mildly hyperechoic module close to the IVC and the medial part of the right hemidiaphragm. This measures about 38 x 27 x 36 mm. Apart from this, there is at least another mildly hyperechoic solid nodule in the right lobe in segment 8, measuring about 12 mm.
  • Smaller nodules cannot be excluded in the right lobes of the liver.
  • There are two simple cysts in the right and left lobes of the liver, measuring about 25 and 12 mm.

Impression: In view of past history, I would suggest further imaging to exclude metastatic disease. Haemangionmas may also give a similar appearance.

The doctor insisted that Ina go for a PET scan! Ina again refused. The doctor asked Ina, Don’t you tell Chris Teo that the cancer has already gone to the liver?  The doctor wrote Chris Teo a letter below!

Select-Ed-600

It is nice of her doctor to caution me with this note. But yes, I was very much aware that breast cancer can spread to the liver, bone, lung or the brain. I have also seen cases after cases of metastatic cancer before (agreed, not as many as the doctors!). Let me remind you what I wrote in my book, Your Breast (pg.120, 135 and 139).

Pg 120 Pg 135 Pg 139

The questions we posed to Ina were basically this:

  1. Okay, you were asked to do the PET scan – to know if the cancer had spread to any other parts of the body. But do you want to follow up with medical treatments. Go for chemo or radiation or even surgery again if there was a spread to somewhere? Ina said, NO – I would not want any more medical treatments. That being the case, why go for a PET scan then? What benefit do you get from just wanting to know?
  2. Now, the doctor implied said that there were secondaries in her liver. Ina needed chemotherapy right away. Ask the doctor first, Can chemotherapy cure her metastatic liver cancer?

Before her death, Amy Cohen Soscia – a breast cancer patient in the US, said: There is no cure for metastatic breast cancer. It never goes away. You just move from treatment to treatment.

Was Ina’s liver metastasis a misdiagnosis?

In May 2015, we requested Ina to go for a checkup since at that time she was concerned about a lump in her right breast (Part 1 of this story).  USG of the abdomen was done and the following were the results.

  • The right lobe of the liver shows a simple cyst measuring about 28 mm. There are two mildly hyperechoic solid right lobe hepatic nodules which are probably haemangiomas. They have not changed significantly in sizes since the previous examination.
  • The larger lesion seen near the IVC measures about 37 x 28 x 37 mm. The smaller lesion seen more peripherally measures about 9 mm in the right lobe of the liver.
  • The left lobe of the liver also shows a small cyst measuring about 9.8 mm in size.

The results of Ina’s liver function test were as follows:

Liver function
ALT 15
AST 23
GGT 19
Alkaline phosphatase 49

 

Based on the above results, the doctor “stopped” talking about Ina’s liver problem. The question of her undergoing chemotherapy for her liver metastasis just vanished! Ina was very much at ease. So happy — NO more pressure from her doctor!

After about 3 years later, someone has decided that the “perceived” liver metastasis is probably not a cancer after all. The question which I would like ask is this, What could have happened to Ina if she were to follow her doctor’s advice and went for chemotherapy for the “perceived” liver metastasis? Would she be as healthy as she is today or dead? Your guess would be as good as ours!

Bravo, after taking the liver herbs the results were clear. The liver nodules have not changed significantly in sizes since the previous examination. If the herbs were not helpful, the nodules would have grown bigger. Right? No? And more important, if the herbs were useless, Ina would have been very sick by now! No?

We always tell patients to learn to live with their cancer! We praise God for this blessing.

Ina’s liver nodules are not giving her any problem – and she is well, healthy with no pain; can eat, can sleep and can go about doing her normal daily routine – what else does she want? That is looking at the bigger picture! She need NOT do things to please her doctor!

As a gentle reminder, can you learn something from these two sad stories? Or do we have to write more of such stories to make you understand?

2.3 cm Malignant Breast Lump: Surgery, Chemo and Radiation — Disaster

https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2015/04/25/2-3-cm-malignant-breast-lump-surgery-chemo-and-radiation-disaster/

Selling Empty Promise ?: https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2014/05/21/breast-cancer-part-23-does-chemotherapy-make-sense/

empty-1empty2empty3empty4empty5empty6

 (The above failed treatment in Singapore cost about RM 500,000)

Look at the Bigger Picture Part 1. Misguided advice about your diet!

Ina called to ask if she could come to our house. She was so excited and wanted to share with us the “good” news after meeting her doctor.

Who is Ina?

She is our patient and also a friend. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in August 2012, almost 3 years ago. She had a mastectomy but declined chemotherapy, radiotherapy and taking of Tamoxifen. Indeed a daring lady!

Ever since after her breast surgery to this day Ina had been under pressure from her doctor urging her to   go for follow up chemo and radiation. Ina flatly refused! Then the doctor insisted that at least she should take Tamoxifen!

Why was Ina so adamant in not wanting to follow her doctor’s advice?  

Before her breast cancer diagnosis, her mother had lung cancer.  She brought her mom to see us and was on the herbs. So Ina knew what the herbs could do! Compare that to her father who had suffered and died of cancer, at least mom was much better off with the herbs. Also, Ina (being a business woman) knows of many people who have cancer and how they suffered while undergoing chemotherapy! Some died.

Ina’s sister had lumps in her breast and had to undergo surgery a few times to remove these lumps. But after taking our herbs, she said “good bye” to her routine breast lump surgery!

Probably all these made Ina realised that there is “another way” for her.  She decided to “stick” with us.

Why was Ina so excited and wanting to see us?  

Two reasons. Reason number one — No sign of recurrence and right breast lumps were benign.

A few days before seeing her doctor, Ina came to see us. She felt a lump in her right breast. And this bothered her very much. It hurts when she lifted her right arm. As usual, our advice was, Don’t panic!  Go and see your doctor and do an USG. Find out what exactly it is. And then come back and we discuss what to do after that.  We cautioned her:  Of course, if it bothers you then have the lump removed. At the same time, do a full blood test.

Results of the blood test: 14 May 2015

Total WBC 4.2
Total RBC 4.0
Haemoglobin 12.1
Platelet count 192
ESR 7
Creatinine 66
Tumour markers
CA 125 9
CA 15.3 17.10
CA 19.9 16.66

Composite-1

USG of right breast: 14 May 2015

  • Multiple right breast simple cysts, some of them containing inspissated fluid. The largest is a palpable lesion close to the areolar margin and at around 8 o’clock position measuring 31 mm.
  • The second measures about 7.5 mm at 3 o’clock position.
  • The others measure about 3 to 7 mm in sizes.
  • No solid right breast mass seen.
  • A benign right axillary lymph node seen measuring about 15 x 6 mm.

Based on the above report, Ina’s doctor said she is healthy and there is no cancer. Of course, like all patients, Ina was happy to hear such a positive comment. BUT, this good word was followed by a depressing statement. The doctor said, But you look thin. You must been following a special diet. No, go on and eat anything you like. Are you still on Chris Teo’s herbs?  Ina answered, YES, absolutely.

The doctor wanted to remove the big lump in her right breast. Right away, he scheduled a surgery for Wednesday — a few days away. Ina said she wanted to go home and think about it first.

When Ina told us about this, we reminded her that even before her cancer diagnosis, she already had 6 lumps in her right breast (only the lump in her left breast was malignant). It hurts when she lifted her right arm and the pain was along her bra line.

It hurts when you wear your bra? The answer is Yes. What if you don’t wear bra? Does it hurt? No! We suggest that Ina stop wearing her bra!

Another question we posed was, The doctor wanted to remove only one lump in the breast. What about the rest (5 others)? Wait for them to grow bigger and then do surgery again and again like her sister?

What if Ina were to take the herbs for breast lump for about 3 months and see what happens?

Ultrasound 2012

Indeed if we compare the two reports, we know that 3 years ago the largest cyst was already 2.9 cm. Perhaps this one has gown bigger. After our discussion Ina decided to defer her surgery!

Eat anything you like and grow fat!

What is most upsetting to Ina is her doctor’s insistence that she go ahead and eat anything she likes. He has been harping on this issue every time Ina went for her routine checkup (another more annoying and dangerous insistence is the need to undergo chemotherapy or taking Tamoxifen — another story to follow).

This is our message to all cancer patients

Diet plays a significant role in your healing of cancer. It plays a similar role in the recurrence of your cancer. Take care of your diet.

Is our advice on diet based on scientific evidence? Of course, there are thousands of papers in medical journals about this “sore and sick” topic on diet and cancer. What you need to do is just take time to read them. Get yourself educated. If you don’t have the time to read, at least take a few minutes to “listen” to what doctors themselves have got to say.

2-Medical-profession-which-

3 Oncologist-dont-know-nutrit

1 deVita

10 Nutriton-stop-growth-spread

8-Diet-must-be-integral-par

6 Pig-knows-better-nutrtion

Capturefood 2

Capturefood

In this article, we asked you to look at the bigger picture. Is healing of cancer only about surgery, chemo, radiation or taking of Tamoxifen?

There is another point – make a google search using this phrase, wearing of tight bra and incidence of breast cancer. You will be surprised to find articles about this subject which your doctors may think it is just another “crazy” idea.

This is what I got after my google search.

Bra-and-cancer

In the “Bra and Breast Cancer Study” in the United States, it was discovered that women with breast cancer had a history of sporting tighter and longer bra-wearing than did the women who had not (yet) developed the disease. In fact, virtually all of the cancer group wore bras over 12 hours daily with 18% even sleeping with their bras which means they wore bras 24 hours daily. In contrast, the comparison groups had 25% of the women either bra-free or wearing bras less than 12 hours daily.  Only 3% of this group slept with their bras on. This study revealed a significant link between bras and breast cancer that is three times greater than the link between cigarette smoking and lung cancer! http://www.health2us.com/bra.htm

Women everywhere are discovering that wearing bras can make their breasts droopy and stretched out, and also cause cysts, pain, and cancer. For some women, enough said. The bra goes. It was the first thing they took off after work, anyway. It was always so uncomfortable. And more women are becoming bra-free in the name of comfort and health. For other women, no way! The bra stays no matter what. The cancer detection and treatment industry loves these women. They want women to wear bras. With one million bras sold EACH DAY in the US alone, that’s a lot of women binding and constricting the health out of their breasts in the name of fashion. http://www.killerculture.com/breast-cancer-is-preventable/

As a breast cancer surgeon, I not infrequently have to deal with many of the common myths that have sprung up around breast cancer. Some are promoted by quacks; others are just myths that sound plausible but aren’t true … One such myth has been …. that wearing bras increases the risk of breast cancer is one of those unsinkable rubber ducks (as James Randi would put it) of a myth that just won’t die … It’s unclear where and how long ago this myth first appeared, but there’s little doubt on when it was first popularized: 1995. That was the year that a book by Sydney Ross Singer and Soma Grismaijer entitled Dressed to Kill: The Link Between Breast Cancer and Bras was published. The central thesis of the book was that bra-wearing is a major cause of breast cancer because of its claimed effect on lymphatic circulation. Basically, the idea was (and still is) that bras interfered with lymphatic drainage and thereby, though unclear mechanisms, caused cancer. The claim was that there are all sorts of “toxins” (of course) that cause cancer and that the lymph vessels drain those “toxins” away from the breast. Thus, if you believe Singer and Grismaijer, these “toxins” are concentrated in the breast by the constriction that bras produce and result in breast cancer. https://www.sciencebasedmedicine.org/one-more-time-no-wearing-a-bra-does-not-cause-breast-cancer/

Okay, here we are again. Another great debate like diet and cancer! We leave it up to you to read more and find your own “truth”.

Ina said she had pains when lifting her arms because of her tight bra. She did not have this problem if she did not wear her bra. Our simple suggestion is, either wear a loose bra or don’t wear it at all! For the business minded, why not design a breast-cancer-friendly bra. That may probably cool down the debate a bit and at the same time may enrich your bank account!

 

 

 

 

The Gift of Cancer – A Miraculous Journey To Healing

Gift-of-Cancer

I once told a breast cancer patient, ” Indeed you should consider yourself very lucky.” She retorted, “What is so lucky? I have already got cancer!”  I went on to explain that I have many patients who really suffered because of their cancer – they were in pain, had swollen arm after surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. For her, she looked fine and good without any problems. Is that not really lucky? What if you were to know that Brenda, the author of this book, The Gift of Cancer, had to battle with three cancers over 14 years, and she considered cancer, after all that she went through, as a gift! Where is the logic?

Why Cancer is a Gift

After her third cancer diagnosis, Brenda realized that her cancer was more than just a physical threat.

  • Deep in my heart I suspected there was a purpose to my illness. Seeking that purpose became my quest. When I was finally able to see cancer as my teacher, not my enemy, I began the difficult journey of healing from the inside out.
  • My survival depended on my letting go of old patterns that had opened the possibility of cancer to emerge. The cancer had come as a messenger to let me know if I didn’t change, I was going to die. Without changing anything but my perception, I turned the cancer into a helpful messenger, a gift.
  • Having cancer taught me the hard way that healing negative, limiting beliefs, misperceptions and denied emotions is the most important thing we can do if we want health and wellbeing in our lives. This is authentic healing … mind, body and spirit coming into harmony to create optimum health.

Letting Go and Letting God

  • I uncovered a valuable insight … My need to be in control coupled with my attachment to results was hindering me in countless ways.
  • Once I was willing to let go … I found peace. I started to appreciate the power of letting go and allowing God’s help in solving my problems. That’s when my life began to flourish.
  • Before the cancer, I was consumed by fearful thoughts of self-pity and feelings of lack. I processed everything in my life from a foundation of negativity and looked for what was wrong with me and everyone else. It never occurred to me to look for what was right and wonderful.
  • My cancer was a gift … it had come to propel me toward my spiritual growth, assisting me in transforming my negativity into life-affirming perspectives and beliefs.
  • I began to understand that by loving my cancer, I was actually loving myself. As long as I battled against it, it would battle against me.

Follow My Advice Or You Die, I  Am The Expert!

In pages 94-95, Brenda related her meeting with her oncologist. This was after being diagnosed with her third cancer.

Oncologist: Brenda, I know we’ve had our differences about some of your treatment, but I would be remiss if I didn’t give it to you straight. It is my best professional opinion that within one to three years, and let me stress that three years is stretching it, there is a very good probability your cancer will metastasize.”

Brenda: What does that mean exactly?

Oncologist: What it means, exactly, is that it will spread to your bones, brain, or lungs. Please understand, this is not a big stretch. It is a very predictable prognosis for many women who have had breast cancer. Let me add, Brenda, if that happens, there is a very high probability that at that point, chemotherapy won’t be much help. On the other hand, if you do chemotherapy right away, you will have a chance of living at least five years, maybe more.

Brenda (thinking to herself:  This is my prize? Maybe five more years? Five more years of being sick? Five more years of feeling like hell? Five more years of waiting for the other shoe to drop? Was this the best I could hope for? The best modern medicine had to offer?): Can you guarantee me at least five years if I do your protocol?

Oncologist: I am afraid not, Brenda. No one can give you a guarantee. And let me add this: if you refuse this treatment, the probability of your cancer metastasizing within a year is high. And if that happens, you probably won’t make it. I urge you to make your decision quickly. It is imperative that you begin treatment right away.

Brenda wrote, As I listened to his words of doom, my worst fears came to the surface, once again I began to questions myself.

As I read through  Brenda’s conversation with her oncologist, I could not help but ask, Is this not the same, fear-instilling script being played over and over again — in American, here and many other parts of the world?

After that she said “no” to chemotherapy, even if she was told that her life was a risk without it. Breda chose alternative treatment instead.  To her, the path to true healing is to find the connection of the mind, body, and spirit. Twenty-four years later I am healthy. Grateful for the road travelled and eager to help others awaken to their heart-centered power and purpose.

Brenda had this message for all of us:

  • Doctors do not cure anyone.
  • Throwing drugs at a problem is just adding more poison to an already poisoned system.
  • We understand how toxins enter the body through the food we eat, the air we breathe and the water we drink. But there are other equally threatening toxins that can affect our wellbeing … emotional and mental toxicity … also creates imbalance and ultimately leads to disease.

Patients, heal yourself

  • Listen to our inner voice, trust our intuition, and look at the true source of healing.
  • When we are willing to look deep within and take responsibility for our choices, we have the power to alter the course of our lives in miraculous and unexpected ways.
  • Giving power to an outside source, regardless of who or what that source is, renders one powerless to change any existing circumstance.
  • There are no quick fixes or magic bullets.
  • Not everyone survives this disease.
  • We each hold the key to our own healing. We cannot heal someone else.
  • Patient must have a deep desire to heal.

Spirituality

  • We are raised in a society where we learn to trust in experts and things outside ourselves. I would be considered crazy for going against expert advice. But my decision was not about being logical or going with the status quo. My decision was about seeking a higher guidance and honoring that guidance to the best of my ability.
  • Everything that occurs in life exists by divine orchestration. Nothing is a mistake. There are no accidents and we are not the victim of any circumstances or person. I believe everything that happens in our lives happens for a reason.
  • There is no right or wrong choices on this journey. Each choice is made for a reason … Every experience is meant to teach something, while simultaneously bringing us closer to our spiritual selves.
  • The body is always talking to us. Sometimes the conversation is subtle and sometimes, the conversation is not subtle but communication is always happening. It merely requires that we listen.
  • Forgiveness is essential to heal not only our bodies but also enhances our spiritual growth.
  • Healing isn’t exclusively a physical tenet. We must address our emotional and spiritual bankruptcy as well.

Change

  • I’d like to wrap up with one of the most difficult pills to swallow. Change….even when faced with a life-threatening situation, we are still resistant to change. Change brings up fear. Even when the habits and patterns of our lives are destructive, we tend to stay stuck in those patterns.
  • Change, as difficult as it seems, is what life is all about. To resist it is to create a life filled with pain and struggle.

 

 

Breast Cancer: It is all about you — your human nature and attitude

SM was 53 years old when her CA 15.3 was elevated (on 15 October 2009). Follow up examination indicated left breast cancer. SM underwent a mastectomy. The histopathology report indicated:

“a Stage 2 (T2NoMx, 5 cm tumour, resected margins, areola and nipple free (of cancer). Left axillary lymph nodes Sinus histiocystosis (7/7).”

SM did not go for any chemotherapy or radiotherapy. She came to seek our help and was started on herbs. She was told to take care of her diet. But it was not to be. SM thought it was easier to follow her doctor’s advice — she took Tamoxifen instead. Preparing and taking herbs was too much of a hassle. Not being able to eat what she liked did not make life that “meaningful.”

Every 6 months, SM came back to her doctor for routine check up. Everything was okay.

Year 2010

On 7 May 2010, her CA 15.3 was at 13.4 (normal). Ultrasound of left axilla on 24 May showed:

“an ill defined 17 x 17 x 23 mm hypoechogenic area and another 18 x 14 x 11 mm well defined hypoechogenic area in the left axilla. Conclusion: metastatic deposit and lymphadenopathy.”

(Note: The first sign of trouble coming. Human nature: Why bother? You are not dying yet!)

Year 2012

On 19 June 2012, SM’s CA 15.3 still remained normal, at 13.7

(Note: Human nature: Nothing serious! Normal. So far so good. This is what you want to always hear!)

Year 2014

On 18 November 2014, SM’s CA 15.3 increased to 76.4. For the first time her CEA also increased, to 7.9. Previously her CEA was always below 5.0 (normal).

Since her CA 15.3 had risen so much, SM was told to stop taking her Tamoxifen.

In spite of her worsening CA 15.3, mammogram of her right breast showed “no evidence of malignancy.” Unfortunately no imaging was ever done on the left side.

USG of abdomen showed everything was fine.

(Note: Human nature: Nothing serious! Mammogram showed no cancer in the breast (but was it the wrong breast that they checked?).  Anyway, this is what you want to hear!)

Year 2015

SM came back to see her doctor in March 2015 — another routine check up.

Her CA 15.3 on 10 March 2015 had increased to 173.6. Her CEA also increased to 14.8.

CT scan indicated:

  • Enhancing left axillary lymphadenopathy, measuring 1.8 x 18.9 x 14.3 mm.
  • Several ill-defined hypodense lesions seen in the left lobe of liver measuring 10 mm. Conclusion: Left axillary lymphadenopathy and liver metastasis.

In view of the above, the doctor suggested that SM undergo chemotherapy. She refused and came to seek our help instead.

Why did SM stopped taking the herbs? She preferred to follow her doctor’s advice. She took Tamoxifen. According to her it was easier — no need to cook the herbs, no need to take care of her diet. So while on Tamoxifen, SM ate what she liked — based on the usual standard medical advice.

Like many others, SM came to us after things got worst. In March 2015, SM was started on herbs. Barely 2 months later, 4 May 2015, her CA 15.3 was 135.4 (reduced from 173.6) and her CEA was at 4.8 (reduced from 14.8).

Comments

Often we tell patients. Cancer is about you — your nature and your attitude towards life. We also say, Your life is in your hands. Decide what you want to do. We need to understand that we cannot eat the cake at the same time keep it. You can decide what you want to do but unfortunately, you cannot determine the outcome of your choice.

SM’s cancer showed sign of progression one year after her mastectomy, in 2010. The USG result showed he cancer had spread to her arm pit. She did nothing about it. After all it was not an emergency.

In 2014, her CA 15.3 increased to 76.4 and her CEA increased to 7.9. What did SM do? Nothing. Perhaps the alarm bell was not loud enough.

It was only in 2015, after the cancer had spread to her liver and when the doctor wanted her to go for chemo that she “ran” to us for help. That too is an understandable human attitude!

After talking to SM for a while, I knew in my heart the kind of person I had to deal with. She only wanted to win by the easy way — not prepared to “sacrifice” if she can have her way. That was why she came to us after reaching the “dead end” of her path.

SM took the herbs for about 2 months. Her CEA and CA 15.3 dropped. To patients it is already lucky if the markers do not increase or stabilize. The markers drop? That’s a great blessing. What else do you want?

What say you about the effectiveness of the herbs in this case? Still quackery? Still hocus pocus?

One last note. There is nothing to celebrate here! The drop of CEA and/or CA 15.3  would not last forever. These markers will rise again, if you decide to “misbehave.” So SM is not out of the woods yet.

What have you got to say about these quotations?

1 Babara-Tamoxifen-does-not-c 2 Jane-Plant-No-to-tamoxifen 3 John-Lee-Tamoxifen-more-har 4 Sellman-Tamoxifen-danger 5 Sellman-Tamoxifen-initiate-

 

 

 

 

 

2.3 cm Malignant Breast Lump: Surgery, Chemo and Radiation — Disaster

This is a tragic story which I find it real hard to “understand.” WF is 32 years old. In early 2014, WF felt a lump in her left breast. At that time she was pregnant and was about to deliver her baby. So nothing was done until after the birth of her baby.

On 14 March 2014, WF had an ultrasound of her breasts. “There is a 17 mm x 9.6 mm lesion at 2 o’clock position of left breast, 4 cm from the nipple.” A FNAC (Fine needle aspiration cytology) done in a Taiping private hospital showed “benign breast lesion.”

WF did another FNAC in April 2014. This time it was done in a private hospital in Penang. Unfortunately, the result showed “atypical cells … Highly suspicious of an infiltrating duct carcinoma.”

A trucut biopsy was done on 12 April 2014 confirmed an invasive ductal carcinoma.

WF consulted another doctor in another private hospital.

25 April 2014Ultrasound of Both Breasts Irregular hypoechoic lesion between 1-2 o’clock. It measures 23 x 18 x 12 mm. Some microcalcifications seen. In keeping with a neoplasic lesion.

Based on the above, WF had surgery. A wide local excision of the left breast mass was done (lumpectomy). The tumour removed was 23 mm in size. Two of the axillary lymph nodes were involved. All resection margins were free of malignancy. Immunohistochemical study indicated a triple negative tumour: ER negative, PR negative and c-erb-B2 negative. It was a Stage 2B cancer.

9 May 2014Ultrasound of Thyroid Multiple tiny nodules seen on both thyroid lobes, likely benign.

WF subsequently had 6 cycles of chemotherapy. Neither she nor her husband knew what drugs were used. Anyway, each cycle cost RM 6,000. WF lost her hair, felt tired and nauseous during her treatment. Chemotherapy was completed by October 2014. Then WF received 20 sessions of radiation and this was completed in November 2014.

About a month later, in late December 2014, the cancer spread to WF’s brain. There were 3 lesions in her brain. WF received 2 sessions of radiation to her head in January 2015.

Two months later, March 2015, CT scan showed the cancer had spread to her lungs, bone and liver.

WF was again asked to undergo 4 cycles of chemotherapy. WF did one cycle after which she and her husband came to see us and decided not to proceed with the treatment.

Chris: Did you ever ask the doctor if surgery, chemo and radiation were going to cure your cancer?

Husband: The doctors said there is a  80 percent chance of cure?

Chris: Did you ever ask what happen to the remaining 20 percent?

No reply.

Study the numbers of her blood tests.

Date CEA CA 15.3 (normal 0-32)
5 June 2014 Less 0.5 12.3
18 Nov 2014 0.4 9.7
10 Feb 2015 Less 0.5 13.2
10 March 2015 n/a 20.3
24 March 2015 n/a 37.0
7 April 2015 n/a 96.1
22 April 2015 1.4 142.6

In March 2015, WF was started on chemotherapy again because her CA 15.3 started to rise, indicating that the earlier chemotherapy had failed. Therefore, the answer is more and more chemo?

The following are results of her CT scan and MRI.

  1. Before chemotherapy
9 May 2014CT scan of Brain, Neck, Chest, Abdomen and Pelvis Recent wide local excision of left breast carcinoma and left axillary clearance.Brain: There is no shift in the midline structures of the brain. No mass or abnormal enhancement. No extracerebral fluid collection.Lymph nodes: There are no enlarged supraclavicular, axillary, internal mammary, mediastinal or pulmonary hilar nodes.Lung: There is no pulmonary nodule or other significant pulmnary abnormality.

Liver:  Liver parenchymal density is normal. Two small hypodense lesions in segment 8, both measuring 4 mm and another two hypodense lesion in segment 7, both measuring 3 mm. Likely represent small cysts.

Bone: no significant lytic or sclerotic bone lesion seen.

 

  1. After chemotherapy
9 January 2015MRI of brain Bilateral cerebral metastases.Left frontal cortex – 21 x 16 x 15 mm well defined multilobulated massLeft basal ganglia – 9 x 8 x 9 mm.Occipitotemporal cortex – 8 x 8 6 mm.

Lesions also associated with perilesional oedema.
10 January 2015CT scan Neck, Thorax and Pelvis There is no evidence of local recurrence.Interval development of a few small lung nodules within the right lower and left upper and lower lobes. They are too small to characterise but may represent secondary deposits.Apical region of left upper lobe – 3 mm noduleRight lower lobe – 3 mm nodule

Basal segment of left lower lobe – 4 mm nodule.
10 February 2015MRI of brain Partial regression of bilateral cerebral metastases.Left frontal cortical lesion – 11 x 8 x 10 mmLeft basal ganglia – 7 x 6 x 5 mmRight occipitotemporal cortex – 6 x 5 x 4 mm

There is no associated perilesional oedema.

No new nodule seen.
24 February 2015MRI of brain Cerebral metastases increased in size.Left frontal cortical lesion – 17 x 11 x 15 mmLeft basal ganglia – 8 mmRight occipitotemporal cortex – 9 mm

Perilesional oedema has also increased.
24 March 2015MRI of brain Cerebral metastases minimally increased in size. Reduced perilesional oedema. There are likely post radiation changes.Left frontal cortical lesion – 16 x 13 x 16 mmLeft basal ganglia – 8.3 x 8.0 mmRight occipitotemporal cortex – 9 x 9 mm
7 April 2015CT scan Neck, Thorax and Pelvis Increased size of pulmonary metastases. Interval development of hepatic and skeletal metastases. And mild retroperitoneal lymphadenopathy.Lung: Apical region of left upper lobe – 4 mm nodule with central cavitation.Right lower lobe – 4 – 5 mm noduleBasal segment of left lower lobe – 4 – 5 mm nodule.

Liver:  Numerous small hypodense lesions inn both lobes of liver. Larger lesions measuring up to 15 mm.

Lymph nodes: Multiple mildly enlarge para-aortic lymph nodes – measuring up to 12 mm. Smaller lymph nodes are present along the aortocaval space.

Bone: There is an irregular poorly defined lesion in the manubrium sterni eroding the bony cortex. There is also suggestion of similar lesions in the lower cervical spine.

We need to acknowledge that the oncologist did a “good” job of taking the base line of WF’s health before chemo and radiation were started. Yes, before the treatments, WF’s brain, lymph nodes, lung, liver and bone were all clear! Meaning at that point in time, her cancer did not spread anywhere! So the doctor confidently told WF and her husband that there was a 80 chance of cure!

Then chemotherapy and radiotherapy were started.

Barely a month after treatments were completed, problems started to show up.

First, the brain. There were 3 metastatic spots in the brain. There was no such tumour before right?

Radiation was given to the brain.  The tumours shrunk a bit —  by just a bit — and then started to grow again.

By end of March 2015,  WF’s CEA started to increase telling us that chemotherapy / radiation had failed.

Then, more chemo was suggested. WF had one cycle of this second-round chemo.

In April 2015, CT showed the cancer had spread to her lung, liver, lymph nodes and bone, besides the brain.

1-Mouth-sores

Sores causing difficulties to eat

2 Compo-Brain-Lng

Brain and lung

3 Compo-Liver

Liver

Ask these questions.

  1. April 2014 she was diagnosed with a 2 cm malignant breast lump. A year later, April 2015, the cancer had spread to her brain, lung, liver, lymph nodes and bone. She did surgery, chemo and radiotherapy as dictated by the doctors. How could this be? Why do the treatments when the cancer cannot be contained or cured?
  2. Dare you ask, what if WF were to do nothing? Just leave the lump as it is. Would she end up the way she is now – with more cancer all over in the body?
  3. Is WF’s case unique or exceptional? There are many more tragic stories like this. Here is another example, click this link: Does chemotherapy make sense?
  4. When asked if the treatment would cure her cancer, WF was told, There is a 80 chance of cure. Do you believe this prognosis? Listen to another story: Breast Cancer: Do this chemo – 100 percent cure! You believe that?
  5. In WF’s case, what made the cancer so aggressive? Do you dare ask this question? Read this: Chemotherapy SPREADS and MAKES cancer more AGGRESSIVE,

Is The Present Day Cancer Treatment Based on Faulty and Inadequate Science?

  1. Some people may wish to say this is a triple negative cancer. So it is an aggressive type! Some people may say it is just your luck! My response: Many patients live a healthy life by making a CORRECT choice! It is your life.

Paula Black was given 3 to 6 months to live after being diagnosed with breast cancer. She declined chemotherapy!  Read more https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2015/01/15/advanced-breast-cancer-part-1-you-need-not-have-to-die/ and https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2015/01/19/advanced-breast-cancer-part-2-to-die-or-to-heal-is-your-choice/

Jane had a 1.2 cm lump in her right breast. Like WF above, she did a lumpectomy. Her tumour was a double negative type — negative for ER, negative PR but strongly positive for c-erbB-2. P53 was strongly over-expressed.

Jane was told to undergo chemotherapy. The package of chemotherapy + Herceptin would cost RM 120,000 while radiotherapy cost an additional RM 35,000. Jane was told that the benefit of chemotherapy and radiotherapy would be 16 percent – i.e. 16 out of 100 women are alive and without cancer because of the combined therapy.

To Jane the benefits of chemo and radiation did not make sense. She promptly refused further medical treatments and came to seek our help on 10 January 2010.

Jane told us that she refused chemotherapy because she did not want to lose her hair. In addition, her mother-in-law had lymphoma and died after two cycles of chemotherapy.

It is now 2015 (five years plus),  Jane is still doing fine. Yes, your life is in your hands – to stay healthy or to die is your choice! More about Jane: https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2013/06/10/breast-cancer-does-chemotherapy-and-radiotherapy-make-sense/

 

 

 

Breast Cancer: Surgery, Chemo, Radiation and Tamoxifen Did Not Cure Them

Three ladies, one after another, came to seek our help in early March 2015. All of them had breast cancer. They had undergone medical treatments. And now they needed help because modern medicine did not cure them. By writing their stories, perhaps others may learn some lessons?

Patient No: 1.  Mary (not real name) is 52 years old. She is a medical doctor.  Her hair was thick, straight black. Actually it was a wig.

In September 2011 (47 years old then) Mary was diagnosed with breast cancer — an invasive ductal carcinoma. The tumour was 3.5 cm in size. She underwent a mastectomy. Eight of 12 lymph nodes were involved.  It was a triple negative (negative for estrogen, progesterone and Her2) cancer, Stage 3A (pT2N2Mo).

Mary had 8 cycles of chemotherapy using Doxorubicin and Paxus (Paclitaxel). In addition, she received 25 sessions of radiotherapy.  May was well.

Two years later, December 2013, the cancer recurred. There were many nodules, 0.3 to 8 cm in diameter, in the previously cancerous breast. There was a 1.5 cm node at the arm pit.

Mary again had 6 cycles of chemotherapy using Taxol and Gamzar. Unfortunately this second chemo treatment did not cure her! The cancer came back again.

Mary received another 6 cycles of chemotherapy using cisplatin. The treatment was completed sometime in February 2015.

In March, came to see us with one of our patients (who had refused chemotherapy for her cancer and now doing well).

Patient No: 2. The next day, Sally,  a 59-year-old lady, came to seek our help.  She had left breast cancer 6 years ago and had a mastectomy. She declined chemotherapy and radiotherapy. She took Tamoxifen for 5 years. Actually, Sally came to see us earlier and was started on the herbs for a while and then “disappeared”.

Sally said she saw her doctor every six months for routine checkup. Everything was okay, until 11 March 2015 when a CT scan showed the cancer had recurred.

  1. There was an enhancing left axillary lymphadenopathy seen measuring 10.8 x 18.9 x 13.4 cm.
  2. There were several ill-defined hypodense lesions seen in the left lobe of the liver measuring about 10 mm.

Blood test on 10 March 2015 indicated CEA = 14.8 (H) and CA 15.3 = 173.6 (H).

The doctor asked Sally to go for chemotherapy to be followed by removal of the tumour in her liver by surgery.

Sally declined further medical treatment and came to ask for herbs.

Patient No:3.  The next day, 44-year-old Amy (not real name) came to our centre. She did not look good at all.

Sometime in March 2011, Amy had a small lump in her left breast. A mastectomy was done. It was a Stage 2 breast cancer. This was followed by 6 cycles of chemotherapy and 30 sessions of radiotherapy. Amy took Tamoxifen for 2 years.

Barely two years later, December 2012, the cancer spread to her liver. Amy had 6 cycles of chemotherapy again. In addition, she received 15 radiation treatments to her liver.

Amy took 10 cycles of oral Xeloda (one cycle means 2 weeks of Xeloda with one week rest). Her CA 15.3 which was 4,000 plus started to decline to 900. But the cancer did not go away.

A CT scan in May 2014 showed more nodules in her liver (pictures below). The cancer had also spread to her bone. Amy received bonefos injection for her bone metastasis.

In January 2015, Amy developed ascites (fluid in the abdomen). She went for tapping twice to remove the fluid – once in January and once in March. On 28 February 2015, her CA 15.3 was at 958.8. The day before we met Amy, we received this e-mail.

Good afternoon Dr Chris,
Saya  dari Jakarta. Adik saya didiagnosa sakit kanker hati sekunder. Perutnya membesar setiap hari,isinya cairan. Dan dia merasakan sangat nyeri di dada. Malam ini kami terbang ke Penang. Apakah masih ada kesempatan untuk konsultasi dengan anda hari Jumat? We are really need your help. 

(I am from Jakarta. My sister was diagnosed with metastatic liver cancer.  Everyday her stomach swelled and is filled with fluid. She had pains in her chest. Tonight we are flying to Penang. Do I have a chance to consult with you on Friday (tomorrow)? We really need your help.)

Comments

If the 3 stories above are not good enough, let me share with you 3 more stories to make it half a dozen!

Patient No 4. About the same time I was writing this article, I received this e-mail below.

Hello Dr Chris,

…. I would like to update you and seek and advise from you with regards to my mum’s health report recently.

My mum’s cancer marker has apparently gone up quite a bit recently and the doc said that there are tumours growing quite rapidly in her body. That explains why the cancer marker is high.

The doc asked if my mum has been taking any other medication that is causing interference with his. And he immediately changed my mum’s medication from tamoxifen to Exemestane Aromasin 25mg per tab and he is trying to see if the new medication can help control her tumour growth.

How is this new medication different from tamoxifen? The nurse warned my mum about all the side effects. My sis advised my mum to stop taking your herbs and see if there is any improvement with the western medication alone cos she also believes that there could be that possibility of your herbs clashing with the oncologist’s prescription.

I personally is against the idea of my mum stopping your herbs temporarily.

Doc mentioned since last year that cancer has spread to her bones and there are tumours found around her chest outside her lungs and other parts of her body too. He said it was a good thing that it didn’t spread to her organs.

I’m a little worried that my mum will eventually feel the adverse side effects of her new medication if she continues with it and not take your herbs. I’m really concerned.

Anyways, no matter what the doctor said and her deteriorating condition, my mum is still in high spirits and her appetite is well and she still goes to church and play mahjong with her friends regularly like a healthy person. Her strong belief in God keeps her in good spirits too. Do you think it’s time to bring her to come see you soon and it’s time to re-evaluate her herbs?  God bless.

(Note: This patient had breast cancer. She underwent a mastectomy followed by chemotherapy and radiotherapy. In addition she took Tamoxifen. To play safe, she also took our herbs. Both medical treatments and herbs did not physically  cure her … her cancer spread. However, “emotionally” she seemed alright and could live a normal life).

Patient No 5. Earlier we have posted this story in our website, Breast Cancer: Do this chemo – 100 percent cure! You believe that?  June (not real name), a 32-year-old, was diagnosed with breast cancer and had a mastectomy. She was asked to go for chemotherapy: 4 cycles of andriamycin + cyclophosphamide, 12 cycles of Taxol, one year of Herception plus taking oral Tamoxifen for 10 years!

The total costs of the above treatment (excluding Tamoxifen) is approximately SGD 120,000, which is about RM 300,000.

The oncologist told  June that if she did not do this recommended treatment, her cancer will recur within the next 2 to 3 years. The cancer will be all over the body and she will die! But if June were to undergo chemotherapy as suggested by the oncologist she will achieve a 100 percent cure!

We asked June if she believed what her oncologist told her. June replied, “No, because I have done my homework. I know that cancer cannot be cured.”

We leave it to you to draw your own conclusion about “professional experts”. Are they after your money or your cancer? Do they tell you the whole truth or do they behave like what Dr. Mendelsohn had warned us:

5-b--Doc-like-car-salesman-

Patient No 6. This story is also posted in our website, Breast Cancer: When a so-called “cure” was not a cure  In this case, due to a thumb-sized lump, MT had a mastectomy followed by 6 cycles of chemotherapy and 30 radiation treatments. She took Tamoxifen for 5 years.

MT was told by her doctor that her breast cancer was at an early stage and that she had a 90 percent chance of complete cure with the treatments that she had undergone. MT believed her doctor and did exactly as what was told. Each year she came back to her doctor for routine checkup. At every visit she was told that she was fine.

After 5 years, MT was told to stop Tamoxifen because she was already cured.

But barely a year later, in April 2011, MT started to have pains in her tail bone and shoulder blade. Then her legs started to hurt as well. She became breathless and was unable to walk far. MT returned to her doctor and was told that  her cancer had recurred in her bone and lung.

MT asked her doctor why the cancer recurred. The doctor’s answer,  “ I do not know why. But don’t blame yourself. It is your fate.  Also the recurrence has nothing to do with what you eat. It is just your fate.”

The recurrence was just due to her luck? It is like saying “Up-There Someone” was running a casino. The destiny of mankind down-here was determined by the rolling of a dice. It seems  more acceptable for the educated to promote this theory than admitting that “scientific medicine” had failed her.

But here are some rare, honest but blunt opinions which you may wish to ponder on: 2 Beating-the-dog

24 Same-treatment-diferent results 25 Some-body-must-be-iying

1 Breast-Treatmen not effective

4 Sellman-Tamoxifen-danger 5 Sellman-Tamoxifen-initiate-

Let us end by reflecting on what one of the world’s greatest minds has got to say:

1 Insanity-by-Einstein

Breast Cancer: No chemo or radiation. Only on CA Care herbs

Eda – 49-year-old female from Indonesia – had a lump in her right breast. USG and mammography showed an irregular isodenesity radioopaque lesion (9×7 mm) in the upper outer quadrant of right breast with spiculated sign, highly suggestive of malignancy. Enlarged lymph nodes were seen in both axilla, the right axilla being 10 mm in size.

Eda came to a private hospital in Penang in May 2010. A whole body CT scan showed no metastatic spread. Eda immediately underwent a lumpectomy. The right breast lesion was 15 x 10 x 10 mm. It was an invasive lobular carcinoma, Grade 2. The surgical margins were not involved. Eda underwent a second round of surgery to remove the right axilla sentinel nodes. These were cancer-free.

The tumour cells were positive for estrogen and progesterone receptors but negative for P53 and e-Erb2.

On  follow up, a few weeks later, Eda was asked to undergo chemotherapy and radiotherapy. She promptly refused and came to seek our help.

 

 

Almost five years later, January 2015, Eda met up with us and said that she was doing fine!

The blood test results over the years are as follows:

ESR Platelet CEA CA 15.3
25 Oct 2010 19 317 0.9 2.5
3 May 2011 23 H 316 0.7 1.7
5 May 2012 12 352 1.0 3.4
14 May 2013 15 321 Less than 0.5 4.5
25 April 2014 10 316 Less than 0.5 4.8
31 Jan 2015 18 322 1.6 3.3

 

Lessons we can learn from Eda

Lesson 1:  Eda underwent surgery twice but refused chemotherapy or radiotherapy as recommended by her surgeon. Even if her tumours were positive for estrogen and progesterone she was not on Tamoxiffen. She was taking a great risk, as far as medical believers are concerned. But does it mean that after surgery, chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy and Tamoxifen she will be cured of her cancer? Not necessarily. Read this sad story. Breast Cancer: When a so-called “cure” was not a cure  In this case, due to a thumb-sized lump, MT had a mastectomy followed by 6 cycles of chemotherapy and 30 radiation treatments. She took Tamoxifen for 5 years. MT was told by her doctor that her breast cancer was at an early stage and that she had a 90 percent chance of complete cure with the treatments that she had undergone. MT believed her doctor and did exactly as what was told. Each year she came back to her doctor for routine checkup. At every visit she was told that she was fine.

After 5 years, MT was told to stop Tamoxifen because she was already cured. But barely a year later, in April 2011, MT started to have pains in her tail bone and shoulder blade. Then her legs started to hurt as well. She became breathless and was unable to walk far. MT returned to her doctor and was told that  her cancer had recurred in her bone and lung. MT asked her doctor why the cancer recurred. The doctor’s answer,  “ I do not know why. But don’t blame yourself. It is your fate.  Also the recurrence has nothing to do with what you eat. It is just your fate.”

Here is another tragic story. Breast Cancer Went Wild After Surgery, Chemo-Radiotherapy. E-Therapy Helped Relieve Her Pains

Ask yourself this question, what could have happened to Eda if she were to undergo chemotherapy as recommended by her doctor? Will she suffer the same fate as these unfortunate patients?

To rub salt to the wound, MT was told by her doctor that recurrence was just due to her luck. It is like saying “One-Big-Fool” was running a casino “Up-There.” The destiny of mankind down-here was determined by the rolling of a dice. It seems  more acceptable for the educated to promote this theory than admitting that “scientific medicine” had failed her.

Dr. Lorraine Day was Chief of Orthopedic Surgery at San Francisco General Hospital. She had invasive breast cancer and had a lumpectomy. But the tumour soon recurred and became very aggressive. She decided to break rank and refused chemo or radiation …”because those therapies often lead to death.” Dr. Day cured her cancer by rebuilding her immune system through natural therapies. Read her story here, http://drday.com/

Paula Black, followed Dr. Day’s foot step; she had an aggressive breast cancer. Without chemo and radiation, the doctor said Paula would have only 3 to 6 months (maximum) to live. Paula had a double mastectomy but refused chemo or radiation. She went on to cure herself through natural therapies. Read her story, https://cancercaremalaysia.com/2015/01/19/advanced-breast-cancer-part-2-to-die-or-to-heal-is-your-choice/

Dr.-Day

Chemo-does-not-cure

You-cause-your-cancer-Paula

 

Lesson 2: It is now almost 5 years since Eda was first diagnosed with breast cancer. Is she cured of her breast cancer? We told Eda, NO! Don’t be fooled by believing that cancer is cured after surviving 5 years. When patients go to their doctors or when they come to us, they WANT a cure for their cancer. Cure means it is gone and never come back again. Unfortunately, this never happens in the real world of cancer. Our aunty’s cancer recurred after 13 years and she died. A member of our church had breast cancer and she survived 9 years before the cancer spread to her brain. She had radiation and died.

We tell Eda (and also all patients who come to us). Stay on the course, don’t go back to your old lifestyle again. Continue with what you are doing that made you well – why change?

Cure-medical-defination-Dal

 Cure-no-basis600