Advances in Cancer Care article

[Spanky]

Hi guys!

The following article is in the May issue of "Alive" magazine & is not posted on their website as of yet so I figured I'd just type it in instead of waiting. It's from the clinic of well-known naturopath Jim Chan. Here goes:

After 13 years as a naturopathic doctor, Dr. Chan has seen 5000 cancer patients, may of whom are diagnosed as "terminal" cases -- but not for long. When patients first arrive, their medical & personal histories are thoroughly reviewed, including all previous pathology & lab reports. Then they fill out Dr. Chan's own comprehensive personal survey. Additional tests may be conducted for immune function, digestion, endocrine system, level of stress & free radical load.

The point of gathering all this data is to get a picture of how healthy a patient is, to find out the body's strong and weak points, and to determine the possible causes of the cancer. "We know 15% of cancers are hereditary or genetic related," says Dr Chan. "The rest are environmental." By environment, he means things a person is exposed to in everyday life, including food, water, chemicals, viruses & electromagnetic radiation.

Only after all the data is available for review does Dr. Chan lay out what he feels to be the most effective, individualized treatment plan. Like many naturopaths who work with cancer, he has no objection to orthodox cancer treatments, which may or may not be beneficial in a given case. "We must look at coventional intervention and ask, will it be meaningful or not?"

"Surgery, chemo and radiation focus on attack. [Naturopatihic physicians] also devise means to support the cells," he says. So, if patients choose to go the orthodox route, they can also use wholistic approaches to bolster the body's strength and healing abilities. The key is combining treatments to achieve the best possible results.

One treatment the Dr. Chan is very excited about involves a special ginseng extract called Careseng, which he calls the "first non-toxic natural cancer treatment that can be considered at par, if not better, in efficacy compared with most chemotherapies." Like regular ginseng, this product contains active compounds called ginsenosides, specifically, high amounts of Rh2 and Rg3, both known for their anti-cancer properties.

In animal studies, the supplement inhibited tumour growth, increases survival time, and, in some cases, caused complete tumour regression. Dr. Chan was involved in clinical trials in 1999. In one trial, 40 patients with various cancers, including lung, colon, liver and breast - took Careseng orally for 60 days. Seventy-five per cent of patients experienced tumour inhibiting effects with no side-effects or toxicity. In a second trial involving 15 patients, the intravenous version was effective in 80% of cases - again with no reported drawbacks. More studies are continuing.

The treatment has been shown to work in several ways. First, it stops cells from entering the cancerous growth stage. Second, it causes cancer cell death, and third, it can actually reverse drug resistance. "So in cases where chemo doesn't work, we can fix it," says Dr. Chan. For example, if someone becomes resistant to chemo drugs, which is very common in late stage cancer patients, taking Careseng can make the body's cells sensative to treatment again.

Today, Dr. Chan uses Careseng with about 80% of his patients, who may also undergo other treatments such as acupuncture, supplementation with vitamins, minerals and herbs, medicinal peata baths(soaking in mineral-rich water) and sauna therapy(using far infrared heat chambers) to help the body detoxify.

His advice to cancer patients is to evaluate the risks and benefits of any chosen teatment. "For a doctor, it's difficult because we can never guarantee results. What works for one[patient] won't work for another. We have to be individualized. -end of article-

[Jenny G.]

Thanks Spanky,

This is the kind of information I like to find. Will be checking into this more and sharing with my doc.

Jenny