Cancer. Worth fighting?
Do people with cancer have to "fight" it?
We've heard from two of our listeners about this. Stephanie Butland wrote: "I'm amazed that no-one has suggested that attitude or state of mind could be instrumental in recovery or survival. I think this is worth investigating as I am using my mind as my main tool for recovery (along with surgery, chemotherapy and the rest...)"
Rachel Pearce, a medical statistician who is in remission from breast cancer wrote to say: "I have always been, and still am quite cynical about the 'battling cancer' attitude."
What's YOUR experience? Have you got or have you had cancer....what was your mental attitude towards it? Or maybe you are a health professional working with people who have cancer.
Please share what you know by clicking on Comments.
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Comments
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I have no direct experience of this, tho' like many, I suspect, my instinctive reaction is that a positive attitude can help... but instinct isn;t always the thing; ask Doctors and I am sure they will tell you that it often makes no difference at all. However, on a slightly different matter, I wish, especially when celebs get cancer etc, that people were more thoughtful when they comment. So many people say, 'oh, she'll be all right, she's a fighter' etc etc... and I am sure I am not the only one for whom the opposite therefore always pops into the mind.... ie, so the people who die are not fighters then? Weak-willed? This is clearly nonsense, thousands of brave, wonderful, life-loving people die each day.
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Since body and mind are closely interconnected, I thought it reasonable to assume that if I felt positive and hopeful, this might help my body to be strong against the disease.
I don't know whether it was true or not, but I'm still optimistic and - more imporant - still here, seven years on from my original diagnosis.
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Since being shocked at my completely unexpected breast cancer diagnosis, I couldn't imagine feeling anything other than a fighting mentality. If I was drowning, I would struggle to the surface to breathe. Automatic, instinctive reaction. In the same way, I am working with my clinical team to enable the treatments, NHS and complementary, to work alongside my body and mind. I'm having neoajduvent chemo to shrink the tumour prior to surgery, and I can measure already in just 7 weeks, a truely noticeable improvement, as confirmed by my oncologist last week.
I trained in Health Economics, and am passionate about evidence based practice, but where there is insufficient evidence (yet), this does not mean there is a lack of cause and effect. Just not yet proven.
So long as a positive mental attitude is not harmful in any conceivable way, what have I got to lose?
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I'm very sure that state of mind is very important, but I personally didn't find the concept of 'fighting' very useful. I had breast cancer when I was 27. I realised that 'normal' life was a precious gift and I wanted to get it back and not get immersed in lots of 'self-help' stuff that struck me as self absorbed and a bit morbid. I went back to life with gusto and didn't really make any significant changes - except I got pregnant eight months later. I had a very contented and peaceful pregnancy. I felt very focussed and sure that we had made the right decision and everything would be fine. I felt I had everything to live for and that my body was busy making life. When I went for check-ups at the hospital, I had my beautiful baby boy in my arm and he felt like my protection and my tether to life. So I would conclude that my mental state was important and helped get me through a difficult time - but did it stop the cancer?? No idea!
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I had cancer back in 1992. From my experience and those of the other people also with cancer around me, you endure cancer, you don't 'fight' it. It was a thoroughly nasty experience which still gave me nightmares up to 3 years after the treatment ended and I had it easy compared to others.
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Of course attitude is important. When I was first diagnosed with advance prostate cancer my consultant's very words were - "You have the right attitude; You'll do well."
I can't say I never have a bad moment but it's vital to keep positive - I wake up each morning and tell myself how good it is still to be alive, and live for each day as it comes. There is no cure for what I have and I know it will get me in the end, if nothing else does first, but I'm not going to let that get in the way of living life to as much of the max as I can manage....!
The alternative is too scary to even contemplate.
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This year I am celebrating the 20th anniversary of surgery for colon cancer - and the 10th anniversary of diagnosis for an unrelated rare and incurable - but treatable - form of blood cancer. I think attitude has a lot to do with survival - I am a naturally positive person - just wish I could pass this on to others. I do not regard it as a battle and I do not use visualisation tricks, but I do belong to an internet forum. I am enormously grateful to amazing and dedicated nurses and doctors and take an active interest in treatment options. I am now enjoying four years post chemo - no regular medication - and get on with the rest of my life by always having something to do whether work, rest or play.
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My husband died of cancer in 2002, he was from Syria and had lived in the UK since 1984. He missed his homeland dreadfully and I often wonder how much that contributed to his death. Not only that he might not have been exposed to whatever triggered his cancer if he had stayed in Syria but that he might not have succumb as his was a survivable cancer. One never knows.
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I am currently undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer and will need radiotherapy. I know that I will get through this treatment and want to live for a good long time but often find the notion of "fighting" the cancer unhelpful. Much more important for me is enduring the treatment and garnering in as much support as I need from friends and family. I am using complementary therapies as well as "straight" medicine and that gives me a sense of some power and control in this sometimes frightening and overwhelming situation, but don't know if that is the same as "fighting". A word to people who ask how cancer patients are- sometimes we are miserable, tired, dispirited- being told to be positive NOT helpful!
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I have not had cancer myself but have worked with people with breast cancer for many years. There is precious little evidence that "fighting"cancer improves survival. Everyone deals with their cancer in their own way and fighting is fine if that is your nature. However it saddens my when people are exhorted to "be brave and fight it " all the time by other people who nearly always do not have cancer. You can't be brave all the time and need to be allowed to feel scared and low sometimes, without being made to feel that you are letting the side down. We can all be brave and feisty some of the time, but should not feel under pressure to keep it up all the time.
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I'm not sure why our attitude to cancer is so different to our attitude to other diseases. We don't tend to suggest that people just have to fight heart disease, for example. Some of my close family members and one close friend have had cancers in the last few years. Their ages have ranged from mid forties to early eighties. What seems to matter most as far as survival is concerned is early detection, the type of cancer and the available treatment. These have all been very variable. We still don't know enough about the causes of cancer and treatment options may well be held back by drug companies seeking to profit from exclusive drugs and by local health budgets.
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I am a psychologist who works with people with cancer and their families. Research has shown that a realistic, positive attitude to the cancer diagnosis has an impact on disease-free and overall survival and I have also found this in my work.
I can also attest to it from family experience. My husband was diagnosed with prostate cancer about a year ago. His attitude was inspirational. He sailed through the treatment with minimal side effects. We are waiting for the second blood test which will confirm that he is in complete remission and the consultant is optimistic that the cancer is unlikely to recur.
However, the "fighting spirit" attitude encouraged by families and well-meaning friends, can, although often positive and affirming, sometimes be a double-edged sword. People with cancer often feel tired and depressed and, particularly while on treatment, may well not feel much like fighting. If the "fighting spirit" attitude is pushed too aggressively then this can make the person feel guilty and afraid that if s/he doesn't feel like "fighting cancer" for a while, this will lead to a recurrence. There is no evidence that this is the case.
The mind body link is one by which mental and physical health can affect each other and is complex. A positive attitude is preferable if it can be attained, but the person with cancer should not be unduly afraid if s/he is afraid or depressed. The diagnosis itself can be a shock, and sadness and fear are natural reactions in the short term.
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61 years old. Mal. mel. removed Sept.2007; follow-ups throughout 2008-all clear; self referral to dermo clinc Nov 2008-armpit lump. 18 Dec.2008-biopsy and spinal metasteses confirmed. 8 Jan.2009 treatment plan-Radiotherapy for backpain, surgery for lump(Feb), chemo for blood(DTBA). Radiotherapy appears to have 'worked'-playing golf again. Melanoma seems a fast worker. Think have had standard (fair) treatment. No idea what to try next- if any point. Taking Essiac tea for character building- no ill effects so far and wearing cord trousers all the time...Cheerfully stoic,slightly miffed and polishing life long melancholy(painter) to emphasise patina...
PMA good for others, no evidence for more.
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I'm a Hypnotherapist in Winchester and I specialise in supporting people diagnosed with cancer, and using the mind to assist the body. Cancer is an incredibly complex subject and it's far too simplistic to say this or that works. There are many things that people can do to assist themselves with their minds, the first being to learn some relaxation skills - a cancer diagnosis will often bring on a huge rise in anxiety, which then depletes the immune system (this is well documented). Conversely, experiencing relaxation will increase aspects of the immune system (again, well researched and documented). A 'fighting' attitude is generally not the approach to cancer that I give my clients. I conside that a person diagnosed with cancer is 'a person LIVING with cancer', not 'a person fighting cancer'. The mind has an incredible ability to soak up the words that we use and a simple change in emphasis can help bring about desired changes. A positive approach doesn't have to include 'battling', 'fighting', and so on (as these are likely to increase anxieties). There are many things that a person can do by using their mind to help themselves (for example, in the top US hospitals a person going for surgery will be offered the types of techniques I use - and they are likely to be paid for by their health insurance company because they reduce in-patient times for surgery, reduce pain killers and other interventions and reduce side-effects - this is documented in several studies and includes the research published by Blue Shield health insurance of California). There is much more we could do in the UK to increase the quality of life for people living with cancer.
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I was diagnosed with testicular cancer 13years ago - underwent surger and chemotherapy and thankfully am fit and well today. I firmly believe that my state of mind - "I was going to fight it", "this isn't going to beat me" etc was a key element in my recovery. Medically I obviously cannot offer any valid opinion, but in terms of getting me and my family through the emotional effects that a cancer diagnosis engenders, I think a positive attitude was essential. I may well have recovered physically if I had merely undergone the medical treatment alone, but I am not sure I would have recovered mentally or emotionally. I also believe cancer affects those around the sufferer in a just as damaging and powerful way - the patient (me in this case) has the "advantage" of undergoing treatment and knowing he or she is doing everything to fight the disease, whilst the onlookers must feel helpless and powerless - by showing strength of mind and character, the patient must surely help offer those around him some form of comfort?
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There is no scientific way to asses this presumption, so it will always remain just this - a presumption.
Signing up to a group identity often seems to make people feel happier, because inclusiveness is a desire common to all. Religion and Football are examples of this although it could equally be argued that these things can bring misery.
If you believe that "state of mind could be instrumental in recovery or survival" that is great for you, but unless you can show "proof" of this which without the ability to interrogate cancer will not be forthcoming, this idea should not be incorporated into established medical treatment.
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I was diagnosed with breast cancer 12 years ago (aged 39) and underwent the full treatment - mastectomy, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. I am naturally positive and cheerful, and having a mother who survived breast cancer, most of the time I felt I would survive. However, while a positive attitude makes cancer much easier to live with, and certainly easier for family and friends, I do not believe that my attitude affected the result. How awful if I decided I was 'fighting it' and then did not survive. Would it have been my own fault for not fighting hard enough?
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I was diagnosed with follicular lymphoma (non-Hodgkins) in 2005. I was given 8 sessions of chemotherapy (as an outpatient) with 3 weeks between. My main instinct was to live as normal a life as possible, and not let it dominate. I didn't consciously fight it, but continued to work as normal on non-treatment days (supported brilliantly by my employer). Was this successful ? Possibly not, as it returned in late 2007. I had about two years of optimistic normality, which was terrific. I'm now undergoing some gruelling treatment including a bone marrow transplant, and as I have retired, it is a lot more dominant of my life. However, within limits, I still try to live life as I would otherwise. It's my coping strategy, both for me and for family and friends. Will it help me 'fight' the cancer, I don't know, but I'm happy with it.
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I was diagnosed with an aggressive locally advanced prostate cancer last September. I am 53 and generally fit, healthy & active. Following surgery I am currently free of cancer. Once the initial shock and pain of telling my family was done with, I did my research and made lifestyle changes such as dietary and used visualisation to 'fight' my disease. I also visualised myself riding a handsome dapple grey horse, such a great image.
I don't know what effect on my cancer any of this had, I guess the surgeon was the major player, but it sure made me feel like I had some semblance of control and it kept my spirits up.. having a cancer is a very lonely experience, no matter how much you are loved. 8 weeks after surgery I have started riding again and that grey... I am going to see him again this Thursday.I was diagnosed with an aggressive locally advanced prostate cancer last September. I am 53 and generally fit, healthy & active. Following surgery I am currently free of cancer. Once the initial shock and pain of telling my family was done with, I did my research and made lifestyle changes such as dietary and used visualisation to 'fight' my disease. I also visualised myself riding a handsome dapple grey horse, such a great image.
I don't know what effect on my cancer any of this had, I guess the surgeon was the major player, but it sure made me feel like I had some semblance of control and it kept my spirits up.. having a cancer is a very lonely experience, no matter how much you are loved. 8 weeks after surgery I have started riding again and that grey... I am going to see him again this Thursday.
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I do wish that people wouldn't talk about "FIGHTING CANCER" , It is not a battle!!I have experience of watching three very special people dealing with this disease and in the case of my husband and more recently my sister-in-law; if there was to stay alive they would be here.After the death of his father my young son asked if he hadn't wanted to stay with us or couldn't he fight anymore!
It also makes others feel inadequate if they are not constantly fighting this thing; they have more to do than assure others they are "fighting" to stay alive.Everyone deals with things in their own unique way.
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Surviving cancer is NOT about positive thinking or a fighting spirit. It's about what & where the cancer is, & how early it is diagnosed & treated. My husband died of cancer in 1995 2 yrs after being diagnosed with a secondary cancer in his spine; his fighting spirit was amazing. I was diagnosed with cancer of the throat over 5 yrs ago; my fighting spirit was minimal. As a depressed chainsmoking alcoholic I thought it was a fair cop. But because I was diagnosed in time & weathered the fairly radical surgery & radiotherapy I'm still around. There ain't no justice.
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My mother died of cancer in November last year, she was diagnosed in July and was told that her cancer was terminal. This was her second cancer diagnosis, she had had, and fought breast cancer, 12 years previously. This was a new cancer and her attitude to it was completely different. She didn't fight the cancer at all. In some ways she even embraced it. She had been chronically ill for about five years and was finding her life an increasing struggle. The diagnosis of terminal cancer meant that she was able stop struggling and accept palliative care to control her pain and breathing difficulties. She was able to put her life in order and say goodbye to friends and family. She died peacefully at home surrounded by loved ones.
Cancer and its treatment is often a long process and it seems to me that there is a time to fight and a time to let go. A fantastic District Nurse told me of a man who was dying who refused to accept it up to 30 minutes before his death when he was insisting he was going to get up to see to his pigeons. His family were utterly distaught.
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Sadly I have lost people very close to me with cancer and I also suffer serious illness myself.
Of course there is no direct causal link between attitude and state of mind and ill health.
It is distressing to have people assert that you may be somehow to blame for your illness (i.e. not positive enough).
If a positive attitude may cause you to take or follow the evidence based treatment.
A negative attitude (i.e. depression) can be treated too by evidence based methods.
Do not be swayed by those who would rather deny your illness because it makes them feel less guilty or responsible for helping you engage in proper care and treatment.
Leave the witchcraft for witches and spend more money on scientific education for the unhelpful people who promulgate unhelpful ideas like this.
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I had Breast Cancer 8 years ago. I am now counting the years from my diagnosis as the longer you go with out it returning, the less likely it is to return.
I can't see how you can fight the disease, all you can do is take the recommended treatment and see what
happens. My disease was very personal to me and something I had to deal with, no choice, it wasn't something I wanted to be identified with or labelled ' a cancer victim', it was part of my life not me. Cancer is a potentially a death sentence and any direct contact with it, is very distressing, no matter what you think. I obviously knew nothing about the disease, who does!, and allayed my fears by getting as much information as possible about my individual case. While in hospital when I had the lump removed, my impression of alot of other people, dealing with the disease was that it was like being in the
valley of death..where I didn't want to be. I was lucky in several ways after my operation and treatment and cannot forget the fact, that I could have been dead by now.
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In August 1998 I had an operation to remove my left kidney with its grapefruit sized tumour. Just over four months later I was told I was terminally ill. A new, golfball-sized tumour had been found at the site of my excised tumour.
I was given four options, the last of which was 'Do nothing, you won't live as long but your quality of life will be better.' I decided upon that option and to this day haven't been back to hospital. Clearly, I had to find methods of recovery for myself. I knew I had to fight and frankly, my oncologists earlier disparagement of the things I was trying to do to keep well following my operation made fighting all the easier. I wanted to prove him wrong.
Studies have been done on fighting cancer in terms of survival to five years. Those who fought were most likely to survive yet those who refused to believe they had cancer did next best. Those who stoically accepted their cancers did least well in terms of survival to five years.
The new medical field of psychoneuroimmunology has demonstrated that it is possible to improve outcomes in a number of complaints by positive visualisation and even hospital cancer help groups pay lip service to these approaches. They should become part of cancer treatment and the cancer industry should be talking to people like me in order find out how we did it.
There are more of us than you might think
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Fortunately I've never had cancer but there was a famous women (I'm hopeless with names) who campaigned for cancer funding, ran loads of marathons and survived so long some people doubted her diagnosis. So whether or not positive thinking helps her combination of fighting for something good to come out of it which must have involved some positive thinking but also much physical effort, prolonged her life.
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I am a cancer survivor. I HATE being told I must be positive and I must fight. I had treatment for breast cancer for the 4th time last November, does that mean I wasnt positive enough the first 3 times then?
One of the worse things you can say to a cancer patient, is be positive.
I would rather peolpe said nothing at all.
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I am a psychotherapist and have been dealing with recurring ovarian cancer since July 2004 so I have personal and professional views about the helpfulness of a fighting spirit when faced with cancer. As a therapist I have found over many years that people who are able to focus and set goals and work towards their goals are more likely to succeed than people who don't. Motivation, healthy self-esteem, assertiveness, ability to ask for support are all useful in aiming to be well and cancer free. I believe that people who regain full health, survive the longest and are able to enjoy their lives and live them as fully as possible are generally able to combine a realistic acceptance of their situation and get motivated to do all they can to be well or manage the cancer as well as possible. I have managed to stay positive most of the time and have learnt a lot about different approaches to cancer both conventional and complementary and alternative. I have also used it as an opportunity to reappraise my life and refocus my energy in different ways. I have produced a website sharing inspirational stories, information that I've researched and offering support which has been very therapeutic for me. See www.cancerselfcare.com and also have found a very useful website which deals with cancer holistically at www.healingjourney.ca. I sometimes think of myself as fighting cancer which I know can seem very positive to some people but more often I find the idea of regaining my health in every way most helpful. currently I am using the Gerson diet to strengthen my immune system enough for my body to say goodbye to the cancer for good - something which conventoinal cancer is unlikely to do. Thanks Francesca
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As the husband of an amazing woman who has had three different, apparently unrelated types of major cancer as well as a large, benign liver tumor over the past 23 years, I can testify to the importance of positive thinking as an aid to recovery. While frequently feeling the effects of her many and varied surgeries, and the negative aspects of her lifetimes drugs regime, she is still here, working, living and enhancing my life, refusing to throw in the towel. Her strength and determination to recover from whatever has been thrown her way is remarkable and I feel sure that her attitude contributes hugely to her survival!
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I certainly decided to fight when ten years ago I was diagnosed with breast cancer. I decided that I was going to be one of the lucky survivors as I had an 11-year-old son to look after. How could one fight? The only way I could think of was by being as positive as possible which gave me the feeling that I had some small amount of control over my fate as opposed to none. [A] During chemotherapy I often imagined little teams of tiny brightly coloured soldiers [wee Viking characters who changed colour depending on my mood!] actually being The Goodies v The Cancer Cells . [B] I imagined beautiful " Bubbles" floating about as a positive counter to the awful sickness during chemo.
[C] A tiny red note-book where I privately noted how I felt, with a little round face in the top corner (varying from a grin to tears,) and marks out of ten; this again was part of my battle as I was damned if I were going to give in to "10"..... 9 maybe, but rarely 10!
I do advise friends who contract cancer to try and fight it in some positive way. If nothing else it provides a diversion!
Liz.
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On being told I had Breast Cancer in 2000, my immediate reaction was that I had now become a warrior. With a deadly enemy to fight and hopefully defeat, this was my mindset from the beginning, to the end of my treatment and beyond.
I felt that to be strong mentally in this manner was the only way forward, and that this mindset would help prevent me from feeling sorry for myself, or feeling my life was being threatened and consequently dissolving into tears all the time.
I had prepared myself for the positive diagnosis because in my view there was no point in trying to pretend I had no chance of having cancer (because of the symptoms I had) and this was helpful in assisting me with my reaction to the bad news; in fact the consultant's secretary told me and my husband that she had never seen anyone react with such composure, so I know my attitude was right for ME.
With the Warrior-Woman mindset firmly implanted in my entire being, I went forward, going as bravely and strongly as I was able through the mastectomy, seven months of chemo followed by three weeks of radiotherapy. It didn't stop there, medication had to be taken for five years. The effects of the medication were very hard to bear, and made life unpleaseant to say the least. But I DID IT, and when I was finally discharged from hospital in 2007 I felt ten feet tall.
Throughout my Cancer experience my concerns were for my dear husband; it is terrible for the partner of someone with cancer to have to deal with all the related dreads and fears. I decided, then, to use my/our story to write a book to help others, and did so. I saw this book as my gift to anyone going through Breast Cancer, male or female, and the feedback since its publication has been phenomenal.
I urge, therefore, anyone facing cancer treatment to try so hard to be brave, see yourself as controlling the cancer, not it controlling you, and do all you can mentally and spiritually to banish it from your body. Positive thinking is vital, it works in many many cases, and it is something we all can practise if we so choose. In life we either choose to be positive, optimistic and courageous in the face of adversity, or we try to pretend it is not happening, or we feel sorry for ourselves and expect sympathy all the time. Only by the first course of action do we have the best chance of survival. And, after cancer, comes your chance to bestow your knowledge and experience on the World in order to help others along the way, as I did by writing a book. I also gave talks and offered articles to the local paper, all of which had amazing feedback from people who needed the help and support I was able to give. You can do this too, if you feel strong enough. May your inner strength be with you as you travel the road on your own, personal journey to defeat cancer.
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I've had cancer for three years. While there was a good hope of a cure or at least of life prolongation it was certainly worth fighting.
More recently the cancer has stolen half my voice, swollen my throat to the extent that I can no longer swallow food or drink, given me an extremely painful frozen shoulder which stops me sleeping and can only be alleviated by codine or morphine which in turn causes constipation.
I'm still fighting and considering what further treatment may be available but perhaps I'm not as determined as I was a year ago and perhaps part of me is beginning to accept that there may be no way out. I have to say though that being pain-free, as I am from time to time, makes the idea of fighting on more appealing.
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I was diagnosed with cancer of the colon last August, 2 weeks after my 67th birthday. After the consultation, the surgeon told me outright that he was 95% certain that I had cancer. I was not particularly shocked, or emotional, although some of my friends were. I was determined from the outset to treat this as just another illness and not be ashamed to tell people that I had it. Furthermore, I was also going to live life as normally as the cancer would allow and not be cowed by the fear of it. To be fair, I was buoyed by the knowledge that my younger sister had the same problem some 8 years ago and she is still bouncing around happily, and my first wife had her bladder and half her bowel removed about 3 years ago and she is still living a relatively normal life.
I was operated on in September and the large offending lump removed. I was told that the cancer had not spread, although I am now on a 6 month course of chemo tablets to ensure that it does not re-occur.
Should you fight it? Sure! With the rapid medical advances, chances of survival are getting better and better. Actually, I was more frightened of the NHS aftercare, than the operation itself and in that respect I was proved right. It was not a happy experience.
Having said that, I would rather have cancer of the colon, than of the brain, or spine, or other inoperable areas, but whatever, the worst cure must be just to curl up and give up.
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I went through surgery for cancer 8 years ago and just as I was thinking we could put it all behind us, my wife was diagnosed with a much more serious cancer for which she had wonderful treatment from the NHS 6 years ago. She went through her 5 year clearance last year and once again, we feel we can put cancer behind us. So we do feel qualified to talk about the subject.
A positive attitude is very important, not that any process of mental positivity is going to cure cancer per se, but positivity will give you the power to do the right things to get physically better, such as eating properly and well when you can't face food, and getting the right amount of exercise when all you feel like doing is moping about. The same thinking will support you when you are down, and encourage your family and friends to be supportive when they see you trying to cope with some success. I will finally comment that so far as I am concerned personally, it was so much easier to cope with my own cancer than watch my wife suffer so badly and it was her positivity over that tragic and frightening time that got us both through. It was then I needed all my powers of mental survival! Positivity helps so much - but keep taking the metaphorical tablets which will prolong your life and hopefully effect a cure.
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Over 20 years ago I was a young woman with a sarcoma. This was back in the days of smoking rooms with the only telly on the ward and very little advice on attitude or lifestyle. I met a young girl of 19 with leukemia who continued to smoke and complained all the time about everything; the boyfriend who dumped her when she got sick, her mother's ironing of her nightdresses and the aerosol factory she had worked in. All her future plans were negative; I'm never having anything to do with men again, etc. She died. You could divide up the ward by people who believed they had a future and those who believed that fate had them by the short and curlies. On the whole, the optimists tended to be the suvivors and those who were overwhelmed by the experience of cancer did not. That said there is no blame in being overwhelmed, sometimes that is the correct career move. Now I face cancer again. Now I must think about children whom I love more than my life, responsibilities I never imagined and the sure knowledge that my age is no longer in my favour. Yet I continue to believe that I can influence my outcome. I have worked in the NHS now over 15 years and I have seen many times how attitude and self-belief can change futures. I do not believe in a god but I do believe in the wonderful, glorious potential of men and women to be something wonderful and glorious. I may die, but I will not die knowing I have not tried my best to live.
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I have had cancer treated twice, once at 27 years old and again at 38 years old.
After many years travelling, thinking and psychotherapy, I realised that if you are a person with cancer, it is a part of you and you will never be free of it.
However if you learn to be kind to and forgive yourself then you can live alongside it. 'Fighting it' or being aggressive towards it energises the disease which may then go on to kill you.
I also loathe the application of words like sufferer, patient and victim - all of which make you a hopeless or helplessly unequal partner in the disease process.
I found cancer to be a useful opportunity to learn much I may never have learnt and in the process survived (so far) to become a happier stronger person than before.
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I've never had cancer - and I pray I never get it.
So why am I writing? Well, I am a Witch - or rather, Cunning-One - and I know about these things. You see, while it may sound a bit "David Icke", the truth is that thoughts actually do manifest in the world. Hell, even a skeptic like Henry Ford - who said "whether you think you can or [whether you think you] can't, you're probably right" - knows that your attitude influences the outcome. And okay, maybe not everyone can think themselves well, but then not everyone who wants to lift their own bodyweight can. But if they wanted, they could work up to it.
As for whether it's worth fighting - only the individual can decide that. When you're number's up your number's up, but if there is the slightest chance of survival, my advice would be, bring it on!
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In late 2004 my twin brother was diagnosed with prostate cancer. This was confined to his prostate gland and so he had the choice of surgery, chemo-therapy or radio-therapy. He decided to go for surgery – drastic but effective.
Because we are identical, I started having six-monthly blood tests to monitor my PSA reading, normally between 3 and 4 in a healthy male. In early January my doctor told me that my December reading had increased sharply from a normal 3.5 to 12.5. He sent me for further tests.
I immediately asked all the Christians I knew to pray for me, including Tim, our lay minister and Thomas, a close friend, at our weekly prayer meeting.
On the 15th January I had a biopsy. On the 29th January I learned I had aggressive prostate cancer. I began to get used to the idea of surgery or some other treatment.
I continued praying and asking for prayers.
On the 6th of February I had a full-body scan to check that the disease had not spread outside the prostate gland. On the 12th of February, my consultant told me that ‘unfortunately’ the cancer had spread, specifically to my right leg and left shoulder. This meant that surgery was pointless and the only current treatment was quarterly hormone injections to try and control the spread of the disease. I was warned about possible side effects, but naturally I accepted this treatment.
At the following prayer meeting with church brothers Tim and Thomas, I told them that the disease had spread but did not say where. Thomas suggested healing by laying on of hands. Without any further guidance from me, Tim took hold my left shoulder and Thomas my right knee. With this holy sign, I began praying positively, asking the Lord to grant me good health (rather than asking Him to take away the cancer) and having made this clear request once, thereafter accepting His positive reply and thanking Him for doing so.
On Wednesday, 4th June, I went for the results of a blood test to see how the treatment was working. My PSA reading had fallen to 0.5 – the same as my brother, who has no prostate! In other words, evidence of cancer had disappeared. There are few side effects and the doctors are pleased that their treatment is working so effectively. One doctor (an expert, but not connected directly with my case) said it was brilliant! I am pleased that the prayers that everyone made for me were so effective and that I am healed.
I now follow some basic principles in my life:
1. I pray daily, thanking the Lord for all my blessings (I have them listed on a sheet of paper over my desk) and to create positive energy
2. I request help for anyone or anything new that needs it, as soon as I am aware of that need
3. Having asked once, clearly, in the name of Jesus, for anything, thereafter I thank the Lord for His intercession.
4. I believe that one should help God as much as possible, for example, by following doctor’s instructions and taking prescribed medication, while thanking Him for good health.
5. A healthy lifestyle and changed diet all help, but for me the most important thing is attitude.
6. I encourage others at every opportunity.
7. I have stopped using words and phrases like ‘hopefully’, ‘possibly’, ‘maybe’ and ‘with any luck’.
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I am new to this program so I don't know if this is a useful comment in the context of the blog and this is not intended for publishing.
There are Oncology centers in the UK where psychiatrists and psychologist have an interest in cancer patients and contacting the Oncology units at Edinburgh and The Marsden hospitals might be useful in getting some professional input for the program.
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Can you battle cancer? I don't know if you can. On Christmas eve 2007 I heard the words "It is breast cancer I'm afraid"
I went through last year having all the treatments, massectomy, chemo, and radiotherapy.
I continued to work and to everyone else seemed to cope "remarkably well." The drugs did the fighting I was just swept along with the tide. I can't be sure what I will do in the future, but I think the best advice I have heard recently is "be kind to yourself" and take time to do things you enjoy. Does this count as a battle? I'm not sure.
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I was diagnosed with prostate cancer about a year ago. Previously I had had two episodes when I had to be catheterised, but, despite a PSA of 20, biopsies were negative and I eventually had a TURP [the inner muscle of the prostate is cut out]. Then a PSA test came in at 38 and the biopsy this time showed a small tumour. A consultation and further tests were arranged quickly and it became clear that there had been no spread.
I went through the process of hormone therapy and radiotherapy and have come through that OK. Throughout I continued to do my teaching job and look after my allotment and, although prepared for the expected side-effects, I experienced none. I lead a fairly healthy lifestyle, eating organic food and walking and cycling.
I have had a number of health issues over the past 5 years, and the key thing is that I never actually FELT ill at all. It is easy to put 2 fingers up to something like this when you know that the problem is contained and you feel well and healthy. Some knowledge is of help, and it was good to be able to discuss issues with the consultant. My wife has worked in cancer medicine and her input was invaluable.
My attitude enabled me to enjoy the radiotherapy. I met some truly lovely people during that time, and I think that focusing outside myself was hugely beneficial; that certainly was one of the spin-offs from my bullish attitude.
My so-called all-clear came through just before Christmas and I am now planning a walk to raise money for Wallace Cancer Care. See justgiving.com/mikevogel for further information.
mike
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Does it really take 3 hours to moderate on this subject?
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I've had a rare ovarian cancer and so far outlived the predicted 3 years of survival, though there is always a chance it's coming back. There is little I don't know about "Positive Thinking" as applied to cancer cases. I'll try to be brief:
1. Positive thinking does not restore burnt-out DNA in a cell which is what cancer is: the disease of a cell.
2. If the cancer tumour is removed before the malignant cells have moved into the blood stream (metastased), the patient will live. If a number of cancer cells settle in the liver, lungs, etc. the patient will die, as numerous tumours will grow either quickly or over some years. Positive thinking does not prevent metastases.
3. I weep for all the modest, good, scared, often elderly, men and women whose cancers have "come back" (metastased and regrew) and who are dying in torment, blaming it on themselves, because, you see, they have not managed to do enough positive thinking and now they are a nuisance to everybody and it's all their own fault...
4. Positive thinking is absolutely splendid for making your quality of life better while you are having cancer, live or die. People don't like those who moan and complain, they are busy, tired and have enough troubles of their own, even though they are very sorry for your pain. So if you show courage, good humour, genuine interest in those who phone or visit, they want to see you again, invite you out, seek your company and feel better about themselves in the process of having fun with you. Then you are never alone, abandoned, sad (except for the dying bit, but that's quite inevitable for all of us). Laughing in the face of death takes some positive thinking, but it's worth trying!
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I was diagnosed with Lung Cancer 8 years ago at the age of 55. The initial outlook was very gloomy - inoperable only palliative care available - life expectancy about 6 months. Since then I have had 3 courses of Radio Therapy and am currently undergoing my second course of Chemotherapy. By palliative care standards my treatment has been very successful and I understand that I am now in the top 10% incurable lung cancer survivor group.
Has "Positive Thinking" played a part in my still being alive and fairly well 7.5 years after my expected demise - I don't think so, in fact when I was first diagnosed the host of well meaning people who told me I had to, "Think Positive" nearly drove me to distraction.
None of them had undergone a similar experience and most of them had probably never had a postive thought in their lives. Over the last 8 years I have formed the opinion, mainly through contact with other cancer patients, that "Postive Thinking" is nothing more than a sales pitch used by those who peddle so called alternative therapies. I have also come to the opinion that it is much more important not to indulge in negative thinking which can adversely affect your general health and produce conditions that allow cancer to develop at a faster rate.
In respect of the other question - can you fight cancer. My view is only in respect of enduring the available effective treatments - chemotherapy in particular can sap your determination. So what do I attribute my 7.5+? years of extra active and productive life to - good (NHS) treatment, the love of a good family and plain good luck. As an aside when I was first diagnosed the most important thing I wanted to know was, how long have I got. Now that my affairs are now all in order it is the one thing I do not want to know and consider myself extremely fortunate to be it that position.
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I'm a three time cancer survivor - I know that ATTITUDE is EVERYTHING!
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I have had cancer of the bowel and then a secondary in the lung, it is now 5 years since my first operation and I am clear and as fit as ever. To me dealing with cancer positively is not about battling cancer it is about seeing it as something which can be beaten and that the real secret is to survive the chemo and operations better than the cancer and supporting yourself to do that by having everyone working with you. Yes it can get you down but then life isn't always easy but with good friends and supportive caring nurses the bad times are easier to forget. In hindsight I have found it immensely liberating helping me to get more out of life than ever before
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I got prostate cancer in 1997. Through my faith and encouragement of friends and family I felt very positive and, following hormone treatment and radiotherapy, I was told everything seemed oK. Then, 3 years later, the cancer returned. This time the specialist said I needed surgery. Again I remember experiencing a feeling of power over the disease. I believe it is important to fight the cancer mentally as well. In my case it was to the detriment of my family, although we are still together. Now, 11 years after it first appeared, I am still getting PSA readings that are below the lowest they can measure and I am fine - apart from the artificial bladder sphincter they had to fit, but that is another story. My experience is - be positive and fight it. Having a faith does no harm either.
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I am aged 74 and I was told that I had a tumour in my intestine July last year following a CT scan. Previous to that I was told that I had Anaemia which I found out some fourteen months after I had had a blood test in hospital for a day, February 2006, to investigate a skin rash. Eventually I ha a series of investigations to discover the cause of the Anaemia with no results.
Then July last year I was told that I had a small tumour. September1st I had the operation to remove the tumour. Following the operation I was told it had proved more difficult than expected, that some small cancerous elements may remain. As I recovered from the operation I had a further CT scan to be told that there were cancerous elements left. From November I hade a number of two weekly appointments with the cancer specialist doctors discussing the chemo therapy options and was told the option open to me was in tablet form. I was introduced to a Macmillan nurse. It was agreed that I would return early January to start the chemo, I thought. When I return the doctor told me he could not recommend the treatment! After a further protracted discussion the doctor went a looked at my CT scans, he return to tell me what the scans showed may not be cancer material, but scar tissue from the operation and I was given an appointment to return to see him in March.
I have not let this get me down and I get on with life and planning for things to do in the future. I feel that the delay in in starting investigation around the Anaemia was what made the operation difilcult and I have been unable to find out why it took so long to told that I had Anaemia.
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I am 69 and in March 2007 had major surgery for cancer of the oesophagus and have made such a good recovery that last September I walked 120 miles down the Cotswold Way raising £5,626 for a cancer charity.
Maybe I'm lucky but I'm living a full life hampered only occasionally by fatigue after heavy exercise.
Modern surgery and drugs are marvellous and I can't fault the NHS in Gloucester and Cheltenham. My surgeon was great.
A major factor in my recovery was positive attitude. Cancer? They chopped it out and incinerated it. Now I don't have it!
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Well, I didn't think that I could possibly read my way through almost 50 very personal posts on this subject and end up feeling uplifted.
Best wishes to everybody.
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Thank you SO much for all of those comments - and apologies for the fact some of them took so long to be moderated. We are investigating that.
I am always pleased and touched when anyone takes the time to comment on any blog posting. But that so many of you have shared such personal things with us, makes me especially grateful.
We are working hard on this Saturday's programme, and your comments are helping us shape what goes on air. Please keep checking back to the iPM blog all week...we will have more information for you.
Once again - thank you and best wishes
Eddie
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I have had 2 cancers in the last 2 years. The first was a complete shock and caused my husband and me to `disappear from the world ` for several days as we hugged and talked about the operation which happened within a week of diagnosis due to private insurance. Within a week of being diagnosed it was gone-we call it `the monster`. I was open about my cancer with everyone, spoke freely about what was happening to me and carried on as normally as I was able as I went into 8 sessions of chemo. You must be positive for yourself and for others around you who love you and feel helpless as they watch you being drowned by chemicals,becoming paralysed and unable to talk. My positive attitude has helped friends who have had cancer since I was diagnosed. I do not think it is `fighting` but I do believe that the inner person can help you get over the awful side effects and live again. For me it was disbelief that 2 days before my second anniversary of being free of `the monster` I was diagnosed with a totally different early syage cancer......however it did not even stop me this time and we did not tell anyone as we did not want others around us to become pessimitic about my future. I believe that you have to look after yourself, eat well and be happy. I have a brilliant man in my life,wonderful home and dogs, hens and alpacas that keep me moving forward . So to respond to Eddie's question , is it fighting, no,it is wanting to live and being surrounded by friends and family willing you on to walk the journey of life with them.
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I was diagnosed with breast cancer over three years ago, but don't feel that I've been "fighting" the disease or that I'm a "victim" any more than patients with, for example, heart disease, diabetes or those having had a stroke: all life-threatening with a poorer prognosis than other self-limiting conditions.
I have had everything possible done for me by the NHS in Scotland and can just hope for the best.
I have avoided self-help groups, for, although I can believe they help some patients, I think they tend to promote the feeling of victim-hood and stop one getting on with life.
To be honest, I have benefited from these self-help pressure groups who lobby on behalf of breast cancer patients for, in truth, we get a disproportionate amount of research money and expensive treatments.
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Having survived kidney cancer last year, I am now facing secondary cancer in my liver - the treatment is available on the NHS but in order to secure it I have had to take on a new address and new GP as my own PCT does not support the drug's use. The drug will lengthen my life by a few months and I expect to live for about two more years. My wife and I have received much support from colleagues, relatives, friends and neighbours; from practical help to prayers and other devotional duties - these have all helped to provide emotional pick-me-ups.
I do not feel I've been involved in hand to hand fighting, but I do feel I've had a campaign to pursue, to ensure that I get the best possible chance of surviving this disease. As time progresses, I am also having to think more and more about financing not being at work and keeping a second temporary home going until the drug is generally available on the NHS (which I expect it to be later this year).
I find myself thinking what I might do day by day for the best in order to ensure that my (disabled) wife will be able to best survive after I am gone. There is an ongoing anxiety connected with all this and the occasional feeling of overwhelming fear of what will happen in the future.
At the same time we each have to get on with our own lives. For me, I must think how to best use my remaining time, to fulfill any remaining dreams or wishes - so in some ways the "normal" routines of life have already come to an end.
My encounter with cancer has become more like a game of chess I know I will eventually lose, but yet the game has to proceed until its conclusion. Of course, in a sense we all finally lose the game. But cancer has a way of focusing the mind and rather forcing the pace.
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My local GP fobbed me off when I showed him a little mole on my calf. He said I was 'hysterical' because I knew 'a little bit' having done radiotherapy at the Royal Marsden a few years earlier.
Luckily the head of the Nuclear Medicine department, where I was working, thought differently when I went to him and said I was worried. The mole was removed two days later and 5 days after that a radical excision was done. It turned out to be a highly malignant melanoma so I was told to get my affairs in order and buy all my Christmas presents because I wouldn't be alive 4 months later if it had spread.
When faced with the possibility of only months or weeks to live, priorities become clear. Each day is a gift; by remaining positive, you and are able to get the most out of each one as a day is simply too precious to waste.
There is no price on the gift of life - it is invaluable. The love and support of family and friends is a most wonderful medicine. Together with a positive attitude it enhances the quality of each day. When it comes down to it, it is quality, and not quantity, that really counts.
Thanks to early surgery I am still alive 20 odd years later and have been able to watch my daughter grow up - she was only 6 years old at the time.
To anyone who is worried about xxx, do seek medical help immediately. If you are still concerned, get a second opinion. Early diagnosis is paramount.
Should the news be bad, try to digest it and get on with making each day the best it can possibly be. It will work wonders for you, and also for your family and friends.
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I was diagnosed with advanced colon cancer in September 2008, have had a stent put in my bowel and am currently undergoing chemotherapy.
I have an optimistic nature and an outgoing personality. As I have worked in the field of personal development for 20 years I have also had therpy and done a lot of reading and reflecting on myself over the years which i am sure is helping me now.
I have many wonderful friends and a loving supportive family which means that I have many visitors and people who bring me food and take me out all of which makes it so much easier to be positive though my diagnosis and prognosis were not good, my cancer was too advanced to be operable.
However after 6 chemo sessions my cancer blood markers and the scan look as though many of the cancer cells are dying and there is virtually no progression of the disease.
My oncologist has a positive attitude which helps enormously though I have been very disappointed by some other medical and nursing staff who are negative in their attitude and I find this
very unhelpful .
I don't know if my positive attitude has helped my blood markers but I know it helps the people I come into contact with because they have told me. This means I get plenty of company which helps me to keep positive!
I don't really believe in fighting cancer but accepting lifes vissicitudes , being grateful for what you have and looking after yourself as well as possible means you are more likely to continue enjoying life however long you have got.
Of course this also means allowing yourself to feel sad and venting emotions when necessary.
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I was diagnosed with Hodgkins Lymphoma aged 33 but was lucky enough to recieve free hypnotherapy sessions at the hospital alongside my chemotherapy. This was part of a lottery funded project (sadly no longer going) run by the Rossendale Hospice. I had never had hypnotherapy before and was a bit apprehensive about the whole thing but I believe that those sessions helped enormously with my mental state throughout treatment, as well as helping me to cope with the unpleasant side effects. Perhaps most importantly,hypnotherapy helped me to feel that I was an active participant in my treatment, not just a passive patient.
I have since trained as a hypnotherapist and am constantly amazed at the changes that people can make, both physically and emotionally using the power of their own minds. I do think that it can be unhelpful to tell people that they have to keep positive- it's a hard thing to feel all the time when faced with something as scary as cancer but I do believe that the mind can play a big part in the process of recovery.
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Like everyone here I also have had cancer and this has focussed my mind to finding out as much as I can about the disease and its treatment.
I have already made an entry on 'Suggest a story', but I will list here some of the info that I have discovered.
1. In 1952 Ernst Krebbs Jr isolated a compound called Amygdalin or B17, which he claimed killed cancer cells. When Amygdalin is processed and concentrated it is known as Laetrile. Amygdalin contains cyanide and benzaldehyde, but it is completely harmless until unlocked by an enzyme which occurs at cancer cells.
2. Amydalin occurs naturally in many foods, but because of its bitter taste it has been removed from most Western diets. Tribes that eat these foods do not get cancer, eg Hunza, Hopi, Aboriginal Eskimo.
3. In 1953 California did a clinical trial on Amygdalin and concluded that it was non toxic but did not work, because they could not release the cyanide at the cancer cell.
4. When the lab reports were made public in 1962 it was discovered that they HAD been able to release the cyanide, but that the dosages were 50 times too small to be effective.
5. In 1972 -75 Sloan-Kettering, the major private cancer centre in New York did a series of tests on Amygdalin. The official result was that it did not work, although all the tests were positive. See
www.consumerhealth.org/articles/display.cfm?ID=19990831140122
6. Laetrile was subsequently banned in the USA from sale, prescription, distribution and TESTING, even though it is non-toxic. It is banned from sale in Europe. WHY ????
7. In 1986, McGill Cancer Center in Montreal, one of the largest and most esteemed cancer treatment centers in the world, surveyed 79 oncologists to see how they would personally respond to a diagnosis of cancer. Of the 79 oncologists surveyed, 58 said that ALL chemotherapy programs were unacceptable to them and their family members due to the fact that the drugs don’t work and are toxic to one’s system.
8. The pharmaceutical industry has a huge financial stake in the cancer industry. If it was acknowledged that cancer could be treated effectively with a 'vitamin' that could be obtained from natural foods, it would be a major disaster for them.
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My name is Dr Rosy Daniel and I have now worked for 23 years as an Integrated Medicine Doctor specialising in helping people with cancer to get the very best outcomes by coping really positively with their treatments, improving their quality of life and becoming proactively involved with the promotion of their health.
I worked first as Doctor then as Medical Director for the Bristol Cancer Help Centre between 1985 and 1999 and since for Health Creation in Bath helping people to transform the crisis of illness into an opportunity to get into the best possible physical, mental and spiritual state both to 'take hold tightly' of their precious lives and to 'let go lightly' when it comes to their dying time.
There is now no doubt whatsoever that the attitude with which people approach their illness and the steps they take personaly to get through their shock and grief, rise out of depression and change their priorities to focus on what gives them the most fun, fulfilment and peace of mind positively affects both quality and quantity of their life.
There is a grat deal of hard evidence to back up this view from scientists including pioneers such as Dr Steven Greer, Prof Leslie Walker, Prof Fawzy, Dr Larry Dossey, Dr Candace Pert in the fields of Psycho-Social Oncology and Psycho-Neuro-Endocrinology (the science of the mind-body connection). There is also good evidence that changing to a healthy diet and exercising increases survival in breast cancer from the 2007 'Women's Health and Eating Study'. In fact UK oncologist Professor karol Sikora has said that the survival graph in this study for women who both changed theri diet and started to exercise at the point of diagnosis is better than any known medical cancer treatment for breast cancer!
So not only is it clear that our reaction to diagnosis of cancer can make all the difference, I beleive that it is now unethical for positive self-help apporaches not to be taught routinely within cancer services. It is therefore my avowed intent to make sure that these approaches are made available equitably to all, free of charge at the point of diagnosis throughout the United Kingdom. Furthermore, it is vital that we use all that we now know about surviving cancer to it's prevention as motivating people to change their health-defining behaviour is the key to stopping and illness which is at least 67% lifestlye related and therefore largely preventabel through the simple choices that individuals make about their life choices, food, exercise alcohol consumption, exercise and stress levels.
For a full list of references please see www.healthcreation.co.uk - research evidence
Dr Rosy Daniel
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Trophoblast, re your posting at comment 59. Please can you provide a link to your point 7 as to say that oncologists say chemo doesn't work seems far too generalised. I have only had chemo (see contribution number 3) and my tumour has shrunk markedly, albeit I accept the claim that chemo is toxic. Chemo clearly "works" in many people. I accept you are reporting the thoughts of these oncologists, however, please can you provide a reference?
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I have just read the previous article by Dr Rosy Daniel, where she says that a positive attitude and a good diet improves your chances.
My mother had cancer and was given 6 weeks to live. She survived for 2 years after that. She was a very determined woman. I don't know why determination works, but it seems to make a difference.
As to diet, your body's first line of defence is for your pancreas to emit proteolytic enzymes (tripsin, chymotripsin, etc) which digest the thick outer covering of the cancer cell, after which the white blood cells kill the rest of the cancer. These enzymes are also used by your body to digest proteins.
When you have cancer then it makes sense to reduce the proteins in your diet (red meat, eggs, dairy foods) so that there are more enzymes in your body to attack the cancer
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haltymandi
In reply, I have seen this survey mentioned several times. Here is one of the links:-
http://cancercure.ws/chemo.htm
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haltymandi
You mention in comment 61 that your cancer has shrunk. This is often quoted as proof that the treatment is working. I would be wary of taking this at face value.
Tumours consist of normal cells as well as cancer cells. The outer covering on cancer cells is 15 times thicker than normal cells.
Chemo attacks ALL rapidly dividing cells - that is the way it works. In other words it will be killing normal cells in the tumour as well as cancer cells. The question is how many of the cancer cells are being killed
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Thanks Trophoblast for that link. As I wondered, the oncologists referred to are not condemning all chemotherapy as useless, but refer to a specific one called cisplatin used for a specific cancer call non-small-cell lung cancer. In order to be complete I am reproducing your reference in part here:
In 1986, McGill Cancer Center scientists sent a questionnaire to 118 doctors who treated non-small-cell lung cancer. More than three quarters of them recruited patients and carried out trials of toxic drugs for lung cancer. They were asked to imagine that they themselves had cancer, and were asked which of six current trials they themselves would choose. Of the 79 respondents, 64 said they would not consent to be in a trial containing cisplatin, a common chemotherapy drug. Fifty-eight found all the trials unacceptable. Their reasons? The ineffectiveness of chemotherapy and its unacceptable degree of toxicity.
Famed German biostatistician Ulrich Abel, PhD, also found in a similar 1989 study that "the personal views of many oncologists seem to be in striking contrast to communications intended for the public."
Breast cancer activist Rose Kushner wrote that by 1981 "indiscriminate, automatic adjuvant chemotherapy was replacing the Halsted radical mastectomy as therapeutic overkill in the United States." Thomas Nealon, MD, Professor of Surgery at New York University School of Medicine, concluded in 1990 that "The treatment of this tumor now has slipped from too much surgery to too much adjuvant therapy."
Please note how old this work is also.
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Tabithawhatever at no 38. You have no idea what you are talking about and it's offensive. "Bring it on!" indeed.
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I was diagnosed with breast cancer a year ago and I managed to keep going through an awful year of surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. What I found most helpful was distraction, especially other people visiting or taking me out. Everyone said how positive I was, when I did not feel positive at all - I was merely surviving and trying not to be too depressing. When people told me to be positive I felt it was more so that they would not have to cope with my illness and its ramifications. If you are feeling ill with the treatment, then it is impossible to put on a cheery front. If a positive outlook had any effect, I would not have cancer to begin with, as I was not in one of the at risk groups. I know your life can be turned upside down in a moment and I find it hard to plan for the future but other people regard these opinions as depressing. I think I am just being realistic.
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TROPHOBLAST, 59. The article that you link to in point 5 discusses research done by Kanematsu Sugiura.
However, it appears to ignore an article that he published along with a number of others in 1978 which said that amygdalin doesn't work. To see the 1978 article, go to the PubMed web site and search for "sugiura k amygdalin". The search only returns one result.
Given that Suguira seems to have changed his mind in the face of further evidence, your points 1 - 6 are not supported by the current evidence.
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haltymandi
'Fifty-eight found ALL the trials unacceptable.'
How much has chemo improved in the last 20 years ? Well the National Statistics say :-
1. One in three people develop cancer in their lives.
2. One in four people die from cancer. This figure does NOT include people who have been weakened from chemo and died from ancilliary illnesses, like pneumonia.
These figures do not strike me as coming from a treatment that is working, but that treatment is making billions of dollars for the pharmeceutical companies.
Also, why bother to go to all the trouble of banning the sale of a non-toxic substance. Could it be that it is a realistic competitor for chemotherapy. Well we don't know because the TESTING of this substance is also banned.
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eighty-eight
'Orthodox medicine says that Laetrile (a purified form of amygdalin developed by Dr. Krebs) was thoroughly tested and found to be worthless. The longest and most famous Laetrile tests ever performed were run for nearly five years at Americas most prestigious cancer research center, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. At the conclusion of the trials, on June 15, 1977, they released a press statement. The press release read; "...Laetrile was found to possess neither preventative, nor tumor-regressent, nor anti-metastatic, nor curative anticancer activity."
So that is it then, right? It does not get more adamant than that, we can close the book on Laetrile. Unfortunately for the officials at Sloan-Kettering there was an unforeseen problem. When a journalist asked Dr. Kanematsu Sugiura; "Do you stick by your belief that Laetrile stops the spread of cancer"? He replied, "I stick." Those two words were a major embarrassment to the accumulated demigods on the dais. The reason being is that Dr. Kanematsu Sugiura was the preeminent cancer researcher in America, probably the world, at this time. Nobody had ever questioned Sugiura's data in over sixty years of cancer research before.'
It looks like Dr Sugiura didn't change his mind - more like it was changed for him
http://www.getipm.com/personal/cancer-racket.htm
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TROPHOBLAST, 69 and 70.
You say that testing of amygdalin is banned but look, here are 2 papers published in 2003 A and B, another one in 2005, and another in 2006. They seem to be in vitro studies so whether the results would transfer to live patients can't be guaranteed, and I'm not sure of the quality of the journals that the articles have been published in, but the research is being done. And showing that amygdalin has some effect, though not the prevention of the spread of cancer (metastases) that the article that you quote (comment 59, point 5) says that Dr Sugiura found.
As for Dr Sugiura's comments, they don't count for much if he can't produce the evidence to support them. He can believe something all that he likes, but it won't make it real. Gordon Brown told us that he had ended boom and bust, and we've all seen how well that's worked out.
Also, if that is what Dr Sugiura believed, why did he allow his name to be included as one of the authors of the 1978 paper? He was 88 and retired, so what did he have to lose by refusing to be an author? What was Big Pharma or Sloan-Kettering going to do to him?
Finally, if you're going to claim that amygdalin has benefits, you should also warn about the dangers like those reported here and here.
If any of the links don't work don't blame me, it's a BBC fault. Fortunately you can solve it by deleting the <br /> characters from the address that appears in your browser.
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I would like to add my comments as a one who lived with someone who was a cancer sufferer.
Since my partner Catriona Macmillan Urquhart died from breast cancer I have been convinced that the things we did with diet and other therapies as adjuncts to the hospital treatment prolonged her life. But more importantly it was her attitude which gave her a better quality of life.
She had an aggressive cancer and survived well for 8 years after refusing surgery. She elected to have chemotherapy and radiotherapy but went for it with a good heart. She refused to have any surgery even to place a Hickman line as she was convinced it would weaken her and take away her choices. It was choice she felt kept her going. Some said she was in denial but she saw it as her own way of doing things.
I am convinced of the power of taking control. It seems so obvious that a positive attitude enhances the quality of life. There is no proof that it lengthens life but it's hard to carry out tests on this sort of thing. Neverthe less pysho-immunology is a growing discipline and may one day provide an explanation. Meanwhile, what harm can encouragement of taking control do? If this can be done with sound sensible advice it is a positive stance.
Catriona was an example to all. The people who nursed her saw her as an angel, she radiated the spirit of survival. I am so convinced I have devoted myself to trying to pass this on to others.
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Just thought that if anyone wants to read Catriona's story you can see it on
www.thegoldencentre.org
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This is my second post on the subject I was feeling angry when I wrote my first (ever) post!
After consideration there are more points I wish to make.
I learned from my experience that fighting cancer is very closely coupled to denying the cancer exists:
My wife has died slowly some years ago of cancer leaving me with three young children. While she was ill many of her relatives and friends took the denial approach (and I would argue, it was partly a received approach often supported by the media) of “your not going to die are you, you can fight this".
In contrast as a husband and father I felt I had a duty to understand the statistical certainty that the mother of my children was going to die and that we had to plan for the future accordingly. This dichotomy was a great cause of stress.
Often Things like leaving things like letters/mementoes for loved can be ignored if you "are not going to die".
More important practical financial job/home decisions, important to brace against the future become irrelevant you are only planning on survival. Unfortunately these decisions can be vital if you do not want to leave pain and chaos to those behind.
I must admit that Hospice staffs who were eventually involved promoted the "acceptance, go with the flow" approach. This was in blissful contrast to those not "in the know" about denial.
I intuitively believe that this denial (fighting) approach is as a result of the protective traumatic dissociation caused by the trauma of knowing that you or someone close to you has cancer
Secondly but more importantly pointed out to me by my younger daughter was this- If people generally (and in my view falsely) maintain the fighting cancer is possible then they may be more likely to ignore (deny) important treatable symptoms or the return of previously treated symptoms.
If you really want to fight then fight smart not half blinded by denial. There are plenty
Of proven ways to fight cancer but they mostly drugs, radiation, and surgery.
The old adage “Plan for the worst, hope for the best and accept what you get”
Have a nice day
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Eddie/ipm writes: 'Rachel Pearce, a medical statistician who is in remission from breast cancer wrote to say...'
I have the same problems with the expression 'in remission' as with the whole battlefield terminology in relation to cancer. I had breast cancer almost 10 years ago, did the treatment and am - as far as I know - well and living life to the full. I'm not 'in remission', just feeling great and loving life.
Anyone else have problems with this one?
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Shri Mataji Nirmala Devi,the guru and founder of Sahaja yoga,says a good bit about cancer,and there is an excellent recording of a lecture Shri Mataji gave in Derby in July 1982.Amongst other things Shri Mataji mentioned "cruelty" as an element that can lie behind the development of cancer.
I would recommend a closer acquaintance with Sahaja yoga,especially following what Eddie's guest,the oncologist,said about the value of and evidence for non-medical,complementary therapies.Also Sahaja yoga is free.
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hi , I have a brain tumour and i have lived with it for the past 5years and i can honestly tell you that a positive attitude is crucial. does this mean that i am happy and positive every day -no i am not . i have found that i don't have the energy to be angry and i focus on what is important to me ,my kids. at the beginning of my treatment being told "everyone is different " used to drive me mad ,but as the years roll on I can see that this is actually the case. any treatment you receive is only a small part of what you can do to help yourself
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