Treating estrogen responsive cancer naturally
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Hi All...am going to hang out in
this thread, also. But, I'm clueless about all of this stuff!
Are there any more good websites/books to get us Newbies started?
Thanks!
Violet0 -
Welcome, Violet! I HIGHLY recommend also joining the Yahoo groups Cancercured and Breastcancerthinktank
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Does anyone see Dr. Wong in NYC....or know someone who does so that I may ask them about their experience? I am currently on Femara and I feel as though the side effects are worsening exponentially. I have until March 2014 .....but who's counting!! I just don't know if I can make it. I did speak to him on the phone but became a little scared off by the price and potential cost of the monthly herbs and teas. Gosh I hate this!! Best wishes to everyone!!
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Me! I do! Check out my long post on him under the Holsitic thread!
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joellelee......thanks so much for responding!! I have read many of your posts including the one about your visit with dr. wong and I really think we are of like mind. I would love to talk with you privately about your experience if you dont mind but have absolutely no idea how that gets arranged. I have been having a really bad summer (I am in PA too.....Philadelphia area.....so much rain! ugh!). I think between feeling like the Femara is building and building in my system and how the weather effects me I am really struggling. Insomnia, moodiness, aches in my joints, general flu-like symptoms to name but a few. Let me know if you can chat and how it's usually done?? Thanks so much to everyone .......reading everyone's stories, trials and successes is so helpful!!
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Hi Lyncerock! You can 'private message' me here and we can exchange personal info/emails!
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I'm very interested in any research Ladies.
I was 100% estrogen positive and my estrogen hormone levels prior to diagnosis were 17times higher than normal. Terrifying. I had surgery and chemo and was on tamox for 2 years.
I am seeing my doctors at the hospital soon (hopefully - waiting for referral) and I will ask to be referred to a naturopath here in UK or Europe.
I want to go alternative now. I stopped the tamox 3 weeks ago. I've been looking at the Budwig Protocol and the www.chrisbeatcancer.com website to find a diet high in organic veg and fruit or a diet that will best kill any mets lurking and stop cancer cells forming.
Please feel free to PM me if you wish suggestions to remain anonymous.
Thanks for this thread. So grateful.0 -
I quit tamoxifen after 3 weeks - too many bad side effects!
I see a D.O. who is also a naturopathic doc. She has me on several supplements that she says will work as well as tamoxifen. Here's the list of the things I take:
Curcumin (Life Extension Super Bio curcumin) - 400 mg
DIM (Nature's Way DIM Plus) - 200 mg
Molybdenum - 500 mcg
Iodine (I Throid Iodine) - 6.25 mg
Calcium d Glucarate (Thorne CDG) - 500 mg
Fish Oil -3000 mg
Through my own research I've also added some other things:
Melatonin 3mg
Grape seed extract - 250 mg (Now Foods)
CoQ10 - 100 mg (Nutrigold CoQ10 Gold)
Green tea extract - 400 mg (NOW Foods)
Maybe I'm nuts to take all this??? My oncologist doesn't know yet that I'm off the tamoxifen. It was certainly cheaper just to take 1 tamoxifen! But I feel so much better now!0 -
klanders - I consulted with a dietician from an integrative cancer center and he has me on many of the same supplements plus Vitamin D3 - which my primary already had me taking. I decided not to go for rads or Tamoxifen and felt I couldn't just not do anything, so I have cleaned up my eating and and have included the supplements and have my fingers crossed
Wish you the best with the supplements.0 -
ww3354 - I do vitamin D also. I forgot to list it as I just take it once a week in a 50,000 dose. My vitamin D level has gone from 13 to 81 in 5 months. I'm trying really hard, too, to eat better (found out I'm allergic to gluten, eggs and dairy), exercise more and get more sleep. But my old habits are hard to break.
Glad to hear I'm not alone in this anti-tamoxifen journey.0 -
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Congrats CCFW! I'm at a year and a half and I feel the same way. Part of it seems like yesterday and the other a million years ago. I'm hoping the ratio leans towards the million years ago side as time goes by. :-)0 -
congrats CCFW!! I am 2.5 years out since I began my journey & am just now starting to feel most like my original self......I stopped the tamoxifen 2 months ago after being on meds for about 15 months. My joint pain is mostly gone. I guess the bit of joint discomfort is coming from just the normal aging process. I also am sleeping sooooo much better & have a few minor hot flashes per day instead of about 30...stay well & enjoy life! :-)0 -
I have not checked in in awhile, but wanted to share good news with you all. I stopped taking tamoxifen and/or aromatase inhibitors in October 2012. My estrogen levels went from below 50 to:
90 in March 2013
241 in May 2013
76 in July 2013
<50 in November 2013 !!!
My Naturopathic Oncologist has been tweaking my supplements to naturally reduce my estrogen levels and we have finally found the sweet spot! The list of supplements I take is:
Osteo K
NAC
Curamed
Glycine
Basic Detox (multi vitamin)
CoQ10
B Complex
Chitosan
Vit D3
Fruit Anthocyanins
2 brazil nuts/day
white button mushrooms ~ 8oz/week
ground flaxseed
My Vit D level is up to 75 taking 8000 IU/day for the past 6 months. It had fluctuated up and down prior to that on lesser doses.
In spite of my low estrogen level, I feel pretty darned fantastic again. It took a good 6 months off the Rx to start to really feel like myself again, but about May I felt like a soothing balm was flowing over me and I have gotten better and better. I feel stronger and the best part, I don't feel crazy anymore, my sense of humor and quick wit has returned. I got my joy and sass back. I figured I'd made myself crazy with worry and anxiety, but it was the Rx. For proof I'd think that not being on it would cause me huge anxiety, but I am calm again. My sleep isn't perfect, sometimes I'm up in the middle of the night, but when I do sleep, I really do sleep. I dream again and feel zonked out. I am sharp again and thankful and grateful. My surgeon and my oncologist are both aware I have stopped the Rx and have not fired me as a patient. I know that is the only thing they have to offer me and are on board with me working with my Naturopath. BTW, her name is Dr. Heather Paulson and her office website is AZNaturalHealth.com. There is some great info on it under "health Tips" - click the cancer prevention box and see what pops up. She does video chats if anyone would like to contact her and is not in the area. I know several women who seem to have no problems taking either Tamoxifen or the aromatase inhibitors and wish that were me, things would be a lot simpler, but I also know a couple who have many difficulties and take them anyway. I tried for 2 years and when I started to seriously consider suicide, I decided a change needed to be made because that is not me at all. I hope this helps some of you and good luck and God bless all of my sisters.0 -
That's wonderful Phx! Congrats---0 -
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Deb, what meds are you taking for chemo after effects, and what effects are you dealing with?
In my experience, most of the bad effects fade by themselves, and the best thing you can really do to help the process is eat well and get exercise.
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DebDylan, my nutritionist says drinking just plain water cleanses the liver. I make sure to drink some a little while after dinner, before bed (not so much then!), first thing in the morning, and any time I realize I haven't eaten in several hours. This is new to me and you'd be surprised how "difficult" it is to remember that mornings don't start with sleepwalking to the fridge for juice and then pills! I'm hoping this atones for the arimidex (which reduces my chance of recurrence by about 50% and is therefore a nobrainer) and anything else that my liver has to process, and will keep it healthy, healthy, healthy. I'm trying to think in terms of short (couple of hours) fasts where I just drink water. Good for the waistline too (my onc says the best thing any of us ER+ ladies can do is reduce that estrogen producing spare tire).
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Brookside, because we live in a warm climate, we drink water with all our meals usually. If the weather is cold, I may switch to decaf green tea, but even then I drink at least a quart of water as well.
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Someone said on another thread that estrogen levels fluctuate all the time so there is no benefit to testing the levels. I don't think anyone really knows if the aromase inhibitors are working for an individual - statistics show they help prevent a recurrence though, according to studies done, but not for everyone since people do get recurrences after taking them.
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No. We can only do our best with foods, exercise, etc. and hope there is no recurrence.
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Deb, I am on letrozole (femara), and I have no intention of stopping. I am all for limiting my medicine intake, if it is reasonable. I personally do not think it is a good idea for me to skip the AI.
How bad is the neuropathy that you are dealing with? From what I can gather, the meds are not usually that effective and the neuropathy will either heal itself or it won't. Even if it does, it can take a long time and be a 2 steps forward, 1 back sort of deal.
It really is important to drink water, especially when you are in the middle of chemo. You need to flush the stuff out of your system.
How/what are you doing with exercise?
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what if you are strongly PR positive as well?
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I'm not at home so I don't have my hormone levels close by to share but here's my short story. I was ER and PR positive (like 99%). 2 months before my cancer was discovered I had a hysterectomy but I kept my ovaries.
I tried tamoxifen and had horrible side effects so quit after 2 weeks and saw a naturopath who recommended a bunch of supplements. I was nervous about how my oncologist would react but I saw her four months after I quit the meds and she was ok with my decision. The amazing part for me is that they tested my hormone levels and they were all super low - as in post menopausal low which really surprised all of us. And I feel great - no hot flashes, no moodiness, etc.... So we think what I'm doing is working for me but there are never any guarantees. I've also changed my diet and I'm trying to exercise more. It is definitely more expensive to do it this way. I'm spending over $100 a month for supplements instead of taking a $10/month pill. But it's worth it for me to avoid the tamoxifen side effects.
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there's a great exercise routine on mercola: said to "strengthen your core" ( whatever that is): face down on toes & forarms, hold for increasing number of seconds every day. seems easy as he said, but isn't. It isn't. seems to work.
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Lily, good question. I have tried to find out more about hormone levels and the different hormones involved in keeping us humming. Most of what I have found has been either vague or confusing. However, as far as I can gather, progesterone is mostly (entirely?) made in the ovaries. So I am guessing that may have been an additional reason why my doc was all for yanking them. I will try yo remember to ask next time.
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I was diagnosed with DCIS/LCIS (ER+ 80% and PR+ 15%), had a LX back in December (margins not clear), so I opted for a UMX, which was just two weeks ago. I am now cancer free, thank God (no rads or chemo). But Tamoxifen will be recommended and the thought of ingesting this awful drug really scares me. Right before my LX, I had an endometrial biopsy, because the lining had thickened... the diagnosis was benign endrometrial cells. I understand everyone is different, my SIL had no ill side effects, while I know others who had a difficult time. I have two MO consults scheduled this month and I am not going to make any decisions on it until I've done further research.
Claire
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