Will "4life transfer factor" cure breast cancer?

Hate to be the bearer of bad tidings, but your friend is very, very mistaken and has been sold a bill of goods. Yes, the concept of “transfer factors” (substances taken from people with a strong immunity to certain conditions and given to patients with those conditions who have weak immune systems) has been studied for awhile and is still in the experimental stages--but no reputable clinical trials exist for it in the breast cancer setting. And the way they are administered is by injection or infusion. “4life Transfer Factor” is NOT one of those being studied: it’s an unregulated nutritional supplement, and G-d knows what’s really in it. Sorry, but it’s essentially "snake oil," no better than those laetrile, sheep cells, and other what-have you bulls--t substances that have given countless patients false hope and caused them to abandon proven treatments that might have given them many, many years of cancer-free living or at least some meaningful remission..

There is no “cure” yet for breast cancer, only treatments that can achieve very long-term cancer-free status (“NED,” or “no evidence of disease”), to the point where many patients live out a normal-length lifespan. You say despite your mom’s chemo she is showing “no improvement.” That’s not how breast cancer, nor its treatment, works. The cancer cells aren’t making her feel sick but they are making her ill nonetheless. The whole point is to kill the cancer cells before they do any damage. Chemo is like breaking eggs to make an omelet--there are side effects that are tough to take (especially if your loved ones are going through it). You don’t see “improvement,” only no recurrence or spread. Your mom will get better but first it’s going to be rough going for her for awhile. Those side effects are actually evidence that the cancer cells are being destroyed by the chemo and "targeted therapies." HER2-neu-positive cancers are also treated with injections of Herceptin or Perjeta, drugs that are “targeted" to affect just those tumor cells. Your mom’s condition will slowly improve after treatment is over, but it’s really scary to watch her suffer when you think you can’t do anything about it.

Ah, but you CAN. You can reassure her, be there for her, do for her, help her through the side effects and tell her to hang in there. There are things like meditation, acupuncture, yoga, aromatherapy, etc. that can help her cope with the side effects--but they have to be coordinated with the care she’s getting from her cancer doctors to make sure they’re safe for her. But don’t suggest she take some phoney-baloney over-the-counter unregulated and unproven “cure,” especially if it can interfere with her chemo and targeted therapies or, worse, she takes it instead of chemo and targeted therapy. Don’t fall for that load of bulls--t, and don’t let your mom take it. And it sounds cavalier to say this, but please be patient with her progress.

Hello Kamaraj. Sorry to hear of your mom's diagnosis. I've included a link that specifies which health situations transfer factor is effective for. Just click on "uses" and you'll get some idea of what happened in clinical trials and you can investigate further. Perhaps that can aid in your decision. Have your mother's chemotherapy cycles ended? Has she had follow-up scans that show improvement or not? These would be things that might have to be taken into consideration before making a decision. Also, if the plan was to take it in addition to standard chemotherapy, it's very important to let her oncologist know to make sure there are no contraindications between that and any treatments he/she is prescribing. I can also suggest you check out the alternative forum. There are several great ideas there for mitigating side effects of traditional treatment and some experiences from others using alternative treatments. Best wishes to you and your mother.

http://www.m.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-...

It is interesting to note all mainstream drugs now being used were once considered experimental and no studies existed in the form of reputable clinical trials showing their effectiveness. They did not become effective after trials were conducted-they were effective all along. Sort of like smoking did not suddenly become dangerous once it was proven to be dangerous. Lots of things in the alternative vein seem to work for various people, lack of trials is not the same as lacking in effectiveness and anecdotal evidence, while not the same a s clinical trials, is evidence none the less. Anecdotal evidence that smoking might be bad for us is after all what led to studies being done that proved the toxicity of tobacco.

The side effects for chemo certainly don't mean it is working as it should, they just mean you are having chemo. If side effects equaled a cure or showed that the chemo was working, my mother certainly would have been cured! Chemo itself can be deadly, leaving one susceptible to infections. Its usefulness in treating some types of BC is being questioned more and more all the time even by mainstream medicine.

I don't know anything nor have I heard anything about "4lifetransfer factor" however, since modern medicine has not come up with anything that guarantees any of us a cure, looking at alternatives (carefully) is IMO a worthwhile activity. Use caution and common sense. If you are in active treatment with conventional medicine, discuss with your doctors the possibilities of interactions (although they often do not know and will give you a kneejerk "don't do it" reply) and then decide what is and isn't worth doing.

Yes.... it’s very possible. My neighbor attributes her complete remission from cancerto transfer factors. English is her second language but here is a direct quote in her words. She talks about her sister’s recovery but not her own in as much detail, but she also had complete remission using transfer factors. Sounds like a viable alternative to me.

"4 life , transfer factors , for me it's the best , I tried everything , healthy food .supplements , nothing help , I felt tired , cancer came back , and my sister recovered from arthritis aggressive , high levels , dr. Said you will not recover , everyday you will be worst , every months more dose like a chemo ,she still at home worst worst she regained her health in 4 months .the dr. Said what did you do ? Keep doing what you are doing . She called me when she stared with the transfer factor , 3 weeks after and she said to me Lety take it , I don't know what it's that , but I'm feel strong ,I don't have my swollen legs , everything was gone . Three and s half years Until now and never returned again , I take the supplement every day since three and a half years . My life changed"

And about yourself? Are you someone who had cancer? This is your first post on this message board, so we don't know you.

I agree with Freya. Mjrem provided a third party account, so we can't even ask the person who purportedly took the substance in question.

Dtad

I am responding to Kamaragkj's question about 4life transfer factors. There is a general principle and a brand. My neighbor took the 4 life brand. I'm pretty sure you can find what you need by googling it. I also saw it on Amazon. There are plenty of verified purchaser reviews.

4 Life-Transfer-Factor-Classic -capsules

She swears by it. Good luck!

P.S. Sorry folks... not spam. This forum is for information. People can choose to do what they want with it. It’s nice to have “alternatives” which is what this thread is about. Best wishes to all of you on your healing journeys.

Mjrem, since you are new, you probably aren't aware that when we are asking for information about something new or controversial (such as the supplement you are promoting), we are actually looking for a reputable website where you found the information (such as one associated with a medical center like Mayo, Johns Hopkins etc or a research center) or something published in a peer reviewed journal. Many of us like to read the evidence for ourselves, so we can think about it critically or discuss it with our medical team. Second hand accounts, such as "my neighbor swears by it" are not really anything we can 'hang our hat on' as it is both a second hand report (we don't even know what/if the person in question actually had bc) and the 'evidence' has not been studied or reproduced using standard scientific methods as far as we can tell. There are many women who are looking for miracles, therefore, please don't make promises about something's efficacy when you are then going to refer someone to Amazon's reviewers to prove them.

What is "safe" discussion? Discussions where only those who are already in agreement can participate?

Mjrem...please read my post again. I didn't say a safe discussion. I said a safe place to have a discussion. Very different. My point was this is an alternative thread. It would be really nice if we could post on it and not get judged or guilted. Good luck to all.

dtad - thank you for your supportive comment. It was a little confusing but MmeJ was the person asking about "safe discussions." It does look a lot like "mjrem" but in fact we are different people. : )

Answer to original post.....no.

I have a partner who was diagnosed with nasopharyngeal cancer and his into chemo cysplatin and radiation treatment , would you recommend taking transfactor while on chemotherapy? Or is it safe to take this supplement whime on chemo?

what tranfer factors did you take?