When chosen carefully alternative therapies can provide a wealth of benefits in conjunction with standard treatments. While there are a number of options available, keep in mind it is always best to keep your doctor informed regarding any alternatives which you may consider utilizing. In many cases it is quite possible to use any alternative esophagus cancer treatment right along with your standard plan, but to be sure, always consult your physician before beginning any alternative therapy.

Benefits of these other modalities include ease of pain, reduction of symptoms or side effects and improved quality of life.

A few alternative esophageal cancer treatment options that have proven to be successful for many people include the following:

Music Therapy- An approach that is frequently used by professional healthcare workers to promote healing as well as improve quality of life.

Aromatherapy-This treatment utilizes fragrant substances, known as essential oils. These oils are distilled from plants and are known to improve health and mood.

Art Therapy-Frequently used to assist individuals with both emotional and physical problems by allowing them to express their emotions through creative activities.

Massage Therapy-Utilizes rubbing, manipulation and kneading of the soft tissue and muscles of the body. Studies indicate that massage therapy is capable of decreasing anxiety, stress, depression and pain while increasing alertness.

Prayer and Spirituality-Many individuals find that increasing their awareness of something greater than their individual self through religion and prayer can provide numerous benefits.

Acupuncture-This is a type of technique in which extremely thin needles of different lengths are inserted into the skin. It is used to treat a variety of disorders and conditions including cancer.

Yoga-A type of non-aerobic exercise focusing on precise posture and breathing.

Biofeedback-A treatment option that utilizes monitoring devices in order to assist individuals in consciously controlling physical processes including blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension and sweating.

Meditation-A mind and body process that focuses on concentration and reflection to help clam the mind and relax the body.

Remember, if you are considering an alternative esophagus cancer treatment, you should speak to your physician first to be sure they will compliment your existing standard treatment plan. Your physician may also be able to answer any questions you may have regarding these regimes.

Marilyn is Glenn’s partner and was responsible for most of the research that led to Glenn’s recovery. After his “all clear” endoscopy, the couple were continually asked what they did. http: esophaguscancersurvival.com esophaguscancersurvival.com is bringing together the information they found and used to restore Glenn’s health. Visit now to get the information you need.

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Researchers from Rutgers University and the US Department of Agriculture have found that a naturally occurring key compound in blueberries, pterostilbene, may be able to prevent the onset of one of the most virulent and dreaded neoplasms, colon cancer.

Colon cancer, also known as bowel cancer or colorectal cancer, is characterized by growths in the rectum, colon and appendix. Colon cancer is the second leading cause of death from cancer in the Western world and is the third most common form of cancer. Surgery is the most common treatment to remove the growths and is usually followed by chemotherapy.

How was the link between blueberries and colon cancer discovered? The Rutgers University researchers conducted a small study with eighteen rats for an eight week period. The test rats were given azoxymethane (a cancer causing agent) to induce colon cancer and were given a balanced diet, while half of the study rats were given supplemental amounts of pterostilbene. At the end of the study, it was found that the rats who were supplemented with the blueberry compound, pterostilbene, had 57 percent less pre-cancerous cells. They test subjects also showed a lesser degree of inflammation and had reduced cell division in the bowels, both considered risk factors for developing colon cancer.

Pterostilbene is a compound that is believed to exhibit anti-cancer, anti-hypercholesterolemia, anti-diabetic, anti-fungal, anti-hypertriglyceridemia properties. Pterostilbene is also thought to have the ability to fight off and reverse cognitive decline. Pterostilbene also happens to be a natural antioxidant and studies have further suggested that pterostilbene could potentially be helpful in lowering blood cholesterol.

Experts strongly suggest that the risk for colon cancer is increased by overeating, consuming high amounts of saturated fats and calories, and eating a lot of red and processed meat. To reduce this risk, leading health experts and nutritionists suggest eating at least five portions of fruits and vegetables per day to protect the body against all cancers and other diseases, and to obtain natural sources of vitamins and antioxidants. Physical exercise is also thought to decrease the risk of developing colon cancer. Making these recommended lifestyle changes is thought to decrease the risk of colon cancer by up to 70 percent.

Pterostilbene is not only found in blueberries, but can also be found in grapes, red wine, sparkleberries, lingonberries and cranberries. The researchers are suggesting putting this powerful and potential cancer-fighting compound into a pill.

The author of this article is Tim Moore, writing for Vitamins Stuff, a site that offers information on vitaminstuff.com Vitamins and Alternative Medicine.

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I have to wonder just how many women get unnecessary mammograms?
I’ve had some scares already in my 49 short years and frankly am
somewhat hesitant about believing that the high technology today
is so wonderful!

Early last week I dutifully got my annual mammogram although it
was about a month past due. Hey, I don’t like going 3 days before
Christmas, just in case it is bad news! It went surprisingly quick
and without a lot of wait in the waiting room. I noticed an
improvement there as well. They removed that huge poster about Women
and Heart Disease displaying horrible statistics. I remember thinking
last year how ironic it was. So we women, waiting to hear
the outcome of our diagnostic X-rays could figure if the cancer doesn’t
kill us, heart disease will.

Last Thursday, two days later I got a phone call about coming back
in. I had pretty much forgotten about it and was a bit surprised by
the call. I was told they wanted to get another mammogram of my
left breast. I asked why as my right one was the one previously
diagnosed with micro calcifications after which having a botched up
needle biopsy, appear to not be an issue any longer. The reason
given to me was that there was a shadow seen on the left one and
that it may just have been the way it was taken (such as
overlapping tissue or some such thing), but they wanted to be sure.

My heart started pounding and I was thinking “Oh no, I may have
cancer”. It doesn’t matter how lightly the pleasant lady on the
phone put it, I was being called BACK and that couldn’t be a
a good thing. I was told that they would take a core mammogram
of my left breast and also set up an appointment for an ultrasound
in case they determined that I needed to have that done right away
after that. No matter how much I tried to reassure myself nothing
was there because for the umpteenth time I didn’t feel any kind of
lump or anything unusual, the fear was right there not very far
from my thoughts for the next week.

When I arrived today I was told they were going to take a bilateral
of each breast and then two of the left again. I challenged the
technician because I was told I would only need the left one done.
I have learned to not just trust anyone wearing a white (or pink
for that matter) lab coat. Why should I subject myself to more
radiation and a higher medical bill that was surely going to be
given to me - mistake or not? Turns out I was right and just the
left breast was doomed to being painfully squished and flattened
this time around.

Luckily I didn’t have to wait very long for the results when the
technician called me back in. She told me that my left upper breast
was more dense than the right one when I had my mammogram, which I
am guessing was a more dense shadow and so they wanted to take a
closer look at the left one. When they did, there was nothing
suspicious there. My thinking is the density got thinned out from
the x-ray machine grabbing just that section and smashing it as
thin as possible and nothing suspicious was found. I didn’t need
an ultrasound and could call the nurse later if I wanted to have
the official report (but she had heard the radiologist reading
the films and that is what he said).

Later I decided to call and got a nurse who although was extremely
nice, was skirting my question. She was explaining how if they had
seen something I would have needed an ultrasound to explore it further,
but they did not need one. I guess she was waiting for me to say
“Well that’s great news, thanks” and hang up. But I wanted to know
more than that. I asked if my left breast then showed that it was
more dense than the one they took a year ago? She couldn’t really
answer me. She just said the left had more density than the right
and so again I asked, “So it was more dense that last year’s mammogram?”.
Her response was “It must have been”.

Well that is baloney. I have no solid proof that the radiologist
first compared this year’s mammogram to the ones done a year ago (as
a diagnostic mammogram no less). For all I know just this year’s
were viewed and since the left didn’t match the right one in density,
another one was ordered.

Don’t get me wrong. I am completely ecstatic that I don’t have
breast cancer! But I would have been happier getting a form letter
that nothing was found. Just how many other women go through
needless second mammograms on a daily basis. I’m sure some of those
turn out to be actual findings that do need to be diagnosed and treated.
But for every one that truly have something for the poor woman being
clamped down by the x-ray machine to worry about, how many more are
called back for follow up mammograms that really aren’t necessary.
But who cares right? Better to be safe than sorry, right?
While that is certainly true, it still causes me to ponder how
many women are needlessly subjected to the added gray hair,
stress, anxiety, radiation exposure and medical fees when they already
have enough to worry about with caring for their family, home, work and
who knows what else is on their plate! At least I can happily say I
don’t have to deal with all this again for another year.

Mammogram Overkill
by Diane St James
Copyright 2007

Diane St James is a full-time work at home mom who wears many hats and is involved in many things. Visit her website: dianestjames.com dianestjames.com

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President Nixon declared war on cancer on 3 December 1971 and promised the American people and the world then that victory over cancer would be achieved within five years. It was not to be. Today cancer shot up to be the number one killer in the US. “The war on war was a qualified failure” declared an author in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine.

When I think of war, what comes uppermost to my mind is Vietnam. Mighty America went to the battlefield with the most sophisticated gadgets and weapons of war. Might, terror, money and brain went into the fight to win. The Vietnamese had primitive weaponry and burrowed themselves into the ground to avoid the mighty Americans. The world knows the Vietnamese won the war!

The Star (Malaysian’s major newspaper - 19 November 2006) carried an Associated Press newsreport with this heading: “Viets wonder why Americans can’t get past war.” It said: “The American president erred in Iraq because he failed to learn a fundamental lesson of the Vietnam conflict: All the firepower in the world can’t defeat people … Vietnamese were very determined — we would not give up. That’s why we won.” The consequence was tragic. “The Americans invaded Vietnam and left. We’re the ones who had to live with the consequences.”

Perhaps fighting cancer is like the Vietnamese war? I have maintained that treating cancer based on the concept of war would never succeed! If doctors wage an unending war within the body — what do you think happens to the battleground (your body!)? Surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy etc. are advanced, mighty “fire power.” Cancer cells are just tiny enemies floating and circulating around in the blood stream that later attach themselves to certain tissues of the body. Can these awesome treatments destroy all cancerous cells yet at the same time not destroy the host i.e., you and your living systems? Are we healing the sick body or are we creating more Vietnam, Hiroshima and Iraq?

In our strategy to fight cancer, while I advise patients to seek the assistance of modern medicine at the same time beware of the damage modern medical treatment can do to the body. In short, patients should know the limits of medical science and know when to say: “Enough is enough.” At the same time, I feel that patients should seek other benefits from the traditional methods of healing. The wisdom of the Chinese and Indian cultures cannot be ignored — no matter how “educated or scientific” you think you are! They have much to offer in terms of maintaining and restoring health. Much has been said about the need to build or rebuild a strong immune system. Let our own body’s defence system destroy or fight the cancerous cells. Fight the war from within! The mighty, sophisticated weaponry of modern medicine may not be totally effective!

The problem with many of us is we like to turn a blind eye to what we don’t understand or know. We always think our ways are always the best — other ways are suspect and are of no consequence.

For more information about complementary cancer therapy visit: cacare.com cacare.com, NaturalHealingForYou.com NaturalHealingForYou.com, BookOnCancer.com BookOnCancer.com

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