In the past few years, a number of women have turned to green vegetables in an effort to attempt to lower their risk of breast cancer. With the disease affecting as many as one in eight American women, it is only natural that women look to natural remedies in an attempt to improve their odds in the fight against this all-too-prevalent kind of cancer.

Increasingly, though, researchers are looking to another green food in an effort to cut breast cancer risk—green tea. While black tea and chamomile tea have long been thought to soothe nerves and combat depression, it is green tea which is making headlines in the world of cancer research.

A number of animal and laboratory studies have shown that green tea can be highly effective in fighting tumors in the mammary tissues. But only recently has the scientific community been able to address the effect of green tea on breast cancer in human beings.

A Case in Point

One significant study indicated that green tea extract prevents breast cancer cells from producing a chemical that leads to tumors. University of Southern California researcher Anna H. Wu and her team noted the dietary and lifestyle choices of more than 500 women with breast cancer and nearly 600 women without cancer in Los Angeles.

The women were of Asian descent and ranged in age from 25 to 74. The researchers found that the healthy women were far more likely to consume green tea. And those breast cancer patients who did drink green tea were likely to consume less of it than the healthy women were. In fact, drinking less than six tablespoons of green tea a day appeared to cut a woman’s risk for breast cancer by as much as 30 percent.

Unfortunately, women who consume a great deal of black tea do not appear to be protected from the onset of breast cancer. Since black tea is more popular in Western nations than green tea, such news can be disappointing. But the fact that green tea’s popularity is gaining strength in the West means that Western women could enjoy the same breast cancer protection that green tea drinkers in the Far East have enjoyed for years.

Green Tea and Breast Cancer Recurrence

But what about women who have already experienced breast cancer? Is it possible for them to reduce their chances of a recurrence by downing cups of green tea?

As you might expect, scientific researchers have been asking the same questions. For instance, a Japanese research team addressed those issues in their article, “Regular Consumption of Green Tea and the Risk of Breast Cancer Recurrence: Follow-up Study from the Hospital-based Epidemiologic Research Program at Aichi Cancer Center (HERPACC), Japan.”

As the Asian researchers noted, various studies indicate that green tea can inhibit the development and growth of tumors. Given that fact, they thought it helpful to examine the link between regular green tea consumption and the risk of a recurrence of breast cancer.

The researchers studied 1160 new surgical cases of female breast cancers between June of 1990 and August of 1998. About 12 percent, or 133 of the subjects, appeared to experience a cancer recurrence. But those women who consumed three or more cups of green tea each day were less likely to see their breast cancer make a comeback.

The reduced rate of recurrence was most likely among those women with stage 1 and stage 2 breast cancer. However, the link was not apparent for those women with more advanced stages of the cancer.

Cautiously Optimistic

The researchers cautioned that these results need to be interpreted carefully. However, they do suggest that breast cancer patients who drink green tea daily may be able to prevent their cancer from returning—especially if their cancer was diagnosed in the early stages. Therefore, the research team has reason to be cautiously optimistic about the cancer-fighting capabilities of green tea.

A Closer Look at Green Tea

In order to fully understand the potential of green tea as a cancer prevention method, it is first necessary to examine the composition of the beverage. There are a number of compounds that make up green tea, including polyphenols and flavonoids, caffeine, carbohydrates, tannins, fluoride, and aluminum.

As far as cancer prevention is concerned, the most critical substance is the polyphenols—chemicals which act as antioxidants. These substances block cell replication enzymes and therefore prevent the growth of cancer in the process.

In a number of studies, researchers gave rats with breast tumors green tea to consume. These rats were then compared with rats which drank water alone. Interestingly enough, the rats which had been drinking green tea saw their tumor size reduced considerably. In addition, the studies indicated that new tumors were less likely to develop in rats which drank green tea.

How Much is Enough?

Still, you might be wondering how much green tea you would need to consume in order to significantly reduce your risk of developing breast cancer. Generally, doctors say that you need to consume at least three to four cups of green tea each day—without additives such as milk or sugar—in order to see an impact.

Does decaffeinated green tea offer the same health benefits? Actually, that depends upon the manner in which the caffeine has been removed from the tea. If a solvent has been used to decaffeinate the tea, it will contain reduced levels of EGCG, lessening its effectiveness as a cancer prevention tool. You might also consider taking your green tea in capsule form, although there is little hard evidence to indicate that the capsules are as effective as the beverage in cutting cancer risk.

A Final Note

A woman who has experienced breast cancer has no guarantees that her cancer will never reappear. Even if she begins drinking green tea, she might still undergo a recurrence. However, the available evidence suggests that her risk of facing a second bout of breast cancer decreases significantly when she becomes a green tea drinker.

Jon M. Stout is the Chairman of the Golden Moon Tea Company. Golden Moon Tea carefully selects the finest rare and orthodox teas, which are processed slowly and handcrafted with extreme care. At their website, you can learn more about their current

Tags: breast cancer, cancer patient, cancer prevention, cancer risk

Related posts

• More Evidence That Green Tea Reduces Prostate Cancer Risk (0)
• Could Green Tea Provide a Cure for Cancer? (0)
• Breast Cancer Therapy - Avoids Stres And Multiplies Consumption Of Vegetable (0)
• Breast Cancer Prevention and The American Cancer Industry (0)
• Yoga for Prevention of Breast Cancer (0)

Tags: breast cancer, cancer patient, cancer prevention, cancer risk

Anybody who has seen “Peanuts,” the world’s best comic strip because its characters act like human beings, will recall the episode when one of the girls asks Lucy why she hates Charlie Brown so much.

“Because,” says Lucy.

“Oh, I see,” says the other girl. “I thought you didn’t have a reason.”

As one who survived prostate cancer incurred back in the 80s, I can say that it was because of a simple habit that I’m alive today. It was because I followed the habit which had been suggested to me by a younger brother. He went to his own urologist and told me that I should arrange an annual checkup from a urologist because (there’s that word again!) it would denote whether I had a problem in my prostate. A test that only takes a couple of minutes, he said, will show whether you have it or not.

My brother, being the direct, no-nonsense no pussy-footing around type, said bluntly: “I know this sounds awful and lots of men don’t go to urologists because of it, but the doctor sticks his finger up your butt to test you for prostate cancer. He can feel if there are any nodules or abnormal hardness there. It takes less than a minute at the most, though it is a little uncomfortable. You’ll get used to it. It only happens once a year.”

Well, he was right. I did get used to the finger probe, which is called a Digital Rectal Exam (DRE) and is, of course, used by urologists worldwide. So every year, when it came time for my visit, I checked into my urologist’s office, made the usual friendly greetings and did what he asked me to do. That was dropping my pants, bending over the examination table, and letting him do his thing. One great advantage of this procedure, and obviously the most important, is when the doctor said after just a moment of rumination: “Nope. There’s nothing there. See you next year.”

Somewhere during my years of visitation, a new detection system came into existence. It was called the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) Test and consisted of a simple blood test – a sample of blood taken from your arm – to determine if there’s anything sinister in your prostate. Dr. William Catalona, a former urologist for Barnes Jewish Christian Hospital in St. Louis, developed it. A pioneer and tireless physician involved in prostate cancer surgery and research, Dr. Catalona has since left BJC and is now affiliated with Northwestern University in Chicago, where he continues his work on one of the deadliest of male afflictions.

Well, needless to say, the worst happened to me one day when I made my annual checkup. “It” means that the doctor detected an abnormality and wanted me to return for a more detailed examination. That naturally bothered me because (that word!) I’d been through so many routine checkups over the years, that I never expected anything to happen. That’s human nature.

So I came back for a biopsy, which was held in the doctor’s office. That helped because at least I didn’t feel like I was going to be zapped with a microwave or some other medical instrument. I was somewhat apprehensive of whether the biopsy would hurt, but it didn’t. I lay on my side on an examination table while the biopsy expert did his thing. He told me, I remember, that somewhere along the line I’d hear “a popping sound” as he probed, but that it wouldn’t last long. It didn’t and it didn’t hurt. I can’t recall how long it took, but it wasn’t forever and the aide was a really nice man.

I went home that day, still apprehensive because I didn’t know what the result would be. Those kind of lags in hearing whether your going to get good news or bad news is one of the most irritating and gloomy of all treatments you have to undergo whether in a doctor’s office or in a hospital. For me, it turned out to be bad because (again!) the doctor told me it was prostate cancer and he ordered me admitted to the hospital, which was Barnes at the time.

If you’ve undergone surgery before, you already know the procedure: the admission to surgery, a few professional activities as the nurses or surgical aids prepare you for the operating room, the anesthetic which suddenly puts you to sleep. You wake up hours later in the recovery room, the whole process a miracle of modern medicine.

Then you go home but you’re still equipped with some accouterments that the doctor wants you to keep until you’re well. As an “expert” in prostate cancer surgery, I can attest to anybody that the worst of them is having to wear a catheter tube running from deep inside your penis to a plastic bag that you must carry around with you whenever you make a move from living room, to bathroom, to computer room. When you’re sitting in an easy chair watching the news on TV and somebody walks in, you’re immediately apprehensive that he or she is going to step on that bag. “Watch out for my bag!” you’ll shout, to the usual consternation of your spouse, relative, or friend who have no intention of hurting you.

You wear the catheter apparatus for a week, then return to the doctor’s office to have it removed, and here’s where the funny part comes in – yes, there are funny parts to almost every surgical episode, either with the doctors and nurses, visitors, or just yourself. It happened with me when a nurse came in, told me to take my trousers off and sit on the examination table. That I did. There I was, naked from the waist down and a female nurse ready to take out the catheter. I was a little embarrassed but any kind of follow-up procedure of both sexes after surgery is common in hospitals or doctors offices.

So what happened? I lay back on the table, as I was told, and waited for her to begin removing the catheter, which, of course, is a very long, skinny, flexible tube from my bladder through my penis and into a plastic bag. I had the idea that I’d be patient with whatever the nurse did, don’t say anything and do what I was told to do.

Then, as I lay there, to my great surprise, and I mean surprise!, the nurse simply walked over to where I was (I couldn’t see her because my eyes were fixed on the ceiling) and jerked the catheter tubing out of my penis. Yes, jerked is the word. She never said a word, never gave me any instructions, just jerk and poof, and the catheter was gone, like magic. And painless too, which no doubt is the reason it is done so quickly – like pulling a thorn out of your arm after a bee stings you.

The upshot of all this is that I’ll recommend that any man over 50 years of age should pick up his hometown phone book and look for a urologist, or call his local hospital for their help in finding one, a common service among hospitals. Call that doctor and set up an appointment for a PSA and DRE. After he finds you free of any sign of cancer in your prostate, be thankful and don’t worry. You’re on the right track in surviving prostate cancer, in yourself at least.

Because, as Lucy would say to Charlie Brown, “Do it, you dumbhead!”

James Culp is a prostate cancer survivor and runs a free newsletter tracking the latest developments in disease of the prostate. His newsletter can be subscribed to at prostaide.org prostaide.org

Tags: prostate cancer

Related posts

• Your Quick Guide To Facts About Prostate Cancer (0)
• Your Guide To Prostate Cancer And Natural Treatment (0)
• You Do What It Takes To Keep In Shape, But What Do You Do To Keep Your Prostate In Shape! (0)
• Worried About Prostate Cancer? - Nurse’s Report (0)
• Worried About Getting Prostate Cancer -Think Living Foods (0)

Tags: prostate cancer

Most people think that if you are diagnosed with cancer, it is dismal, hopeless and reason for utter despair. Not true in the least. I contend that a shift in perspective is the primary tool that is needed in order to fight and beat an acquired cancer - meaning, one that you weren’t born with. You just have to understand what you are up against, and then fight like it stole something from you, because that is what it is trying to do. You must become a warrior!

If you are a spiritual person, which I am, think of the awesome power of God, and the complexities of his creations. Humans are very complex beings, and yet we are quite simple as well. Our systems seem quite complicated, but we should never forget that they were designed so that “even a caveman can handle them!” (I love those Geico Insurance advertisements, and almost expect a pink jacketed, mango salsa eating yuppie caveman to knock on my door in disgust for this disparaging statement.) At any rate, it’s the truth. We were designed to operate on some very basic principles, with some very basic foods, needs and actions, and more importantly, everything was provided for us to maintain good health, even in ancient times. We can’t improve on God’s perfection.

So we have to take a logical, non-emotional look at how to approach a return to our perfect state of health. The reasonable way to do that is to reduce the complexity of what we ingest though diet, lungs, pores, and emotional input. In other words, if we go back to the natural input of food and drinks, natural substances we breathe and put on our bodies, and the minimal intake of spiritual and emotional garbage, we return to our original, created state. That state, then should return us to our original, though evolved physical state of optimal health.

How do we accomplish this state in a world of chemicals, confusion, spiritual assaults and processed, unnatural, over-engineered food? It is not an easy task, but it is one we must work hard to accomplish if we are to stay free of disease, especially one as fast growing as cancer. So how do we do this practically? The answer is, with a shift in thinking, and a lot of commitment to changing most habits that people, at least US Americans have accumulated. The information and resources are out there. We must find them, and we can do that only if we mean to, as with anything else we want to do.

When fighting cancer, it is our job to find the most natural state of being and utilize those habits that support only that natural state. We must also find a calm state because holistically speaking, cancer is a disease of massive mineral deficiencies, and stress depletes minerals from a body in droves, like pouring water down a drain. So we must do all of these things in unison in order to return to the most natural state as intended by the Creator. In this manner, your body, a perfect machine, will repair itself and fix the deficiencies, and thus disease(s).

In order to carry out the physical portions of this fight, you must know first that you have control of your body, and not that cancer has control of you. Once you solidify that mindset, and you KNOW that you are the boss, then you can beat cancer into submission! This is not a passive fight in which you wait for others to cure you, it is proactive and hostile. This attitude will get all the other elements like diet, emotional input (who you allow in your healing circle) spiritual input, atmospheric input completely in line for you to win your fight against this foe. And that is how you must see it if you are to win. Cancer needs a real serious beat-down!

Toni Colley-Lee is an Atlanta writer, whose father discovered he had cancer at age 70. With her as researcher, he changed from a standard US diet, including fast food, to an holistic lifestyle which sent fully metastacized prostate cancer into remission in 7 months. He lived till age 88. Her book “ATTACK, FIGHT, KILL, AND SERIOUSLY BEAT DOWN CANCER NOW!” can be found at her website,

Tags: healing, prostate cancer

Related posts

• Prostate Health for Men (0)
• Prostate Cancer: Prevention and Lifestyle Changes (0)
• Prostate Cancer - A Nautural Cure Without Medication (0)
• Prostate and Colon Cancer: Secrets to Healing and Understanding (0)
• Practical Spirituality–Surviving Prostrate Cancer (0)

Tags: healing, prostate cancer

If you’re a man, you’re also a potential prostate cancer sufferer. This dreaded disease is one of the most common cancers for men who are 50 years of age and older.

What are some signs of possible prostate cancer? Here is a list of 9 symptoms:

1. You have to run to the bathroom to urinate a lot more frequently than you did in the past. This is especially true at night.

2. There is unusual discomfort and pain while urinating. A burning sensation may be present as well.

3. After urinating, dribbling occurs.

4. You have trouble completely voiding your bladder.

5. It’s hard to start and stop urinating.

6. The flow of urine is not steady, but weak and often interrupted.

7. Impotence or impaired function may occur.

8. Blood may be present in urine or semen.

9. There may be back pain and pain in nearby areas.

Prostate cancer develops very slowly, so you might not experience symptoms until the disease is in an advanced state.

There are other diseases that also have these accompanying symptoms, so be sure to see a doctor for a checkup and for medical advice.

Prostate cancer can be fatal, so why not do all you can do to try to protect yourself? Why not use all the available health weapons out there — such as the following suggestions?

1. Eating the right foods can help you prevent or fight prostate cancer.

Be sure to eat a lot of different types of fresh fruits and vegetables each day.

Some foods are more powerful than others in preventing the growth of cancer.

For example, including fish in your diet is one of the healthiest things you can do. Here’s why: fish oils tend to decrease the risks of being attacked by prostate cancer. Studies show that among cultures where the population often eats fish, there is less prostate cancer.

Keep in mind that soybean products are especially healthful. Two soybean products are soya milk and tofu.

Include a lot of tomato products in your anti-cancer diet as well. Be sure to take advantage of the lowly tomato’s cancer-fighting properties by eating lots of fresh tomatoes and tomato sauces. Tomatoes contain a lot of lycopene. That’s one reason why tomatoes are the king of fruits and vegetables when it comes to helping prevent prostate cancer.

Eat whole grain bread and cereals and avoid food choices made of white flour.

Eat foods rich in calcium. This is especially important for men who suffer from advanced prostate cancer.

2. Certain foods harm your health, so avoid them as much as possible.

Fatty foods and processed sugars are especially dangerous to your health.

Eating too much red meat is harmful to your health as well.

3. Take vitamins and mineral supplements.

One of the most powerful supplements in protecting from cancer is selenium, so include it too.

Also take natural Vitamin E that for protection.

Even though lycopene is found in tomatoes, be sure to take it as a supplement as well. Research reveals encouraging news for men who undergone prostate cancer surgery. Lycopene seems to help prostate surgery patients experience less pain and may even help them to live longer.

4. Try to maintain your ideal weight instead of letting yourself become obese, so exercise regularly.

Prostate cancer is a life-threatening disease, so do all you can to protect your health.

Learn how to protect yourself from

Tags: prostate cancer, selenium

Related posts

• What Is Prostatitis And Is It One Of The Most Common Conditions That Affects The Prostate Gland? (0)
• Understanding What The Prostate Gland Is Could Help Your Fight Against Prostate Cancer (0)
• The Big News About Herbal Treatment For Prostate Cancer (0)
• Prostate Cancer Preventers (0)
• Prostate Cancer Information (0)

Tags: prostate cancer, selenium