From the Archive of cancercured@onelist.com

Message: 2
> Date: Thu, 27 Apr 2000 16:05:09 -0700
> From: "Charles E. O'Kins" okinsc@m...
> Subject: Throat cancer
>
> I've been with cancercured for about a year. I've found the
> advice useful, but, recently, there seems to be more heat than light.
>
> I want to tell my story because some may find it useful. Last
> June my wife was diagnosed with throat cancer; specifically,
> stage IV squamous cell carcinoma of the tonsil pillar. The
> prognosis was frightening and the cure, terrible. We had no
> insurance, having been dumped by our insurance company because of
> our age (early sixties, but too young for medicare).
>
> I began research on the net and discovered cancercured which led
> me to flaxseed oil and beta glucan, and a lot of other things I
> thought to be less promising. The theory behind flaxseed oil and
> beta glucan is that they reinforce the body's immune system,
> which is the real cancer fighter.
>
> I also received advice that traditional treatment was to be
> avoided. I believe in alternative therapies, but not at the
> exclusion of traditional, particularly when it's my wife's life
> that is threatened.
>
> My wife began taking the Budwig diet of two tablespoons of
> flaxseed oil daily (Barlean's is the best that I found) with
> eight ounces of yogurt (it may be that yogurt provided the immune
> boost). She also became more diligent about taking her vitamins,
> minerals, and supplements. To this we added three capsules of
> beta glucan (SolaRay Pure Beta Glucan, 3 mg) spread over the day,
> but not with meals. According to tests, beta glucan enhances the
> immune system, encourages blood cell growth, and greatly reduces
> radiation damage.
>
> Within two weeks she underwent surgery at Scripps Memorial
> Hospital, La Jolla, CA, having a neck resection, which involved
> the removal of the cancerous tissue and any potential lymph node
> sites where cancer cells may have migrated. Strangely, the Drs.
> downgraded the cancer from stage IV to stage II--could it have
> been the flaxseed oil and beta glucan? "Just to be safe,"
> however, they insisted on radiation therapy--6600 rads (or 66 Gy)
> over seven weeks.
>
> I argued earnestly that a stage II carcinoma did not require
> radiation. I eventually acquiesced, taking solace in the belief
> that the beta glucan would reduce radiation damage.
>
> Through all of this, my wife maintained her regimen of flaxseed
> oil, yogurt, beta glucan, 8000mg of vitamin C daily, plus a
> comprehensive set of vitamins, minerals, and supplements. The
> result was that the surgeon was impressed over my wife's rapid
> recovery from very invasive surgery, and the radiologists and
> technicians marveled at her lack of external radiation burns and
> depression from the radiation treatments; e. g., "You're the
> first person I've ever seen smiling and laughing at this stage of
> therapy." Two weeks after the end of radiation she had recovered
> to a point that most don't reach for two years. Nine months
> after surgery there is no sign of a cancer recurrence. This is
> not to say that surgery and radiation has had no effect on her
> quality of life, but she's alive and living a normal life. Her
> sense of taste is still a little strange--she rarely can taste
> sweet, for instance. Her saliva production is also minimal,
> which makes eating a bit more difficult and increases the risk of
> dental caries, but this is expected to improve over the months.
>
> To what do I attribute her unusual recovery from such a serious
> prognosis? God, the love of her family, the doctors, her
> attitude toward life, flaxseed oil, beta glucan, vitamins,
> minerals, supplements? Perhaps all of the above, which may mean
> that leaving out any one of them could be disastrous.
>
> I say that we should stop the bickering of recent days and share
> information and good will that may be helpful to others. Leave
> it to the reader to decide what he accepts and what he doubts.
>
> --Chuck