by Marcel Hernandez, ND
Whenever I welcome a new cancer patient to Pacific Naturopathic, I tell them about the four components of our adjunctive cancer care program, each of which is designed to offer support for their cancer experience.
(1) The first leg is oral supplementation. No matter what the internet tries to tell us, oral supplements are not going to cure cancer; however, they can help address nutrient deficiencies, decrease inflammation, prevent angiogenesis, stimulate the immune system, and in some cases, cause some cancer cell death (apoptosis).
(2) The second leg of the adjunctive cancer care program at Pacific Naturopathic addresses the mind/body connection. This part of the program can be the most difficult for new patients to understand and adopt, since Western medicine almost entirely addresses illness at the physical level – even though respected research has proven beyond all possibility of doubt that mental and emotional stress undermines the immune system and predisposes people to opportunistic illnesses. This stress includes, of course, the internal anxiety and stress caused by old fears regarding cancer, which can actually contribute to poor outcomes. Wwe offer an extremely effective mind/body treatment program, and we regret how few patients take advantage of this opportunity. Working at the level of heart and mind is simply not yet part of our society’s approach to dealing with cancer.
(3) The third leg of the program is nutrition. Our recommended dietary approach to adjunctive cancer care mainly involves making healthy, common-sense decisions: fewer carbs, lots of fruits and vegetables, adequate non-red-meat protein, healthy oils, eating mostly organic, and avoiding food additives of all kinds, etc. The foundation of our dietary recommendations is a modified version of the Mediterranean diet, which has long been regarded as the healthiest diet in the world. For patients with strong ethnic dietary backgrounds, we help them modify their traditional food offerings to be more in line with cancer care.
(4) The fourth leg is intravenous therapy. The heart of our IV program is intravenous vitamin C, which countless studies have shown to be therapeutically effective in treating most cancers. We also offer IVs that address the peripheral neuropathy caused by chemotherapy, and IVs that address nutrient deficiencies that commonly occur with cancer and its treatment.
Not included above are other elements essential to cancer therapy, such as a consistent exercise program, having a dedicated support community, and integrating a spiritual component into the overall treatment scenario.
To learn more about adjunctive cancer care at Pacific Naturopathic, as well as our other services, please give us a call at 650-961-1660, use the convenient Contact Form to get in touch, or follow the link to: Consultations – Pacific Naturopathic. Thank you!