Miracle “Cures”

If you enter “cancer cures that work” into Google – it will pull more than 48 million results. But as we all know, the number of Google hits does not necessarily give credibility to a topic.

While some cancers are successfully cured, many others have poor long-term survival rates. When you are a patient with cancer, sometimes you are willing to try anything to reach that elusive cure. So how do you sort out the real treatments from the snake oils?

The truth is, it’s not easy. Your doctor is going to be a good source of information on the different medical treatments available for your type of cancer.

But what if you want to use other therapies, along with your conventional treatment? Research suggests that up to 70% of patients with cancer have used at least one complementary therapy as part of their cancer treatment.

If you are going to try complementary medicine, it is crucial that you work with a qualified health professional, with training in the natural health field. There are many natural products that can support your health and nutrition, during cancer. There are studies that show that certain supplemental nutrients can improve quality of life, help to maintain weight, increase survival times or are protective during chemotherapy. But none of these offer a cure. You have to be very cautious and careful when dealing with someone who is offering you a cure with basic nutrition.

When considering complementary therapies, here are some questions patients should ask their health care professional:

• What benefits can be expected from this therapy?
• What are the risks associated with this therapy?
• Do the known benefits outweigh the risks?
• What side effects can be expected?
• Will the therapy interfere with conventional treatment?
• Will the therapy be covered by health insurance?

If you do try complementary therapies, it is important that you let your doctor(s) know what treatments you are on. While most vitamins are safe during chemotherapy, there are exceptions to this, and many herbal products do have significant side effects.

Kent MacLeod.