Tag: chemotherapy

Prostate Cancer and Mushrooms | NutritionFacts.org

What can reishi mushrooms, shiitake mushroom extracts, and whole, powdered white mushrooms do for cancer patients?

“A regular intake of mushrooms can make us healthier, fitter, and happier, and help us live longer,” but what is the evidence for all that? “Mushrooms are widely cited for their medicinal qualities, yet very few human intervention studies have been done using contemporary guidelines.”

There is a compound called lentinan, extracted from shiitake mushrooms. To get about an ounce, you have to distill around 400 pounds of shiitakes, about 2,000 cups of mushrooms. Researchers injected the compound into cancer patients to see what happens. The pooled response from a dozen small clinical trials found that the objective response rate was significantly improved when lentinan was added to chemotherapy regimens for lung cancer. “Objective response rate” means, for example, tumor shrinkage, but what we really care about is survival and quality of life. Does it actually make cancer patients live any longer or any better? Well, those in the lentinan group suffered less chemo-related toxicity to their gut and bone marrow, so that alone might be reason enough to use it. But what about improving survival?

I was excited to see that lentinan may significantly improve survival rates for a type of leukemia. Indeed, researchers found that adding lentinan to the standards of care increased average survival, reduced cachexia (cancer-associated muscle wasting), and improved cage-side health. Wait, what? This was improved survival for brown Norwegian rats, so that the so-called clinical beneﬁt only applies if you’re a rat or a veterinarian.

A compilation of 17 actual human clinical studies did find improvements in one-year survival in advanced cancer patients but no significant difference in the likelihood of living out to two years. Even the compilations of studies that purport that lentinan offers a significant advantage in terms of survival are just talking about statistical significance. As you can see below and at 2:15 in my video White Button Mushrooms for Prostate Cancer, it’s hard to even tell these survival curves apart.

Lentinan improved survival by an average of 25 days. Now, 25 days is 25 days, but we “should evaluate assertions made by companies about the miraculous properties of medicinal mushrooms very critically.”

Lentinan has to be injected intravenously. What about mushroom extract supplements you can just take yourself? Researchers have noted that shiitake mushroom extract is available online for the treatment of prostate cancer for approximately $300 a month, so it’s got to be good, right? Men who regularly eat mushrooms do seem to be at lower risk for getting prostate cancer—and apparently not just because they eat less meat or consume more fruits and vegetables in general. So, why not give a shiitake mushroom extract a try? Because it doesn’t work. On its own, it is “ineffective in the treatment of clinical prostate cancer.” Researchers wrote that “the results demonstrate that claims for CAM [complementary and alternative medicine], particularly for herbal and food supplement remedies, can be easily and quickly tested.” Put something to the test? What a concept! Maybe it should be required before individuals spend large amounts of money on unproven treatments, or, in this case, a disproven treatment.

What about God’s mushroom (also known as the mushroom of life) or reishi mushrooms? “Conclusions: No signiﬁcant anticancer effects were observed”—not even a single partial response. Are we overthinking it? Plain white button mushroom extracts can kill off prostate cancer cells, at least in a petri dish, but so could the fancy God’s mushroom, but that didn’t end up working in people. You don’t know if plain white button mushrooms work on real people until you put them to the test.

What I like about this study is that the researchers didn’t use a proprietary extract. They just used regular whole mushrooms, dried and powdered, the equivalent of a half cup to a cup and a half of fresh white button mushrooms a day, in other words, a totally doable amount. The researchers gave them to men with “biochemically recurrent prostate cancer”—the men had already gotten a prostatectomy or radiation in an attempt to cut or burn out all the cancer, but it returned and started growing, as evidenced by a rise in PSA levels, an indicator of prostate cancer progression.

Of the 26 patients who had gotten the button mushroom powder, 4 appeared to respond, meaning they got a drop in PSA levels by more than 50% after starting the mushrooms, as you can see here and at 4:31 in my video.

In the next graphic, below and at 4:22, you can see where the four men who responded started out in the months leading up to starting the mushrooms. Patient 2 (“Pt 2”) was my favorite. He had an exponential increase in PSA levels for a year, then he started some plain white mushrooms, and boom! His PSA level dropped to zero and stayed down. A similar response was seen with Patient 1. Patient 4 had a partial response, before his cancer took off again, and Patient 3 appeared to have a delayed partial response.

Now, in the majority of cases, PSA levels continued to rise, not dipping at all. But even if there is only a 1-in-18 chance you’ll be like Patients 1 and 2, seen below and at 5:12, you may get a prolonged, complete response that continues.

We aren’t talking about weighing the risks of some toxic chemotherapy for the small chance of benefit, but just eating some inexpensive, easy, tasty plain white mushrooms every day. Yes, the study didn’t have a control group, so it may have just been a coincidence, but rising PSAs in post-prostatectomy patients are almost always indicators of cancer progression. And, what’s the downside of adding white button mushrooms to your diet?

In these two patients, their PSA levels became undetectable, suggesting that the cancer disappeared altogether. They had already gone through surgery, had gotten their primary tumor removed, along with their entire prostate, and had already gone through radiation to try to clean up any cancer that remained, and yet the cancer appeared to be surging back—until, that is, they started a little plain mushroom powder.

Doctor’s Note

If you missed the previous blog, check out Medicinal Mushrooms for Cancer Survival.

Also check out Friday Favorites: Mushrooms for Prostate Cancer and Cancer Survival.

For more on mushrooms, see Breast Cancer vs. Mushrooms and Is It Safe to Eat Raw Mushrooms?.

For more videos on prostate cancer, check the related posts below.

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM

Source link

November 27, 2025
Cancer Survival and Medicinal Mushrooms | NutritionFacts.org

Did the five randomized controlled trials of reishi mushrooms in cancer patients show benefits in terms of tumor response rate, survival time, or quality of life?

Can mushrooms be medicinal? Mushroom-based products make up a sizable chunk of the $50 billion supplement market. “This proﬁtable trade provides a powerful incentive for companies to test the credulity of their customers and unsupported assertions have come to deﬁne the medical mushroom business.” For example, companies marketing herbal medicines “exploit references to studies on mice in their promotion of mushroom capsules and throat sprays for treating all kinds of ailments”—but we aren’t mice.

It wouldn’t be surprising if mushrooms had some potent properties. After all, fungi are where we’ve gotten a number of drugs, not the least of which is penicillin, as well as the cholesterol-lowering drug lovastatin and the powerful immunosuppressant drug cyclosporin. Still don’t think a little mushroom can have pharmacological effects? Don’t forget they can produce some of our most powerful poisons, too, like the toxic Carolina false morel that looks rather toadstooly, while others, as you can see here and at 1:15 in my video Medicinal Mushrooms for Cancer Survival, have a more angelic look like the destroying angel—that is its actual name—and as little as a single teaspoon can cause a lingering, painful death.

We should have respect for the pharmacological potential of mushrooms, but what can they do that’s good for us? Well, consuming shiitake mushrooms each day improves human immunity. Giving people just one or two dried shiitake mushrooms a day (about the weight-equivalent of five to ten fresh ones) for four weeks resulted in an increase in proliferation of gamma-delta T lymphocytes and doubled the proliferation of natural killer cells. Gamma-delta T cells act as a ﬁrst line of immunological defense, and, even better, natural killer cells kill cancer. Shiitake mushrooms did all this while lowering markers of systemic inflammation.

Oyster mushroom extracts don’t seem to work as well, but what we care about is whether mushrooms can actually affect cancer outcomes. Shiitakes have yet to show a cancer survival benefit, but what about reishi mushrooms, which have been used as a cancer treatment throughout Asia for centuries?

What does the science say about reishi mushrooms for cancer treatment? A meta-analysis of five randomized controlled trials showed that patients who had been given reishi mushroom supplements along with chemotherapy and radiation were more likely to respond favorably, compared to chemotherapy/radiotherapy on its own. Although adding a reishi mushroom extract improved tumor response rates, “the data failed to demonstrate a signiﬁcant effect on tumour shrinkage when it was used alone,” without chemo and radiation. So, they aren’t recommended as a single treatment, but rather an adjunct treatment for patients with advanced cancer.

“Response rate” just means the tumor shrinks. Do reishi mushrooms actually improve survival or quality of life? We don’t have convincing data suggesting reishi mushroom products improve survival, but those randomized to reishi were found to have “a relatively better quality of life after treatment than those in the control group.” That’s a win as far as I’m concerned.

What about other mushrooms? Although whole shiitake mushrooms haven’t been put to the test for cancer yet, researchers have said that lentinan, a compound extracted from shiitakes, “completely inhibits” the growth of a certain kind of sarcoma in mice. But, in actuality, it only worked in one strain of mice and failed in nine others. So, are we more like the 90% of mouse strains in which it didn’t work? We need human trials—and we finally got them. There are data on nearly 10,000 cancer patients who have been treated with the shiitake mushroom extract injected right into their veins. What did the researchers find? We’ll find out next.

Doctor’s Note

Stay tuned for White Button Mushrooms for Prostate Cancer.

Also check out Friday Favorites: Mushrooms for Prostate Cancer and Cancer Survival.

For more on mushrooms, see Breast Cancer vs. Mushrooms and Is It Safe to Eat Raw Mushrooms?.

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM

Source link

November 25, 2025
Dietary Components That May Cause Cancer to Metastasize | NutritionFacts.org

Palmitic acid, a saturated fat concentrated in meat and dairy, can boost the metastatic potential of cancer cells through the fat receptor CD36.

The leading cause of death in cancer patients is metastasis formation. That’s how most people die of cancer—not from the primary tumor, but the cancer spreading through the body. “It is estimated that metastasis is responsible for ~90% of cancer deaths,” and little progress has been made in stopping the spread, despite our modern medical armamentarium. In fact, we can sometimes make matters worse. In an editorial entitled “Therapy-Induced Metastasis,” its authors “provide evidence that all the common therapies, including radiotherapy, chemotherapy, fine needle biopsies, surgical procedures and anaesthesia, have the potential to contribute to tumour progression.” You can imagine how cutting around a tumor and severing blood vessels might lead to the “migration of residual tumour cells,” but why chemotherapy? How might chemo exacerbate metastases? “Despite reducing the size of primary tumors, chemotherapy changes the tumor microenvironment”—its surrounding tissues—“resulting in an increased escape of cancer cells into the blood stream.” Sometimes, chemo, surgery, and radiation are entirely justified, but, again, other times, these treatments can make matters worse. If only we had a way to treat the cause of the cancer’s spreading.

The development of antimetastatic therapies has been hampered by the fact that the cells that initiate metastasis remain unidentified. Then, a landmark study was published: “Targeting Metastasis-Initiating Cells Through the Fatty Acid Receptor CD36.” Researchers found a subpopulation of human cancer cells “unique in their ability to initiate metastasis”; they all express high levels of a fat receptor known as CD36, dubbed “the fat controller.” It turns out that palmitic acid or a high-fat diet specifically boosts the metastatic potential of these cancer cells. Where is palmitic acid found? Although it was originally discovered in palm oil, palmitic acid is most concentrated in meat and dairy. “Emerging evidence shows that palmitic acid (PA), a common fatty acid in the human diet, serves as a signaling molecule regulating the progression and development of many diseases at the molecular level.” It is the saturated fat that is recognized by CD36 receptors on cancer cells, and we know it is to blame, because if the CD36 receptor is blocked, so are metastases.

The study was of a human cancer, but it was a human cancer implanted into mice. However, clinically (meaning in cancer patients themselves), the presence of these CD36-studded metastasis-initiating cells does indeed correlate with a poor prognosis. CD36 appears to drive the progression of brain tumors, for example. As seen in the survival curves shown below and at 3:21 in my video What Causes Cancer to Metastasize?, those with tumors with less CD36 expression lived significantly longer. It is the same with breast cancer mortality: “In this study, we correlated the mortality of breast cancer patients to tumor CD36 expression levels.” That isn’t a surprise, since “CD36 plays a critical role in proliferation, migration and…growth of…breast cancer cells.” If we inhibit CD36, we can inhibit “the migration and invasion of the breast cancer cells.”

Below and at 3:46 in my video, you can see breast cancer cell migration and invasion, before and after CD36 inhibition. (The top lines with circles are before CD36 inhibition, and the bottom lines with squares are after.)

This isn’t only in “human melanoma- and breast cancer–derived tumours” either. Now we suspect that “CD36 expression drives ovarian cancer progression and metastasis,” too, since we can inhibit ovarian cancer cell invasion and migration, as well as block both lymph node and blood-borne metastasis, by blocking CD36. We also see the same kind of effect with prostate cancer; suppress the uptake of fat by prostate cancer cells and suppress the tumor. This was all studied with receptor-blocking drugs and antibodies in a laboratory setting, though. If these “metastasis-initiating cancer cells particularly rely on dietary lipids [fat] to promote metastasis,” the spread of cancer, why not just block the dietary fat in the first place?

“Lipid metabolism fuels cancer’s spread.” Cancer cells love fat and cholesterol. The reason is that so much energy is stored in fat. “Hence, CD36+ metastatic cells might take advantage of this feature to obtain the high amount of energy that is likely to be required for them to anchor and survive at sites distant from the primary tumour”—to set up shop throughout the body.

“The time when glucose [sugar] was considered as the major, if not only, fuel to support cancer cell proliferation is over.” There appears to be “a fatter way to metastasize.” No wonder high-fat diets (HFD) may “play a crucial role in increasing the risk of different cancer types, and a number of clinical studies have linked HFD with several advanced cancers.”

If dietary fat may be “greasing the wheels of the cancer machine,” might there be “speciﬁc dietary regimens” we could use to starve cancers of dietary fat? You don’t know until you put it to the test, which we’ll look at next.

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM

Source link

July 8, 2025
9/9: CBS News 24/7 Episode 2

9/9: CBS News 24/7 Episode 2 – CBS News

Watch CBS News

Princess Kate says she completed chemotherapy treatment for cancer; Apple unveils iPhone 16.

Be the first to know

Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.

Source link

September 9, 2024
Lose Weight by Eating More in the Morning | NutritionFacts.org

A calorie is not a calorie. It isn’t only what you eat, but when you eat.

Mice are nocturnal creatures. They eat during the night and sleep during the day. However, if you only feed mice during the day, they gain more weight than if they were fed a similar amount of calories at night. Same food and about the same amount of food, but different weight outcomes, as you can see in the graph below and at 0:18 in my video Eat More Calories in the Morning to Lose Weight, suggesting that eating at the “wrong” time may lead to disproportionate weight gain. In humans, the wrong time would presumably mean eating at night.

Recommendations for weight management often include advice to limit nighttime food consumption, but this was largely anecdotal until it was first studied experimentally in 2013. Researchers instructed a group of young men not to eat after 7:00 pm for two weeks. Compared to a control period during which they continued their regular habits, they ended up about two pounds lighter after the night-eating restriction. This is not surprising, given that dietary records show the study participants inadvertently ate fewer calories during that time. To see if timing has metabolic effects beyond just foreclosing eating opportunities, you’d have to force people to eat the same amount of the same food, but at different times of the day. The U.S. Army stepped forward to carry out just such an investigation.

In their first set of experiments, Army researchers had people eat a single meal a day either as breakfast or dinner. The results clearly showed the breakfast group lost more weight, as you can see in the graph below and at 1:35 in my video. When study participants ate only once a day at dinner, their weight didn’t change much, but when they ate once a day at breakfast, they lost about two pounds a week.

Similar to the night-eating restriction study, this is to be expected, given that people tend to be hungrier in the evening. Think about it. If you went nine hours without eating during the day, you’d be famished, but people go nine hours without eating overnight all the time and don’t wake up ravenous. There is a natural circadian rhythm to hunger that peaks around 8:00 pm and drops to its lowest level around 8:00 am, as you can see in the graph below and at 2:09 in my video. That may be why breakfast is typically the smallest meal of the day.

The circadian rhythm of our appetite isn’t just behavioral, but biological, too. It’s not just that we’re hungrier in the evening because we’ve been running around all day. If you stayed up all night and slept all day, you’d still be hungriest when you woke up that evening. To untangle the factors, scientists used what’s called a “forced desynchrony” protocol. Study participants stayed in a room without windows in constant, unchanging, dim light and slept in staggered 20-hour cycles to totally scramble them up. This went on for more than a week, so the subjects ended up eating and sleeping at different times throughout all phases of the day. Then, the researchers could see if cyclical phenomena are truly based on internal clocks or just a consequence of what you happen to be doing at the time.

For instance, there is a daily swing in our core body temperature, blood pressure, hormone production, digestion, immune activity, and almost everything else, but let’s use temperature as an example. As you can see in the graph below and at 3:21 in my video, our body temperature usually bottoms out around 4:00 am, dropping from 98.6°F (37°C) down to more like 97.6°F (36.4°C). Is this just because our body cools down as we sleep? No. By keeping people awake and busy for 24 hours straight, it can be shown experimentally that it happens at about the same time no matter what. It’s part of our circadian rhythm, just like our appetite. It makes sense, then, if you are only eating one meal per day and want to lose weight, you’d want to eat in the morning when your hunger hormones are at their lowest level.

Sounds reasonable, but it starts to get weird.

The Army scientists repeated the experiment, but this time, they had the participants eat exactly 2,000 calories either as breakfast or as dinner, taking appetite out of the picture. The subjects weren’t allowed to exercise either. Same number of calories, so the same change in weight, right? No. As you can see in the graph below and at 4:18 in my video, the breakfast-only group still lost about two pounds a week compared to the dinner-only group. Two pounds of weight loss eating the same number of calories. That’s why this concept of chronobiology, meal timing—when to eat—is so important.

Isn’t that wild? Two pounds of weight loss a week eating the same number of calories! That was a pretty extreme study, though. What about just shifting a greater percentage of calories to earlier in the day? That’s the subject of my next video: Breakfast Like a King, Lunch Like a Prince, Dinner Like a Pauper. First, let’s take a break from chronobiology to look at the Benefits of Garlic for Fighting Cancer and the Common Cold. Then, we’ll resume checking other videos in the related posts below.

If you missed the first three videos in this extended series, also check out related posts below.

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM

Source link

April 11, 2024
3/22: CBS News Weekender

3/22: CBS News Weekender – CBS News

Watch CBS News

Lana Zak reports on Kate Middleton’s cancer diagnosis, a deadly attack on a concert hall in Moscow, and a preview of the top NCAA Women’s Basketball games.

Be the first to know

Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.

Source link

March 22, 2024
What To Know About Chemotherapy And Cannabis
Even the hesitant becomes curious about medical marijuana when dealing with chemotherapy. Studies have shown medical marijuana in the right dose can help relieve some of the side effects of chemotherapy. Nearly 25% of cancer patients receive chemotherapy during a given year. And the exhaustion is real and could last months even when the treatments are over.

Data demonstrates you can take cannabis with chemo and radiation, but it is wise to have a conversation with your oncologists as you consider blending it in to your regimen. Cancer is a life-threatening illness which knows no boundaries. The medical community is now open and researching on how to use the benefits of medical marijuana for healing parts of cancer. Here is what to know about chemotherapy and cannabis.

Photo by Thirdman via Pexels

During chemotherapy, cancer patients experience a range of side effects. If you’re on a strong chemo regimen, usually the day after is when you’ll experience the worst symptoms and symptoms range from dizziness to nausea and vomiting. Patients need chemotherapy because it is a powerful treatment that kills the body’s growing cancerous cells, however, these side effects often make it a gruesome experience.

Aside from the fact that cannabis helps to mitigate some of the symptoms associated with chemotherapy, it also plays a supportive role in helping the body fight back cancerous cell growth when they get into chemotherapy and radiation.

One of the earliest side effects of chemotherapy is feeling nauseous, which is a disrupting factor for cancer patients. Many patients undergoing chemo complain of feeling excessively tired, headaches, high body temperatures and so on. By incorporating cannabis with chemotherapy you can significantly reduce the bulk of these side effects.

Like most medications, medical marijuana works over a period of tine with the right dosage. Taking it once doesn’t always provide the greatest benefits immediately.

A key benefit is it helps with a patients appetite, which is important for body maintenance. Patients complain after chemo they couldn’t eat or feel hungry. With cannabis, often the appetite returns with an increased craving for food and an urge to snack more.

Another side effect of chemotherapy is exhaustion. Coupled with feeling overwhelmed by the process they end up mental and physical challenged to move forward. A sativa “wakes” the body up and helps through the difficult times. CBD and THC posess properties that can keep patients alert and active throughout the chemo treatment process.

RELATED: CBD And Chemo Combo Increases Cancer Survival Rates

Another side effect can be insomnia, despite the exhaustion, they struggle to have a decent sleep. Since chemo patients are given steroids beforehand to help with the side effects, the majority also experience insomnia. Combining cannabis can help patients feel well-rested throughout the day, thus making it easier to sleep.

RELATED: Here’s How Marijuana Can Kick Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea To The Curb
Photo by Jamie Grill/Getty Images

You may feel exhausted when combining cannabis or any other medication with chemotherapy. It can be an overwhelming experience if it isn’t done right. Here are some pointers to help you derive the best from using cannabis:

Always start low and go slow: don’t take so much cannabis at the same time.

Always consult your doctor or oncologist if you feel like you need to take more or lessen your dosage

Avoid using too many products simultaneously: sometimes, you may not get the best out of cannabis because you are taking too much medicine.

Cannabis is very safe when used with a doctor’s guidance.

Photo by Caiaimage/Sam Edwards/Getty Images

Patients are often concerned about the “method of application” of cannabis when they are in chemo: they wonder if they should smoke it, chew it or consume it via other means. The easiest is through a tincture or oil. Under the tongue and it acts quickly without having to put stress or the lungs and it doesn’t have to be swallowed if there is nausea. If there is no nausea a gummy or maybe a cannabis beverage can be absorbed, but it may take time. The last way to consume is either through a vape or smoking. It is important to discuss this method with your health professional to avoid aggravation of the respiratory system.
Amy Hansen

Source link
March 22, 2024
Keto Diet to Effectively Fight Cancer? | NutritionFacts.org

What does the science say about the clinical use of ketogenic diets for epilepsy and cancer?

Blood sugar, also known as blood glucose, is the universal go-to fuel for the cells throughout our bodies. Our brain burns through a quarter pound of sugar a day because “glucose is the preferred metabolic fuel.” We can break down proteins and make glucose from scratch, but most comes from our diet in the form of sugars and starches. If we stop eating carbohydrates (or stop eating altogether), most of our cells switch over to burning fat. Fat has difficulty getting through the blood-brain barrier, though, and our brain has a constant, massive need for fuel. Just that one organ accounts for up to half of our energy needs. Without it, the lights go out…permanently.

To make that much sugar from scratch, our body would need to break down about half a pound of protein a day. That means we’d cannibalize ourselves to death within two weeks, but people can fast for months. What’s going on? The answer to the puzzle was discovered in 1967. Harvard researchers famously stuck catheters into the brains of obese subjects who had been fasting for more than a month and discovered that ketones had replaced glucose as the preferred fuel for the brain. Our liver can turn fat into ketones, which can then breach the blood-brain barrier and sustain our brain if we aren’t getting enough carbohydrates. Switching fuels has such an effect on brain activity that it has been used to treat epilepsy since antiquity.

In fact, the prescription of fasting for the treatment of epileptic seizures dates back to Hippocrates. In the Bible, even Jesus seems to have concurred. To this day, it’s unclear why switching from blood sugar to ketones as a primary fuel source has such a dampening effect on brain overactivity. How long can one fast? To prolong the fasting therapy, in 1921, a distinguished physician scientist at the Mayo Clinic suggested trying what he called “ketogenic diets,” high-fat diets designed to be so deficient in carbohydrates that they could effectively mimic the fasting state. “Remarkable improvement” was noted the first time it was put to the test, efficacy that was later confirmed in randomized, controlled trials. Ketogenic diets started to fall out of favor in 1938 with the discovery of the anti-seizure drug that would become known as Dilantin, but they’re still being used today as a third- or fourth-line treatment for drug-refractory epilepsy in children.

Oddly, the success of ketogenic diets against pediatric epilepsy seems to get conflated by “keto diet” proponents into suggesting a ketogenic diet is beneficial for everyone. Know what else sometimes works for intractable epilepsy? Brain surgery, but I don’t hear people clamoring to get their skulls sawed open. Since when do medical therapies translate into healthy lifestyle choices? Scrambling brain activity with electroshock therapy can be helpful in some cases of major depression, so should we get out the electrodes? Ketogenic diets are also being tested to see if they can slow the growth of certain brain tumors. Even if they work, you know what else can help slow cancer growth? Chemotherapy. So why go keto when you can just go chemo?

Promoters of ketogenic diets for cancer are paid by so-called ketone technology companies that offer to send you salted caramel bone broth powder for a hundred bucks a pound or companies that market ketogenic meals and report “extraordinary” anecdotal responses in some cancer patients. But more concrete evidence is simply lacking, and even the theoretical underpinnings may be questionable. A common refrain is that “cancer feeds on sugar.” But all cells feed on sugar. Advocating ketogenic diets for cancer is like saying Hitler breathed air so we should boycott oxygen.

Cancer can feed on ketones, too. Ketones have been found to fuel human breast cancer growth and drive metastases in an experimental model, more than doubling tumor growth. Some have even speculated that this may be why breast cancer often metastasizes to the liver, the main site of ketone production. As you can see below and at 4:59 in my video Is Keto an Effective Cancer-Fighting Diet?, if you drip ketones directly onto breast cancer cells in a petri dish, the genes that get turned on and off make for much more aggressive cancer, associated with significantly lower five-year survival in breast cancer patients, as you can see in the following graph and at 5:05 in my video. Researchers are even considering designing ketone-blocking drugs to prevent further cancer growth by halting ketone production.

Let’s also think about what eating a ketogenic diet might entail. High animal fat intake may increase the mortality risk among breast cancer survivors and potentially play a role in the development of breast cancer in the first place through oxidative stress, hormone disruption, or inflammation. This applies to men, too. “A strong association” has been found “between saturated fat intake and prostate cancer progression and survival.” Those in the top third of consumption of these kinds of fat-rich animal foods appeared to triple their risk of dying from prostate cancer. This isn’t necessarily fat in general either. No difference has been found in breast cancer death rates based on total fat intake. However saturated fat intake specifically may negatively impact breast cancer survival, increasing the risk of dying from it by 50 percent. There’s a reason the official American Cancer Society and American Society of Clinical Oncology Breast Cancer Survivorship Care Guideline recommend a dietary pattern for breast cancer patients that’s essentially the opposite of a ketogenic diet. It calls for a diet that’s “high in vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and legumes [beans, split peas, chickpeas, and lentils]; low in saturated fats; and limited in alcohol consumption.”

“To date, not a single clinical study has shown a measurable benefit from a ketogenic diet in any human cancer.” There are currently at least a dozen trials underway, however, and the hope is that at least some cancer types will respond. Still, even then, that wouldn’t serve as a basis for recommending ketogenic diets for the general population any more than recommending everyone get radiation, surgery, and chemo just for kicks.

“Keto” has been the most-searched keyword on NutritionFacts.org for months, and I didn’t have much specific to offer…until now. Check out my other videos on the topic in related videos below.

For an overview of my cancer work, watch How Not to Die from Cancer.

Michael Greger M.D. FACLM

Source link

November 23, 2023
Pancreatic Cancer And Chemo And CBD

Out of all types of cancers that exist, which type do you think is one of the hardest to beat? On a worldwide scale, pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest forms of cancer in regards to overall survival rates. Now research has given a small ray of hope for pancreatic cancer and chemo and CBD.

According to the American Cancer Society, amongst the combination of all stages of pancreatic cancer, the survival rate for one-year is 20%, and the survival rate for five years is under seven percent. Although certain cancer treatments are commonly used such as chemotherapy and radiation, in a recent study, it has been found that the combination of chemotherapy and cannabidiol (CBD) treatments have led to significant pancreatic cancer survival rates.

Research Findings on Cannabidiol (CBD) and Chemotherapy Cancer Treatments

In the recent study mentioned above, mice that were diagnosed with pancreatic cancer received CBD administration alongside chemotherapy treatments. As a result of this combination, it was discovered that the mice with CBD and chemotherapy treatments survived close to three times longer than the mice that were only treated with chemotherapy.

RELATED: Marijuana As Treatment For Prostate Cancer: Here’s What Doctors Know

Photo by sudok1/Getty Images

In general, this study’s findings provide more valid reasoning for human testing. Although this study hasn’t been conducted on humans yet, the released results demonstrate the need to further investigate and study cannabis compounds, especially CBD.

Grim Pancreatic Cancer Survival Rates

Overall, pancreatic cancer is the twelfth most common cancer on a worldwide scale. Also, the highest occurrence of this type of cancer is in developed countries. Unfortunately, the overall survival rate for pancreatic cancer is quite grim. In particular, Marco Falasca, a lead researcher at Queen Mary University of London stated the following about the life expectancy of pancreatic cancer:

“The life expectancy for pancreatic cancer patients has barely changed in the last 40 years because there are very few, and mostly only palliative care treatments available. Given the five-year survival rate for people with pancreatic cancer is less than seven percent, the discovery of new treatments and therapeutic strategies is urgently needed.”

With this being said, due to the recent results derived from the mice study, there’s a strong need to further examine CBD and its potential in treating different types of cancer, especially pancreatic.

Cannabidiol’s Medicinal and Anti-cancer Properties

When it comes to CBD, thus far, it has been found that it’s an extremely medically beneficial cannabinoid, and it contains both anti-tumoral and neuroprotective properties, which can help those who have been diagnosed with cancer. However, CBD has also demonstrated its anti-nausea and antiemetic (anti-vomiting) properties. These properties have proven to be very effective for those undergoing chemotherapy and other cancer-related therapies. Additionally, Cannabidiol has been found to improve the side effects caused by chemotherapy, especially vomiting, nausea, and pain.

If human testing is conducted on the combined topic of pancreatic cancer, CBD, and chemotherapy treatments, this would build upon past animal research findings. Specifically, one study discovered CBD’s possible anti-cancer properties, and another study found CBD to be a potential anti-cancer drug.

Photo by Caiaimage/Sam Edwards/Getty Images

Legality of CBD in the United States and the United Kingdom

Moreover, due to the cannabis legality differences between America and the United Kingdom, it’s likely that the conduction of human trials with a focus on CBD would progress faster in the UK than in the U.S. The reason for this is because currently, the cannabis plant remains a Schedule I illegal substance in the U.S., and CBD is a cannabinoid found in the cannabis plant. Whereas, in the UK, CBD has been approved for usage and research purposes.

RELATED: Cannabis Flavonoid Could Provide Breakthrough Treatment Against Pancreatic Cancer

Therefore, researchers and scientists based in England can legally test this cannabinoid in human clinical trials, according to Dr. Falasca. Nonetheless, the U.S. is progressing slowly but surely, especially because the U.S. FDA recently approved of a CBD-based drug called Epidiolex for the treatment of epilepsy. This specific drug approval was a significant move since it’s the first U.S. FDA-approved drug that contains a cannabinoid derived from cannabis.

Overall, since pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest forms of cancer, it would be in the general public’s best interest to have access to a natural form of medicine for cancer treatments such as CBD rather than just chemotherapy and radiation. Due to the noteworthy results that were released from the mice study discussed above, it’s likely that Cannabidiol will be further studied and investigated moving forward, especially for cancer treatment purposes.

Nicole Skrobin

Source link

November 15, 2023
Maryland Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin says he’s not running for open US Senate seat

Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin, a congressman from the suburbs of the nation’s capital, has announced he will not run for the U.S. Senate seat that is opening with the retirement of Sen. Ben Cardin

Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md., speaks to reporters about Hunter Biden Tuesday, June 20, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington. President Joe Biden’s son Hunter will plead guilty to federal tax offenses and avoid a full prosecution on a separate gun charge in a deal with the Justice Department that likely spares him time behind bars. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

The Associated Press

ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin, a congressman from the suburbs of the nation’s capital, announced Friday he will not run for the U.S. Senate seat that is opening with the retirement of Sen. Ben Cardin.

Raskin, the top Democrat on the House Oversight and Reform Committee who is in his fourth-term, had been weighing a run for the rarely open Senate seat, but said in a statement Friday evening that he would instead seek reelection in the House.

Raskin announced in April that he had completed chemotherapy for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma with a 90% prognosis of no relapse and that his cancer was in remission. It was the second time Raskin had been diagnosed with cancer. He previously battled colorectal cancer in 2010.

Raskin, 60, played a leading role in recent years as House Democrats twice impeached then-President Donald Trump and investigated Trump’s role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. He was the lead impeachment manager when the House impeached Trump one week after the attack.

So far, Rep. David Trone and Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrooks have announced candidacies for the Democratic primary for the Senate seat. Montgomery County council member Will Jawando also is running.

Source link

July 7, 2023
Toby Keith’s shows at his Oklahoma music venue mark return to stage after revealing cancer diagnosis

Country music star Toby Keith was back on stage over the Fourth of July weekend with his first shows since revealing last summer that he had been fighting stomach cancer

Toby Keith performs at his Hollywood Corners restaurant and music venue in Norman, Okla., on June 30, 2023. Keith was back on stage over the Fourth of July weekend with his first shows since revealing last summer that he had been fighting stomach cancer. (Suzanne Cordeiro via AP)

The Associated Press

NORMAN, Okla. — Country music star Toby Keith was back on stage over the Fourth of July weekend with his first shows since revealing last summer that he had been fighting stomach cancer.

Hundreds attended the native Oklahoman’s pop-up concerts Friday and Saturday night in Norman, where he lives, The Oklahoman reports. He performed at Hollywood Corners, a 1920s roadhouse and service station that he bought and converted into a deli, bar and music venue.

Norman resident Joanna Hall, who attended Friday’s show, told the newspaper that Keith put on a great performance and was “very thankful for everybody who showed up.”

“He seemed a little taken aback that that many people were there,” Hall said. “He was like, ‘This was supposed to be a secret. … This was a bigger secret than what I intended.’ ”

Keith’s publicist confirmed that Keith and his Easy Money Band played for about two and a half hours both nights.

Last June, Keith said that he had been battling stomach cancer since fall 2021 and had already spent the past six months undergoing chemotherapy, radiation and surgery. Keith, who turns 62 this weekend, told The Oklahoman last month that he was continuing with chemotherapy, that his tumor had shrunk by a third and that his blood tests have looked good.

Source link

July 5, 2023
U.S. cancer drug shortage a cause for alarm for chemo patients

U.S. cancer drug shortage a cause for alarm for chemo patients – CBS News

Watch CBS News

Due to worldwide supply chain issues, several cancer medications are facing serious shortages in the U.S., leading to concerns that some patients may not receive the treatment they need in time. Norah O’Donnell reports.

Be the first to know

Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.

Source link

June 28, 2023
Vaughn drives in 3, González homers to help White Sox beat Angels 7-3

Andrew Vaughn drove in three runs, Romy González homered and the Chicago White Sox beat the Los Angeles Angels 7-3

ByANDREW SELIGMAN AP Sports Writer

Chicago White Sox’s Eloy Jimenez is greeted at the dugout by Andrew Vaughn after Jimenez’s RBI sacrifice fly off Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Tyler Anderson during the first inning of a baseball game Tuesday, May 30, 2023, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)

The Associated Press

CHICAGO — Andrew Vaughn drove in three runs, Romy González homered and the Chicago White Sox beat the Los Angeles Angels 7-3 on Tuesday night.

The White Sox looked as if they were headed toward their fourth straight loss after Los Angeles raced to a 3-1 lead against Lucas Giolito (4-4). But the White Sox turned it around in a big way, scoring five runs in the fourth against Tyler Anderson (2-1).

Vaughn smacked a three-run double to put Chicago on top. González drove him in with a double, stole third and scored when Urshela allowed catcher Chad Wallach’s throw to wind up in left field, stretching it to 6-3.

González made it a four-run game with a solo homer in the sixth against Chase Silseth.

Luis Robert Jr. and Jake Burger each had three hits, and the White Sox came out on top despite a shaky start by Giolito. The right-hander lasted five innings, giving up three runs and four hits.

Taylor Ward hit his second career leadoff homer — both coming against Giolito in Chicago. The other was on April 29, 2022.

Shohei Ohtani started a two-run fourth with a 435-foot drive to center for his 13th home run, and Gio Urshela added a sacrifice fly to make it a two-run game.

Anderson allowed six runs and six hits over four innings for Los Angeles.

MARISNICK TRADED

The White Sox traded OF Jake Marisnick to the Detroit Tigers for cash considerations. Marisnick was 0 for 2 in nine games for Chicago.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Angels: 3B Anthony Rendon (strained left groin) continues to field grounders and hit in the cage, though there was no real update on his timeline. Manager Phil Nevin said he is “progressing more and more” and will likely start throwing soon.

White Sox: Manager Pedro Grifol said the White Sox are taking a “day by day” approach with closer Liam Hendriks’ workload after his return from cancer. “This is just a recovery that few have done,” Grifol said. Hendriks pitched the eighth inning Monday in his first big league appearance since he was diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin lymphoma. He underwent immunotherapy and chemotherapy, and announced in April that he was in remission.

UP NEXT

White Sox RHP Lance Lynn (4-5, 5.83 ERA) looks to win his fourth straight start Wednesday, while the Angels go with RHP Jaime Barría (1-2, 1.55). Lynn has a 1.89 ERA in his past three outings. Barría is set to make his second start and 13th appearance.

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Source link

May 30, 2023
Care and Comfort During Stage III or IV Breast Cancer Treatment
“Advanced breast cancer doesn’t have to be a journey taken alone,” says Sony Sherpa, MD, a holistic doctor in Sacramento, CA. “Thankfully, you have vast support options and resources available to you.”

Your Doctor and Medical Team

Many cancer centers have a system of support in place that includes your doctor and other health care professionals. Keep in mind that they can’t help if you don’t share what’s going on. To get the support you need, be open with your questions and concerns.

“Sometimes patients don’t ask questions because they don’t want to bother their doctor or nurse, or they don’t think their questions are that important,”says Rebecca Crane-Okada, PhD, director of Cancer Navigation & Willow Sage Wellness Programs at the Margie Petersen Breast Center at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA. “But your doctor is really the first place to start.”

If your doctor or medical team doesn’t seem to listen to you or respect your questions, or you’re not confident they have enough experience with advanced breast cancer, look for a new team.
Social Workers and Counselors

“Social workers, psychologists, marriage and family therapists, or licensed professional counselors help with grief and loss, coping and adjustment, and family communication,” says Crane-Okada. They may also have techniques to help you with symptoms like insomnia.

They may also help with practical things like housing, transportation, insurance, and financial aid questions. They may connect you with other resources and services, such as:

Financial help

Where and how to get a wig if you’d like one

Help with problems that come up at work

Insurance issues

Transportation to medical appointments

Ask your doctor or cancer center for a referral. “Many cancer centers and hospitals now provide oncology social workers and counselors who can help you cope with the psychological, physical, and emotional impact of a cancer diagnosis,” Sherpa says.
Spiritual Support

Spiritual leaders and faith-based communities can offer comfort and support. They may help with practical things to make your daily life easier, like chores, meals, and transportation. They may also make you feel less alone and more supported. “A chaplain may be available to help with spiritual or religious concerns or questions,” says Crane-Okada.
Friends and Family

Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for help. Friends and family often want to help, but they’re not always sure what you need or what to offer. Try to be specific about what things they can do that will make your life easier and better.

For example, ask family and friends if they can drive you to appointments, watch your kids, help with groceries, or to simply be a shoulder to lean on.

Support Groups and Communities

Consider joining a support group, which may be led by an oncology social worker. They’re a great way to connect with other people going through a similar experience. They can also help you feel less alone, find valuable information, and learn new ways to cope. You can find support groups in local hospitals, cancer centers, community organizations, and online. Try the Komen Metastatic Breast Cancer group or search Facebook for metastatic breast cancer groups.
Online Resources

The amount and types of support you can get from nonprofit organizations and online resources is vast, Crane-Okada says. It ranges from toll-free helplines to information about your diagnosis and treatment to one-on-one counseling services you can get through teletherapy.

Try these online resources:

American Cancer Society

National Cancer Institute

Patient Advocate Foundation

National Coalition of Cancer Survivorship

Cancer Support Community

Cancer Care

Cancer Net
Palliative Care

You can have palliative care no matter your age, type, or stage of cancer. It’s for anyone who wants to feel better, manage symptoms, and get support with non-medical needs.

Talk to your doctor about your palliative care options before you start treatment. Palliative care often works best when you start it right after you’re diagnosed and before treatment. If you have palliative care during treatment, you may have less severe symptoms and a better quality of life.

Self-Care

There’s a lot you can do to support yourself as you manage advanced breast cancer.

Stay healthy. Eat well. Limit how much alcohol you drink. Avoid smoking. Manage stress the best you can. Stay on top of your medical checkups and tests.
Exercise regularly. Being physically active can help you feel stronger, boost your energy, and lower stress. It may also give you a sense of accomplishment and control. Talk to your health care team to create an exercise plan that works you.

Follow through with rehabilitation. If your doctor recommends cancer rehabilitation, you may have physical therapy, occupational therapy, pain management, nutritional planning, career counseling, or emotional counseling. These are helpful resources that can help you get more control of your life and stay independent.

Take care of what’s on your mind. If there’s something that feels unresolved in your life, taking care of it now can give you peace of mind. Consider facing whatever it is that’s making you feel bad. Maybe you want to fix a broken relationship with a family member or friend. Maybe you’re worried about getting your will and advance directive in place. These things can weigh on your mind, so it’s helpful to take care of them if you feel up to it.

Source link
March 10, 2023
Pentagon Papers leaker Ellsberg says he has terminal cancer

WASHINGTON — Daniel Ellsberg, who copied and leaked documents that revealed secret details of U.S. strategy in the Vietnam War and became known as the Pentagon Papers, said he has terminal cancer and months to live.

Ellsberg posted on his Facebook page Thursday that doctors diagnosed the 91-year-old with inoperable pancreatic cancer on Feb. 17 following medical scans.

Doctors have given him between three and six months to live, he said.

Ellsberg said he has opted not to undergo chemotherapy and plans to accept hospice care when needed.

The documents in the Pentagon Papers looked in excruciating detail at the decisions and strategies of the Vietnam War. They told how U.S. involvement was built up steadily by political leaders and top military brass who were overconfident about U.S. prospects and deceptive about the accomplishments against the North Vietnamese.

Ellsberg, a former consultant to the Defense Department, provided the Pentagon Papers to Neil Sheehan, a reporter who broke the story for The New York Times in June 1971. Sheehan died in 2021.

Sheehan smuggled the documents out of the Massachusetts apartment where Ellsberg had stashed them, and illicitly copied thousands of pages and took them to the Times.

The administration of President Richard Nixon got a court injunction arguing national security was at stake and publication was stopped. The action started a heated debate about the First Amendment that quickly moved up to the Supreme Court. On June 30, 1971, the court ruled 6-3 in favor of allowing publication, and the Times and The Washington Post resumed publishing stories. The coverage won the Times the Pulitzer Prize for public service.

The Nixon administration tried to discredit Ellsberg after the documents’ release. Some of Nixon’s aides orchestrated a break-in at the Beverly Hills office of Ellsberg’s psychiatrist to find information to discredit him.

Ellsberg was charged with theft, conspiracy and violations of the Espionage Act, but his case ended in a mistrial when evidence surfaced about government-ordered wiretappings and break-ins.

Ellsberg said in his Facebook post that he feels “lucky and grateful” for his life.

“When I copied the Pentagon Papers in 1969, I had every reason to think I would be spending the rest of my life behind bars. It was a fate I would gladly have accepted if it meant hastening the end of the Vietnam War, unlikely as that seemed (and was),” he wrote.

“Yet in the end that action — in ways I could not have foreseen, due to Nixon’s illegal responses — did have an impact on shortening the war,” he wrote.

Source link

March 3, 2023
NSCLC: When You Need More Than One Treatment

NSCLC: When You Need More Than One Treatment

091e9c5e820faac4091e9c5e820faac4FED-Footermodule_FED-Footer_091e9c5e820faac4.xmlwbmd_pb_templatemodule0144002/02/2021 01:57:340HTML

Source link

December 14, 2022
NSCLC: When You Need More Than One Treatment
Standard chemotherapy (chemo) was once the only treatment for advanced non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Now, you’re likely to get chemo plus a targeted medicine or immunotherapy, says Karen Reckamp, MD, co-director of the lung cancer and thoracic oncology program at City of Hope in Duarte, CA.

She says most people need more than one therapy, and often, they get all three at some time during their treatment. Combined treatments may work better because they attack cancer in different ways. And while they aren’t likely to cure advanced NSCLC, they may help you live longer with fewer symptoms.

Targeted Therapies

These block gene changes that cause tumors to grow and spread. The meds are more precise in targeting tumors than chemo, so side effects may not be as tough to deal with.

The problem is they often work for a while and then stop. This may be because the gene changes again, so it’s no longer a good target. Or, cancer might find a way around the therapy. Either way, you’ll probably need to add another medicine — usually chemo or a different targeted drug.

Immunotherapy

This treatment works in a different way. It triggers your immune system to attack your cancer. If your tumor has a high level of the protein PD-L1, immunotherapy medicines called checkpoint inhibitors may be your best treatment. These often work better when combined with chemo.

You May Still Need Chemo

If you don’t have the PD-L1 protein or a gene target, immunotherapy plus chemo is likely to be your main treatment. Reckamp says that fact disappoints some people.

“But we’re not at the point where we can do without [chemo],” she says. “In an era where we have all these new therapies, chemo is still helpful and will be part of most people’s treatment.”

That’s because chemotherapy can mop up cancer cells that other treatments leave behind.

“Metastatic cancer has spread through the lymph and blood to other places in the body,” Reckamp says. “That’s billions of cells. There’s always some cancer left, no matter what the treatment.”
Dealing With Side Effects

Cancer medicines can have serious side effects. What happens when you get two at the same time, or one right after the other? It can be tough, Reckamp says, especially since therapies can cause so many different problems.

For example, platinum-based chemo — the kind used for advanced NSCLC — damages all your fast-growing cells, even the healthy ones. Common side effects are:

Nausea

Diarrhea

Hair loss

Anemia

Bleeding

Chemo also can cause liver and kidney damage. If your side effects are severe, you may need a lower dose, or to stop treatment completely. Reckamp says many people can predict how they’re going to feel on certain days and plan around it. And since chemo is given in cycles, you have a chance to rest during the breaks.

You may not get a break from certain targeted medicine, though. Many targeted medicines are taken every day. That makes you more likely to have constant, but manageable symptoms, like rashes and diarrhea.

“You might have one really bad day of diarrhea with chemo and mild diarrhea every day with a targeted therapy,” Reckamp says.
Targeted medicines usually won’t make you as tired as chemo. Other side effects are usually easier on your body, too, but they still need to be dealt with.

“All these drugs are attacking cancer, so there is a level of not feeling like yourself,” Reckamp says. “Most people get used to that feeling. When they stop treatment, they remember what they’re supposed to feel like.”

What about side effects from immunotherapy, which can be pretty unpredictable?

“That’s anyone’s guess,” Reckamp says. “It can cause inflammation anywhere in your body at any time, even after you stop treatment. You can get inflammation in the brain, colon, thyroid gland, liver, bladder, kidneys, or heart.

“We can predict when you’ll feel bad with chemotherapy, but with immunotherapy, we can’t.”

She says people who get both immunotherapy and chemo need to be on high alert. The number of possible side effects is high, and some can come without warning.
“If you’re not feeling like yourself, call your doctor, and they can help guide you what to do next,” she advises. “Also, [very serious] problems like colitis and pneumonitis [lung inflammation] can happen quickly and suddenly. We need to hear about that right away.”

Scott Gettinger, MD, an expert in immunotherapy and targeted therapy at Yale Cancer Center in New Haven, CT, also warns about pneumonitis. It’s inflammation of lung tissue that can cause cough and shortness of breath. For people with NSCLC, it can be deadly.

“When you suspect pneumonitis, you need to start steroids right away,” he says.

High-dose steroids can bring down life-threatening inflammation. Lower doses may help treat less serious symptoms.

Despite the intense side effects, Reckamp says most people do pretty well with combined treatments.

“You can work, travel, and live a fairly normal life, but you need to adjust for days when you don’t feel well,” she explains. “Hospitals and treatment centers have social workers and many other resources to help you get back into life.”

But, Reckamp says, you’ll also need help you can’t get from a hospital.

“You also need strong social support from your family,” she says. “And it can be helpful to join a group of like-minded people or talk to a therapist or counselor.

“Patients are living longer, so it’s important to help them figure out how to frame what they want for their lives and how to do what they want to do.”

Source link
December 14, 2022
Inoperable Lung Cancer: Making Treatment Work for You

By Larry Gershon, as told to Stephanie Watson

I was diagnosed with lung cancer by accident. In 2013, I went to urgent care with cold and asthma symptoms. When the doctor took an X-ray to make sure I didn’t have pneumonia, it showed a spot on my lung. After more scans, a surgical biopsy, and a brain MRI, I was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer.

I was in total disbelief. Then my oncologist said something that really uplifted me. She told me that even though my cancer wasn’t curable, people can live long and active lives while dealing with chronic illnesses. That would be our plan.

There are new targeted therapies being approved every year to treat late-stage lung cancer. While most of these treatments have side effects, they are usually controllable and many patients can enjoy good results and lead pretty normal lives.

Get Tested

Hearing that you have inoperable lung cancer is tough. But hearing that nothing can be done to treat you is almost always untrue.

It’s vitally important for every patient who is diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer to get comprehensive genomic testing. These tests tell your oncologist the best treatment option for you to have success.

My genomic test found an EGFR mutation that causes my cancer to grow and progress. Once chemotherapy stopped working, I switched to a drug that targeted the EGFR mutation. I’ve been on the same targeted therapy for 5 years.

Educate Yourself

People who are educated about their disease and actively involved in their treatment do better because they are able to understand what’s going on. I think education is a huge part of dealing with a disease like lung cancer. Not knowing what to expect can lead to a lot more anxiety and stress.

Google is not your best source for information.Learn about lung cancer from your doctor, a support group, or an organization like the Go₂ Lung Cancer Foundation. There are also patient-founded lung cancer advocacy groups that support patients with specific genomic mutations. For example, there’s a group called the EGFR Resisters for the EGFR mutation I have.

Other mutation types have their own support groups. These groups are in contact with the pharmaceutical companies and the doctors who are doing research to develop new treatments for each specific mutation.

Care for Yourself

Over the years, I’ve learned that people with late-stage lung cancer who get palliative care early have better results and tend to live longer.

I volunteer with the GO₂ Foundation’s Phone Buddy Program, where I help other lung cancer patients understand the treatment experience. One of the biggest misconceptions I hear is that palliative care only deals with end-of-life issues.

It’s important for people with stage IV lung cancer to understand that palliative care can help you manage treatment side effects. I’ve used it to relieve side effects like nausea, diarrhea, and rash.

Palliative care helps me focus and be smarter about what I eat and how I take care of myself, so I feel better overall. It can help patients and caregivers deal with anxiety and provide great resources when you need help. Palliative care focuses on the well-being of the patient and those who support them while your oncologist focuses on how to treat your cancer.

Join a Support Group

I also highly recommend finding a patient-focused support group. You’ll meet people who have walked in your shoes with whom you have a common experience, and people who can offer insight on how to deal with new experiences.

A support group is a great source of comfort. You don’t get medical advice there because that’s not the purpose, but you can learn from someone else’s experience with things such as how to deal with treatment side effects or dealing with anxiety.

I live in Palo Alto, CA. A friend made me aware of the GO₂ Foundation for Lung Cancer (formerly the Bonnie J. Addario Lung Cancer Foundation). They host a lung cancer support group called “The Living Room” on the third Tuesday of every month. They invite thought leaders (doctors, researchers) in the lung cancer community to educate patients and answer their questions about lung cancer. That experience has been life-changing for me. The knowledge I’ve gained and the camaraderie I’ve found in this group is one of the most comforting experiences I’ve had since being diagnosed.

Know When to Call

Having cancer makes you hyper aware of what’s going on in your body. When you notice strange symptoms, you immediately wonder whether your cancer is getting worse. Is it progressing? Are things getting bad?

Sometimes symptoms don’t have an explanation. But you should definitely make your oncologist aware of any new symptom that lasts for a week or more. Symptoms that persist may indicate that something is changing.

Enroll in a Clinical Trial

I’ve never participated in a clinical trial because I’m fortunate to have targeted therapies that have been effective in treating my type of lung cancer mutation. But I will not hesitate to participate in a clinical trial if I need a new, not yet approved treatment that can potentially offer hope to help control my lung cancer.

Clinical trials have given us very effective treatments that are helping to keep many of us alive. There are clinical trials looking at all sorts of treatments. The treatments in a clinical trial can help improve overall survival and quality of life for people with all stages of lung cancer.

Be Involved

Bottom line, be involved in your treatment. Be active. Be interested in what’s going on. Ask your doctor questions and expect clear and specific answers.

I think the worst possible situation for anyone with a stage IV cancer diagnosis is to be in the dark, to be unsure of what’s going on. It causes you to live with a horrible amount of anxiety and uncertainty.

In my 9 years of living with lung cancer, I’ve learned a lot. The Go₂ Foundation for Lung Cancer has educated me and made me an advocate for myself and others. Without them, I think my outcome would have been very different.

Remember that no one is going to care about you more than you do. You are always your own best advocate.

Source link

December 8, 2022
Treating Inoperable Lung Cancer: A Nurse’s Perspective

By Alison Massey, as told to Susan Bernstein

There is a perception that chemotherapy is like treatments from 20 or 30 years ago. They think it will have side effects that are not tolerable, but we have made significant advances in managing the toxicities that come with these cancer medications. People think chemo will make them sick, but that’s not the case. Each individual treatment regimen has its own side effect profile. If you look at the list of possible side effects, people can be overwhelmed. Most people will experience a side effect, but no one gets every possible side effect.

Generally, people will be a little tired or have a dip in energy level for a few days. But between your treatments, we hope that you’ll be able to live your normal life. We have many people who continue to work between their treatments.

Nausea is another common side effect, but we’ve made advances in how to manage nausea you may experience around your treatments as well. We can offer patients a range of anti-nausea medications. Some treatments do cause hair loss, and if that’s the case, we let you know that up front. It’s important to note that the vast majority do not cause hair loss, although some may cause hair thinning. We definitely have ways to help you manage these issues, including offering a prescription for wigs or other resources. With hair thinning, we can also check certain labs or get our dermatology colleagues involved to help you.

Fatigue is the main thing you may experience with radiation. Radiation can cause inflammation in your body as it kills the cancer. It’s the inflammation that causes the side effects. Depending on what is being radiated, you may have pain. For example, if you are receiving lung radiation, your esophagus can be involved because the radiation may be close to that area of your body. If so, you may have pain with swallowing or difficulty swallowing. You may even feel like food gets stuck after you swallow it. People who are having radiation may not realize that it could affect swallowing food.

Sometimes people will need radiation to a painful lesion. While receiving radiation at a particular spot for people with advanced lung cancer, you may have a flare-up of that pain. Ultimately, the hope is that pain will disappear. During this time, we can also treat you with pain medications or steroids like dexamethasone to minimize the inflammation that causes pain.

Checkpoint inhibitors [immunotherapy medications for lung cancer] can have side effects, but they are different than chemo because they act on your immune system. These medications can overactivate your immune system, which leads to the side effects. Sometimes, we see patients develop dermatitis, which appears as a rash, or experience colitis that causes diarrhea, or pneumonitis of your lungs, which may cause shortness of breath or a cough. Checkpoint inhibitors may also cause arthritis or myositis, which is inflammation of your muscles. Sometimes, we can even see swelling of your joints. It’s important that if patients notice any new symptoms while taking a checkpoint inhibitor, they let us know about it so we can initiate treatment. The quicker you tell us about these side effects, the sooner we can treat and reverse them.

Anxiety and depression are two things we deal with very often during cancer treatment. In my experience, people may feel lost when they are first diagnosed. But once you have found your oncologist and your whole cancer support team, and you know you have a plan of attack to treat your cancer, most people feel better. Many have a fear of cancer treatments and the potential impact of treatment on your quality of life. We let people know that they can still live their life and they should continue to do the things that they enjoy.

Your mood and outlook may depend on where you are in your cancer treatment course or disease progression. Early on, most people are more functional and have less fatigue. Some people may still be able to work. Others may need to hang out at home for a few days after each treatment. Our goal is that you don’t stay in bed the whole time you’re being treated for cancer. Keep an active schedule as much as you can. Realize that you will be tired after your treatment and plan for those days. And don’t forget to ask for help if you need it!

Sleeping well can also affect your mood and quality of life. A lot of our patients have insomnia. Often anxiety may be causing that insomnia. Your mind is racing, so you can’t sleep. Also, some of the meds you take for nausea or steroids for inflammation can rev you up and cause insomnia. And sometimes an annoying cough can disrupt your sleep.

Some people with lung cancer may need to use supplemental oxygen. In my experience, people struggle with the idea of wearing oxygen because, like the association with hair loss, now people on the outside are able to see that they are sick. But from a medical perspective, it’s important to wear it if you need it.

Loss of sexual function is something we can see in both men and women. In my experience, men are more vocal about this, so speak up, ladies, if you have any concerns! Erectile dysfunction can affect men during cancer treatment. Women may experience vaginal dryness or pain during intercourse. If that happens and you let us know, we can refer you to a sexual health doctor. Treatments can also affect women’s menstrual cycles. If you’re someone who could get pregnant, you should be careful to use contraception while you’re being treated for cancer.

Source link

November 22, 2022
Important Things to Consider With Early Stage
By Wade Smith, MD, as told to Kara Mayer Robinson

A diagnosis of HER2-positive breast cancer can be frightening at first, especially when you hear the words “aggressive cancer.” But there’s reason to be optimistic about today’s advances in treatment. There isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach, but with the help of your doctors, you can choose what’s best for you.

Your Treatment Is Unique

HER2-positive breast cancer is different from other breast cancer types, so your treatment won’t necessarily be the same as someone else who has a different form of breast cancer. It may also be different than another HER2-positive patient’s therapy.

Each cancer is unique, so doctors try to develop the treatment course that’s best for you. Things to consider include the size of your tumor, whether the cancer has metastasized (spread), or your overall risk of recurrence.

Treatments You May Consider

The most common treatment for HER2-positive breast cancer is chemotherapy plus HER2-directed therapy. This is followed by surgery, then continues with HER2-directed therapy. This is often best for patients with large tumors or cancer in regional lymph nodes.

For targeted therapy, your doctor may recommend a family of drugs commonly known as monoclonal antibodies. This includes trastuzumab (Herceptin), the first-in-its-class precision therapy drug approved by the FDA for HER2+ breast cancer.

It’s less common, but you may have surgery first, followed by chemotherapy and HER2-directed therapy. Your doctor may choose this sequence if you have a small tumor that isn’t in your lymph nodes.

Your doctor may also recommend endocrine therapy. This treatment involves taking a daily pill for at least 5 years after you complete chemotherapy and surgery.
Pros and Cons

Each treatment has pros and cons, and you may be a candidate for some types of treatments but not others.

Here are some things to consider:

Chemotherapy is highly effective, but it’s known to cause side effects during and after treatment. These side effects vary in type and severity based on the prescribed drug. The most common side effects are hair loss, nausea, and vomiting.

Chemotherapy and HER-2 directed agents are highly effective together.

A benefit of trastuzumab (Herceptin) is that it’s given intravenously (through an IV) and can usually be given at the same time as chemotherapy.

If you’re pregnant, you can’t take trastuzumab (Herceptin).

If you’re breastfeeding or plan to breastfeed, you shouldn’t take trastuzumab (Herceptin).

Trastuzumab (Herceptin) and related HER2-directed therapies may cause serious heart problems.
Cost of Treatment

If you’re concerned about the cost of your care, talk to your care team. Most approved cancer therapies are covered by insurance. But if you feel overwhelmed by coverage issues, ask for help.

One of the many benefits of receiving care from a top-ranked facility that specializes in cancer is that they can help you navigate the process.

Clinical Trials

Even with all the available therapies we now have, there’s always more to discover. Not only do clinical trials help us make scientific advances, they may also benefit patients.

Your doctor may recommend a clinical trial if they believe you’ll respond best to a new therapy or combination of therapies. If your specialist recommends a clinical trial, it may be a good option for you.

Make sure you understand what the trial involves. Talk to your care team.

Use Reliable Information

Always ask questions of your care team and focus the conversation on your particular case.

Remember that your diagnosis is unique. Use caution when you read advice from online discussion groups, bulletin boards, and social media. These resources can provide some support, but they may also have untrue or outdated information.

Talk to Your Doctor

It’s very important that you’re comfortable with your doctor and that you have a doctor who listens to you and addresses your concerns.

I recommend going to a research-based cancer center to get treatment, a second opinion, or both.

Find a care team that specializes in your type of cancer. Highly specialized physician-scientists stay up to date on new treatment options, which is important because cancer is complex.

Learn what you can about HER2-positive breast cancer and ask questions. You may want to write down questions before your appointment.

During your appointment, take notes or ask if you can record the conversation on your phone. Tell your doctor how much information you want and don’t be afraid to speak up if you don’t understand something that’s being explained.

I also recommend that patients involve their families in their decision-making. Technology gives us a lot of good options for including family or friends in the process. Telehealth and apps like FaceTime both make involving family members in a visit more convenient.

Source link
November 21, 2022