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mainsailset View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote mainsailset Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 22 2009 at 5:57am
Mysunshine, what a road you have to travel, I think this is perhaps one of life's most difficult challenges, to love a parent enough to help out but respect them enough to stand by them even when they are choosing a different path of treatment than medical wisdom tells us is best.
 
Because cancer invades and then stomps on our own ability to walk through life most of us are continually struggling to retrieve some semblance of our 'old lives', to regain control and hold the reins of our fate. I totally understand your mother's stance, what she is doing takes alot of courage. Every aspect of the battle against cancer takes courage and strength no matter which path one chooses. So I applaud her courage.
 
As many here have already encouraged, knowledge is really the best power to grease the wheels of success, you can never have enough, but it is exhausting on a daily basis. A friend of mine was diagnosed the same day as me, he chose to go on the diet and regime your mom is on. It became pretty much a religion with him, he was so dedicated. After 3 months he was exhausted, had lost a great deal of weight and his brother talked him into Cancer Care. He agreed because of their approach which included not just the chemo, radiation but the whole picture of spiritual, and alternative medicine, massage and just plain caring. He is getting better, we feel he now has a chance.
 
My point is that when one goes in to a doctor's office, sometimes it is just so clinical that a patient can feel that they have already lost the battle. One only has to go to the CarynRose thread and read how her caregivers have gone out of their way to give her well rounded, complex and innovative care.
 
You are in such a tough position but I wouldn't be surprised if you mom comes to you one day soon for advice on something different. You'll be ready, you already are.
dx 7/08 TN 14x6.5x5.5 cm tumor

3 Lymph nodes involved, Taxol/Sunitab+AC, 5/09 dbl masectomy, path 2mm tumor removed, lymphs all clear, RAD 32 finished 9/11/09. 9/28 CT clear 10/18/10 CT clear
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mysunshine View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote mysunshine Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 22 2009 at 6:10am
true, thank you Cry
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vickyann View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote vickyann Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 22 2009 at 7:30pm
Crying lets the pain out so you can breathe....
Hang in there sunshine...
Look how many of us are still here.....
You might want to show your mom your posts so she reads your concern and know how you are feeling..... It could open up communication..
We all care.....
Vickyann
Dx Christmas/07
Stage2 Grade 3
no nodule braca neg
lung nodule no growth
TAC x 6 no rad
finished chemo June 08 reconstruction 12/09
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alene View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote alene Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 23 2009 at 12:29am
Hi mysunshine
 
Here's a link to the Gerson Institute website..specifically the page at finding clinics, practitioners and support groups..
 
 
They also have a telephone information service below:
Gerson Client Service is available from 9 A.M. to 5 P.M. (PST) M-F. (619) 685-5353 or info@gerson.org. U.S. residents can contact us by calling toll free on 888-4-GERSON.
 
 
The American Cancer Society has deemed the Gerson diet as Questionable - Here's what I found from the ACS...

Gerson Method

Proponents of the Gerson diet claim that cancer can be cured only if toxins are eliminated from the body. They recommend "detoxification" with frequent coffee enemas and a low-sodium diet that includes more than a gallon a day of juices made from fruits, vegetables, and raw calf's liver. This method was developed by Max Gerson, a German-born physician who emigrated to the United States in 1936 and practiced in New York City until his death in 1959. Gerson therapy is still available at Hospital Meridien in Tijuana, Mexico and, since February 1997, at the Gerson Healing Center in Sedona, Arizona.

Gerson therapy is still actively promoted by his daughter, Charlotte Gerson, through lectures, talk show appearances, and publications of the Gerson Institute in Bonita, California. Gerson protocols have included liver extract injections, ozone enemas, "live cell therapy," thyroid tablets, royal jelly capsules, linseed oil, castor oil enemas, clay packs, laetrile, and vaccines made from influenza virus and killed Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.

In 1947, the NCI reviewed ten cases selected by Dr. Gerson and found his report unconvincing. That same year, a committee appointed by the New York County Medical Society reviewed records of 86 patients, examined ten patients, and found no evidence that the Gerson method had value in treating cancer. An NCI analysis of Dr. Gerson's book A Cancer Therapy: Results of Fifty Cases concluded in 1959 that most of the cases failed to meet the criteria (such as histologic verification of cancer) for proper evaluation of a cancer case [16]. A recent review of the Gerson treatment rationale concluded: (a) the "poisons" Gerson claimed to be present in processed foods have never been identified, (b) frequent coffee enemas have never been shown to mobilize and remove poisons from the liver and intestines of cancer patients, (c) there is no evidence that any such poisons are related to the onset of cancer, (d) there is no evidence that a "healing" inflammatory reaction exists that can seek out and kill cancer cells [17].

Between 1980 and 1986 at least 13 patients treated with Gerson therapy were admitted to San Diego area hospitals with Campylobacter fetus sepsis attributable to the liver injections [18]. None of the patients was cancer-free, and one died of his malignancy within a week. Five were comatose due to low serum sodium levels, presumably as a result of the "no sodium" Gerson dietary regimen. As a result, Gerson personnel modified their techniques for handling raw liver products and biologicals. However, the Gerson approach still has considerable potential for harm. Deaths also have been attributed to the coffee enemas administered at the Tijuana clinic.

Charlotte Gerson claims that treatment at the clinic has produced high cure rates for many cancers. In 1986, however, investigators learned that patients were not monitored after they left the facility [19]. Although clinic personnel later said they would follow their patients systematically, there is no published evidence that they have done so. A naturopath who visited the Gerson Clinic in 1983 was able to track 21 patients over a 5-year period (or until death) through annual letters or phone calls. At the 5-year mark, only one was still alive (but not cancer-free); the rest had succumbed to their cancer [20].

 
The link to the full document is here:
 
Remember this just falls under..knowledge is power..the more you know...the more you can tell your mom to watch out for these problems with the regimen. 
 
Lots of hugs
Alene
 


Edited by alene - Jul 23 2009 at 12:42am
DX 5/21/2008 TN 8cm TAC
Mast 12/08
Extensive Residual Lymphatic Invasion
Inop node clavicle
68 Rads
Stage IIIc
Recur 11/09 Her2+
Surgery 68 RADS
4/10 Biopsy Skin Mets TN
28 RADS
Stage IV
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alene View Drop Down
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Post Options Post Options   Thanks (0) Thanks(0)   Quote alene Quote  Post ReplyReply Direct Link To This Post Posted: Jul 23 2009 at 12:57am
Gerson also has a FAQ page...Look below...Gerson may advocate that your mother have the tumour removed... and/or radiation...and sometimes chemo...(Your mom's tumour is grade 3 - aggressive/fast-moving - using Gerson's terms)
 
In addition their testimonial page for breast cancer...lists 3 cases..2 of which clearly indicate that the patient had the tumour removed..
 
All good reasons to contact them...and discuss your mother's case further.
 
Page from their FAQ below:
Can I do the therapy and Chemo or Radiation therapy at the same time?

There are a few instances where chemotherapy is of limited benefit. These include cases of Acute Leukemia, Testicular cancer, and fast-moving cancers where it is beneficial to quickly, if temporarily, stop the cancer so that a non-toxic intervention can be used. Under these circumstances, the Gerson Physicians occasionally recommend using both the full intensive Gerson therapy and chemotherapy together, if the patient starts the Gerson protocol first and is carefully monitored by a doctor. This is not a frequent occurrence with our patients, but it is an option for some. While we do not recommend it except in rare, specific circumstances, if a patient insists of doing chemotherapy concurrently with the Gerson Therapy, there is no reason why it cannot be done. In such a case we recommend that the Gerson Therapy be started prior to chemotherapy, and that the patient be monitored by an experienced Gerson Therapy doctor. Radiation therapy is often effective for relief of bone pain or to shrink a tumor to facilitate surgical removal. While it does have some negative effects, radiation, used judiciously, can be an appropriate addition to the Gerson Therapy.



Edited by alene - Jul 23 2009 at 8:04am
DX 5/21/2008 TN 8cm TAC
Mast 12/08
Extensive Residual Lymphatic Invasion
Inop node clavicle
68 Rads
Stage IIIc
Recur 11/09 Her2+
Surgery 68 RADS
4/10 Biopsy Skin Mets TN
28 RADS
Stage IV
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