I have been diagnosed with Stage 2 Breast cancer in March 2016. I refused operation, chemo and radiation and decided to go for natural treatment. I changed my diet, became vegan, registered for gym and take lots of supplements, B17 and apricot kernels. My tumour is ER+, HER2-, and is approximately 2 cm. I want to decrease it so that I don't have to do surgery, hope my tumor will disappear with my B17 treatment. Is there anyone who followed same path?
Update (07/01/2020): Since my last post 3 years ago I have changed my diet and my treatment protocol. I have seen 75% reduction in tumor size after going to Alternative cancer clinic in Germany where I had 4 weeks treatment - low dose chemo, hyperthermia, ozone therapy, Vitamin C etc.
I am still on my healing path, tumor is still there and I am still refusing surgery
If you have any questions or want to know more about my protocol - my instagram is: mycancerhealing
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Ladap
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All I can say is that you are a brave lady. I took everything they threw at me rather than take a chance on the natural route. A friend of mine did that and ... well we wont go there... Good luck and I hope it really works for you. The only thing I do is pop hemp oil in a yoghurt each evening. I would be interested in following your progress. Lainey xxxx
Thank you for the response. I have only turned 27 this June and the diagnosis has been a shock for me. But as it is not inherited, BRCA tests were negative, I believe something went wrong in my life and diet and can fix it now Thinking about Vitamin C injections as I've heard they do help, but not sure which clinic to chose, as I live in London.
Have you spoken to your oncologist about your choice? It seems to be a big risk you are taking. There is absolutely no history of cancer in my family so my diagnosis floored me. I hope your decision is the right one for you. Research hemp oil too. I did a good bit of research into it and was surprised by the findings. Please take care. Kind regards. Lainey x
Lol no don't try makingbit... I made that mistake and nearmy laughed myself into a coma 😂😂😂 well it was an experience I wont be repeating again. I will find out if this group here ship to the uk. I will give you my emaik address, drop me a quick lineso that I can reply to you. elainemurphy66@gmail.com
I use organic hemp oil daily in a drink and I buy mine from Nealsyardremedies.com I also put turmeric, black pepper, honey and lemon in the drink. Turmeric is very good at fighting cancer cells due to the curcumin in it and the black pepper helps the body absorb it. I have done a lot of research into natural ways to fight cancer so please get in touch with me if you want to discuss or share information.
I have secondary breast cancer and only now am I looking into alternative options. When I was first diagnosed I just did as I was told and followed the conventional path of surgery, chemo and radio and I would certainly listen to and talk to your oncologist about combining conventional treatment with alternative therapies.
I would say each to their own path but look at all your options and go with what you feel is the right path for you. There is a very interesting and thought provoking docu series called "The Truth about Cancer" which I found to be a real eye opener. It provides a lot of information for you to then make choices.
Wishing you all the very best and sending healing hugs your way 💕💕
Trisha xx
Welcome, Ladap. We are so sorry you have this diagnosis, but glad you found us. We care very much about you and want to support you through this.
The cause of your affliction is that either something changed about a gene in your cell/s, or some already defective gene became activated somehow.
The BRCA1 and BRCA2 gene mutations are not the only ones associated with familial cancer patterns. There are other inherited gene defects known to cause familial cancer patterns, and there are others (gene mutations) of suspected and/or unknown significance. Further, even without having had inheritance of those (BRCA and other type) gene mutations, any of those mutations might occur in one or more (previously normal) cells at any time anyway.
You should also be aware that some of the supplements and other substances popularly touted as good to use for breast cancer may well be counterproductive, depending on one's particular tumor characteristics.
Your young age at diagnosis suggests that your cancer would likely be rather aggressive. Cancer tumors can become increasingly aggressive as time goes on and their growth (and spread) proceeds. Please understand that without medical intervention at this relatively early stage (to be clear, yours is at least locally advanced), your survival prospects will be appreciably diminished, and that making your start at medical treatment later may not offer nearly so much in the way of options and practical benefits then.
Peace. Prayers for you.
Hello ladap
Sorry you are dealing with this. I was diagnosed last July aged 34, 3cm tumour HER2+ and my genes test also came back negative for BRAC mutations. Stage 2 grade 3 meaning my cells were most changed. I've always had it explained to me that as a young woman with raging hormones my prognosis is not as good as an older post menopausal lady, you'd think youth would be on our side, no!
I spoke with a nutritionist and he advised me to go down the medical root to get rid of the cancer but then advised me on ways to change my diet and life style to help prevent a recurrence so now I don't drink alcohol, hardly eat meat, only have organic milk as not injected with loads of growth hormones, I add flax seed to my diet, on porridge, on salads etc...I eat plenty of pulses, fruit and nuts and I go to the gym and do intense cardio and weights. I believe that for me, if I had gone down the root you are looking at, my cancer would have out run it before it had chance to rid my body of it. Since nobody can tell you or I what actually caused our cancer, although I have beaten myself up with the thought that I've some how let my body down rather that it me, you really need to think long and hard about how you may feel if the way that you have chose to go at it does not come good, if it does, great! Cancer is very complex, hence the nightmare trying to eradicate it full stop and docs can only tell you what they know, as can health experts. Good luck x
Did you go for lumpectomy or mastectomy and how did you find it after the operation, as I know immune system becomes weaker and it exposes you to all different types of infections.
My doctor said that due to the size of my breast the result will not look good if to remove only lump thus he thinks it's better to remove the whole breast and insert the implant. There are many opinions about the implants, some say that it\s better to wait for a year to get it inserted and some say that it's better to do it straight during the operation. What did you go for?
Due to having small breasts I was told from day one that the whole breast would be coming off as again only having lump removed would not look good, I was fine with this as did not trust my boob any more. I had chemo first to shrink the tumour, 6 rounds which began 2.5 weeks after diagnosis, with the first round you could tell the tumour had started to break down after 2 weeks, such a relief. My chemo ended in November and then I had mastectomy 18th December and lymph nodes taken under armpit as my sentinel node had tested positive at time of diagnosis, I got pathology report back new years eve, surgery had got all the cancer with all lymph nodes negative of the disease, great news. During my op I'd had an expander fitted and also slightly inflated so that I wasn't coming home completely flat. I began radiotherapy in February, 15 sessions, kept my expanded area well moisturized as i'd been told the radiotherapy can tighten skin and harden over expander. I finished radiotherapy 2nd march and so far I seem to have gotten away with it, I am happy with how it looks, the expander does not interfere with my every day life, no pain. In September I am looking to have an implant fitted as my surgeon wanted to leave expander in for 6 months after radiotherapy ended. I don't have any other option than the implant, only living with it flat, as I am deemed too small for tram flap etc..
I had FEC-T chemo and after the first of the strongest, docetaxcel, I became neutropaenic sepsis and had a 3 day stint in hospital on IV antibiotic injection, they believe I had become unwell due to chemo causing several large mouth ulcers and becoming infected. I'm not sure but perhaps the fact that I still worked part time through chemo didn't help me!!
I had Choice lump removed or breast went for breast and implant, had a great result recovered really quick, take 1 tablet a day, hardly any side affects, I am now practically vegan, eating no meat or diary , just a little fish occasionally, please use medicine as well as diet, as I think we must use everything we can to beat this, good luck xx
I'm not sure if you're brave or daft, yes it's frightening getting a cancer diagnosis, what do your medical team say about your decision, are family and friends supportive, what will you do if your lifestyle change makes the cancer worse, if that happens you will most likely be looking at a harsher treatment plan than you'd be having now, why not go for treatment in conjunction with your lifestyle change, to keep you healthy in the future, I do hope things work out for you, however it works out stay strong x
In my opinion you need to move quickly. You do not want the cancer to spread to Stage 3 or 4. I was Stage 0, 2013, had lumpectomy and radiation, no chemo. Oncologist appointment last week, still okay. Mammo 9/12/15, always a nervous time.
Sorry for sounding blunt but it won't go away by eating healthy taking vitamins it's CANCER please be sensible before it's to late sending love to you xx
As someone else wrote to you already, the fact that you're young means that your cells must devide faster than if you were a sixty or seventy year old person. You shouldn't forget that you have to take into consideration the nodes which are under your armpits and which might get "infected" with the cancer cells and from there, the cancer can spread all over the body. I wouldn't choose your path. You can beat your cancer. You might not need chemo at all. There is a test that can tell you if you need it or not.
Hi Ladap I want to wish you well on every step of your brave personal journey. I wish I had been as brave. I used a lot of the information from New Approaches to Cancer anac.org.uk but still went with conventional treatment. But you are taking loads of positive steps towards better health which will help you.
Do keep us posted on the forum and hope that your oncologist can support your choice.
Hi Ladap, sorry to hear your diagnosis and i too think you are a very brave lady to go down the natural treatment route.
I have no history of cancer in the family, grew up on the same diet as my sister, didnt drink much or smoke and eat failry healthy. I was unlucky and was diagnosed in 2014 with Her2+ cancer. My tumour was 6cm... I took everything they offered. It responded very well to the chemo, in fact, it took it all away so my lumpectomy was to remove the surrounding breast tissue.
I wish you well with your treatment going forward and hope it had a positive outcome.
Great to hear what you are doing. I had a lumpectomy only butam on the same path as you and wouldn't have it any other way. Are you doing this alone or do you have a nutritional therapist or someone else to guide you? Are you juicing also?
I would advise you to take B17 or apricot kernels as they do kill cancer cells and prevent cancer from coming back. I order them from USA as can't find them here in UK.
I have just recently started making juices, but I can do it only in the evening after work. I have also started growing Wheatgrass and make juice from it.
I would go for lumpectomy if I could, but as my doctor says cosmetic effect won't be good, thus I didn't go for it.
I don't have nutritional therapist but I am looking for a good one in London. Do you know any good ones?
I take B17 already as well as several others. I remember seeing them here but would have to hunt again. I have a good therapist but she is in Ireland. You could contact the Institute for Optimum Nutrition who are very good or Nutrigold. I think it is essential to have one, even with all the hours and hours of study, they know a great deal more than I do! I see seminars etc in London, I may be able to get to the August one breastcancerhaven.org.uk/Ev...
Okay, d'you know about The Haven? One of your other responses referenced them at the end, so you may have checked them out already. They are a holistic breast cancer support service with over 40 complementary health practitioners, including nutritionists and homeopaths. You design an individual programme of 10 sessions, typically across 3 or 4 disciplines (eg. I chose nutrition, homeopathy, counselling & massage) for free, and then can continue to pay for additional sessions if you wish. Plus you can access a full programme of supplementary support eg. yoga, t'ai chi, support groups indefinitely alongside this, for a minimum donation. The nutritionists also run seasonal workshops on healthy eating, periodic sessions on subjects such as nutrition and the immune system/digestive system etc. - again for a suggested donation - and will give free e-mail advice. There is also a decent reference library, including books on nutrition and natural treatments, and a little kitchen serving lunch Mon-Thurs with menus specifically orientated towards a breast cancer dedicated diet. (The kitchen is staffed by volunteers and you can find me in there some Tuesdays). Plus they have published a cookbook, which you can buy there.
They are in Fulham, on Effie Road.
Alternatively, check out Maggie's Centre at Charing X Hospital in Hammersmith. Very similar set-up and they also run very good nutrition workshops, although they are a generic cancer support service, rather than breast cancer specific. Everything is free there.
Neither service exclusively advocate a natural approach, but both completely respect your treatment decisions and support you in that.
In addition to this, if you are a resident of Lambeth. Southwark or Lewisham, you can get a GP referral to the Gateway Clinic in Kennington, who are the only place in the country to offer free acupuncture on the NHS. They offer 10 sessions for most conditions, however if the diagnosis is cancer or HIV, they will extend this.
Finally, you can access 4 free massages/reflexology/reiki sessions (and 2 for your partner) at Guys Hospital via the Dimbleby Cancer Care Centre.
Hope this is helpful...if you need more contact details for any of these, please get back to me.
You have to do this in the way that is most meaningful to you, your sense of personal integrity and your world view. Trust your intuitive self and build the support network around you that you need to accentuate that. This is your body, your life, your story.
Breast Cancer Haven in Fulham has some great nutritional therapists so would really encourage you to give them a call...you can find their number at breastcancerhaven.org.uk
Yes it will work. What struck me when I read the small and rather confusing research results for conventional treatment was the repeating phrase "no impact on survival". You have as good a chance as anyone else. Stay fit and strong!
You are very brave and have obviously done your homework. Many best wishes. You have come to the right site for advice and help and encouragement. Many highly experienced women who will all be with you when and if you need it.
Good luck with your own quest, we think that like many, many others, you are on the right track. My Wife and I are doing very much the same thing and delighted with the results. From us both x
I would post on Penny Brohn UK on this site and check out their website and courses. Their form actually has a tick box option for not having treatment so engaging with a Penny Brohn Dr and nutritionist could be really worthwhile for you.
I was in such shock with my diagnosis I got swept along the treatment pathway, but am also making changes to my nutrition and reducing synthetic chemicals in my life.
You are only 27 that's young to not go with what the experts say this may sound harsh but if b17 and kernels kill cancer none of us would have needed any treatment and no one would be dying of cancer
Alternative therapies help the body and indeed I used all sorts alongside my lumpectomy chemo n radio but you are planning a risky strategy and if you change your mind later it will be too late
Good luck to you
Listen to the experts leave internet searches alone and don't let fear of what your body will look like influence your decision it's hard we've all been there but there is no one writing on here who survived only using alternative treatments
Wish all the best on your journey and sorry if I appear blunt
I really wish you the very best of luck but I think you are taking a massive risk and not one I could ever encourage others to do. I hope it's not in your lymph nodes too.
I was ER+, HER2 + and with lymph node involvement and researched both complementary and traditional medicine approaches but found the evidence based for the more traditional approach far outweigh the natural approach in isolation. What I did was go for the traditional approach but changed my diet to cut out red meat, caffeine, alcohol and only eat organic food balanced with increased exercise, mindfulness and yoga.
Sorry but whilst I respect your decision, I think going natural is dangerous; my aunty did this and died of breast cancer, which was totally avoidable with her type.
Good luck with your choice, I really do wish you well but urge others to be cautious.
A friend did the same as you,she declined all medical treatment,sadly she died in January aged 30. Her partner told me he wished they had done the same as me-masectomy etc. I had my operation in February and am now cancer free. Good luck with your choice,sorry to be harsh.x
Thanks for information. I know each cancer is different so if one thing is not working for a person it might work for another person. I don't completely reject mastectomy, I just want to see whether I can treat it myself. If there is no success, I will probably have to go for mastectomy.
PET scan in March showed my lymph nodes were not involved. I have also compared my ultrasound from April to the July one and there is no change in size. Hope my treatment works
Onco-marker showed 15 yesterday and it was 18 in May.
Mastectomy is not usually an option in the UK, as it is in the US, we are offered lumpectomy and radiation only. As the risk of recurrence in the first 2 years is high and the treatment for recurrence is mastectomy, I am puzzled by the rush to radiation as reconstruction of an irradiated breast is difficult. I was told that radiation was a safeguard against local recurrence only and, as the chance of recurrence is about 30%, why not wait and see as radiation may not even be necessary? Too much of a rush with 95% "choosing" conventional treatment while in a state of shock.
Personally it's not a route I would choose. Whilst I agree that a healthy diet can help prevent cancer, I'm not so sure that it can cure cancer. What concerns me is that some people advocating natural cures actively try to dissuade people from using conventional treatments. One chap who had his own page for a raw food diet claimed most people die from chemo and gave statistics from the 1940s to prove this. I don't think a particular diet, whether raw food or another diet, would hurt, but I think it's very risky to refuse conventional treatments. I personally wouldn't take apricot kernels either as they contain a substance which converts to cyanide in the body. If you look at the Cancer Research UK site there is information about alternative treatments. Best wishes to you xxx
I've just finished chemo, am 37, ER/PR + HER - no history, my tumour was 2cm from scans & mammogram but post lupmectamy op things changed, as they so often do.
After op tumour was 4.5cm, that was what was removed including clear margins & had 3 nodes tested, had gone to 1 so month later had all lymphnodes out - results were 1/8 so had only gone to that 1st 1.
I've always had a healthy rainbow diet, mostly veg based, never smoked, hardly drink, take exercise etc. Decided to do the combo of Medical route & health & nutrition .
Personally I'd say have the surgery then self manage. This is because things can and do change post surgery & the lumpectamy is really easy to recover from - easier when younger. Better to know the situation with your nodes & spread.
Totally get refusing chemo, I did it but can see why you would want to refuse that.
Lindseeds are great - I take a mixture of Lindseeds, chia & seasame every day which help breast cancer& other stuff.
The other thing to consider is you are very young and ER + so estrogen is growing your tumour, at a young age before menopause your levels are high, where as someone older 50+ levels decline.
So you need to reduce your estrogen levels to stop your tumour growing, like people have previously said post op you find out a lot more, my tumour was 2.5cm but on scans was told 1.7cm they are just not accurate until they get it out!
I would seriously consider surgery to know exactly what you are dealing with, then decide the next step, but diet and eliminating meat diary etc is defiantly something worth doing I personally think.
I am going for another MRI scan in September, will see if there is any progress, whether it is growing or decreasing and based on that will make my decision
I went down the medical route but also did what you are doing cut out sugars , caffeine , alcohol , exercise everyday Pilates swim gym , eating fish and meditate resin diet , turmeric roots, ginger , garlic , lots of vegetable , berry smoothies ect . I feel really well all through chemo and results good but still having mastectomy and lymph clearance even though it's great results and herceptin and perjeta for 12 doses . I believe the mixture of medical and natural is working . Take care hope it all goes to plan
Hi, no I didn't do it, I went for ultrasound instead that said that the size didnt change. My tumor marker didnt change and is still at the level of 14, which I think is good I am planning to go for another ultrasound and blood test in January. I am on Budwig protocol now and taking B17 too.
Dear Ladap, Probably we C-people would prefer NOT TO make use of chemo, radiation and pill-popping treatments. Do we have a choice? Hope is applaudable, but then so is the facts on cancer research. I am not so sure of the research done on alternative avenues. Are they just as scientific as those done at universities and other laboratories? Perhaps another consultation with an oncologist, asking his viewpoint on your current preferred treatment? I apologise if I upset you, but choices need hard facts and then I feel for you.
Well, all oncologists say the same things and I donttrust them, they only want to cure the cancer and not the reason of why I got it. As my genes tests showed it is not inherited, then it was gained during my life, so I am trying to fix my organism to cure the cancer myself.
Ok. This is blunt but I'm sorry natural treatments for breast cancer don't work. Please listen to your doctors. I've had a lumpectomy and radiation and it's not a fun, but it's worth it.
I'm a radiographer and it breaks my heart to see people who say they only want to do 'natural medicine go down hill.
Chemo, radiation, and surgery work all stand an excellent chance at working. I've never seen a patient who's going the natural route have a good out come. Natural treatment are good as a support, to help you feel better, but there's no magic cure from them
Hi Sonya, yes I am still here. I am doing Budwig since November, i really enjoy the mix ). Tomorrow I am having PET scan that I havent had for a year, curious about the results. My ultrasound and MRI last month showed that my tumor decreased by 0.5 cm from one side and increased by 0.5 from another. So Budwig is definitely sping something. Are you also doing natural treatment? Did you have operation? Would be nice to hear from you )
I have had lumpectomy only but I don't understand what Budwig is, could you let me know? Did you have your MRI and ultrasound on the NHS or did you have to pay? I have an appointment in October but believe I will be offered Mammogram and nothing more. Mammogram did not detect anything and neither did Ultrasound so I'm thinking about paying for MRI. Would it be worth it, do you think?
I didn't pay for anything, when I went to the clinic my doctor was not there and they gave me another one, who started scaring me that I would die without conventional treatment and referred me to bone scan and CT scan. I then went for the scans but booked appointment with my doctor whom I used to see for a year. He knows what I am doing, but still thinks that I should agree at least for surgery. I asked him to refer me to PET or MRI and he referred me to PET scan, and then in 2 months time for MRI.
You need to ask for the scan, if they don't give it to you, tell them that you feel that there is something there, even though scans didn't show it but you can feel it, it gives you discomfort and pain sometimes etc etc.. You need to persuade them to believe that there is really something there, and they will easily refer you to MRI.
As my doctor says MRI can be done even every month, it doesn't have any radiation and is not harmful, so I would advise to go for it if it will relax your brain ))
For Budwig protocol, it's a mix of 3 tablespoons of cottage cheese with 3 tablespoons of flaxseed oil, taken 2 times a day, with fruits/vegetables whatever you prefer. You can research it in the internet, it is a powerful treatment. It stops tumors grow and in many cases heals from cancer. But it's like a diet change, you can't eat certain foods, and you need to start juicing fresh veggies and consume sauerkraut juice daily.
I had trouble getting an ultrasound for the other breast and had to go back to my GP for another referral so there's no chance of an MRI. I had the surgery but sort of wish I hadn't as I'd had the lump for 17 years and it hadn't grown or spread and surgery might have released cancer into the bloodstream. I take turmeric and other horrible Indian stuff called Neem. This is supposed to limit the number of cancer cells in the body so there aren't enough to form tumours. I will look up the details of the protocol. Best of luck to you!
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