Unusual Alternative Treatment Option!

August 5, 2009. I meet with Dr. Powers to bring him up to date on my general health & test results.
I report that I have eliminated the drug, Asocol, completely; I was taking 12 pills a day for ulcerative colitis. The doctor treating me for this condition does not believe the improvement is attributable to the change in my diet; however, I believe it is directly linked to the change in my diet & the addition of digestive enzymes & nutritional supplements. Prior to these changes, I had 1 or 2 flare-ups per year, & my medication was increased yearly.
This same doctor has told me there are no clinical trials that show there is a link between diet & this condition, so that there are no dietary restrictions. Well, I read a book, written by a professor in the Department Physiology & Pharmacology at Wake Forest University School of Medicine. He holds a Ph.D. in biochemistry. The book is based on 6 clinical trials he conducted that show the link between diet & conditions such as arthritis, asthma, allergies, diabetes, heart disease, eczema, inflammatory bowel disease (ulcerative colitis is included in this category), etc.
This emphasizes the necessity of taking an active role in each of my health issues. I now understand how important it is to understand my condition & to learn what I can do for myself, in addition to what my doctor prescribes for me. I have to keep in mind that medical schools do not provide any coursework on diet, nutrition, & nutritional supplements, as they relate to prevention &/or treatment of most diseases/medical conditions.
I’ve done a lot of reading & research on this condition & now know that there is a very strong link between diet & this condition. I first found a list of foods to avoid in another reference book. When I eliminated them from my diet & added the suggested digestive enzymes & nutritional supplements it made a world of difference!! I could eat without feeling nauseous.
Dr. Powers is pleased with the fact that I am off of another prescription drug, as it decreases some of the toxic load on my body.
Dr. Powers is also happy with the continued decline in the tumor marker number. July 8 it was 30.9. He’s been expecting the number to decline into the 20s. It’s getting there, but slowly. He is also pleased with the PET/CT scan results.
I describe the conversation with Dr. Patel concerning the term remission. Dr. Powers shrugs his shoulders & says it’s just a game of semantics. He understands what Dr. Patel is saying about the misuse, misunderstanding & false hope, but it’s a word the public is used to using. I understand that he feels it is the oncologist’s responsibility to make clear the definition of the word remission if he or she uses it with a patient. Several months ago Dr. Powers said he would describe my cancer as in “clinical remission.” From that I understood him to mean that the cancer is stable, from a clinical point of view. It poses no present threat to my life; however, I still have cancer.
Next, I explain Dr. Patel’s proposal of surgery to remove the lymph node that still shows some slight activity. Dr. Powers wants to know why. I explain.
Dr. Patel told us, “The standard of care for advanced disease cancer is changing. If a patient has a very good response to therapy, [such as I have had,] surgery may be considered. Surgery at the origin of the cancer may delay the progression of the cancer if the current activity is confined to that single location.”
I pause & look at Dr. Powers to see how he is responding to this information. I can see tension in his face; it’s obvious that he does not agree.
Of course, Dr. Powers asks what I chose to do, & I told him I said, “No.” I told him what I gave as my reasons & that Dr. Patel agreed with my first reason – the activity is only slight; what I have been doing is working very well; if I continue, it will probably take care of the remainder of the activity in the next few months.
He seemed to shrug off my 2nd argument – having surgery & not removing all cancer is like pouring gasoline on a fire, with respect to the cancer that is not removed.
It is Dr. Powers’ opinion that surgery is still a poor option, for the same reason I gave Dr. Patel. His description of what happens is something to the effect that it causes the remaining cancer to spray, like an aerosol can [my mental picture of his description], cancer cells throughout the patient’s blood stream & is very likely to cause metastases to spring up in other places in the body.
This is more confirmation that convinces me that we made the right decision.
As a part of our conversation, I inform him that my next PET/CT scan will be in November or December, since the tumor marker results have remained stable since December ’08. According to Dr. Patel, my number is in the normal range, but Dr. Powers is waiting for it to drop into the lower 20s. At this appointment, he tells me that if it drops to a number between 10 & 15, he believes I will be cancer-free!! This is an exciting piece of information to know! To that end, he asks me to try a new form of treatment to help me reach that goal. I was anxious to reach the low 20s. Now, I’m psyched about going for the 10 to 15 range!
I’m thinking he’s going to suggest a nutritional supplement. I’m very surprised when he asks me to eat low fat cottage cheese mixed with organic flaxseed oil. Oh, doesn’t that sound yummy? I’m wondering how this concoction is going to kill cancer cells. Some alternative treatments, at least at first, seem rather bizarre!
I tell him, “I don’t consume any milk or milk products, except organic yogurt or yogurt with live cultures, due to my ulcerative colitis.” He explains that I should be able to tolerate the cottage cheese if I can tolerate yogurt. Then I ask him how bad this is going to taste. He tells me that he is a poor judge because his taste buds aren’t that great. I’m thinking ‘Oh, thanks!’
He relates several incredible testimonials of his cancer patients, with advanced stage disease, who are using this regimen & are making miraculous & rapid recoveries. I’m thinking that this sounds good, & I remember reading a book that mentions people using this mixture to beat cancer. The book discusses several alternative cancer treatments patients use to fight cancer. It was the very first book I read that discusses fighting cancer with alternative treatments, & I wasn’t so sure I could trust what I read. This treatment, in particular, seemed to be more than a little farfetched, even though the author states that there are “scientific evidence & documented facts” to back up all of the statements made in the book. Now my alternative treatment oncologist is suggesting that I eat it. He has my attention. I’ll listen, ask questions, & do more research.
To help the taste, he says I can add some agave nectar to sweeten it. A few drops of lemon juice may also help. I ask about adding fruit. He tells me to have fruit before consuming this not with it. He provides an explanation for this. Thanks! He gives me a sheet with the amount of each to mix together & tells me to mix it with a blender so that it is homogenized. I’m thinking this may help to disguise the taste of the flaxseed oil a little.
I ask if I can just take flaxseed oil capsules with cottage cheese. I’m thinking, ‘swallowing that brown oil in capsules would be much easier than eating it off of a spoon.’ The answer is, no. The processing to produce the capsules destroys the beneficial properties of the flaxseed oil. Oh, darn! You can’t blame me for trying though.
As you can tell, I don’t have a positive attitude about how this is going to taste, but I decide it is much better than having to submit to chemotherapy. I can do it. Besides, I only have to eat it as a meal replacement 3 days a week.
Dr. Powers explains a little of the chemistry/biology of what this mixture does to cancer cells & the amazing results! A German biochemist, Johanna Budwig, determined that cottage cheese & flaxseed oil have the correct naturally occurring properties & chemical combination to produce the results she discovered in her laboratory research as having the effect of either killing cancer cells or causing them to revert back to normal cells! This is what sets this treatment apart from all others, which are aimed at merely starving or killing cancer cells. There’s no other treatment known to cause cancer cells to revert back to normal cells. These beneficial properties, of the cottage cheese & the flaxseed oil, are destroyed if they are processed to put their chemical compounds into capsule or pill form. There is no substitute for eating the real deal.
Since he knows I am an avid reader, Dr. Powers asks if I have read about Dr. Budwig & her research. I tell him that I do not remember her name, but I do remember reading about people eating this combination & beating cancer. He writes her name on a sheet of note paper & hands it to me so I can look her up. Does he know me well? Yes!
Of course I will research this to hope to better understand how this happens. I will also pull out the book that presented the testimonials of the folks who used this mixture to beat cancer & re-read it to see if Dr. Johanna Budwig is cited as the individual who came up with this combination for conquering cancer. (As I expected, everything checks out in the book & on the Internet. Johanna Budwig died, at the age of 95, in 2003, but there is a cancer center, in Spain, that bears her name & uses her protocol.)
I bought cottage cheese & Barlean’s organic, highest lignin, pure & unfiltered, cold pressed, flax oil. I tried it first with a little Splenda & a few drops of lemon juice. It was bearable but not very good. I just ate it & repeated to myself, ‘cancer cells are reverting to normal cells.’ By the 2nd week I knew I had to come up with something I could add to it to make it palatable. I found 2 kinds of granola at a natural foods store that are compatible with my diet. I also purchased agave nectar to replace Splenda. Now I like my cottage cheese & flaxseed oil breakfast, with a drizzle of agave nectar homogenized in the blender. I top it off with a generous amount of granola. Yum, yum! I find that I eat it more than 3 times a week. Bye-bye cancer cells!! Hello healthy cells!!
For more information on this form of treatment visit this site: http://www.budwigcenter.com
A closer look at the protocol of the Budwig Center, which is based on Dr. Budwig’s 50 years of research & countless testimonials to back it up, reveals this is one element of a multi-faceted treatment plan. Other elements include many or all of the following: a diet that is high in alkaline foods, rich in enzymes, & totally sugar-free; herbal formulas & teas; exercise, stress reduction, detoxification, total body massage, reflexology, emotional healing, visualization, static electro therapy, FAR infrared sauna, medical magnetic therapy, nutrition education, dark field live blood analysis, bio-photonic light (soaking up healthy light from the sun), etc.
As time passes & I continue to research cancer, I am more & more aware of the fact that there is no “magic bullet” that wipes out cancer. In every case where I read about someone who has conquered cancer, I find that it is a matter of multiple factors working together that resulted in bringing the individual to victory.
I know God has the power to miraculously heal me & to make me cancer-free, without any medical intervention or any special efforts on my part, but I don’t believe that is His plan for my healing. It is my firm conviction that I am to be obedient in following the path He has set me on to learn about the ways cancer can be defeated through a process that is a combination of multiple factors. I view this new form of treatment as a new weapon added to my arsenal in my fight against cancer. A year ago I may have laughed or at least given a cynical reply to someone who would suggest that I would endorse this form of treatment for my cancer. It sounded ridiculous! Now I know there is scientific evidence to back it up & “over 90% success rate with [the Budwig] protocol with all kinds of cancer patients over a 50 year period.” I’m not laughing now. I’m eating – cottage cheese & flaxseed oil!