Success Story: How I Healed My Stage 4 Breast Cancer with Integrative Medicine

Normally, the way we treat cancer in North America is with some combination of surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. My oncologist, and the nurses in the cancer unit where I went for my chemotherapy, never mentioned the importance of diet or other complementary modalities. Indeed, volunteers served cookies and fruit juice to cancer patients while they were having their chemo IVs (in spite of the fact that sugar makes cancer cells grow faster).

The following represents my personal understanding of how to recover from cancer. This can be done in combination with surgery, chemotherapy, and/or radiation therapy. I give no advice on these three modalities as I am not a medical doctor and believe we all need to do our own research and decide what is best for each of us.

I decided not to have radiation therapy, and in my case because of the metastasis it was also not the best option for me.

The lump in my breast was too large for a lumpectomy and I opted not to have a mastectomy (removal of the entire breast and nearby lymph nodes) even though that is what my surgeon recommended. I didn’t want any complications, like lymphedema (which is swelling of the arm following damage to lymph nodes during surgery).

I reluctantly opted for chemotherapy as my cancer had metastasized and I believed I needed more aggressive treatment to kill the cancer cells in my body.

On Ozone and Ultraviolet Light

Vitality magazine recently published an article entitled The Vital Light of Nikola Tesla written by Bob Connolly. For that article, he interviewed me and asked how I used ultraviolet (UV) light and ozone therapeutically. Since only part of my answer appeared in his article, I would like to elaborate here, and provide more information for those who are suffering from cancer and other chronic ailments.

I’m an environmental toxicologist and a retired university professor, and I used to lecture on the harmful biological effects of chemical and electromagnetic toxins. Two of those toxins are ozone and UV radiation.

So you can imagine how surprised I was to learn that ozone can be introduced into the body to promote healing. I first learned about this at the inaugural SOPMed (Society of Oxidative and Photonic Medicine) Conference in Utah in 2015, where I was giving a talk on benefits of Pulsed Electromagnetic Field therapy (PEMF).

Because ozone is an oxidizing agent that leads to production of free radicals known to be biologically harmful, one would expect injection of ozone into the body to damage cells and organelles. However, when a small amount of ozone is introduced, it stimulates the body to produce antioxidants, and these beneficial chemicals repair free radical damage throughout the body. So although a high concentration of ozone will damage the body, a low concentration stimulates the immune system to work harder and ultimately has a beneficial effect while oxygenating blood and tissue.

A similar situation exists with ultraviolet light. Too much exposure can be harmful. But small amounts of exposure from the sun or from UV lamps at the appropriate wavelength (311 nm) can stimulate the body to produce vitamin D. People who are unable to absorb vitamin D from food or supplements, or those with limited sun exposure, are often vitamin D insufficient.

This can be rectified by getting daily sun exposure around noon and/or using a UVB lamp for just a few minutes daily when sunbathing is not possible. UVB light is highly effective for treating psoriasis and other skin problems as well. These light bulbs are now available without a prescription in Canada and fortunately one of the manufacturers of UVB bulbs is in Barrie, Ontario.[1]

In 2016, I was diagnosed with breast cancer that had metastasized to my lymph nodes and lungs, resulting in Stage 4 cancer that is considered fatal. In the opinion of one of my medical colleagues, I only had a few months to live. While I did ultimately agree to chemotherapy, I also incorporated a number of complementary practices into my healthcare regime.

Two of those practices involved daily UV exposure at home and a series of intravenous ozone injections at a doctor’s clinic. (An increasing number of medical and naturopathic doctors in North America provide IV ozone for their patients.)

Doctors told me to increase my vitamin D level because this helps cancer patients in a variety of ways. Initially I took vitamin D supplements, and then changed my regime to using a UVB light bulb for up to three minutes daily to boost my vitamin D levels. Or when the weather permitted, I would sunbathe in my backyard.

In addition, I underwent ozone therapy, which involved having ozone introduced into my rectum and vagina. I have also had several treatments with IV ozone called the ten-pass system. However, only a few doctors offer this service in Canada, including Dr. Fred Hui in Toronto. The ten-pass system consists of removing about 200 ml (a cup) of blood from a patient, slowly introducing ozone into the blood, and then allowing the blood to flow back into the body. This is done 10 times, hence the name. A small amount of Heparin is added to this mixture to prevent blood clots. Sometimes the blood is also passed through UV light to help kill microbes.

I shared this information with my oncologist and although he was not opposed to the complementary treatments, he did not support them. I had chemotherapy every three weeks, and after several months my oncologist told me that I had the healthiest blood he had ever seen in a cancer patient.

So in summary, here are the integrative strategies I used to recover from cancer, in addition to chemotherapy.

1. REMOVE THE SOURCES OF CARCINOGENS:

• External environment: chemicals and mold (well-known toxins that need to be eliminated); electrosmog (this is a big one and becoming more important as we continue to pollute our environment with wireless technology); other stressors (including emotional ones dealing with people, finances, etc.)
• Internal environment: detoxification using saunas, colonics, chelating agents, supplements and other modalities, dental work (very important and often ignored and this includes removing mercury fillings, metal in the mouth, root canals, etc.); stress (emotional responses needs to be controlled with yoga, meditation, etc.)

2. SUPPORT THE IMMUNE SYSTEM:
   • High dose vitamin C, administered intravenously
   • Ultraviolet therapy for vitamin D production
   • Ozone therapy for nitric oxide production, detoxification, antimicrobial activity

3. INCREASE CELLULAR ENERGY:

• Pulsed electromagnetic field therapy: improves circulation, reduces inflammation and pain
• Low level light therapy: increases cellular ATP energy production, and provides nitric oxide support

4. STARVE CANCER CELLS BY REMOVING THEIR ENERGY SOURCES (sugars and starches).

• Food: modified ketogenic diet (cancer cells require sugar as a food source, so removal of sugars and starches are most important to starve cancer cells).  Several diets will work here including the ketogenic diet, Mercola’s fat flush diet, as well as Bernardo Majalca’s diet that allows for more starches but helps control pH and other important physiological functions.

5. CREATE A HOSTILE INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT FOR CANCER CELLS:
   • Oxygenated internal environment: Cancer cells don’t flourish in oxygenated, alkaline environments. Ozone therapy kills microbes, oxygenates the body, increases antioxidant activity in body.
   • Alkaline internal environment: Consume foods and supplements that promote alkalinity rather than acidity in the body.
   • High temperature: Cancer cells also can’t tolerate temperatures above 42 degrees Celsius, hence the value of hyperthermia. This later concept was discovered when cancer patients who developed prolonged fever experienced remission from their cancer. Doctors began to test the value of induced hyperthermia (elevated body temperature) and now it is a method used by a growing number of clinics worldwide for both localized tumours and dispersed cancers like leukemia. The body’s temperature can be raised through inducing fever, spending time in a sauna*, using Oncotherm (combination of heat and Rife-like frequencies).
   • * The brand name of the sauna I used is Sauna Ray.  This is a low-EMF sauna that has all natural wood products and no artificial glues, so it is one of the best saunas available for chemically and electromagnetically sensitive people.  The manufacturer is located in Collingwood, Ontario.

Update: Three Years Later…

After my article in Vitality magazine and another CT scan, I learned that a small lump in my left breast and in one lymph node were still present. My oncologist said this would be a good time to have them removed as the lumps were small and a lumpectomy was now possible.

I found an excellent surgeon, very understanding, who just wanted to do whatever was best for me. (You need to find a surgeon you feel comfortable with. My first surgeon wanted both breast removed … just in case.) I had the operation and was home the same day. Drainage from the wound took several days before it stopped and I needed to do exercises to get my muscles working.

It turned out that only one lymph node was affected by the cancer, although all lymph nodes in my left underarm were removed and I haven’t experienced any swelling. Part of my upper arm and breast are numb because the nerves were cut. Expect in the future, when surgeons become really proficient, damage to nerves will be much reduced.

I was then encouraged to have radiation therapy to make certain there weren’t any small cancerous cells floating around in my body. I had several sessions and felt that the radiation damaged some of my breast tissue as it is always red and looks different than the skin on the unradiated breast.

My latest CT scan showed that I was cancer-free. Even the small spot on my lung had disappeared.

Getting the scan made a world of difference in my attitude. I felt that I had finally (or at least for the time being) conquered the cancer and prevented further metastasis. Didn’t realize that I still had so much anxiety about the remaining lump until that anxiety vanished along with the cancer.

I’m indebted to all the doctors, nurses, friends and family who supported me during this ordeal and I feel stronger as a result. All I want to do is share the experience and offer hope to those going through a similar ordeal.”

RESOURCES & REFERENCES:

The three clinics that we know of which are making IV vitamin C available to patients as part of an integrative medicine approach to wellness, are:

• • • Markham Integrative Medicine, Dr. John Gannage, MD, (905) 294-2335; office at 300 Main St Markham North, Ont.  https://integrative-medicine.ca/
    • Chelation and IV Clinic, Dr. Fred Hui, MD, call (705) 721-1969 (3 locations in Toronto and Barrie)
    • Nature Medicine Clinic, Dr. Michael Prytula, ND, call 1-905-684-4934; office at 296 Welland Ave., St. Catharines, Ont.  http://www.naturemedicine.ca/

MANUFACTURER / SUPPLIER OF UV LIGHT BULBS, SUPPLIES:

• [1] Solarc Systems in Barrie, Ontario manufactures UVB light therapy devices (including the bulbs used by Prof. Magda Havas). Readers of Vitality Magazine receive a special 5% discount. Use coupon code VIT5OFF when purchasing via phone or online at https://goo.gl/oZfSqR
• For a complete list of ultraviolet products, including bulbs used by Magda, see the article: The Vital Light of Nikola Tesla: Healing Power of UV Rays at https://tinyurl.com/Vitality-Teslasmedicine