Hi, unfortunately it appears that the link that you provided is no longer available. I honor your sound advice that every case is different, and there is a lot of conflicting information on the internet. However, I sense here that the advice is that the doctors be the only source of information. I am a two time breast cancer survivor, have several family members who are doctors and work in the pharma industry. While I advocate that we use all avenues available to us, there is a tendency from the medical profession to only recommend pharmaceuticals, many of which come with intolerable side effects. Information to help us maximize our survival that we see on the news or in magazines is often ignored by the doctors. After my second diagnosis several years ago (local recurrence in the same breast), I received five opinions on treatment options and every one of them were different! Two went to the tumor boards of prominent university hospitals and one was a physician in CA who has a breast cancer consultation service. It inspired me to educate myself on options, rather than leaving all the decisions to my doctors (who were apparently all in disagreement). As an example, I had mentioned the role of Vitamin D and cancer to my oncologist years ago and he dismissed it. Now it's commonly recommended by my OB and other primary care physician for its many benefits beyond just cancer. Despite all the information on the role of diet we hear on the TV and magazines, it's never been raised by any of my physicians. Again, not to knock the fine work that they do but they are not the sole authority and don't always know best. My 80 year old uncle a physician in CA told me something to keep in mind when I was first diagnosed. Each specialist would always recommend their "stuff" (i.e. medical oncologist chemo, radiation oncologist radiation, surgeon surgery). We have become enamored with the miracle drugs and have lost sight of also boosting our own body's ability to heal. I know time has elapsed since this original post so not sure the route Ron's wife went. If I was asked today, I would say present the information on both DIM and Arimidex and ultimately have his wife go with her gut on what course to take. My hope is that the cancer world will change to where all modalities are used for a holistic approach to cancer, and an environment where the patient is active in the decision making process. After all, many patients these days die not from their diseases but from complications from medical treatments.
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Hi, unfortunately it appears that the link that you provided is no longer available. I honor your sound advice that every case is different, and there is a lot of conflicting information on the internet. However, I sense here that the advice is that the doctors be the only source of information. I am a two time breast cancer survivor, have several family members who are doctors and work in the pharma industry. While I advocate that we use all avenues available to us, there is a tendency from the medical profession to only recommend pharmaceuticals, many of which come with intolerable side effects. Information to help us maximize our survival that we see on the news or in magazines is often ignored by the doctors. After my second diagnosis several years ago (local recurrence in the same breast), I received five opinions on treatment options and every one of them were different! Two went to the tumor boards of prominent university hospitals and one was a physician in CA who has a breast cancer consultation service. It inspired me to educate myself on options, rather than leaving all the decisions to my doctors (who were apparently all in disagreement). As an example, I had mentioned the role of Vitamin D and cancer to my oncologist years ago and he dismissed it. Now it's commonly recommended by my OB and other primary care physician for its many benefits beyond just cancer. Despite all the information on the role of diet we hear on the TV and magazines, it's never been raised by any of my physicians. Again, not to knock the fine work that they do but they are not the sole authority and don't always know best. My 80 year old uncle a physician in CA told me something to keep in mind when I was first diagnosed. Each specialist would always recommend their "stuff" (i.e. medical oncologist chemo, radiation oncologist radiation, surgeon surgery). We have become enamored with the miracle drugs and have lost sight of also boosting our own body's ability to heal. I know time has elapsed since this original post so not sure the route Ron's wife went. If I was asked today, I would say present the information on both DIM and Arimidex and ultimately have his wife go with her gut on what course to take. My hope is that the cancer world will change to where all modalities are used for a holistic approach to cancer, and an environment where the patient is active in the decision making process. After all, many patients these days die not from their diseases but from complications from medical treatments.
October 14, 2010 - 2:50pmThis Comment
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