A List of Alternative Cancer Therapies

“You have incurable brain cancer. Right now there is no treatment proven to improve your lifespan.”

That’s what my wife was told in 2010 after MRI results and surgery confirmed the tumour in her left temporal lobe was malignant. Six years later and my wife is still going strong. We’ve been through the ringer of alternative therapies and back out the other side towards more conventional treatment.

This is a continuation of an earlier post about why people turn to alternative cancer therapy and things you can do to make sure you aren’t getting scammed.

In this instalment I list alternative therapies my wife is trying right now, has tried in the past, or therapies we’ve looked into and decided not to go ahead with. I’ve ordered them under headings of ‘sanctioned by medical professionals’, ‘promising’ and ‘unproven’. I hope they offer some help to those looking into options best suited to them. This is not an exhaustive list of everything that is out there. If you’re after a basic compendium of over 200 alternative cancer treatments head here.

SANCTIONED BY MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS

Meditation

Some people might be surprised to learn that meditation is recommended by respected groups like the Anti-Cancer Council. There is some evidence to suggest that the practice not only helps with general wellbeing, but can have positive effects at a cellular level. Considering meditation is great for general wellbeing it seems like a no-brainer for anyone trying to get that bit extra out of their health. I recommend Headspace for those looking to get an easy introduction into the world of mindfulness. It’s a free app that steers clear of a lot of the new-age nonsense you’re likely to encounter in this area.

Exercise

Some people will be rolling their eyes at this one. Of course exercise helps! However, in the past lots of rest was recommended by doctors to help recover from standard care like chemotherapy. New evidence suggests that the exact opposite is the case. Keeping fit does wonders for anyone’s health. It is a small miracle for those wanting to ward off side-effects of radio or chemotherapy and keep energy levels up. Watch the documentary I’ve linked to if you’re skeptical in any way.

PROMISING

Metabolic Therapy

Metabolic therapy has been revived as a promising area of research, after falling dormant for a number of decades. This is an interesting NY Times article on the subject if you’re interested. Regimes like the Ketogenic Diet and drugs like Metformin, which help manipulate metabolisms, have some positive research behind them already. The following few therapies all fall under a metabolic banner.

Ketogenic Diet

Tara is currently on a Ketogenic diet and has been for ten months. You may of heard about it already as it’s trending in weight-loss circles. The idea is that most tumours feed on glucose as their life source. If you can cut off that supply, you cut off, or slow, the cancer’s ability to grow. A ‘Keto’ diet is very low carbohydrate, medium protein and high fat. If you follow it strictly, your metabolism flips to using ketones for energy instead of glucose. Some evidence suggests this is particularly promising for brain tumour sufferers. It isn’t a cure, but may well be a solid tactic to improve lifespan or avoid getting cancer in the first place. There are some health drawbacks if you’re in ketosis long term, so do your research before heading in. Here’s a good resource. The diet itself is damn tough, especially when you’re a vegetarian like Tara. Things would be a lot easier if you are happy nailing bacon and other fatty meats. The hardest thing for Tara is avoiding fruit. You can only eat a very small amount of berries, and even then should probably avoid them if you want to stay in deep ketosis. If you like things like beer, you’re pretty much toast. Oh, toast is a no no too. I’d file this under promising, but plenty of discipline is required.

Metformin

This is a drug normally used by diabetics to manipulate insulin production. There is some evidence to suggest this can help in staving off cancer, but it is far from conclusive. Metabolism/cancer guru Thomas Seyfried advises to steer clear of Metformin if you’re on a ketogenic diet. Another respected researcher in this space is Dominic D’agostino. Here is a good podcast with Tim Ferriss and D’agostino on the subject. ‘Dr. Dom’ does seem to advocate the use of Metformin in conjunction with a ketogenic diet in the interview (along with things like oxygen therapy). However, in this interview he says there simply isn’t enough evidence for anything to be conclusive. We are yet to give this a go, and probably won’t because of underwhelming evidence and conflicting information.

Dichloroacetate, 2-deoxyglucose and phenylbutyrate

These are quite different drugs, but all have been suggested to help work in conjunction with a ketogenic diet to inhibit tumour growth. We haven’t tried these personally yet, but possibly will if Tara’s current round of chemotherapy isn’t as successful as we hope. Dichloroacetate does sound like there can be some side effects, particularly liver damage. So be wary if you’re looking at it. The others seem a bit safer, but I’m yet to do proper research. Of these, 2-deoxyglucose makes the most logical sense, as it’s supposed to help limit glucose production. It also does have some toxicity, so be really careful with dosage.

Fasting

Another promising avenue in the area of metabolic therapy is fasting. It works on a similar principal of flipping into ketogenic pathways instead of glucose. There is also some good evidence to suggest that fasting can help offset the side effects of chemo and radiotherapy, and assist in regenerating the immune system. I think it’s worth doing as long as you’re responsible about it and do your research first. Tara undergoes a 3 day, water-only fast once a month, which appears to be the most studied option showing positive benefits. If you are looking at this, remember that doctors recommend to keep your weight up during chemo if you can. So, practice in moderation.

Cannabis Oil (also called Rick Simpson Oil)

This is the popular kid on the alternative therapy block right now. There is at least one medical study which shows promising results using cannabinoids to reduce brain tumour growth, and more are underway. Considering the potential, Tara is taking cannabis oil while she undergoes chemo and radiotherapy. She has a high THC oil at night and a high CBD tincture in the morning. While most support groups online are overwhelmingly in favour of a high THC regime, the trial I linked to above suggests a 50/50 split is the most effective. It’s worth noting that trial above is on mice, and medically you cannot draw parallels to human subjects using the same regime. However, it is at least something to start on. I’ll report on any significant progress here if/when it comes to hand. If you’re interested in giving it a try Rick Simpson’s website is an okay place to start. Beware of highly emotive ‘testimonials’ and a strong bias against the medical establishment.

Cannabis oil is also a promising way to manage pain and appetite during cancer treatment, or other chronic diseases. We’ve also noticed that it has helped significantly in managing Tara’s nausea during chemotherapy.

Oxygen Therapy

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy is something I’m aware of but haven’t looked into deeply. It helps with cell metabolism and promoting healthy physiological functions. Upon research it does appear people with brain tumours are more susceptible to high oxygen toxicity during this treatment, so if we went ahead we would have to start slow. There are quite a few medical conditions that oxygen has proven to help with, like recovering from infections and also radiation. That leads me to believe that it might help with offsetting some of the side effects of radiotherapy. There are also cases where oxygen therapy can include injecting hydrogen peroxide. This sounds dangerous, so I’d be doing plenty of research before diving into this.

UNPROVEN

Alkaline Diet

Made popular by the book Alkalize or Die, there is a lot to be said about an ‘alkaline’ diet. Plenty of vegetables and less alcohol, coffee and cigarettes is bound to have positive health benefits. However, I’ve put this in unproven, because blood alkalinity is tightly regulated by the kidneys within a very narrow range. It can’t be changed for any meaningful amount of time by what you eat, and any extra acid or alkali is simply passed out in urine (so if you use pee testing sticks to check your alkalinity you’ll read alkaline, even if your blood isn’t). A ketogenic diet seems to have more evidence behind it for cancer regulation and is actually fairly acidic. I’d simply say, eat a healthy diet and you improve your chances of being healthier.

Antineoplaston Therapy

This is a therapy made famous by the Burzynski Movie. It uses a mix of peptides, which are claimed to be especially good at curing brain tumours. We looked into this deeply because of the documentary and decided not to go ahead. There were too many red flags, including the fact that even though Dr. Burzynski has registered sixty plus medical trails for his treatment, he has never published full results. It is also incredibly expensive. There are options for antineoplaston therapy in Japan as well, which have not been able to produce the results Burzynski claims. I still recommend you watch the movie, but if you do, read this counter-argument website as well and make up your own mind.

Shark Cartilage

The basic argument here is no shark has ever died of cancer, so if you take their skins and ingest them, somehow it will cure you. First, here’s a picture of a shark with tumours. Apparently we’ve known that sharks can die of cancer for over a hundred years, but this treatment still persists. Early on in our alternative therapy journey, Tara used shark cartilage paste mixed with Laetrile to take as a suppository. She did it for eighteen months. The only thing she got from that were farts that smelled like a seaside orchard.

Laetrile (also called Amygdalin or Vitamin B17)

Amygdalin is a poisonous, cyanogenic glycoside found in many plants — most notably in the seeds of apricots. Laetrile is a patented drug made from Amygdalin. It’s also often referred to as Vitamin B17 to give it a natural sounding name, but is not a vitamin. The idea is that the cyanide in this drug can only target cancer cells because of its special glucose casing. While this had no effect on reducing the size of my wife’s tumour, there are people who absolutely swear by this. It is rumoured that Ronald Regan cured his bowel cancer using this drug. Actor Steve McQueen did take Laetrile as part of his cancer regime and still died of the disease. It is generally hard to get (at least in Australia) and can be expensive. I think it’s a hoax and should be avoided.

MMS (Miracle Mineral Solution)

This is basically sodium chlorite in distilled water. It’s used to clean pools, is an active ingredient in bleach and is pretty poisonous. It is claimed to cure HIV, malaria, cancer, acne and more. That ‘Cure-All’ badge should be a red flag in itself. If you do take it you have to be super careful, starting with very small doses and scaling up one drop at a time. I’m embarrassed to say this one got past our early selection criteria, mostly because we were scrambling in fear, trying to make sure Tara didn’t die. She did try this and it made her very nauseous, so she stopped after a couple of months. Since then there have been other methods developed for taking it, that are apparently safer, but after the initial experience we won’t be trying it again.

Gc-Maf

As immunotherapy becomes a promising area for genuine cancer research, Gc-Maf and immune boosting diets are also becoming popular. Gc-Maf is a protein that apparently helps regulate the immune system, particularly tumour growth. Gc-Maf clinics have popped up particularly in Europe (Germany and Scandinavia) as well as Asia. It is very expensive. We had a friend who went through a regime of Gc-Maf combined with oxygen therapy, hyperthermia and more, in Thailand. Upon returning home her MRI scan showed no reduction in her tumour. It is possible the treatment kept an otherwise growing tumour stable, but she was disappointed with the outcome. Given the expense and lack of evidence we won’t give it a try. However, I do think immunity boosting diets, and other immunotherapies could be a good idea in general.

Gerson Therapy

In short this is a very strict schedule of juicing. The basic concept is that the current western diet is grossly deficient in many vitamins and minerals, and because of this we are susceptible to lots of nasty things like heart disease and cancer. To reverse this, undergoing a regime of vitamin and mineral rich juices is supposed to be key. While I think a good case can be made about the health benefits of having freshly-made juice, the Gerson Therapy doesn’t stack up for me as a cure for cancer. It is unsustainable unless you’re locking yourself away and doing nothing but juicing 24/7. Quality of life is severely restricted. Famous health blogger and cancer sufferer Jess Ainscough went through this therapy numerous times and persuaded her mother to do the same. Jess did defy the odds for a while, but succumbed to the disease in 2015. Her mother died from cancer in 2013 after a short battle with the disease. Those are at least two data points showing the treatment hasn’t been successful as a long term cure. I can’t find any reliable evidence of someone who has been cured from Gerson Therapy.

Black Salve

This ointment made from various roots and zinc chloride is primary touted as a treatment for skin cancer. Because this has no bearing on brain cancer Tara never tried it, but I’ve considered it a few times because I have very fair skin. The idea is that this salve draws unhealthy cells out of the skin before they become an issue. If you put it on the site of a melanoma it will suck it out, almost like a slug. I have a healthy friend who has done this a few times on worrying sun spots. He was happy with the results, but does have some minor scarring from the process. There are quite a few Youtube videos around of people using this if you want to look into it more. There are also horror cases where this has gone seriously wrong. So, I’d say approach with caution. Considering frequent skin checks and early detection of skin cancer provides excellent survival rates through conventional treatment I’m not sure I would use this. But, backed into a corner I may relook at giving it a go.

Vitamin C Therapy

In 1976, Nobel Prize-winner Linus Pauling reported that terminal cancer patients treated with 10,000 mg of vitamin C daily survived three to four times longer than similar patients who did not receive vitamin C supplements. However, since then the study has been proven incorrect in its procedure. Three further double-blind studies in the late 70s and early 80s have shown that patients taking megadoses of vitamin C did no better than placebo patients. Still, this treatment persists and is sometimes recommended by doctors and naturopaths. Tara underwent oral vitamin C therapy prior to her brain surgery for preparation, then had twelve weeks of vitamin C infusions post-surgery to help with recovery. She felt good during the therapy, and thinks it helped her get over surgery. However, it did not result in any reduction in tumour size.

Hyperthermia Therapy

Hyperthermia treatment is often used in conjunction with other treatments at alternative cancer treatment centres. A friend of Tara’s with the same tumour as her underwent this kind of treatment. She reported that it was pretty uncomfortable (very hot), but that it didn’t have any other side effects. She did not experience any reduction of tumour size after checking using an MRI scan post-treatment.

Reishi Mushrooms

There are five kinds of mushrooms I’ve seen touted as potentially helpful in managing tumour growth. These are Reishi, Shitake, Maitake, Turkey Tail Mushrooms and Agaricus Blazei Murill. There seems to be a bit of evidence floating around from Japanese studies that show positive results here, but nothing super conclusive. Tara did take a mushroom tincture for a while which mixed a few of these together. She did not experience any reduction in her tumour as a result.

MORE

There are lots of other alternative treatments out there I haven’t discussed here because we haven’t looked into them. If you have, please share your own experience in the comments. I’ll update this post from time to time if/when we have more data or treatments to include that we’ve tried. Thanks for reading. I hope it was helpful.

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Note: A few times above I’ve mentioned that Tara and other friends did not experience a reduction in tumour size because of a certain treatment. I want to recognise that tumour reduction isn’t the only important thing in the treatment of cancer. Simply offsetting any growth for a long period of time is a big win in terms of longevity. However, it brings up the question: was the ‘non-growth’ a result of treatment, or was it simply not growing anyway? I’ve seen some alternative cancer advocates tout non-growth as conclusive evidence that their treatment is working. I’ve even heard of doctors suggesting a treatment is stopping growth when there hasn’t been a positive reduction. While I think it’s a plausible outcome that treatments stop the cancer from spreading, I want to point out that it’s not something that can be easily measured outside of proper medical trials and therefore should be approached with some caution when talking ‘results’.

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