Life Extension Cancer Topics
The following information has been developed by Life Extension to address common concerns regarding cancer, cancer treatment, and cancer patient nutrition. Each section provides general information along with specific nutrition suggestions for each cancer topic.
Breast Cancer | Cancer Radiation Therapy | Cancer Surgery | Cancer Treatment | Cancer Vaccines | Colorectal Cancer | Alternative Cancer Therapies
Leukemia | Lung Cancer | Lymphoma | Pancreatic Cancer | Prostate Cancer | Uterine (Endometrial) Cancer
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Most women share a common fear: developing breast cancer. This is not an unfounded fear when considering that, except for lung cancer, breast cancer is the most common cancer found in women, accounting for one of every three diagnoses. However, men are also affected by breast cancer. In 2002 the American Cancer Association estimate that 1500 men will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and 400 will die as a result. more |
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Along with surgery and chemotherapy, radiation therapy (radiotherapy) is one of the most important methods of cancer treatment. At least 50 percent of all cancer patients will receive radiotherapy at some stage during the course of their illness. It is currently used to treat localized solid tumors, such as cancers of the skin, brain, breast, or cervix, and can also be used to treat leukemia and lymphoma. more |
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Surgery poses many risks to a cancer patient. The known side effects associated with the surgical removal of tumors include anesthesia complications, infections, and immune suppression. A surgery side effect of concern to cancer patients is that the removal of the primary tumor may directly stimulate cancer spread (the propagation of metastatic lesions). more |
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Determining the best way of treating cancer remains highly controversial, even among mainstream oncologists. What may surprise the reader is the large number of documented therapies that have been overlooked by establishment medicine. more |
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Cancer immunotherapies, including cancer vaccines, are novel investigational cancer therapies. In contrast to chemotherapy and radiotherapy regimens that are often associated with severe side effects, cancer immunotherapy stimulates the body’s immune system and natural resistance to cancer, thus offering a gentler means of cancer treatment that is less damaging to the rest of the body. more |
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Cancer of the colon and rectum (colorectal cancer) affects nearly 160,000 Americans each year, causing approximately 62,070 deaths annually. Colorectal cancer ranks fourth worldwide in cancer occurrence and deaths (Shibuya K et al 2002), though it has a better prognosis than do most cancers. more |
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Mainstream medical treatment of cancer revolves around surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy, used either alone or in combination (Isobe T et al 2005; Ostoros G et al 2005). Chemotherapy and radiation therapy cannot discriminate between cancer cells and healthy cells; thus, they damage both types of cells and cause serious and often debilitating side effects, frequently forcing patients to abandon treatment. more |
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Leukemia refers to cancers that begin in the blood-forming cells of the body. These abnormal cells grow and multiply in an uncontrolled way. As the disease progresses, leukemic cells move through the blood stream and invade other organs, such as the spleen, lymph nodes, liver, and central nervous system. more |
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Each year, an estimated 93,000 men and 82,000 women in the United States will be diagnosed with lung cancer, with a median age of 70 years of age (Jemal A et al 2006; Gloeckler Ries LA et al 2003). To date the prognosis is grim for most forms of lung cancer as the five-year overall survival rate of only 14 percent has hardly changed in the past 50 years. more |
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More than 60,000 Americans were diagnosed with some form of lymphoma in 2004, and more than 20,000 died from their disease. Lymphomas are linked to a variety of risk factors, including diet, medical history, environmental exposure to chemicals, and infections. more |
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Little is known about the causes of pancreatic cancer. The disease is difficult to diagnose in its early stages, as it presents few symptoms and there are few tests to screen for it. As a result, most patients have incurable disease by the time they are diagnosed. Fewer than 5 percent of pancreatic cancer patients survive five years beyond diagnosis of the disease. more |
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The battle to prevent this disease, to diagnose it earlier, and to treat it effectively is also not occurring at the proper pace largely because men are not taking an active role in winning this war. As we are learning in our war against terrorism, you defeat the enemy by recognizing their presence early (not late), preventing their buildup, learning their location, and eradicating them with the proper weaponry. more |
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Cancer of the uterus is the most common cancer of the female reproductive tract, with an annual rate of 21 per 100,000 women (Greenlee RT et al 2001). The majority of uterine (endometrial) cancer cases occur around or after menopause between the ages of 60 and 75 years. In the United States, 2 percent to 3 percent of women will develop cancer of the uterus during their lifetimes. more |
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