This article fills in
many of the blanks regarding alkaline therapy and pretty well places it on the
go to list for all cancer victims.
In fact, the absolute
first step for a victim is to immediately convert to a vegan diet regime. This is not enough to finish the job but it
is enough to prepare your body for the final push with the optimum chance of a
successful outcome.
We have also posted on
maple sugar and baking soda which may be an excellent preventative
measure. However, once facing the
diagnosis, go vegan and then locate a specialist to guide you through the therapy
and monitor your blood chemistry.
I have to say that this
is the one therapy able to help people
without harming them. Yet after saying
all that, I do not think that late stage cancer leaves you much room to play,
so this can help perhaps but be unable to stop a runaway process that is
changing your body.
Why An Alkaline
Approach Can Successfully Treat Cancer
Nancy
Elizabeth Shaw
August
14, 2013
In
the 1930′s, an interesting natural cancer treatment was proposed as a simple,
effective answer to cancer – almost any cancer. This treatment approach
is not well known because it is considered alternative or experimental – or
even dangerous[i] - by the
medical and scientific community and hence has been referenced primarily in
obscure publications outside the mainstream press.
This
treatment approach is called alkaline therapy or pH therapy, and is based in
part on observations of cultures without significant incidence of cancer[ii] and in part
on scientific observations of and experimentation with cellular metabolism.[iii]
The
principles of pH therapy are very simple. The metabolism of cancer cells
has a very narrow pH tolerance for cellular proliferation (mitosis), which is
between 6.5 and 7.5. As such, if you can interfere with cancer cell
metabolism by either lowering or raising the internal cancer cell pH, you can
theoretically stop cancer progression.[iv]
While
lowering cancer cell pH (increasing acidity) is effective against cancer cell
mitosis in the lab, increasing acid levels in the live body of a cancer patient
puts stress on normal cells and causes a lot of pain. So the proposed
alkaline therapy for people is a “high pH therapy” and has been developed to
normalize the intracellular pH of the cancer patient’s body through elimination
of latent acidosis, while increasing the pH of cancer cells to a range above
7.5. According to published research, it is at that pH they revert to a
normal cellular apoptosis cycle (programed cell death).[v]
Ideally,
this approach begins with an alkaline diet. There is general agreement
amongst natural healers and medical professionals alike, that changing a cancer
patient’s diet is extremely helpful when someone is confronted with a cancer
diagnosis. In a previous article, I outlined the six steps that every
cancer patient should take to provide the best chance to heal from and prevent
future recurrences of cancer using alkaline diet principles.[vi]
The
alkaline diet, which is primarily plant-based and avoids sugar, dairy, wheat
and other high-gluten grains as well as an excess consumption of fruits, while
emphasizing fresh vegetables and vegetable juices along with cruciferous
vegetables and greens, changes the body’s intracellular pH to come close to the
ideal blood pH of 7.3/7.41 - a key metabolic accomplishment on the path
to longevity whether you have cancer or not! An alkaline diet based on
vegetables and fruits creates a less-than-optimal environment for cancer
proliferation, while at the same time strengthens the immune function and
supports healthy cells in the body through improved nutrition.
The
second step is to use some nutritional mechanism to move the internal cancer
cell pH from the optimal mitosis range of pH 6.5 to 7.5, to above 8, which
shortens the life of the cancer cell. As described by its proponents,
alkaline therapy neutralizes the acid waste of the cancer which causes so much
pain, interferes with the anaerobic fermentation of glucose that starts the
self-feeding acidic cancer wasting cycle called cachexia and in
time, can induce remission. If this theory of alkaline therapy holds
true, it should be possible to address cancer without chemotherapy, radiation
or surgery and use alkaline therapy as a primary cancer treatment.
This
bold statement comes from a somewhat abstruse body of research. In the
1880′s, Louis Pasteur published his work on cellular aerobic respiration and
glycolysis. In 1931, Otto Warburg won the Nobel Prize for his work on the
metabolism of tumors and the respiration of cells, which was later summarized
in his 1956 paper, On the Origin of Cancer Cells. His work on cancer
expanded upon Pasteur’s findings and described respiratory insufficiency and a
cellular metabolism of glucose fermentation as the primary trigger for cancer
progression[vii].
Warburg’s
conclusions on cancer were much discussed in scientific circles, as they are
academically elegant, but were not accepted by most members of the scientific
community engaged in cancer research. Most cancer researchers in the late
1950′s believed that the anaerobic metabolism of cancer cells and their
accompanying output of lactic acid was a side effect or an adjunct effect of
cancer, not a cause. Cancer research since the 1960′s has focused
primarily on genetic aberrations as causative for cancer, and has ignored the
body of research on cancer pH and its implications for therapeutic approaches.[viii]
Warburg’s
work was a catalyst for yet another research effort on the nature of cancer
cells, beginning in the 1930′s. A. Keith Brewer, PhD (physicist)
performed experiments on the relationship between energized, oxygenated cell
membrane and elemental uptake, vs. cellular membranes in an unenergized state
such as cancer cells exhibit. He wrote a number of papers discussing the
cellular mechanisms of cancer cells and the changes in metabolism induced or
indicated by the lack of or presence of oxygen in combination with other
elements, particularly potassium and calcium. He noted that cancer
cells share one characteristic no matter what type of cancer: they have
lost their pH control mechanism.
Brewer’s
summary conclusion regarding cancer was that by changing the pH of cancer cells
to alkaline (above 7.5), they will cease to function as they need an acidic,
anaerobic environment to thrive. In other words, he proposed that cancer
cells will die if they can be pushed into an alkaline, oxygenated state.[ix]
Brewer’s
work cites areas in the world where cancer incidents are very low. These
areas contain concentrations of alkalizing minerals in the soil and water,
which are greater than in other parts of the world. For example, the
Hunza of northern Pakistan and the Hopi Indians of the American West share both
similar soil and water conditions and diet. The alkaline elemental
minerals of cesium chloride, germanium and rubidium are heavily present in the
soil and water. Ingestion of these elements is correspondingly
high. These peoples also live in similar high, dry climates and grow
apricot orchards, traditionally eating the fresh or dried fruit and the seeds
each day.
It
should be noted that apricot seeds are the source of the controversial cancer
treatment Laetrile or B-17/Amygdalin.[x] Apricot
seeds contain trace amounts of cyanide, which has long been identified
as a potential chemotherapeutic agent against cancer proliferation.[xi] Other
similarities in the diet include a low consumption of dairy products, meat and
wheat, as these foodstuffs are difficult to farm in high, arid climates and a
correspondingly greater consumption of millet, buckwheat, nuts, dried fruits
and berries in their traditional diets, all of which contain a similar enhanced
(though sill minute) concentration of cyanide.
This
is all very interesting, but what does it really mean for cancer patients who
wish to avoid the pain of cancer and the typical course of treatment using
surgery, chemotherapy and radiation? What are the conditions that will
force cancer cells to change their pH?
Conventional
chemotherapeutic agents such as Cytoxan usually cause more damage to normal
cells than to cancer cells, because cancer cells have a very thick, unenergized
cellular membrane that essentially protects them from absorbing many
drugs. Normal cells have no such protection.
Conversely,
cancer cells have no way to normalize their internal pH, where normal cells are
relatively unaffected by high concentrations of alkalizing minerals.
However cancer cells take up primarily two elements: glucose and
potassium.
In
practical application, then, it is necessary to find a way to guide alkalizing
elements – such as cesium, germanium or rubidium – into cancer cells, without
impacting normal cells. It turns out this can be done using a transport
agent that penetrates the bone/blood barriers, then relying on the normal
uptake of alkalizing elements that follow the potassium pathway. Cancer
cells appear to have preferential uptake of cesium chloride in particular, but
also take up germanium, rubidium, selenium, etc. all through the potassium
pathway.
There
is a compound that is frequently applied to the skin by arthritis sufferers for
relief of inflammation, used in brain surgery to relieve intracranial pressure
and topically used in sports medicine and veterinary medicine,[xii] also
for reducing inflammation. This compound is called DMSO and it is formed
in the slurry created from soaking wood chips in water that is a bi-product of
the paper making industry.
Folklore
has it that workers in the paper making industry were observed to have their
hands in water continuously, but they never developed arthritis and had rapidly
healing skin and strong nails. Experimentation with DMSO as a medical
treatment began in the 1800′s and continues to the present day. DMSO is
medically approved in the United States only for the treatment of interstitial
cystitis, a type of inflammation of the bladder.[xiii]
The
reason DMSO is so interesting to cancer patients is that, in addition to its
anti-inflammatory properties, it is a “carrier agent.” It penetrates the
brain/blood barrier and carries with it whatever drug or mineral is mixed with.
There
is now some interest in the cancer industry in potentially using DMSO to carry
chemotherapeutic agents into cancer cells and get beyond their protective
membrane. However, for the purposes of changing the alkalinity of cancer
cells using cesium chloride, germanium, rubidium and other alkalizing minerals,
DMSO and its ingestible form, MSM, are an effective medium. Essentially
these agents carry the minerals into all areas of the body including the brain,
organs and bone marrow, where they can be used with other nutrients in ordinary
cellular metabolism.
Using
topically applied and ingested alkaline minerals to change cancer cell pH is
not a new idea. Controlled experiments and the personal use of this
method have been ongoing since the mid-1900s. However, it is
important to note that the only FDA approved clinical trial did not have
outstanding results.[xiv]
About 50% of the participants died – though if you read the study results in
detail you will discover that they had been pronounced terminal before the
trial began and some of them never even took one treatment. Others had
side effects ranging from leg cramps to heart arrhythmia. A careful read
will lead you to believe that perhaps they were given too strong a dose in too
short a period of time.[xv]
From
this research and subsequent studies, it is now understood that alkaline
minerals look to normal cells and to cancer cells like potassium. All
cells require potassium to function. The reason cancer cells take up
these alkaline minerals is their resemblance to potassium.
Functionally,
however, these minerals cannot take the place of potassium in cellular
metabolism. While substituting alkaline minerals for potassium creates
exactly the desired result in cancer cells – increased alkalinity – when normal
cells replace potassium with other minerals over the long term the consequences
can be quite serious as it causes electrolyte imbalance, manifested as
heart arrhythmia and leg cramps.[xvi]
The
remedy to this condition of electrolyte imbalance, caused by replacement of
potassium in healthy cells with other alkaline minerals during pH therapy, is
simple in practical application. Alkaline minerals are ingested or
applied to the skin only during the day. Then before sleep, the user must
take potassium chloride supplementation along with other electrolytes such as
magnesium and calcium if needed. Monitoring of potassium blood levels
every two weeks by a doctor is critical if a cancer patient decides to
incorporate alkaline therapy into their cancer regime.
When
properly balanced, the side effects of using alkaline minerals are greatly if
not completely remediated by electrolyte rebalancing. Despite the “fear,
fire, foe” tone of Mssrs. Wiens et al in the article cited above[xvii] there
is no risk of dying of a heart attack (or leg cramp), unless the patient
ignores the proper method using alkaline minerals and is not working in
consultation with an experienced specialist. A caution: electrolyte
rebalancing cannot be properly implemented by casual methods such as drinking
sports drinks, particularly since commercial products are generally full of
sugar and artificial substances. Electrolyte rebalancing must be
carefully applied using specific doses of supplements, based on your personal
blood composition, in consultation with a nutrition expert or endocrinologist.
My
personal experience with pH therapy has been nothing short of
spectacular. I have seen stage four, terminal cancer patients recover
using alkalizing minerals. There are patients who report untreatable
cancers, such as nasal or fully metastasized breast cancers, which after a very
persistent course of tiny doses over several years, eventually disappeared
altogether. Patients who have never had chemotherapy or radiation often
experience rapid remission after changing
to an alkaline diet and incorporating the use of alkaline minerals into their
regime.
However
pH therapy using alkaline minerals requires quite a bit of knowledge (do your
homework!) and is greatly enhanced with the support of a mineral provider or
cancer coach who has the experience to guide you through the process.
Many mineral providers sell minerals, but do not have the ability to assist the
users. Therefore, it is critical to seek a mineral provider who can
provide references to extensive information and is available to help you work
through the rough spots – and there will be some!
It
is my direct personal experience that cancer can be controlled using alkaline
minerals. There are thousands of people who have had similar positive
experiences. Does it work for everyone? No. However if
high pH therapy is properly applied, it works for a very respectable percentage
of cancer sufferers – estimated at upwards of an 80% response rate by
providers. Significant when compared to traditional therapies.
This
finding is why I started The Cancer Alternative Foundation - to help
cancer patients feel comfortable using effective, natural therapies like pH
therapy as part of their overall treatment strategy. The Foundation simply
researches and vets the claims of various alternative
offerings for cancer – and there are more than 400! To date, we
have concluded that high pH therapy is one of the most effective alternatives,
particularly for later stage cancers.
However
alkaline therapy outcomes (as well as those for other sound alternatives) have
yet to be documented in a systematic way, such that the medical community could
reliably understand the positive impact that incorporating it into cancer
treatment could make to hundreds of thousands of cancer sufferers.
Collecting outcomes is a current project at The Cancer Alternative
Foundation and should prove invaluable to cancer patients and their
doctors and care givers alike.[xviii]
If
nothing else, it is my contention that alkaline therapy could be used in a
supporting role to conventional treatment, which will only improve the
long-term outcome for patients. It is my hope that this promising and
effective natural approach to cancer becomes more accepted by mainstream cancer
care providers – as well as those enlightened individuals seeking a natural
alternative, who are willing to close their eyes and jump.
An
alkaline approach to cancer can only help them to enjoy their future – as in
having one!
Nancy
Elizabeth Shaw is a strategist, meta-analyst and Founder of The Cancer
Alternative Foundation. Contact information: www.thecanceralternative.org/contact_us.
Resources:
[i] Cassileth, Barrie R. et
al, Herb-Drug Interaction in Oncology, pp. 158-159; Memorial
Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, People’s Medical Publishing House, Shelton,
CT 2010
[iii] Brewer, A. Keith and
Passwater, R. Physics of the Cell Membrane V. Mechanisms
involved in cancer; American Lab, 1975,- 8, 37-45
[iv] Brewer, A. Keith PhD, Cancer,
Its Nature and a Proposed Treatment, 1997; Brewer Science Library;
http://www.mwt.net/~drbrewer/brew_art.htm
[viii] Witting, Rainer and Coy,
Johannes, The Role of Glucose Metabolism and Glucose-Associated Signaling in
Cancer; Perspectives in Medicinal Chemistry, 2007; 1:64-82. Pp. 2; cited
PubMed,http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2754915
[ix] Cancer: The Mechanism
Involved and a High pH Therapy, 1978 papers of A. Keith Brewer, Ph.D. &
co-authors, Copyright A. Keith Brewer Foundation, 325 N. Central Ave., Richland
Center, Wis, 53581.
[x] Griffin, G. Edward,
World Without Cancer: The Story of Vitamin B17, American Media,
Westlake, CA 1974
[xi] Fatma Akinci Yildirim and M.
Atilla Askin: Variability of amygdalin content in seeds of sweet
and bitter apricot cultivars in Turkey. African Journal of
Biotechnology Vol. 9(39), pp. 6522-6524, 27 September, 2010; Available online at http://www.academicjournals.org/AJB; DOI:
10.5897/AJB10.884; 600 mg. of bitter apricot seeds contain up to 1.8 mg of
cyanide, where the sweet kernels contain up to .9 mg. of cyanide.
[xiii]http://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatmentsandsideeffects/complementaryandalternativemedicine/pharmacologicalandbiologicaltreatment/dmso; When used for this condition, a
50% solution of DMSO is instilled into the bladder through a catheter and left
there for about 15 minutes to relieve the inflammation
[xvi] Weins, Matthew et al; Cesium
chloride-induced torsades de pointes, Can J Cardiol. 2009 September; 25(9):
e329–e331; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2780897
[xviii] To donate to The Cancer
Alternative Foundation‘s Alternative Outcomes Database, see the
website: http://www.thecanceralternative.org/donate_to_the_cancer_alternative_foundation
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