Health care decisions by and for Medicare patients differ widely by place; Lexington big in back surgery, low in mastectomy

All medicine involves decisions and, according to a new series of nine reports published by the Dartmouth Atlas Project, those decisions differ drastically by location for Medicare patients. In the East South Central region -- Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi), the variation between how things are diagnosed and treated can change when one crosses county lines.

An example, with numbers but without explanation: The total knee replacement rate in Harlan is 3.3 per 1,000 Medicare beneficaries; in Bardstown, it's 13.8. As the report goes on to note: "If you have heart disease and live in Huntsville, Ala., you are half as likely to undergo balloon angioplasty than if you live in Hattiesburg, Miss., and twice as likely to undergo back surgery if you live in Lexington, Ky." The greatest variation in the region was seen in mastectomy, ranging from a low of 0.3 percent per 1,000 female Medicare beneficiaries in Lexington to 2.1 per 1,000 in Tupelo, Miss.

The point, researchers say, is that providers and patients need to work together to determine care. The report looked at rates for early-stage breast cancer, stable angina, low back pain, arthritis of the knee or hip, carotid artery disease, gallstones, enlarged prostate, and early-stage prostate cancer. Read the report here.

All medicine involves decisions and, according to a new series of nine reports published by the Dartmouth Atlas Project, those decisions differ drastically by location for Medicare patients. In the East South Central region -- Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi), the variation between how things are diagnosed and treated can change when one crosses county lines.

An example, with numbers but without explanation: The total knee replacement rate in Harlan is 3.3 per 1,000 Medicare beneficaries; in Bardstown, it's 13.8. As the report goes on to note: "If you have heart disease and live in Huntsville, Ala., you are half as likely to undergo balloon angioplasty than if you live in Hattiesburg, Miss., and twice as likely to undergo back surgery if you live in Lexington, Ky." The greatest variation in the region was seen in mastectomy, ranging from a low of 0.3 percent per 1,000 female Medicare beneficiaries in Lexington to 2.1 per 1,000 in Tupelo, Miss.

The point, researchers say, is that providers and patients need to work together to determine care. The report looked at rates for early-stage breast cancer, stable angina, low back pain, arthritis of the knee or hip, carotid artery disease, gallstones, enlarged prostate, and early-stage prostate cancer. Read the report here.

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Colorful fruits and vegetables linked to lower breast cancer risk

Come to find out, pink isn't the most important color when it comes to breast cancer. According to researchers in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, women loading up on carotenoids, the  micro-nutrients found in red, yellow and deeply colored fruits and vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes spinach and kale, showed lower rates of breast cancer than those who didn’t eat as many of them.

Alexandra Sifferlin at Healthland Time magazine explains that Dr. Heather Eliassen, an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, led an analysis of data collected in various studies about the carotenoids and their effect on blood and breast cancer rates. The studies included 3,000 participants and nearly 4,000 controls. Women with carotenoid levels in the the top 20 percent of measured ranges had a 15-20 percent reduced risk of breast cancer compared to those with carotenoid levels in the lowest category. “It looks like it is a linear relationship,” says Eliassen. ”The higher you go, the [lower] your risk is."

Why carotenoids work against breast cancer isn't clear. They may metabolize into retinol, which regulates cell growth. Or they may improve cell communication and enhance immune system function. Eliassen urged caution. Other research carotenoids, in the form of beta-carotene supplements, are linked to an increased risk for lung cancer. (Read more) 

The Kentucky Fruit and Vegetable Conference will be held Jan. 7-8 at the Embassy Suites in Lexington. Deadline for preregistration is Dec. 19. The block of rooms for the conference will be held until Jan. 4. Program and registration information are available here or through John Strang at (859) 257-5685 or jstrang@uky.edu, or Tim Coolong at (859) 257-3374 or timcoolong@uky.edu.

Come to find out, pink isn't the most important color when it comes to breast cancer. According to researchers in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, women loading up on carotenoids, the  micro-nutrients found in red, yellow and deeply colored fruits and vegetables such as carrots, sweet potatoes spinach and kale, showed lower rates of breast cancer than those who didn’t eat as many of them.

Alexandra Sifferlin at Healthland Time magazine explains that Dr. Heather Eliassen, an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, led an analysis of data collected in various studies about the carotenoids and their effect on blood and breast cancer rates. The studies included 3,000 participants and nearly 4,000 controls. Women with carotenoid levels in the the top 20 percent of measured ranges had a 15-20 percent reduced risk of breast cancer compared to those with carotenoid levels in the lowest category. “It looks like it is a linear relationship,” says Eliassen. ”The higher you go, the [lower] your risk is."

Why carotenoids work against breast cancer isn't clear. They may metabolize into retinol, which regulates cell growth. Or they may improve cell communication and enhance immune system function. Eliassen urged caution. Other research carotenoids, in the form of beta-carotene supplements, are linked to an increased risk for lung cancer. (Read more) 

The Kentucky Fruit and Vegetable Conference will be held Jan. 7-8 at the Embassy Suites in Lexington. Deadline for preregistration is Dec. 19. The block of rooms for the conference will be held until Jan. 4. Program and registration information are available here or through John Strang at (859) 257-5685 or jstrang@uky.edu, or Tim Coolong at (859) 257-3374 or timcoolong@uky.edu.

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Experimental concentrated breast cancer radiation therapy offers new options for women who live far away from treatment facilities

A study at the University of Louisville James Graham Brown Cancer Center designed to make  radiation treatment more accessible to women who face obstacles such as distance, transportation problems and time constraints is proving promising. The idea is to cut daily trips to the cancer center to once a week, says Dr. Anthony Dragon, a radiation oncologist at U of L. It also has the added benefit of cutting treatment costs by better than half.

Laura Ungar of The Courier-Journal in Louisville reports that Dragun led a previous study that found that "about a third of Kentucky women with early-stage breast cancer didn’t get recommended radiation treatments after lumpectomy surgery. Among those least likely to get radiation were rural Kentuckians, the elderly, African Americans and women in the Appalachian region of the state. Women who did not get recommended radiation were 60 percent more likely to die during the time they were studied."

Dragun told Ungar that the folks at U of L were not satisfied with just gathering those numbers, they wanted solutions to the problem. Dragun said the new experimental regimen is yielding good results, with women who get weekly radiation reporting similar levels of side effects as those getting radiation every day. Ungar notes that some outside experts say the approach does seems promising, but one critic was concerned about breast appearance results after the once-a-week treatments.

According the National Cancer Institute, more than 3,070 new cases of breast cancer were diagnosed in Kentucky in 2009 and was responsible for 614 deaths.  (Read more) 

A study at the University of Louisville James Graham Brown Cancer Center designed to make  radiation treatment more accessible to women who face obstacles such as distance, transportation problems and time constraints is proving promising. The idea is to cut daily trips to the cancer center to once a week, says Dr. Anthony Dragon, a radiation oncologist at U of L. It also has the added benefit of cutting treatment costs by better than half.

Laura Ungar of The Courier-Journal in Louisville reports that Dragun led a previous study that found that "about a third of Kentucky women with early-stage breast cancer didn’t get recommended radiation treatments after lumpectomy surgery. Among those least likely to get radiation were rural Kentuckians, the elderly, African Americans and women in the Appalachian region of the state. Women who did not get recommended radiation were 60 percent more likely to die during the time they were studied."

Dragun told Ungar that the folks at U of L were not satisfied with just gathering those numbers, they wanted solutions to the problem. Dragun said the new experimental regimen is yielding good results, with women who get weekly radiation reporting similar levels of side effects as those getting radiation every day. Ungar notes that some outside experts say the approach does seems promising, but one critic was concerned about breast appearance results after the once-a-week treatments.

According the National Cancer Institute, more than 3,070 new cases of breast cancer were diagnosed in Kentucky in 2009 and was responsible for 614 deaths.  (Read more) 

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Horses and Hope Race Day set for Nov. 18 at Churchill Downs

The Fifth Annual Horses and Hope Race Day honoring breast cancer survivors will be Sunday, Nov. 18, at Churchill Downs. Hosted by First Lady Jane Beshear and the Kentucky Cancer Program at the University of Louisville’s James Graham Brown Cancer Center, it's a day for wearing pink and meeting some local celebs and scientists. Gates open at 11:30 a.m. First post time will be at 12:40 p.m.

The mission of the Horses and Hope program is to increase breast cancer awareness, education, screening, and treatment referral among Kentucky’s horse industry workers and their families. The day's participants will get lunch and a chance to tell Louisville fashion designer Gunnar Deatherage just what you thought of his work on Season 10 of Lifetime Television's "Project Runway." Also on hand for the more important stuff will be James Graham Brown Cancer Center Ambassador Jessica Rizzo and State Rep. Joni Jenkins, sponsor of 2005's HB 7 which created the state's Breast Cancer Research and Education Trust Fund.

Cost to attend Horses and Hope Race Day is $28 for adults and $18 for children, age 12 and under, and includes admission to the Downs, parking at Gate 10, seating on Millionaires Row Four and the luncheon buffet. Tickets can be purchased from Churchill Downs online or by phone at 502-636-4400. For more information about Horses and Hope Race Day, contact the Kentucky Cancer Program at 877-326-1134 or 502-852-6318.

The Fifth Annual Horses and Hope Race Day honoring breast cancer survivors will be Sunday, Nov. 18, at Churchill Downs. Hosted by First Lady Jane Beshear and the Kentucky Cancer Program at the University of Louisville’s James Graham Brown Cancer Center, it's a day for wearing pink and meeting some local celebs and scientists. Gates open at 11:30 a.m. First post time will be at 12:40 p.m.

The mission of the Horses and Hope program is to increase breast cancer awareness, education, screening, and treatment referral among Kentucky’s horse industry workers and their families. The day's participants will get lunch and a chance to tell Louisville fashion designer Gunnar Deatherage just what you thought of his work on Season 10 of Lifetime Television's "Project Runway." Also on hand for the more important stuff will be James Graham Brown Cancer Center Ambassador Jessica Rizzo and State Rep. Joni Jenkins, sponsor of 2005's HB 7 which created the state's Breast Cancer Research and Education Trust Fund.

Cost to attend Horses and Hope Race Day is $28 for adults and $18 for children, age 12 and under, and includes admission to the Downs, parking at Gate 10, seating on Millionaires Row Four and the luncheon buffet. Tickets can be purchased from Churchill Downs online or by phone at 502-636-4400. For more information about Horses and Hope Race Day, contact the Kentucky Cancer Program at 877-326-1134 or 502-852-6318.

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Canada declares BPA safe; Canadian government now breeding sickness for money, just like USA’s!

 

First they said it was toxic, now all of the sudden its safe! Never heard of flip-flopping on toxins, I thought that was just a political campaign strategy. Now, Health Canada's Food Directorate claims that exposure to BPA in food packaging "is not expected to pose a health risk to the general population, including newborns and young children."

This BPA, or bisphenol A, leaches out of containers into food and drinks and causes breast cancer, prostate cancer, birth defects in newborns, and much more! This is bad news, and is just as bad as FLUORIDATING WATER, which is now a double whammy for humans and animals, we have a drug in the municipal water and drugs in the bottled water. Great!

Corporate backed bureaucrats are back peddling for millions. The chemical industry is winning in Canada, just like it has been in the United Statessince after WWII, when Monsanto, Dow, Dupont, Bayer, BASF, and Big Pharma in general starting their wars on good health, and now GMO, vaccines and water are polluted to the max with chemicals that drive cancer cases.

 

 

You know there’s a government scam to make you sick when they take a “good for you” item and ACTUALLY ADD IN TOXINS. Many people buy bottled spring water because they already know the tap water has fluoride in it, and bleach, and pollution. People do not want to get cancer, so they try to eat and drink healthy. But the U.S. Government makes money off cancer and sickness, so they go out and turn a healthy item into a cancer causing item, or they simply don’t regulate companies that do it. It’s that simple. There’s no conspiracy or conspiracy theory here, just plain and simple politics.

 

See, politicians invest in Coke, in McDonald’s, in Vaccine Manufacturers, in Drug Makers, because they know how to double and triple their investments. Big Pharma is like advertising in America, it keeps the 1% from ever becoming part of the 99%, and you can bet they know where the toxins are, and they don’t feed them to their own families. They know about toxic water. They know about BPA. They know about Fluoride. They know about GMO.

 

Here it is; full coverage from Natural News:

 

"Keeping up with the latest science regarding chemical safety is apparently of little or no concern to the Canadian government, which recently declared the highly-toxic plastics chemical bisphenol-A (BPA) to be safe just two years after declaring it to be a toxin. In a report issued by Health Canada's Food Directorate, the agency has iterated its unfounded position that exposure to BPA in food packaging "is not expected to pose a health risk to the general population, including newborns and young children."

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/037740_BPA_Health_Canada_toxic_chemicals.html#ixzz2Ahsi0oPB

 

 

First they said it was toxic, now all of the sudden its safe! Never heard of flip-flopping on toxins, I thought that was just a political campaign strategy. Now, Health Canada's Food Directorate claims that exposure to BPA in food packaging "is not expected to pose a health risk to the general population, including newborns and young children."

This BPA, or bisphenol A, leaches out of containers into food and drinks and causes breast cancer, prostate cancer, birth defects in newborns, and much more! This is bad news, and is just as bad as FLUORIDATING WATER, which is now a double whammy for humans and animals, we have a drug in the municipal water and drugs in the bottled water. Great!

Corporate backed bureaucrats are back peddling for millions. The chemical industry is winning in Canada, just like it has been in the United Statessince after WWII, when Monsanto, Dow, Dupont, Bayer, BASF, and Big Pharma in general starting their wars on good health, and now GMO, vaccines and water are polluted to the max with chemicals that drive cancer cases.

 

 

You know there’s a government scam to make you sick when they take a “good for you” item and ACTUALLY ADD IN TOXINS. Many people buy bottled spring water because they already know the tap water has fluoride in it, and bleach, and pollution. People do not want to get cancer, so they try to eat and drink healthy. But the U.S. Government makes money off cancer and sickness, so they go out and turn a healthy item into a cancer causing item, or they simply don’t regulate companies that do it. It’s that simple. There’s no conspiracy or conspiracy theory here, just plain and simple politics.

 

See, politicians invest in Coke, in McDonald’s, in Vaccine Manufacturers, in Drug Makers, because they know how to double and triple their investments. Big Pharma is like advertising in America, it keeps the 1% from ever becoming part of the 99%, and you can bet they know where the toxins are, and they don’t feed them to their own families. They know about toxic water. They know about BPA. They know about Fluoride. They know about GMO.

 

Here it is; full coverage from Natural News:

 

"Keeping up with the latest science regarding chemical safety is apparently of little or no concern to the Canadian government, which recently declared the highly-toxic plastics chemical bisphenol-A (BPA) to be safe just two years after declaring it to be a toxin. In a report issued by Health Canada's Food Directorate, the agency has iterated its unfounded position that exposure to BPA in food packaging "is not expected to pose a health risk to the general population, including newborns and young children."

Learn more: http://www.naturalnews.com/037740_BPA_Health_Canada_toxic_chemicals.html#ixzz2Ahsi0oPB

 

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Breast cancer awareness: Testing urged, guidelines explained, misconceptions explored

Women with BRCA1 and BRCA2, the
genes most commonly involved in breast
cancer, have up to an 80 percent chance
of getting the disease.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Although Kentucky's breast cancer rate is slightly lower than the nationwide rate, almost 600 women die every year from breast cancer in the Commonwealth. The American Cancer Society predicts approximately 3,160 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed in Kentucky this year. Early detection and prompt treatment can significantly reduce suffering and death from the disease.

According to the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, all health plans serving Kentuckians must, by law, cover mammograms. Medical guidelines strongly recommend that women older than 40 have annual mammograms and women younger than 40 with a family history of breast cancer should also have regular screenings. Through local health departments, the Kentucky Women's Cancer Screening Program provides breast cancer screenings, mammograms and Pap tests to eligible women in every county. During the 2011 fiscal year, KWCSP provided breast cancer screenings to 14,212 women. Services are provided to low-income women through the Kentucky Department for Public Health. Those women must be uninsured with incomes less than 250 percent of federal poverty guidelines.  For more information about breast cancer or screening services, call your local health department.

There are many misconceptions about the risks of developing breast cancer. Genetics, of course, is a well-documented factor but lifestyle issues have gotten a lot of talk. So what's true? Wendy Chen, MD, MPH, a breast cancer expert at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, a principal teaching affiliate of Harvard University, tackles some of the more common questions here:

1) Soy may increase the risk of breast cancer returning.
False. Chen, who was part of a study that looked at over 9,500 American and Chinese breast cancer survivors who ate soy every day, says that eating soy may be linked to a lower risk of recurrence of breast cancer.

2) Alcohol consumption can increase the risk of breast cancer.
True. Dana-Farber researchers found that women who consume one alcoholic drink a day may increase their risk for breast cancer.  Chen and her colleagues analyzed data from over 105,000 women in the Nurses’ Health Study. Those who consumed three to six glasses of wine a week were 15 percent more likely to receive a diagnosis of breast cancer. Those who drank fewer than three drinks a week had no increased risk.

3) Fertility treatments increase a woman’s risk of breast cancer.
False. According to a recent study from the National Institutes of Health, ovulation-inducing fertility treatments like Clomid and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) do not significantly increase a woman's risk of developing breast cancer.

4) Wearing deodorant can increase the risk of breast cancer.
False. According to the National Cancer Institute, there is no conclusive research linking underarm deodorants to breast cancer.

5) The bigger the baby the bigger the risk of getting breast cancer.
Possibly true. “This is a tough one because the research is still evolving,” says Chen. "But the latest research shows that women who have larger babies have more than twice the risk of developing breast cancer than mothers who give birth to smaller infants. Researchers say that having a heavier baby may create a hormonal environment in pregnancy that could lead to the future development of breast cancer. They found that during pregnancy in women who have heavier babies, the ratio of estrogen to anti-estrogen is unusually high. The greater the level of estrogen, the higher the risk of breast cancer. However, Chen emphasizes, women who have larger babies should not panic. There is definitely a need for further research.” (Read more)

Women with BRCA1 and BRCA2, the
genes most commonly involved in breast
cancer, have up to an 80 percent chance
of getting the disease.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Although Kentucky's breast cancer rate is slightly lower than the nationwide rate, almost 600 women die every year from breast cancer in the Commonwealth. The American Cancer Society predicts approximately 3,160 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed in Kentucky this year. Early detection and prompt treatment can significantly reduce suffering and death from the disease.

According to the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, all health plans serving Kentuckians must, by law, cover mammograms. Medical guidelines strongly recommend that women older than 40 have annual mammograms and women younger than 40 with a family history of breast cancer should also have regular screenings. Through local health departments, the Kentucky Women's Cancer Screening Program provides breast cancer screenings, mammograms and Pap tests to eligible women in every county. During the 2011 fiscal year, KWCSP provided breast cancer screenings to 14,212 women. Services are provided to low-income women through the Kentucky Department for Public Health. Those women must be uninsured with incomes less than 250 percent of federal poverty guidelines.  For more information about breast cancer or screening services, call your local health department.

There are many misconceptions about the risks of developing breast cancer. Genetics, of course, is a well-documented factor but lifestyle issues have gotten a lot of talk. So what's true? Wendy Chen, MD, MPH, a breast cancer expert at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, a principal teaching affiliate of Harvard University, tackles some of the more common questions here:

1) Soy may increase the risk of breast cancer returning.
False. Chen, who was part of a study that looked at over 9,500 American and Chinese breast cancer survivors who ate soy every day, says that eating soy may be linked to a lower risk of recurrence of breast cancer.

2) Alcohol consumption can increase the risk of breast cancer.
True. Dana-Farber researchers found that women who consume one alcoholic drink a day may increase their risk for breast cancer.  Chen and her colleagues analyzed data from over 105,000 women in the Nurses’ Health Study. Those who consumed three to six glasses of wine a week were 15 percent more likely to receive a diagnosis of breast cancer. Those who drank fewer than three drinks a week had no increased risk.

3) Fertility treatments increase a woman’s risk of breast cancer.
False. According to a recent study from the National Institutes of Health, ovulation-inducing fertility treatments like Clomid and follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) do not significantly increase a woman's risk of developing breast cancer.

4) Wearing deodorant can increase the risk of breast cancer.
False. According to the National Cancer Institute, there is no conclusive research linking underarm deodorants to breast cancer.

5) The bigger the baby the bigger the risk of getting breast cancer.
Possibly true. “This is a tough one because the research is still evolving,” says Chen. "But the latest research shows that women who have larger babies have more than twice the risk of developing breast cancer than mothers who give birth to smaller infants. Researchers say that having a heavier baby may create a hormonal environment in pregnancy that could lead to the future development of breast cancer. They found that during pregnancy in women who have heavier babies, the ratio of estrogen to anti-estrogen is unusually high. The greater the level of estrogen, the higher the risk of breast cancer. However, Chen emphasizes, women who have larger babies should not panic. There is definitely a need for further research.” (Read more)

Read More

Ginger: The Cancer Slaying Herb!

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Ginger: The Cancer Slaying Herb!

Shhhhh…. Don’t let the American Cancer Society know about the findings of this study and the possible natural cure for breast cancer it found…it would disrupt their fund raising!

Every year since 1938 the number 2 killer of all Americans has been Cancer!

A research paper published in Journal of Biomedicine and Biotechnology has found that extracts of the herb Ginger kill cancer cells! The researchers note in their paper that in spite of the high global death toll of breast cancer, conventional drug therapies are modestly effective at best, often with serious side effects that include causing new and more aggressive cancers.

Ginger extract may prove to be more effective at fighting breast cancer than any drug on the market!

"Despite significant advances toward targeted therapy and screening techniques, breast cancer continues to be a chronic medical problem worldwide, being the most common type of cancer in women and the leading cause of death," they write.

"Typically, the treatment of breast cancer involves hormonal therapy with ... selective estrogen receptor (ER) modulators. However, almost all patients with metastatic disease and approximately 40 percent of patients that receive [the ER modulator] Tamoxifen experience relapse that ends by death!"

The researchers also note that ER antagonists have little to no effectiveness against ER-negative breast cancer, and that the drugs may have such severe side effects that their usefulness is severely limited.

In addition, many breast cancer cells are able to develop resistance to cancer drugs within the course of a single treatment.

"Thus, identification of novel agents that are relatively safe but can suppress growth of both ER-positive and ER-negative human breast cancers is highly desirable," they write.

Could This Be A Safe & Natural Treatment?

The researchers exposed breast cancer cells in the laboratory to an extract of ginger (Zingiber officinale). They found that ginger exhibited a highly prized anti-cancer trait known as selective cytotoxicity: It inhibited the reproduction of cancer cells while leaving healthy cells unaffected. 

 No conventional cancer treatment on the market exhibits this property!

Noted findings include the ability of ginger to positively modulated a large number of molecular anti-cancer mechanisms, these include:

• Induction of programmed cell death (apoptosis).
• Up-regulation of BAX, an apoptosis gene
• Down-regulation of numerous cancer-associated genes and proteins
• Increased expression of cancer-fighting proteins.
• Inhibition of cancer-associated enzymes.

Although the researchers were not able to explain these molecular effects, the evidence in their favor was striking.
"Ginger may be a promising candidate for the treatment of breast carcinomas," the researchers concluded.

Ginger - A Medicinal Powerhouse!

If further studies show ginger's utility as a breast cancer treatment, it could revolutionize the entire field of cancer medicine, since ginger extract could easily be produced cheaply and in large quantities and it’s use would have little to know side effects.

Previous studies have already shown ginger to have a breast cancer-fighting effect. More specifically, ginger compound [6]-Gingerol inhibits metastasis of breast cancer cells. Other studies have suggested that ginger extract or ginger components have the ability to fight other cancers, including

• Colon
• Rectum
• Liver
• Lungs
• Pancreas
• Prostate
• Skin (including Malignant Melanoma).

These findings should not be surprising; ginger is one of the oldest known medicinal foods. It’s origin appears to have been in southern China, it then rapidly spread throughout Asia to the Spice Islands and from there, eventually to West Africa, the Caribbean and India. Today it is widely consumed as a food, spice and medicine in cultures across the globe.

Scientific Studies Have Linked Ginger To No Fewer Than 100 Different Health Benefits!

Including its most well known usage as an anti-nausea and digestive aid, it is also a potent anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory and is a powerful health-promoting herb for the heart and cardiovascular system. Ginger is used for many disease processes.

  "The greatest kindness one can render to any man consists in leading him from error to truth."   

-- St. Thomas Aquinas

In Health,

Dr. Walter K. Crooks

Chiropractic Clinical Neurologist

http://lifechangingcarehouston.com/

https://www.facebook.com/LifeChangingCareHouston/

Sources include:

http://www.naturalnews.com/037503_ginger_breast_cancer_treatment.html/

-->

Ginger: The Cancer Slaying Herb!

Shhhhh…. Don’t let the American Cancer Society know about the findings of this study and the possible natural cure for breast cancer it found…it would disrupt their fund raising!

Every year since 1938 the number 2 killer of all Americans has been Cancer!

A research paper published in Journal of Biomedicine and Biotechnology has found that extracts of the herb Ginger kill cancer cells! The researchers note in their paper that in spite of the high global death toll of breast cancer, conventional drug therapies are modestly effective at best, often with serious side effects that include causing new and more aggressive cancers.

Ginger extract may prove to be more effective at fighting breast cancer than any drug on the market!

"Despite significant advances toward targeted therapy and screening techniques, breast cancer continues to be a chronic medical problem worldwide, being the most common type of cancer in women and the leading cause of death," they write.

"Typically, the treatment of breast cancer involves hormonal therapy with ... selective estrogen receptor (ER) modulators. However, almost all patients with metastatic disease and approximately 40 percent of patients that receive [the ER modulator] Tamoxifen experience relapse that ends by death!"

The researchers also note that ER antagonists have little to no effectiveness against ER-negative breast cancer, and that the drugs may have such severe side effects that their usefulness is severely limited.

In addition, many breast cancer cells are able to develop resistance to cancer drugs within the course of a single treatment.

"Thus, identification of novel agents that are relatively safe but can suppress growth of both ER-positive and ER-negative human breast cancers is highly desirable," they write.

Could This Be A Safe & Natural Treatment?

The researchers exposed breast cancer cells in the laboratory to an extract of ginger (Zingiber officinale). They found that ginger exhibited a highly prized anti-cancer trait known as selective cytotoxicity: It inhibited the reproduction of cancer cells while leaving healthy cells unaffected. 

 No conventional cancer treatment on the market exhibits this property!

Noted findings include the ability of ginger to positively modulated a large number of molecular anti-cancer mechanisms, these include:

• Induction of programmed cell death (apoptosis).
• Up-regulation of BAX, an apoptosis gene
• Down-regulation of numerous cancer-associated genes and proteins
• Increased expression of cancer-fighting proteins.
• Inhibition of cancer-associated enzymes.

Although the researchers were not able to explain these molecular effects, the evidence in their favor was striking.
"Ginger may be a promising candidate for the treatment of breast carcinomas," the researchers concluded.

Ginger - A Medicinal Powerhouse!

If further studies show ginger's utility as a breast cancer treatment, it could revolutionize the entire field of cancer medicine, since ginger extract could easily be produced cheaply and in large quantities and it’s use would have little to know side effects.

Previous studies have already shown ginger to have a breast cancer-fighting effect. More specifically, ginger compound [6]-Gingerol inhibits metastasis of breast cancer cells. Other studies have suggested that ginger extract or ginger components have the ability to fight other cancers, including

• Colon
• Rectum
• Liver
• Lungs
• Pancreas
• Prostate
• Skin (including Malignant Melanoma).

These findings should not be surprising; ginger is one of the oldest known medicinal foods. It’s origin appears to have been in southern China, it then rapidly spread throughout Asia to the Spice Islands and from there, eventually to West Africa, the Caribbean and India. Today it is widely consumed as a food, spice and medicine in cultures across the globe.

Scientific Studies Have Linked Ginger To No Fewer Than 100 Different Health Benefits!

Including its most well known usage as an anti-nausea and digestive aid, it is also a potent anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory and is a powerful health-promoting herb for the heart and cardiovascular system. Ginger is used for many disease processes.

  "The greatest kindness one can render to any man consists in leading him from error to truth."   

-- St. Thomas Aquinas

In Health,

Dr. Walter K. Crooks

Chiropractic Clinical Neurologist

http://lifechangingcarehouston.com/

https://www.facebook.com/LifeChangingCareHouston/

Sources include:

http://www.naturalnews.com/037503_ginger_breast_cancer_treatment.html/

Read More