Vitamin D Plays a Role in Pancreatic Cancer Unlocking New Potential Treatments

Vitamin D To Reduce Risks of Cancer
Vitamin D is Essential

At our Issels® clinics, our focus is providing treatment programs that work with the patient’s immune system and defense mechanism to naturally eliminate cancer cells.

New treatments on the forefront in the fight against cancer are always good news and when a vitamin is found to be playing a significant role in the treatment of difficult tumors, that makes the news even better.

Pancreatic cancer is a devastating disease with a very low estimated survival rate of five years. A big part of the problem in treating the tumor has been the lack of a complete understanding of a pancreatic tumor’s resistance to current standard treatment.

It is understood that the tumor has the ability to send signals to surrounding cells, called tumor microenvironment. When the cells receive a signal from the tumor, a “shield” surrounds the pancreatic tumor protecting it from drugs and healthy immune cells. With the barrier in place, the tumor can continue to grow.

A study by the Salk Institute has found that a derivative from vitamin D weakens and collapses the shield protecting the tumor. The findings from the study have resulted in both human and animal clinical trials.

The outlook for vitamin D as a positive influence on weakening protective cells surrounding tumors may also mean other difficult tumors, such as those found in the liver, kidney, and lungs, will also be susceptible to treatment.

At Issels®, we are dedicated to providing quality programs and treatments for our patients. If you would like more information about our clinics and our locations in the U.S. and abroad, please contact us by phone or use our convenient online form.

Cancer Risks Are Linked to Cell Division

T Cells
Cell Division Linked To Cancer

Cancer is effected by numerous and complex risk factors, making concepts related to calculating its risk a frequent subject of debate. Adding to this debate is a recent study looking at randomly mutating cells, specifically how they play a predominant role in cancer development. What does this say about your cancer risk? Issels® wants to help you put this new information in perspective.

Cancer and car accidents: They have a lot in common…

  • Trip length
    Comparing getting cancer to getting into a car accident, the length of your trip – your lifespan – increases your risk. The longer you live, the more the odds increase of your body randomly mutating cells, making this a significant risk factor – attributable to two-thirds of your total cancer risk in fact.
  • Road conditions
    Just as rain or snow can increase your risk of an accident, so too can conditions in your body and in your environment increase your risk of cancer.
  • Mechanical issues
    Bad brakes or worn tires can be seen as a metaphor for genetic factors, such as inherited mutations.

Reading the accident report
Despite this research, it can’t be stressed enough no single factor causes cancer. Two-thirds of car accidents are not related solely to trip length, but to a combination of road conditions, mechanical issues, and the like. For each “accident,” the major contributing factor will vary.

Accident prevention
Due to the large combination of risk factors, there are many opportunities for prevention, including addressing radiator issues (smoking), regular maintenance (early diagnostics and detection), and more.

Cancer spinning out of control? Contact Issels® today.

The Hormone, called Irisin May Provide Breast Cancer Protection

Resistance Training
Using Exercise To Fight Breast Cancer

Exercising on a regular basis could help prevent breast cancer thanks to a hormone known as irisin. In the latest cancer research news, scientists at the University of New Mexico concluded that irisin, which is released from muscles after exercising, might provide protection from breast cancer. Its effects on the body might also improve the effectiveness of breast cancer treatment.

Effects of Irisin

Researchers targeted cancerous and non-cancerous breast cells with genetically engineered irisin. The results showed that irisin destroyed cancerous cells but left non-cancerous cells alone. After being exposed to the hormone, the number of cancerous cells decreased by 34 percent. Irisin also reduced cell migration by 51 percent, which could indicate that the hormone is able to slow down or prevent the spread of cancerous cells to other parts of the body.

Exercise and Cancer Prevention

These cancer research findings have shed some light on the reason why exercise plays an important role in cancer prevention and treatment. Other studies have established an association between working out and having a lower risk of cancer. The UNM study focused on how chemicals produced by the body during exercise, specifically irisin, might have an effect on breast cancer. In addition to destroying cancerous cells, irisin also stays in the body for long periods of time, which provides even greater protection against cancer. While additional studies still need to be done, researchers are hopeful that these findings will encourage exercise as a form of cancer prevention and treatment.

To learn about non-toxic cancer treatments, please contact Issels®. We offer immunotherapy and other forms of non-toxic treatment methods for many different types of cancer.

After Cancer Treatment – For Many, Living with Cancer Includes Psychotherapy to Heal

Can I Live With Cancer?
Psychological Healing

We all have dreams, fantasies, ambitions, goals. A cancer diagnosis for ourselves or our loved ones is not a part of any of these things. No one includes a devastating illness in the mix when they are charting their course to a happy and fulfilled life. But for millions of people, they must find meaning, purpose, and joy after cancer treatment and as they adjust to living with cancer. It is part of Issels® Integrative Immuno-Oncology’s comprehensive treatment method to help our patients live both a long and fulfilled life.

Struggling after surviving

Cindy Finch is a columnist and self-proclaimed Professional Cancer Survivor. She shares how frustrating it was for her to tell her oncologist about panic attacks, mood swings, and sleeplessness, only to be dismissed and told to be grateful she was alive. While Cindy is grateful to the medical community for helping her overcome her cancer. She feels they should do more to help patients with the mental and emotional trauma it can bring.

Psychotherapy can help

For many cancer survivors, the time after cancer treatment is one of the most difficult of their lives. Psychosocial care from trained professionals who understand the needs of cancer patients is essential. If your treatment facility does not have this help available, be sure you find proper psychosocial health care and help spread the word about this important need.

At Issels® Integrative Immuno-Oncology, we specialize in personalized non-toxic treatment therapies and cancer vaccine protocols that utilize your own body’s immune system to combat cancer and prevent recurrences. We understand the importance and value of you. Contact us to learn more about our safe and effective methods.

Tips for Beating Fatigue Triggered by Cancer Treatment

Talk to Your Care Team About Fatigue
Talk to Your Care Team About Fatigue

Fighting cancer is a full-time job that consumes every available bit of your energy. While your treatment is designed to assist you, it can intensify your feelings of fatigue. Lack of energy seeps into your emotional state, making it difficult to maintain a positive attitude.

You don’t have to resign yourself to feeling tired. Enlist the help of your support network in following these suggestions to rebuild your stores of energy.

• Let your healthcare provider know about your fatigue. He has experience dealing with the situation so he can offer ideas that have successfully helped other patients.

• Exercise may sound counterintuitive, but it’s a great way to boost your energy along with your strength and emotional state of mind. It doesn’t have to be a formal workout. A short walk or any other physical activity is beneficial.

• Follow a nutritional diet to keep your system in balance and build your strength.

• If you are having difficulty sleeping at night, spend time relaxing before you go to bed. Make your room as comfortable as possible and follow a regular sleeping schedule so your body adapts.

• Cancer treatment can make you feel isolated and alone. If you haven’t already, join a support group. Knowing that others have experienced similar fatigue is comforting.

• Sometimes you just have to accommodate your tiredness and take a rest. After a while you’ll find a balance and know when to keep going and when to relax.

Our healthcare providers consider fatigue and other factors of your individual case to personalize your course of treatment. Contact us to learn more about the resources we offer to help you win your fight.

Team Finds New Treatment for Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML)

Cancer Research
Cancer Research Finds New Treatment for Blood Cancer

Australian researchers have found that a drug called Imetelstat has the potential to fight and sometimes defeat blood cancer. Following the recent trials in Brisbane, the FDA has recently cleared the way for clinical trials in the United States.

How Does Imetelstat Kill Cancer Cells?

The medication works by manipulating a particular protein of the blood. Imetelstat effectively “turns off” a certain gene to prevent the formation of a protein called telomerase. Without that protein, the stem cells that become leukemia cells cannot be formed. Existing cancer cells begin to disappear.

The news is especially exciting because chemotherapy has its lowest success rates with acute myeloid leukemia, or AML.

Patients who have undergone unsuccessful chemotherapy for AML can potentially use Imetelstat to prolong life or possibly enter remission. For all AML patients, Imetelstat could be used as a follow-up treatment after chemotherapy to help prevent the cancer from returning.

What’s Next for Blood Cancer Medicine?

After the Australian team recently published their findings and made a presentation to the American Society of Hematology, interest in the treatment has further increased.

The FDA had previously been concerned by a possible connection between Imetelstat and liver problems, but that issue has been ruled out. With that hurdle cleared, optimism is building for the breakthrough drug to succeed in human trials and find approval for all patients with AML.

Many alternative treatments are currently available for patients with cancer resistant to standard therapies. Contact Issels® Integrative Immuno-Oncology for information about our innovative cancer treatments.