› Forums › Cutaneous Melanoma Community › Anti-Cancer Diet?
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DPF.
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- December 11, 2018 at 4:01 am
Can anyone recommend a book or other literature about adopting an anticancer diet? I see that some of the research talks about certain foods as being protective against for example breast cancer but I haven’t come across anything specific to melanoma or other skin cancer. Still I suppose that researchers agree that certain foods are thought to generally have anti-cancer qualities.
Any thoughts on this?
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- December 11, 2018 at 3:16 pm
Hi Cindy, There is a cancer fighting cookbook that the American Cancer Society put out. I haven’t used it but I’m sure that would be a good starting point. I also met with a nutritional oncologist right after my diagnosis. I’m sure your there’s one available at your oncologist office and you can ask your Melanoma Specialist for a referral. I don’t believe that any specific foods can cure my cancer but I do believe that putting the right foods in your body can help you to fight better!
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- December 11, 2018 at 3:30 pm
There is no quickfix but diet is paramount. I follow the Gerson Cancer Diet Protocol and although it is challenging, the difference is unbelievable and almost immediate. You need to learn the basics and need to know what foods to avoid. No need to go to their centers but I suggest watching a few videos (start with Charlotte Gerson and Chris Wark) and order the book The Gerson Therapy by Charlotte Gerson and Morton Walker, D.P.M., $17. From my extensive research, cancer patients with most success combined both diet and medical protocol.
Also, gut bacteria is paramount in our health just read this recent article.
If you ever need more info or have further questions please do not hesitate to contact me. If I am able to help I always will.
Have fun investigating the science of food and nutrition!
Melanie
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- December 11, 2018 at 4:05 pm
One more important thing, there is no single food, supplement or vitamin which will cure anything but it's rather a combination of foods and our entire nutrition that makes the difference. Needless to say, everyone is aware that our modern day diet leaves a lot to be desired since it's grossly nutrient deficient from numerous points of view but especially so for seriously ill such as stage IV cancer patients.
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- December 11, 2018 at 3:32 pm
If you want literature from real live studies…girl….I got it!!! I have been following EVERYTHING that "cures" or "kills" melanoma in the RESEARCH for YEARS!!!
Here was the 10th reivew with links to prior posts:
Lots of things (foods and compounds) kill melanoma in its tracks ~ in the petri dish! The difficulty is how to make them do that when you eat them. Curcumin is one of the few supplements that has demonstrated REAL results. Here are tons of reports on curcumin itself:
Here's a review of many of the diets touted to cure, prevent, ameliorate – you choose the word – cancer:
Like red wine and need radiation? Here you go –
Now, Vitamin D has shown to be important in melanoma:
https://chaoticallypreciselifeloveandmelanoma.blogspot.com/2014/12/vitamin-d-and-melanoma.html
https://chaoticallypreciselifeloveandmelanoma.blogspot.com/2016/06/vit-d-and-melanoma-part-2.html
Reports (with links within) on alternative medicine:
There's work on NSAID's –
https://chaoticallypreciselifeloveandmelanoma.blogspot.com/2018/01/aspirin-nsaids-and-melanoma.html
And work on anti-oxidants:
Some very interesting data regarding our intestinal biome (esp as a way to enhance response to immunotherapy):
How antibiotic use may affect that as well:
https://chaoticallypreciselifeloveandmelanoma.blogspot.com/2017/02/antibiotic-use-may-decrease.html
This study on meds used in general by melanoma patients while on ipi:
Smoking as it impacts melanoma in sentinel nodes:
Cancer and sugar: https://chaoticallypreciselifeloveandmelanoma.blogspot.com/2017/10/cancer-and-sugar-oh-lordy-lordy-here-we.html
Alkaline diets: https://chaoticallypreciselifeloveandmelanoma.blogspot.com/2018/04/alkaline-diets-and-complementary.html
Whew!!! That's a lot of research over a lot of years. I am not ANTI-alternative or complimentary meds. I AM anti scammers taking money from cancer patients for bogus treatments. I AM anti desperate folks opting for bogus treatments instead of those that may actually save their life. I am FOR anything that will help melanoma and cancer patients. That said…if eating yogurt would do it…or that one extra serving of vegetables…none of us would be in the predicament we find ourselves in!!! Still…I believe in a healthy diet. I have eaten ALL the vegetables for years. I believe in exercise. Been doing that too. I have never smoked…and don't thing anyone should!!
Overall, however, I think the only things we can definitively say really help prevent or minimize melanoma (apart from targeted therapy, radiation with immunotherapy, etc, etc) is: a healthy microbiome (eat that yogurt after all), possibly curcumin (add mustard and curry to everything), possibly coffee, exercise, sunscreen, no tanning beds, and vitamin D.
Don't know if this helps you. But the data is real. Take from it what you will. It was free!!! Wishing you all my best. Celeste
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- December 11, 2018 at 3:55 pm
Thank you for posting that Celeste. Im going to start on Vit D today. Don't know about the Aspirin stuidies, latest study showed it may increase the risk of Melanoma in men.
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/05/180503142628.htm
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- December 11, 2018 at 4:20 pm
Yes. If you read those I posted…some say NSAID's are just the thing. Some say that they only work in a select few. Some say they don't help at all. It is certainly a mixed bag. However, as a person who took nivo for 2 1/2 years, I suspect – given the arthralgias that anti-PD-1 causes – it would be hard to find a person on that therapy who did not take some NSAID's while on it!!! It is all very tricky!! I wish you well. c
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- December 12, 2018 at 10:25 pm
Celeste, thank you so very much for researching, writing, and linking to your blog posts. At the moment, since my diagnosis, I take extra D (have always been low) and curcumin (at the advice of my nutritionist). I am reticient to add to that but I do still take probiotics.
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- December 11, 2018 at 10:01 pm
So, here we go about diet, now you are in my wheel house!!! I have been running a peanut butter and bagel phase one study + biweekly Nivo for the last 5 years. I am thinking about publishing my finding at ASCO 2019. The study design was very challenging do to the arm of the the trial that I was in reguired large amounts of Rum+ Coke daily for the first 4 years of trial. We had to amend the Rum+Coke requirement due to the fact that I was starting to get kind of fat. Now, I am not saying that this is going to work for everyone, some other leading Melanoma diet people have suggested great ideas over the years on the forum like Coffee daily up the wazzoo, I didn't try that one yet!!!! My favorite of all time was some lady whose post led to an alternative web site that suggested large daily doses of sun are needed, so again I decided to skip that one since the sun is what got me into all this trouble in the first place. Good luck in your journey and eat and drink what you want and enjoy life to the MAX!!! P.S. the weight is now returning to pre melanoma range, in hind site the large amounts of Rum+ Coke were not the smartest thing I have every done!!!Ed
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- December 12, 2018 at 1:34 am
Jeeper's crow!!!!!!!! I'm loving all of this advice. Wish that we could do the FaceBook action and like certain responses. Les and Ed, both of you would get a definite like from me. It's very important to get silly and laugh like a fool once in a while when dealing with all the bull shoot that we put up with. Speaking of curcumin, my onc told me to not take it during my trial, please don't tell on me. Everyone have a marvelous holiday and give out the love !!!!!!!!
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- December 11, 2018 at 11:52 pm
I like Cancer-Fighting Kitchen by Rebecca Katz. Anti-cancer foods + nutrition + keeping food palatable for treatment stressed mouths/lack of appetite.
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- December 12, 2018 at 3:21 am
My favorite was “Anticancer a new way of life” by Dr. David Servan-Schreiber. He goes into food, mindset, environment…everything really. He fought brain cancer for decades so cancer research was his life’s mission.-
- December 15, 2018 at 5:16 pm
I'll put in another plug for Anticancer. I haven't followed his regimen, but I did try to incorporate healthy eating. That for me meant, a primarily plant-based diet with small portions of meat (organic chicken, fish, and lean red meat). I also cut out white foods such as white rice, white flour, potatoes, sugar. I tried to incorporate some fermented food into my diet every day (plain greek yogurt, fermented sauerkraut). And lots of green tea (I happen to like it).
I was also eating a lot of fruits and berries, but I needed to cut those out when I got diabetes. Oddly though, I'm finding that a low-carb, plant-based diet is also beneficial in controlling my blood sugars.
Anyway, what I decided was that, without following any particular "alternative" diet, I would eat the way a person without cancer would eat if they were committed to eating a healthy diet (okay, so not everyone digs sauerkraut and yogurt).
Good luck!
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Tagged: cutaneous melanoma
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