How Supplements Could Battle Cancer

Onward we march toward the end of this series that examines the use of supplements and cancer and chemotherapy. Here I look at “mucositis,” inflammation along the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, beginning with the mouth, and bone marrow suppression.

Symptoms of mucositis include mouth sores, heartburn and diarrhea. The worst chemotherapy culprits include: carboplatin, doxorubicin, etoposide, 5-FU (fluorouracil), irinotecan, methotrexate, and topotecan. Risk factors for chemotherapy-related diarrhea include getting radiation therapy as well, older age, having colitis, and having a tumor in the GI tract.

A recent review on the use of natural remedies in the treatment of mouth sores found that simple interventions such as ice, honey, and topical vitamin E oil can decrease symptoms. It also mentions glutamine rinse (up to 30 grams a day) and aloe or chamomile mouthwashes as promising agents to treat this common condition.

Three potentially useful supplements were mentioned in a review article on chemotherapy-induced diarrhea:

1. Probiotics: There is some evidence that probiotics are useful in radiation-induced diarrhea, but not in chemotherapy-induced diarrhea. Since chemotherapy weakens the immune system, patients may be at an increased risk of potentially life-threatening infections from the use of probiotics.

2. Glutamine: Glutamine offers protection to the GI tract against chemotherapy-induced damage. Taking six grams, three times a day for 15 days, starting five days before the first course of chemotherapy has been shown to be effective in preventing chemotherapy-induced diarrhea.

3. Kampo medicine: Its effectiveness for diarrhea is mixed . Kampo medicine (the Chinese herb “Haneshashin-to”) may help alleviate diarrhea in advanced non-small cell lung cancer.

Now for the bone marrow, which produces red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. Many drugs used in chemotherapy suppress the bone marrow, leading to a reduced number of red blood cells, resulting in fatigue, a reduced number of white blood cells, leading to increased risk of infection, and a reduced number of platelets, with increased risk of clotting problems and easy bruising. Bone marrow suppression occurs between seven and 10 days after chemotherapy and subsides after three to four weeks.

Extracts from Coriolus mushrooms, in particular “polysaccharide krestin” (PSK), were shown to kill cancer cells and bolster the immune system. For over 30 years, PSK at a dose of three grams a day has been added to the traditional chemotherapy to treat various cancers (e.g. lung stomach, leukemia) in Japan. PSK boosts the immune system by raising the white blood cells, natural killer T cells, and antibody response in cancer patients. There was meta-analysis of three clinical trials involving 1,094 patients with colorectal cancer who all underwent surgery and were later treated with the standard chemotherapy with and without PSK. This study shows that PSK improved both survival and disease-free survival in colorectal cancer.

Other extracts that have shown positive results in boosting the immune system include agaricus, AHCC (a newly discovered functional food) and mistletoe (“Iscador”) extracts.

Northern families to benefit from new cancer lodge

Northern families to benefit from new cancer lodge

PRINCE GEORGE – B.C. has committed $2 million towards the $10-million capital campaign for the Kordyban Lodge to support cancer patients and their families.

The 2,323 square-metre (25,000-square-foot), 36-bed lodge will offer accommodation for individuals and their caregivers travelling to the BC Cancer Agency Centre for the North and will serve cancer patients from communities throughout Northern B.C.

The lodge will provide full-meal services as well as other features to support patients, including a family room, the spiritual and meditation room, a lounge, massage therapy room, library, activity room, an exercise facility, and wig and prosthetics rooms.

Construction on the lodge is expected to start in July and it is scheduled to open to patients at the same time as the Centre for the North, in the fall of 2012.

The Kordyban Lodge is named to recognize a $2-million donation from the Mary Kordyban Foundation. This single largest private donation honours the memory of longtime Prince George resident and business owner Bill Kordyban. The lodge’s Novak Family Spiritual and Meditation Room and the West Fraser Timber Lounge are named in honour of $1-million gifts from the Novak family and West Fraser Timber.

The lodge will support cancer patients from rural communities across the North and reflects government’s commitment to ensure the provision of services, including access to health care, is looked at through a rural lens. The Kordyban Lodge is also an important component of the Province’s $106-million Northern Cancer Control Strategy, a partnership of the Province, BC Cancer Agency, Provincial Health Services Authority and Northern Health. The strategy is focused on reducing the impact of cancer in the North, and includes a range of prevention, detection and cancer care services.

Quotes:

Shirley Bond, Prince George-Valemount MLA:

“The new cancer centre will provide top-notch care to residents from the North, closer to home; and, the Kordyban Lodge helps complete the package by providing accommodation for patients who need to travel to the cancer centre for care. Northern families will have the chance to support one another during very challenging times. I am deeply grateful to everyone who contributed to create the Kordyban Lodge and am proud that our government has become an important partner."

Pat Bell, Prince George-Mackenzie MLA:

“The lodge is a great example of the investments we are making to support cancer care and treatment across northern B.C. Through our multifaceted cancer strategy we are ensuring that patients have access to the latest advances in cancer care as close to their home communities as possible.”

John Rustad, Nechako Lakes MLA:

“A cancer diagnosis can have a devastating impact on families, and having supports to allow patients to stay closer to home can make a huge difference. This new lodge will have all the comforts of home and will mean one less worry for families when a loved one needs to travel for cancer care.”

Leonard Schein, chair, board of directors, Canadian Cancer Society BC and Yukon:

"On behalf of the board, I would like to first thank the Northern Lodge Capital Campaign Cabinet lead by chair, Henry Novak for their remarkable work in raising funds so quickly for the Kordyban Lodge. Second, I would like to thank the local MLAs Pat Bell and John Rustad and in particular, Shirley Bond for all their assistance in helping to secure this $2-million grant. And lastly, to thank our Minister of Health, Michael de Jong and our new Premier of B.C., Christy Clark for their financial commitment to the North and especially its families."

Dr. Charles Jago, Northern Health board chair:

“The Kordyban Lodge is just one aspect of our Northern Cancer Control Strategy to strengthen cancer care delivery for residents of the North. Northern Health appreciates the strong support for this cause from so many private donors and the Province."

Mary Kordyban, Mary Kordbyban Foundation:

“When illness threatens families it’s natural for life’s priorities to change. The Kordyban Lodge will serve as a vital component to those on a cancer journey and we are honoured to have it named after our family.”

Quick Facts:

• One in three British Columbians will develop some form of cancer in their lifetime, with about 22,000 new cancer patients in B.C. projected in 2011.

• More than 1,000 of these patients will reside in the North.

• The B.C. Cancer Agency predicts that in the next ten years, new cancer diagnoses in the North will rise by more than 38 per cent.

• When it is complete in the fall of 2012, the new 5,000-square-metre (54,000-square-foot) BC Cancer Agency Centre for the North will become the sixth regional cancer centre in B.C.