By Anthony DeMarco

What Does Getting Cancer Mean?

The term cancer is used to describe the situation wherein a disruption in the lifecycle of the cells of the human body has occurred. Whereas, normal cells are born, live out their purpose, and die, or undergo apoptosis, cancer cells tend to live on. Worse, they begin to proliferate. They will form tumors that can obstruct the body's vital organs and rob nutrients from nearby healthy cells which, in turn, will lead to the depletion of the host.

There are currently two views on the cause of this malady. Conventional or orthodox medicine sees the disease as a chance occurrence that is caused by genetic mutations. Non-traditional or unorthodox medicine, on the other hand, sees cancer as the result of metabolic imbalances that is the result of lifestyle choices. Because of this, there are also two existing approaches to the cure for cancer: Orthodox practitioners will focus primarily on killing the cancer cells, while non-traditional medicine focuses on restoring the patient's inner biological environment, the change in which is believed to have been the cause of the affliction.

Conventional cancer treatments include radiation therapy, chemotherapy, surgery, et cetera. The second approach, on the other hand, includes such treatments as dietary and lifestyle changes, psychological programs, and nutritional supplementation.

Using conventional cancer treatment has also been called waging war on cancer since the foremost objective is to kill cancer cells or subdue them into remission. While the approach has its critics, most medical practitioners agree that it is useful in cases when the cancer is fast-growing and in instances of diffuse blood cancers.

Non-traditional medical practitioners see cancer as a systemic disease, a name given to a number of diseases which have the common attribute of uncontrolled cellular proliferation. They point out that because of this, only treatment programs that address the "whole body" will lead to a long-term cure.
A person, first diagnosed with cancer, will probably be recommended by his/her physician with conventional orthodox treatments. Always remember, though, that it is not the only available course of action. It might not even be the best available option there is.

What do you do when you are diagnosed with cancer?
The first thing to do is not to panic. Cancer is NOT a death sentence. People are cured of cancer. Even if the oncologist tells you the worst thing that could happen, he is only making an educated guess based on current data and conventional treatment methodologies.

First, you need to know the following: the type of cancer you have; the stage it is in; if the cancer has metastasized; the available treatments and their success rates; alternative treatments; and the dietary, lifestyle, and psychological changes that you are willing to make.

Get a treatment program that addresses your needs, and get the right health practitioner to implement that program of treatment.

The next thing to do is to get as much additional information as you can from reading books or visiting the Internet. It is best not to rely solely on the information provided by your doctor.

The following books offer alternative views on cancer: The China Study by T. Colin Campbell, Cancer the full menu by Rolf Gordon, Healing Cancer by Simon Kelly and Enrida Kelly, Cancer Is Not A Disease by Andreas Mortiz, Alternatives in Cancer Therapy: The Complete Guide to Non-Traditional Treatments by Ross Pelton and Lee Overholser, Anticancer: A New Way of Life by David Servan-Schreiber, Winning the War on Cancer by Mark Sircus, and Everything You Need To Know To Help You Beat Cancer by Chris Woolams.

Be sure to exercise some caution when getting information from the Internet by visiting only established sites. It is better to avoid sites that advertise quick cures. Because cancer does not happen overnight, it is a good bet that a cure will not happen instantly.

The third step is to decide on a course of action. There are four options:

Opt for conventional treatments only. An option that is generally preferred by individuals who want to leave health matters to their healthcare providers.

Opt for a combination of both orthodox and unorthodox treatments. For individuals who want the best of both worlds. They might also have a very aggressive type of cancer that requires a rapid reduction in the number of cancer cells as an initial step.

Opt exclusively for alternative treatments. These are individuals who have done the research on the success rate of conventional treatments, were not satisfied with the statistics, and have decided to take their chances using alternative approaches.

Opt for no treatment, at all. This option is, generally, for individuals that are: in complete denial, with cancer types that are developing very slowly, have cancers that cannot be treated with any of the available means at present, or are too old or frail to go through the rigors of treatment.

The option that will eventually be chosen will depend on an individual's present condition, his/her temperament, belief systems, and existing social support structure.

It is also important to bear in mind that treating cancer is not a matter of the more treatments, the better. For example, going for a combination of orthodox and unorthodox treatments will mean doing chemotherapy or radiotherapy, treatments that are known to contribute to patient death.

The subsequent posts will try to examine how mind-body healing can help cancer patients.