By Steven R Newton

Yet another reason to discover alternative cancer treatments.

Early in 2011, there's an indication of shortages in some drugs in the North American pharmaceutical market. Hospitals and pharmacists are seeing an ever-increasing trend in the frequency of these shortages. Manufacturers offer several reasons for this including shortages in raw materials, manufacturing problems, tougher regulations in other countries, and unprofitability. That may well be, but let's examine another thought for a moment.

The basic law of supply and demand states that as supply decreases, demand increases. Typically, with an increase in demand, we also see an increase in costs because the market usually supports that. Or put another way, with a decrease in supply we see an increase in demand...and cost.

In recent years there have been a number of drug patents expire which has created an opportunity for more manufacturers, often from countries with lower manufacturing costs, to enter into the generic drug market. In effect, this has created an increase in supply, which has resulted in a decreased demand...and profitability. Good news for the consumer as the prices of generic drugs are usually cheaper. Basically, the more manufacturers there are the less they can charge for a product and the less profit they can make.

Conventional cancer treatment drugs are not cheap and they're highly profitable. So given that there has been an influx in cheaper generic drugs into the market can we expect to see a similar trend in conventional cancer treatment drugs? Frankly, I doubt it. Think about this for a moment.

The drug companies that manufacture products for cancer treatments related to chemotherapy, radiation, immunotherapy, or in support of surgery are pretty well established in the North American and global markets. And they've got their markets fairly well protected in several countries, either by law and/or substantial penetration into the medical universities. Today's doctors only know what they're taught. They're taught to prescribe drugs for the symptoms. They're not taught to diagnose and treat cancer causes. Nor are they taught a whole lot about nutrition, particularly how it relates to alternative cancer treatments.

It's not illegal to treat people with alternative cancer treatments but you won't find any mainstream doctors doing that. They're taught how to treat cancer symptoms with drugs at the universities. The same universities that are funded by the large pharmaceutical companies for research. The same universities that are regulated in law by what they can teach about cancer treatments. The same universities that are regulated by the same government agencies that approve new drugs for cancer treatments. The same government agencies that are run by people with strong ties to the pharmaceutical industry. The same pharmaceutical companies that have strong lobbying capacity at the federal government level. The same government agencies that regulate the drugs that doctors are allowed to prescribe. Drugs that are manufactured by the same pharmaceutical companies that fund the research at the universities. You get the point. Cancer is a business. A really, really big business.

So I don't see a cheap influx of generic cancer drugs anytime soon. It's just not in the financial interests of the large pharmaceutical companies. And they have enough power to keep hold of their markets. So what does that mean to those of you who seek cancer treatments?

One possibility is that the large pharmaceutical companies will keep the prices high on their cancer treatment drugs. They can do that by maintaining control of their markets, much the same way they have for years. Or it's possible that some smart pharmaceutical company folks will figure out that they can ride the "drug shortage" wave and create artificial demand. Much in the same way that the OPEC nations cut back on the amount of oil they release into the world market to create a demand and drive the price of a barrel up, the pharmaceutical companies could do the same with their cancer drugs.

So if you start to see lots of media attention around drug shortages and rising prices, ask yourself if it's real or if it's just a marketing ploy. To my thinking, I'm not so sure I would want my health being controlled by large market forces that are profit driven. So for my own peace of mind, I am researching alternative cancer treatments for a couple of reasons: (1) to understand better what my options would be if I did get cancer; and (2) understand cancer prevention better. You should too...

By James Turner

Cancer when caught early can be treated. There are several cancer treatment options such as surgery, chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, radiation therapy and targeted therapy. These treatments are usually combined together for a successful treatment of cancer. Most of these treatments are aggressive which usually have side effects. Aside from modern treatments, oriental medicine and alternative medicine practitioners have come up with different alternative cancer treatments. These alternative treatments emphasize the use of Mother Nature in the treatment of cancer. There are many alternative cancer treatment centers these days found in many countries all over the world.

Herbal Treatment:

The use of herbs and other plants in the treatment of different illnesses has been tried and tested. Despite the invention of powerful and modern drugs, many people opt to use herbs because herbs usually do not have side effects and adverse effects. Many researches have been done to create the ultimate cure for cancer. To this end, alternative medicine practitioners are also doing their best to find a cancer cure. A highly recommended alternative cancer treatment is the use of herbs for cancer treatment. Some of the top cancer herbs are garlic, red clover, chaparral and Echinacea. Garlic is a very powerful herb which can be used as an anti-bacterial, anti-parasitical, anti-fungal and anti-viral. Those who have cancer should eat at least 3 to 5 cloves of raw garlic everyday. Those whose cancer is already in its advance stage should increase their garlic intake to eight cloves per day. Chaparrals and red clovers also have anti-cancer properties.

Chaparral in particular is a good liver cancer alternative treatment because it has liver stimulants which can remove the toxins in the liver. Echinacea boosts the immune system which is very important when fighting cancer. For those with stage 4 cancers, a popular cancer alternative treatment is the 'grape cancer cure.' This alternative treatment which was developed by Johanna Brandt focuses on the use of grapes for the treatment of cancer. There are other herbs which can be used to fight cancer.

Holistic Cancer Treatment:

Holistic alternative medicine as a cancer cure is gaining popularity. Holistic healing is a kind of treatment which focuses on the person as a whole. This means that the treatment does not focus on the illness alone but on all aspects of the patient's life. The spiritual, social, emotional, mental and physical aspects are all considered in the treatment of the person. Holistic cancer treatment uses different therapies such as herbal remedies, acupuncture, energy-based therapies, counseling, prayer, exercise and many more. All these treatments or therapies aim to restore balance in the human body. In the treatment of cancer, a person's fighting spirit is important. This is where holistic healing as an alternative cancer treatment comes in. It helps a person stay mentally strong while undergoing cancer treatment.

Complementary Medicine:

Complementary medicine refers to different treatments which are used along side with conventional treatments. Examples of complementary medicines are yoga, tai chi, acupuncture, massage and meditation. Some people say that complementary medicine works in the same way a placebo does. However, studies have shown that people who used complementary techniques along with conventional medicine have a higher chance of successfully beating cancer.

There are many other alternative cancer treatments aside from what has been mentioned. Many doctors and people are skeptical about these treatments. However, many cancer survivors who used alternative medicines are living proofs of the effectiveness of these treatments.

Important news for all of us, especially those who have a higher chance of suffering from colon cancer symptoms. A new report suggests that eating too much meat, including processed meats might just up your risk of getting colon cancer. Cancer of the colon is the 3rd most common cancer, after skin cancers, diagnosed in the United States.

Doctors tell us that most all cancers of this type get started in the glands that line the colon and rectum. This type of cancer often starts out as noncancerous polyps that over time develop into cancer. Experts are coming to believe that what we put into our bodies may play a part in the risk of colon cancer - a high fat, low fiber diet, loaded with red or processed meats is not what your body needs to stay cancer free.

The AICR recommends eating just 18 ounces of red meat (beef, lamb, pork) per week as this brings only a tiny increase in risk of colon cancer. This works out to roughly five or six small portions per week.

Processed meat is a no-no as the findings of the report showed that consuming processed meat increases your risk of colon cancer two times as much as eating red meats. The larger the quantities of processed meat you eat, the more risk you have for developing colon cancer.

Those who eat 24.5 ounces a week (about 3.5 ounces a day) of red meats face a 17% higher chance of colon cancer in comparison to those who eat no red/processed meats according to the AICR/WCRF report. Those who ate 7 ounces of red meat a day, a whopping 49 ounces a week, were found to have a 34% greater chance of developing colon cancer.

Why is red and processed meat so bad for you?

No one knows exactly, some suggest chemicals known as heterocyclicamines, a by product when cooking meat at a very high temperature, might play a part. Processed meats are created by just such processes - i.e. smoking, curing or salting and adding things like nitrates - none of those sound very healthy. We also know that the body changes nitrates into nitrosamines, known to raise the risk of cancer.

Moderating your intake of red meats is a smart move. And by doing so you leave more room in your meals for good foods like veggies and whole grains. As for the processed variety, less is more.

The report also cautions against drinking too much alcohol, as this might up your colon cancer risk. Extra fat in the belly area appears to play a part in increased cancer risk, which is why experts recommend making other healthy lifestyle choices - taking in more fiber and being more active on a regular basis as being so important.

Cutting red and processed meats from the diet, as well as making other dietary and lifestyle changes (drinking less alcohol, eating more fiber, being active regularly and keeping your weight in the healthy range) could prevent just under half of all colon cancers. That's over 64,000 cases each and every year according to the latest findings.

The good news, explains expert panel members who examined all the literature on the risk of colon cancer symptoms, is that people do have an element of control over the risk of this terrible disease. You can do something to help yourself, but you have to act now, and avoiding eating too much meat is an easy place to start.

By Kirsten Whittaker

When you sit and ponder the hardships of our contemporary world, it's often difficult not to be saddened. There are just so many illnesses and diseases out there now days that make our health situation even worse and more complicated. Inexplicable terrors such as cancer have plagued our world for decades now. However, we still don't know the absolute best or ideal way to deal with them. Although most people assume chemotherapy is the only way to deal with the big bad "C," there are alternative cancer treatments available. Now, whether or not you find an alternative cancer treatment effective is a different story. A great deal depends on the person and his/her condition.

Do you know of a successful alternative cancer treatment? I knew a guy back in Oregon, who claimed he used regular acupuncture treatments along with meditation and yoga to treat his cancer. I must admit that it makes me cringe to think about the effect it has on ones body. If you didn't already know, chemotherapy is a radiation treatment that is used to kill the cancer cells/growth in the human body. Unfortunately it has to poison your body to accomplish this task. Hence the hair falling out and the vomiting. It's a terrible process to watch first hand. This actually may be why certain individuals search for an alternative cancer treatment.

Are you looking for some alternative cancer treatment to deal with your affliction? Hey, if to find a quality and effective alternative cancer treatment is your goal, then I would suggest research via the World-Wide-Web. I believe this will save a great deal of time and effort on your part. If your personal doctor knows of no legitimate alternative cancer treatment, then you must take matters into your own hands. Although this horrific disease continuously affects a number of human beings, sometimes leaving us hopeless, we certainly can't give up on finding the ideal cure. That choice alternative cancer treatment is out there. It's all about being tenacious and never quitting.

This information is not presented by a medical practitioner and is for educational and informational purposes only. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read.

Since natural and/or dietary supplements are not FDA approved they must be accompanied by a two-part disclaimer on the product label: that the statement has not been evaluated by FDA and that the product is not intended to "diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease".

How Does Alternative Cancer Treatment Work?
Until 200 years ago what is now labeled 'alternative treatment' was based on the words of Hippocrates, the "Father of Medicine". Hippocrates is famously quoted as saying "Let food be your medicine." It is a compelling quote which encapsulates the very simple, very common sense idea that the most efficient healer we know, or will ever know, is a correctly functioning natural immune system. In modern cancer research this common sense approach is not only ignored it is actively forbidden by the AMA for doctors to prescribe alternative medications to fight cancer. Doctors are allowed to prescribe natural remedies to treat the side-effects of the drugs which are used to fight cancer, but not allowed to treat cancer itself with anything other than the prescribed, orthodox treatment.

The purpose of this article is not to examine the state of affairs which sees natural substances shunned in favor of expensive, and often harmful medications, but to examine what you can expect to happen and receive should you elect an alternative treatment course to deal with cancer.

One of the biggest problems with discussing alternative cancer treatments is that it covers a huge amount of ground. Anything which is outside the mainstream practice(which will usually include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatment) is, by definition, 'alternative'. As such the 'alternative' label is often attacked broadly based on the ineffectuality or indeed harmfulness of specific treatments. For instance treating cancer by putting leeches on the skin to draw blood is not a mainstream medical response to cancer so it would be labeled as 'alternative' even though most alternative treatment providers would be horrified with the concept. Attacking unorthodox treatments broadly for the practices of a few extreme treatment providers is clearly not a rational response, yet it is exactly the line which has successfully kept alternative cancer treatment on the sideline for so long.

For the purpose of this article we will discuss the type of healthcare that Hippocrates was a strong supporter of and apply to it the broad label 'alternative'. This form of alternative treatment works on a few basic fundamental ideas.

The first is the concept that the most efficient entity at healing a body is itself. The body will respond to a foreign organism long before medical tests discover it, and in fact this is usually how the problem is first bought to the attention of doctors. Diseases do not have 'tiredness' causing properties, this is the bodies natural response to an invasion - it attempts to enter a restive state where it can more effectively fight the invader.

A primary focus of alternative cancer treatment then is not the direct battle against the cancer and the tumor itself, but a strengthening of the bodies defenses and natural ability to fight disease. This is done via strengthening the immune system. Vitamin C is known to have strong immunity building properties and was shown by Linus Pauling (Two time Nobel prize winner) to be an effective cancer treatment by itself. In fact it was over thirty years ago that Pauling and his research partner Ewan Cameron MD showed that just 10 grams of Vitamin C taken intravenously each day would extend a cancer patient's life 6 times longer than chemotherapy treatment. It is also worth noting that while Vitamin C builds up the immune system, chemotherapy breaks it down, which means that where chemotherapy is used it becomes the only defense the body has against cancer - the only way of continuing to fight the cancer is to continue chemotherapy. The clear conclusion is that Vitamin C is a more efficient treatment than Chemotherapy and has none of the debilitating side effects.

Alternative treatment providers have been able to use this type of research as a base for formulating a case by case plan to restore the bodies balance and fight cancer. The type of cancer it self is considered, the location of the cancer and the size of the tumor will all effect how the treatment is administered. The patients only physical state must be considered two and this will usually involve a detailed look at their body, diet and lifestyle. Everybodies DNA is different and some people are more likely to respond positively to some treatments.

This critical fact is often what is left out of a full assessment of alternative cancer treatments. Imagine an auto repair shop. If you said to your mechanic that your car isn't working he will not simply change the oil and give you your keys back. That may well work for some cars, but it will most definitely not work for them all. Only then is any attempt made to 'cure' the car. Now compare that approach to the approach of orthodox medicine that will change the oil and water, give you a new set of tires and tune the engine. In most cases an alternative treatment is going to require some type of detoxification process. In modern society we are exposed to more harmful substances and processed foods that at any previous point in history. These toxins can dwell in our system for a long time and are often part of the cause of a disease. At the very least the body is wasting resources fighting them that could be assisting in it's fight against cancer. The detoxification is an ongoing process, particularly if the other treatments are effectively killing cancer cells. The death of a cancer cell actually introduces more toxins to the system and in large doses these can be extremely harmful and even fatal. This is why all cancer treatments are undertaken gradually - because a treatment that killed all cancer cells immediately would release a massive toxic load into the system and put it in even more danger.

Alternative Cancer Treatment also puts a huge amount of emphasis on a patients diet. Conventional medicine ignores this and most orthodox cancer treatment will result in a serious loss of weight. Forty Percent of cancer patients die not from cancer but from malnutrition so it is vital to ensure that a healthy and regular diet is followed. The correct balance in the body is also going to mean less nausea and other symptoms associated with cancer treatments.

This article has touched on what you can expect in an alternative health treatment for cancer, but it must be stressed that it only touches the surface of the options available. There are over 300 treatments that have been shown to be effective in the treatment of cancer but are not part of mainstream medicines response. The important thing is not knowing how many options there are out there but knowing which options, and combinations of options are going to work in any individual case. Alternative Cancer Treatment takes a holistic approach to the treatment of cancer and seeks to assist the sufferer not just in overcoming their cancer but also in enjoying their life and living well while they do. A cancer survivor who beats cancer using alternative medicine will not just be alive, but they will be alive and healthy. This increased quality of life, both throughout the treatment and after it, is an essential element in what makes alternative cancer therapy such an attractive option to those with the good fortune to explore it.