A Breast Cancer VICTOR and how she "kicked it's butt"

I am on a facebook page where we share our stories. Here is one that I wanted to make available to others, especially when breast cancer is a hot topic these days and there is a lot of money being raised for a cure that has been promised for years( I would rather race for prevention myself)  See how STRESS may have played a role in it.  This gal is a Breast Cancer VICTOR because, in her words, she "kicked it's butt." but it wasn't through the recommended knife or radiation or hormonal drugs or chemo.    Read it in her words and see what I mean.  You might know someone who would like to read it too!

A Breast Cancer Story

By Lesley Huff, Anne Siloy and Dixie Heiskell-Schreiner·

I was diagnosed with Breast Cancer in July of 1997.  My doctor called to tell me as I was getting ready to leave for my sons' t-ball game. I remember sitting in the stands watching them play and trying to process that information. It was one month before my 37th birthday. 

I had no family history of breast cancer (or any cancer) and I also had none of the risk factors for the disease.  I had a late start for menstruation, I had my children before the age of 35, I breast fed my babies, etc.  So much for that theory! 

            What I did have was a tremendous amount of constant daily stress in my life for the previous 2 years.  My husband’s mother and oldest brother were in need of caregivers. They were no longer able to maintain their home, drive, or take care of themselves. 

My mother-in-law had bone spurs in her back & diabetes, and my brother-in-law is mentally challenged and has epilepsy.  And no, my mother in law was not open to nutrition or Shaklee at that time…she was from the ‘old school doctor knows best’ way of thinking. But that's a whole other story

To make the transition easier for them, we packed up our 3 kids, gave up our home to buy theirs, added an in-law suite, and began to care for them.  Long story short… my mother-in-law’s worrisome personality and negative attitude about life in general (along with a touch of dementia) made life miserable for my family.  The stress was constant, unyielding, and as I found out, very detrimental to my health. 

So my 1st piece of advice…Lose the stress in your life. 

          



I found the cancer while doing a breast check in the shower.  It felt hard, and was about the size of a small bb or pea.  The one (and only!) benefit for having small breasts is that it is very easy to see/feel changes in them. 

I called my GYN to schedule an appt. After checking, he immediately sent me for a mammogram.

Here’s where it starts to get interesting.

They took a bilateral mammogram.  The lump I found in my left breast was symmetrical (not branch-y and ugly like most tumors), so they weren’t overly concerned with it.  They were concerned about my right breast where they found “calcification”.  They wanted to do a biopsy on that breast.  I went to a surgeon (wonderful man), and said that I wanted to have a bilateral biopsy, because I wanted to also remove the lump that I found.  Well, as it turned out, the “calcification” they were concerned about was NOTHING, and the lump I found was called malignant: "ductal carcinoma in situ"

            My cancer was in a VERY early stage, though, due to the early detection, and my prognosis was excellent.  The suggested course of treatment was to receive a lumpectomy and possibly radiation therapy/chemotherapy.  The lumpectomy results were great.  No cancer anywhere except in the original symmetrical lump that was about .5c in diameter.  Now we had to decide what to do next. 

You see, in breast cancer treatments, there are guidelines that every oncologist follows.  It is more of a “crap shoot’ as to which will be 'best' for an individual patient.  Also, the suggested course of action will vary from Dr. to Dr., --sometimes depending on which clinical study is currently being conducted at their specific hospital, and each suggestion is an “educated” guess.

            So, I got two opinions from two different Oncologists from two different hospitals. (Cleveland Clinic and University Hospital).

            The first Oncologist wanted me to undergo radiation therapy AND take hormone therapy in the form of Tamoxifen for 5 years.  The tamoxifen would, they think, decrease my chance for re-occurrence by a small percentage if I took the drug for 5 years. She also wanted me to have my uterus removed, because one “small” side effect of Tamoxifen is uterine cancer. 

That, to me, was ridiculous.  Why on earth would I want to take a drug that is known to cause cancer…to prevent cancer??? 

And I would have to have major surgery just to be able to take that drug?  Are you kidding??

When I refused, the oncologist became very irate with me and she made the statement to the effect that I should “do this for the good of womankind”.  What she meant was that she needed patients that fit the protocol for her current research study for the hospital & pharmaceutical company! 

Ah…I don’t think so.  I told her ‘no thank you’ to her offer of becoming one of her guinea pigs and told her that I would choose a plan that would be the best choice for the mother of my 3 small children and we walked out--disgusted-- as we began to learn about the ‘big business’ side of cancer.

            The other oncologist suggested only radiation therapy with follow up tests every 6 months for 2 years.  I, of course, chose the 2nd Oncologist’s advice and chose “only” radiation therapy.  If I had that same choice today, I would have not chosen either---maybe just the lumpectomy---- But that’s because I have lots more ammunition today than I did those  many years ago and I’m not afraid of cancer anymore.  Lesson learned.

While I was researching, I found strong evidence on the benefits of SOY PROTEIN in the prevention of Breast and Prostate Cancer, among other things.  I found that the genistein in the soy acts as an anti-estrogen, much like tamoxifen, and it would hinder the growth of the cancer cells. Soy Protein, when processed correctly like Shaklee’s Soy, provides all the benefits of estrogen without any of the harmful side effects

So, here is a NATURAL alternative with SIDE BENEFITS vs.  a HARMFUL drug with nasty SIDE EFFECTS that they wanted me to take for 5 years!  Hmmm…which to choose?  LOL.

Not only were they unaware of the research, but also showed no interest in it.

When I offered them the folder full of research articles I personally found about Soy Protein,

(Yes, I’m a research junkie!) not only would they not listen, they discouraged me from taking ANY nutritional supplements! 

Only my surgeon took the time to listen and read.  He and his wife began taking the Shaklee nutrition strips (called The Basics back then) and Soy Protein.

            Throughout my whole battle with this disease, I have had some interesting test results.  My cancer was contained and symmetrical--probably due to the nutritional supplements that I was already taking, as my body was doing its best to maintain health while still using so much energy to deal with the constant stress; I experienced zero fatigue during to the radiation treatments; and my red/white/platelet blood counts were, as the Dr. said, “probably better than any of us in the room with you.”  But never once was I asked what I was doing to achieve these results!  I was drinking the Soy Protein 2-3 times daily, and taking numerous nutritional supplements to promote my immune system response, eliminate toxins and build healthy cells.  I was also eating as close to Nature as possible with little/no processed foods.

My husband often commented that it was like I had something like a flu/cold…I did what I needed to do to get rid of it, moved on and never gave it another thought.

I think as a product of NATURE and as someone who had breast cancer, I would like to have any and all information about Natural approaches available to combat any disease. 

But word of warning: Don’t you dare call me a survivor…I kicked cancer’s butt and I’m a Victor! And no, I don’t walk for the cure or buy into that pink ribbon stuff…mainly because the CURE for cancer is in our lifestyle choices….not in a drug….and they don’t spend nearly enough of their money on prevention and/or natural approaches.  Sadly, but just like The American Cancer Society et all…it’s simply become big business.  If I sound a little ticked off about this--- it’s because I am!

  So, instead of walking or buying things with pink ribbons attached to them, I choose to teach people about health and prevention....one family at a time.

I am encouraged that there is more information offered now about alternative and complimentary therapies.  Probably largely due to the Internet and not being about to ignore so many people having positive results with such.  I hope the benefits of Shaklee Supplementation & Soy Protein—become universal.    And now we have POWER TOOLS like Vitalizer, Nutriferon, GLA, Liver DTX, Optiflora, VIVIX, and Stress Relief Complex.  WOOHOO!

I often wonder if I had the benefit of Nutriferon, Vivix and Stress Relief Complex, if I would have ever developed that stupid tumor in the first place..??

So, your best weapons against breast cancer?  

Remember to your self breast checks in the shower every month!!

Also...reduce toxins, keep a positive attitude, reduce/eliminate stress, choose a diet as close to Nature as possible, exercise, and add meditation/prayer and Shaklee supplements—everyday! –and not necessarily in that order!

FYI: The only time I talk about having cancer is to help someone else as it in no way defines who I am.  So I hope this helps someone in some small way.

If you are facing a battle against cancer, just know that YOU and the power of Nature are strong.

You can do it!

Anne Siloy

Berea, Ohio2012 UPDATE: I recently learned that my exact diagnosis DUCTAL CARCINOMA IN SITO is NO LONGER considered active breast cancer, but more of a 'precursor' to breast cancer warranting a 'wait and see' /lifestyle change approach. So...if you think I was bitter BEFORE about how the cancer machine treats this disease as a crap shoot...think about how much more so I am today with this new knowledge. But... we only know what we know and we can only act on the information we have at any given moment. Please make health choices wisely and don't take ANY advice that doesn't make complete sense to you.♥♥♥

From Ruth Bell, blog author

If you want more info on this, please contact me in the place on the right hand column and I can send you more stories and info from others who found natural alternatives. I also recommend Suzanne Sommers' books. The bottom line is to do your research.