Cancer prevention starts with you

The best way to reduce cancer’s toll is to keep people from getting it in the first place.

by Dr. Frank George — 

America declared war on cancer in 1971 because it was the second leading cause of death in the United States. President Richard Nixon said, “The time has come in America when the same kind of concentrated effort that split the atom and took man to the moon should be turned toward conquering this dread disease.”

So, how are we doing? Cancer is still the number two killer. One in two men in the U.S. will be diagnosed with cancer during his lifetime. One in three women in the U.S. will be diagnosed with cancer during her lifetime. The National Cancer Institute reports that from 1950 to 2001, the number of cancers of the bone marrow, the bladder and the liver doubled. And cancer is now the chief cause of death in children between the ages of 1 and 14.

The party line is that we don’t know what causes cancer, and we must spend more money on research to find “the cure.” This simply is not true. It’s not that much of a mystery, since we have a pretty good idea of what causes cancer.

We know that cancer is primarily an environmental disease. Many cancer-causing agents are found in our midst: pesticides, formaldehyde, mercury, aluminum, fluoride, chlorinated water, radiation, tobacco, gasoline exhaust, benzene, asbestos, solvents, toxic flame retardants from fabrics and mattresses, and some drugs and hormones.

The Centers for Disease Control and the Environmental Working Group (EWG) confirmed that American children are now born with a plethora of chemicals in their bodies. In 2005, the EWG tested umbilical cord blood from 10 babies born in U.S. hospitals. Results showed a total of 287 chemicals in the group — pesticides, consumer product ingredients, and wastes from burning coal, gasoline and garbage. In the name of convenience, we are exposed daily to small levels of known carcinogens in our food, air, building materials, shampoos, personal care products and more. It adds up.

Homeopathic physicians are concerned about artificial electromagnetic radiation, which distorts human energy patterns. Non-industry sponsored research shows that cell phone radiation, for example, damages living cells and can penetrate the skull. Recent reports published in the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine reveal that adults who have used cell phones for 10 years or more have twice the incidences of brain cancer on the side of their heads most frequently exposed to the phone. Other countries have issued warnings, but the U.S. government has remained silent.

Homeopathic physicians also are concerned about genetically modified foods. We don’t know what it means to ingest corn that has had a pesticide spliced into its DNA. The FDA’s own scientists warned that GM foods could lead to unpredictable toxins, allergies and new diseases.

We know the cure for most of the cancer we see; it’s called prevention. We know that carcinogens and toxins assault our immune systems and damage our DNA. We also now know that our damaged genes can be passed down to the next generation.

What we don’t seem to have is the political will to focus on prevention instead of research. This represents a paradigm shift and an overturning of profitable relationships. Research draws many paying sponsors; prevention draws few.

The Susan G. Komen organization, in coordination with (Rachel Carson’s) Silent Spring Institute, published a report last year on the causes of cancer. They concluded that cancer is an environmental disease. Good luck finding that report on the Susan G. Komen Web site.

What you can easily find on their Web site is a list of corporate sponsors that include Cadbury Schweppes, Inc., Coffee-mate, Kraft Foods, M&M’s® Brand Chocolate Candies and Pepsi, to name a few. We know sugar feeds cancer, so why is this organization promoting these products? Perhaps because M&M’s® Brand Chocolate Candies is a million-dollar sponsor.

This organization tells women there is “insufficient evidence” to warrant concern about cell phones, cosmetics, soy, parabens and plastics. They do not promote thermography, which can detect suspicions of cancer 10 years before mammography can, but promote annual mammograms which have an annual dose of radiation, a carcinogen.

Prevention starts with you. Listen critically to the messages you hear. Eat foods that support your body’s ability to repair and regenerate. Learn about grass-fed meats and organic food. Avoid acid-forming, grain-fed meats containing hormones, steroids and antibiotics. Avoid processed foods, period. Avoid artificial colorings, sugars and preservatives, and ditch the hydrogenated oils.

Reduce the chemical burden surrounding you. Avoid pesticides, plastics (use glass), solvents, chlorine, stain-free fabrics, fire-retardant mattresses, VOC paints, formaldehyde-treated furniture, chemically treated carpets and glues, perfumed laundry detergent and dryer sheets, and air fresheners to name a few.

The best way to reduce cancer’s toll is to keep people from getting it in the first place. The good news is that with the increased emphasis on green products, avoidance is getting a little easier.

The late Frank George, D.O., M.D.(H), practiced low-dose, targeted chemotherapy (IPT) at EuroMed-Integrative Medical Specialists, in Scottsdale, Ariz. He was the first osteopathic physician in the U.S. to train in IPT and taught IPT to other doctors. www.Euro-Med.us.

Reprinted from AzNetNews, Volume 27, Number , December 2008/January 2009.