Reilly shared with us the progress being made at the Seattle Cancer Treatment Center working with patients going through traditional cancer treatment and chemotherapy, adding naturopathic supplements to bolster the patient's natural defenses, enhance the effect of the treatment, and minimize the side effects.

He said it is always important to communicate with your doctor, and share the list of nutritional supplements you would like to take, so that the doctor can verify that there will be no issues with the planned surgery or treatment. The doctor can usually arrange with the hospital for the patient to bring and take vitamin supplements from home.

Handouts:

Nutritional & Botanical Support for Surgical Patients

Goals:

Prevent infection
Prevent adhesions
Prevent thrombophlebitis
Prevent anaesthetic complications
Reduce pain and swelling
Reduce constipation
Support healing
Support immunity

Two Weeks Prior to any Surgery

Diet:

Avoid: alcohol, recreational drugs, aspirin, tobacco, sugar, fried foods. Taper caffeine.
Increase: fiber, protein, fresh fruit (bioflavinoids), fluids

Vitamin C (2000-5000 mg/day)

Helps in healing/crosslinking collagen
Supports immune function
Supports liver detix pathways
Antioxidant
Reduces bruising and swelling

Vitamin A (25,000 in/day) (5000/day if chance of pregnancy)

Supports healing
- Ann. Surg. 1969 170:633
- Acta Derm. 1972 52:489
Supports Immunity
Reverse steroid suppression of collagen
- Ann. Surg. 1973 177:222

Bovine Tracheal Cartilage

Wounds heal approximately 50% faster
Can use oraly and topically
Useful in non-healing wounds
- Arch. Surg. 1964 98:1046
- Arch. Surg. 1963 87:647
- Surgery 1962 51:622

B Vitamins (50 mg each)

Supports adrenal glands
Needed in carbohydrate and amino acid metabolism
Aids in liver detoxification of drugs/anesthetics
Speeds immune recovery
- Jpn J Exp Med 1988 58:197
- AJCN 1985 41:578

Zinc (60 mg as picolinate)

Used in over 100 enzymes in body (incl. protein synthesis)
Important for epithelial tissues
Most active in second phase of healing
- J. Am. Osteop. Assoc 1981 81:104
Radiozinc localizes to healing tissues
- AJCN 1970 23:514
Zinc deficiency slows healing (80.1 =/113.7 vs 45.8 =/-2.6)
- Ann. Surg. 165:432
Essential for immunity
Speeds healing
- Jpn. J. Surg 1990 20:635
- Lancet Jan 21, 1967, p. 7482
- Brit. J. Surg. 1985 72:583

Bioflavonoids

Catechins
- Protect liver from chemicals
- Reduce adhesions
- Reduce post-op edema
  - Arch Surg. 1983 118:1431
Hawthorne
- Helps crosslink collagen fibers
- 20x increase in tensile strength

Fiber

To prevent constipation post-op
Many other benefits (i.e. SCFAs)

Milk thistle

Hepatoprotective agent

Immune support

echinacea, berberine, shitake mushrooms, vitamin E

Protein/amino acids

1 gram protein per kilogram body weight
glutamine
arginine
methionine
free form vs. peptides

Essential fatty acids

Deficiency slows healing (21 days vs 120 days)
- J. Pod. Surg. 1980 15:505

Immediately Prior to Surgery

Arnica/traumeel
Relaxation/visualization tapes

Immediately after surgery

Continue all above Medications

Arnica/traumeel

Vitamin E

Reduces thrombophlebitis
Immune augmenting
Antioxidant
Reduces adhesions
- Arch. Surg. 1985 120:949

Acidophilus & Bifidus (sacromyces)

Replaces beneficial GI flora killed by antibiotics
Reduces likelihood of yeast infection
Product beneficial compounds (antitumor, antibiotic)

Bromelain (500 mg tid)

Reduces inflammation (degrades kinins, PGE₂)
- Eur. J. Pharm 1988 150:295
Reduces platelet agg. & thrombophlebitis
- Planta Med 1990 56:249
- Alt. Med. Rev. 1996 1:243
Favors absorption of antibiotics
- Drugs Exp. Clin. Res. 1978 4:45

Protein drinks

Easily digested source of essential amino acids

Ambulate ASAP

Antioxidants during Chemotherapy & Radiation

"For many years it was assumed that radiation therapy and many chemotherapeutic drugs killed malignant cells directly by wreaking widespread havoc in their DNA. We now know that the treatments often harm DNA to a relatively minor extent. Nevertheless the affected cells perceive that the inflicted damage can not be easily repaired and they actively kill themselves." -- Scientific American, Sept 1996, p. 68.

"Many cancer cells lacking p53 do not undergo apoptosis in response to DNA damaging drugs or radiation and drugs that stimulate apoptotic pathways would be useful in this regard." -- Hunter & Pines, Cell, 1994 79:573.

Radiation Therapy

works by causing disruption of DNA which leads to cell suicide.

Side effects:

burning
desquamation
fat necrosis
discoloration
collateral damage to nearby tissue (heart, lung, colon, salivary glands, etc.)
secondary cancers

To Support benefits of radiation

genestein (20x vs 10,000x)
- Clin Ca Res 1997 3:1775
ascorbic acid (vitamin C)
- AJCN 1991 54:1281s
PSK
- Anticancer Res 1993 13:1815

To Reduce damage to healthy tissues

Squalene (people who received lethal doses of radiation lived 16 vs 12 days)
- Lipids 1993 28:1993
Green tea ("significantly prolonged lifespan after lethal whole body irradiation")
- Life Sci 1992 50:147
Quercetin ("the use of quercetin granules to treat acute radiation induced epithelitis was effective and allowed radiotherapy to be completed")
- Vestn Otorinolaringol (USSR) 1990 2:56
Antioxidants
- Anticancer Res 1992 12:599

Talk presented at the 4th International Patient/Provider Conference on Von Hippel-Lindau, Seattle, Washington, June 1998. Go to the agenda for the meeting.