Yesterday marked 8 years since my diagnosis of stage 2
breast cancer. I can remember just
wanting to reach year 1, then year 5.
But now year 8… we’ve come a long way!
I told my kids that I still think about cancer every day. It’s hard not to when I have to look at
numerous scars, changed skin and feel the constant numbness on my chest and
back. But, that’s not all there is to my
daily cancer reminder. I continue to
seek out information on cancer prevention daily. It is exciting to see the anticancer changes
that have occurred between 2008 and 2016.
Recently, I was bombarded by emails recommending a new book How Not To Die by Michael Greger, M.D. I ordered it right away to see what all the
fuss was about. This book not only is
about cancer, but about many chronic diseases and how diet can prevent and
reverse many of the causes of death by disease.
The scientific evidence of how nutrition transforms our genes is
empowering to say the least.
After reading the preface and introduction, I went straight
to Chapter 11, How Not To Die From Breast
Cancer. This easy to read chapter
reiterated a lot of what I already know; however there were a few
surprises. Greger writes that early detection is actually late detection. By the time a tumor is detected, it may have
been forming for decades! Yes, I said
decades. Autopsy studies have shown that
39% of women in their forties already have breast cancers that are too small to
be detected by mammograms. Greger
suggests that if we improve our diets and lifestyles, we can keep these cancers
at bay, hampering the promotion stage of cancer. Reading this makes me a little queasy, but at
the same time pushes me onward to “Go,
Fight, Win” this #$@% illness.
Another study followed a group of postmenopausal women for
over seven years to measure breast cancer risk.
Many recommendations were made, but most significant were three life
changes: limiting alcohol, eating mostly plant foods and maintaining a normal
body weight. Combined, these three
changes resulted in a 62% lower risk of breast cancer. Alcohol isn’t the risk itself, but rather
the breakdown of alcohol once it enters your mouth called acetaldehyde. I know, not
the news you or I want to hear. But, Greger
does highlight a Harvard Nurses study
that found that drinking red wine was not associated with breast cancer
risk. There is a compound in the skin of
purple grapes that apparently cancels out some of the cancer risks of alcohol. Good news for the red wine drinkers.
Other reminders include eating less meat. Carcinogens are formed when meat is cooked
at high temperatures- folks, this includes beef, pork, fish and poultry-
YIKES! And what about cholesterol? Cancer appears to feed on cholesterol and the
result is astounding. One study reported
that tumors ate so much cholesterol that cancer patients’ cholesterol levels
drastically dropped as the cancer grew. Hmmm.
Greger is all about plant food- fiber, fiber, fiber. Yes, an apple a day keeps the doctor away. Eat the skin and buy organic J. Cruciferous veggies and their ability to suppress cancer in the lab is significant. Specifically broccoli, seems to be a BIG winner. I bought broccoli sprouts yesterday and plan to throw them on all my meals- easy, peasy. Other recommendations include flaxseeds and soy. I know there has been controversy on the estrogen-like effect these foods can have. However, Greger is a fan of both of them. Green tea and mushrooms! Need I say more?
Greger ends his book with his version of Daily Dozen. I’m happy to report that I could check eleven of his twelve recommendations. My kids…. Not so much. I haven’t read the entire book, but have read Chapter 4, How Not To Die From Digestive Cancers. I was diagnosed with colitis right after having my first child. I can’t help but to believe that the inflammation I have experienced contributed to my risk of cancer promotion (among many other risks). This book is full of research, 132 pages of notes to be exact. Yes, I highly recommend it!
Christmas 2008, Year 1
Spring Break 2016, Year 8
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