The Food that Swallows the Chemo that Swallows the Cancer

A BASIC GUIDE (quantities and doses for a 50-60lb dog)

*Immune System Supportive Diet*

- makes approximately (21-24) 1.5c servings

- 3 meals/day

Ingredients

2c uncooked red (or regular) organic lentils

1c uncooked organic brown rice

6c washed organic fresh spinach

6 large organic sweet potatoes

2-3 lb wild caught salmon

2-3 lb washed organic carrots

filtered water

*SUPPLEMENTS (during chemo)*

- with breakfast (daily): 1 B-Complex, 1 CoQ-10, 1/4 Selenium, 1 tbsp Flaxseed Oil, 1 D3, 1 Papaya

- with breakfast (W-Su): 1 B12

- 2h after breakfast: 1/4c apple tea (see below) + 1/8 tbsp Chlorophyll, 1 Probiotic, 1 Cell Forte, 1 Milk thistle

- 2h later: Echinacea (1-450 or 2-250)

- 2h later with lunch: 1 Papaya

- 2h later: apple tea mix

- 2h later: Echinacea

- 2h later with dinner: 1/4 Selenium, 1 Papaya

- 2h later: Echinacea

1. B-Complex (Solgar/Megasorb 50mg): for normal cell division & building new red blood cells

2. CoQ-10 (Solgar 30mg softgels): for heart, thyroid, tissue health

3. Selenium (Solgar 200mcg): antioxidant

4. Flaxseed Oil omegas (Flora refrigerated): for nervous system, skin, cartilage, immune system health

5. D3 (Nature's Life/Solgar 400IU softgels): for bone health

6. Papaya (Country Life chewable wafers): for digestive enzymes

7. B12 (Twinlab 500mcgs dots): for heart health

8. Chlorophyll (Sunny Green natural flavor): detoxifier for digestive system lining protection

9. Cell Forte (Enzymatic Therapy tablets): antioxidant for liver & immune system health

10. Milk Thistle (Solaray/Vitamin Shoppe 350mg caplets): for liver health

11. Echinacea (Nature's Herbs/Twinlab herb & root, 1-450 or 2-250): for immune system

12. Apple tea & compote: peel 6 Gala apples quartered, boil in 4c filtered water with 1 piece peeled organic ginger root, 4 bags organic peppermint tea & 4 bags organic (decaf) green tea; after cool, separate juice from mashed apples & refrigerate

*SUPPLEMENTS (after last chemo session)*

- 1h before breakfast (daily): 2 oz prepared FlorEssence tea diluted in 1-2 oz filtered water

- with breakfast (daily): 1 multivitamin, 1 CoQ-10, 1 Quercetin

- 2h after breakfast: (weekdays) 1 Milk Thistle, (daily) 1 probiotic

- with lunch (weekdays): 1 D3

- with lunch (MWF): 1 B12

- with lunch (TuF): 1 Artichoke Extract, 1 tbsp Flaxseed Oil mixed into food

- with lunch (Th): 1 Turmeric

- mid-afternoon (daily): 1 probiotic caplet

- 2-3h before bedtime (daily): 2 oz FlorEssence tea as above

1. CoQ-10: give indefinitely for heart, thyroid, tissue oxygenation

2. Quercetin (Solaray non-citrus caplets): give for 3+ months as anti-inflammatory for respiratory system

3. Milk Thistle: give for 2-3 months for liver

4. Probiotic: give 2/day for 6 months then 1/day indefinitely

5. D3: give indefinitely for bones

6. B12: give indefinitely for heart

7. Artichoke Extract (Enzymatic Therapy tablets): give for 2-3 months for gallbladder

8. Flaxseed Oil: give indefinitely for nervous system, skin, cartilage, immune system

9. Turmeric (New Chapter Turmeric Force softgels): give for 2 months as anti-inflammatory (assuming no history of bleeding)

10. FlorEssence tea (Flora): give for 2-3 months for detoxifying

11. Multivitamin (Solgar Iron-free Formula VM-75 vegetarian): indefinitely

*SUPPLEMENTS (regular)*

- with breakfast (daily): 1/2 multivitamin, 1 CoQ-10

- with lunch (weekdays): 1 D3

- with lunch (MWF): 1 B12

- with lunch (TuF): 1 tbsp Flaxseed Oil

- mid-afternoon/before bedtime (daily): 1 probiotic

*INAPPETENCE*

Your dog has to eat something at some point, but eating is a struggle when there's nausea and upset stomach. - Don't feed right before chemo. First, you need fasting before blood tests for accurate results (key for monitoring effects of both types of treatments). Second, your dog will associate the inevitable chemo-related stomach upset with the food you feed your dog and you'll soon run out of types of food your dog will accept. - Learn to quickly identify the signs of nausea (excessive licking of nose, salivation, panting) and tell the oncologist so s/he can prescribe antinausea medication so that your dog will eat. You can't force your dog to eat, but you can't let your dog lose too much weight or become too weak. This is critical.

- To take the edge off upset stomach: apple tea & compote (above). If your dog will consume the compote by itself or drink the liquid with water, great. Otherwise, add the compote to food.

- Our oncovet presribed canned Prescription Diet canned food for us to use not as a substitute to his regular food but as an appetite inducer. This is a very gradual process. Start by opening the can and letting your dog sniff it. Once you've captured your dog's interest, feed your dog a spoon-ful, then another until your dog has had enough. You use this food when your dog refuses regular food. At this point, your dog won't overeat and is already losing weight from chemo so overfeeding isn't really a concern. However, the goal is to try to get your dog to return to regular food. At the next meal, try mixing a little regular food into the PD food. At subsequent meals, try decreasing the ratio of PD to regular food until your dog is back on regular food. If your dog normally loves a particular flavor (chicken), buy cans of organic chicken & brown rice (with few to no other ingredients) for you to mix in with regular food.

"Your Pup has Cancer" is NOT the new "Happy Anniversary"

*CHEMO vs. ALTERNATIVE TREATMENT*

Simon was diagnosed with stage IV lymphoma that had already compromised his liver and gallbladder so we weren't going to take any chances with an alternative-treatment-only plan. After doing our research and consulting the oncologist, using chemo wasn't a question. That said, a holistic approach to treatment was a must. If we were going to put Simon through the purgatory that is chemo, invest countless hours and precious funds into treatment, and ride the emotions tied to this experience all to improve the quality of his life while extending his life, we were going to take no short cuts. Chemo is both a fierce weapon against cancer and a poison to the body you're trying to save. In order to give the body the strength it needs to survive the months-long battle between chemo and cancer, you need to make sure it has healthy amounts of stabilizing and cancer-fighting components and none of the cancer-feeding stuff. Don't discount chemo or complementary therapies. Use them both in your arsenal. Consult with holistic oncologists, those who can advise on a plan based on both types of treatments.

Cancer is like Attila the Hun, an efficient, merciless and undiscriminating warrior. It strikes when you least expect it, takes every advantage, and quickly ravages its environs. Cancer does not spare even the most innocent and selfless of creatures – our animal companions. These thoughts raged through my mind when our little fur-ball, Simon, was diagnosed with lymphoma, a systemic cancer that spreads fairly quickly via the lymphatic system. Because it affects the entire body, you cannot simply remove a tumor and restrict treatment (and its side effects) to one area. You need a systemic approach.

As the saying goes, “don't get mad, get even”, my husband and I decided to attack Simon's cancer in every way possible with a comprehensive plan that fused Eastern and Western approaches to health. Our goal was to give Simon the best chance at overcoming cancer and resume a happy, healthy life. To accomplish this, we needed to take advantage of all the tools at our disposal and to do this we needed to think out of the box. We used traditional medicine and alternative therapies, including supplements, exercise, massage and a non-toxic environment, to fight his cancer.

We decided to use chemotherapy, because it has a solid success rate (over 80% life expectancy of a year, depending on the stage) against lymphoma. Simon's chemo protocol involved 19 weeks of Vincristine, Cytoxan and intravenous Doxorubicin. This protocol had two major side effects – weight loss due to the killing of large quantities of cancer cells (a good thing) and weight loss due to stomach upset (a bad thing). In essence, chemo is a poison that not only kills cancer cells but also compromises regular cells. Considering cancer's alarming good-cell body-counts, you need to find a way to make the host environment unsuitable for cancer cells while giving good cells the support they need to fight the cancer cells and tolerate chemo. How do you pull this off? Feed the body substances the good cells need for battle and remove substances that feed or potentially activate the cancer cells. This is where the Eastern part of the plan takes the stage supporting the Western part.

Through the Eastern approach, you examine diet to ensure the body gets the nutrients it needs though diet and supplements to remain strong and fight cancer. Simon's diet gave him the right kinds and proportions of protein, omega fatty acids, fiber, antioxidants, minerals, fat, and vitamins. This was key because Simon's liver and spleen were compromised so we had to be cautious about his consumption of fat, vitamins and minerals which those organs ordinarily metabolize when healthy. There was no corn, wheat or non-fructose sugar in his diet, because cancer cells thrive on sugars and carbs. To keep pesticides and additives out of and full-strength nutrients into his food, we used only fresh, organic ingredients when making his food: yams, carrots, lentils, wild-caught salmon, spinach, and brown rice.

We believe the powerful herbs and supplements Simon received were essential to his victory over cancer. To make sure no substances interfered with each other or his chemo, we carefully administered his regimen of ten or so antioxidants, enzymes, and other detoxifiers on a strict schedule. Most of these supplements supported the immune system, heart, thyroid, bones, liver, and normal cell division and production, all of which are weakened by cancer and chemo. Some supplements, like ginger-peppermint-apple juice, supported the digestive system, which helped ease his stomach upset and, in turn, helped increase his appetite and weight. It makes sense – he felt less sick so he ate which gave him more energy and allowed him to consume the nutrients he needed to tolerate chemo and recover. Energy and recovery gave him the strength to play and a playful dog is a happy dog. Thanks to our comprehensive plan, Simon is happy, lymphoma-free, and has nearly doubled his life expectancy.

People often confuse “holistic” with “alternative”, misjudging it as a polarized approach. A holistic approach is just the opposite. It is a complete system, bringing together the best of traditional and alternative approaches. It is not West or East but both. You need both to out-wit the Hun. We have, so far, and the best spoil of this battle is having our happy dog back.