| As breast cancer awareness month comes to a | | | | If you are pre-menopausal, it will provide you |
| close, I find myself reflecting on a month of | | | | very little accuracy due to the density of the |
| grandstanding by an industry controlled by | | | | breasts. And yet it is women between the ages |
| pharmaceutical drug companies designed to profit | | | | of 44 and 55 most at risk. Why is mammography |
| from women with disease. It is tragically a missed | | | | such a great achievement? |
| opportunity to provide real education on | | | | FACT: Mammography is prone to missing the |
| prevention, instead of merely promoting | | | | most aggressive and life threatening types of |
| expensive diagnostic tools that some experts | | | | breast cancer while picking up tumors often found |
| believe to be inadequate and even carcinogenic. | | | | to be benign. |
| The American Cancer Society remains fixated on | | | | I am acquainted with a woman who was sick for |
| damage control. If decreasing the number of | | | | a number of months but no doctor was able to |
| fatalities is truly its first priority, why not prevent | | | | diagnose what was wrong. She had a |
| the disease before it starts? The use of the word | | | | mammogram performed in an effort to rule out |
| "awareness" rather than the more appropriate | | | | breast cancer and no tumor was found. Five |
| word "prevention" is quite revealing. The big | | | | weeks later when she was having difficulty raising |
| business of cancer is not about finding a cure. | | | | her right arm because of severe pain she met |
| FACT: Since 1940, the incidence of breast cancer | | | | with another doctor and was then diagnosed with |
| has risen by one to two percent every year. In | | | | breast cancer, advanced stage four. |
| the past five decades, the incidence of breast | | | | Since that time, about four months ago now, this |
| cancer in females over 65 rose nearly 40% in the | | | | woman has had countless chemotherapy sessions |
| United States. | | | | and I have watched her grow weaker with each |
| The American Cancer Society (ACS), held in such | | | | passing day – not from the cancer but |
| high esteem by so many, do more to squash | | | | from the treatment. She is almost unrecognizable. |
| legitimate natural approaches of cancer prevention | | | | Then she had a double mastectomy followed by |
| and treatment than a room full of chain smokers | | | | countless radiation sessions. The next plan is to |
| – and they do this by using the FDA as | | | | put her on a drug called tamoxifen, known to |
| their mighty hammer. The ACS is no friend to | | | | have serious side effects. In fact, a handful of |
| holistic medicine. In fact, this organization works | | | | studies demonstrate that the majority of women |
| directly against doctors offering viable natural | | | | who take tamoxifen live no longer than women |
| options, placing their names on a blacklist without | | | | who refuse it. It is with great alarm that |
| even verifying the efficacy of their treatment | | | | researchers are finding some breast cancers |
| protocal. I realize this sort of talk is treading upon | | | | actually learn how to use tamoxifen to stimulate |
| sacred ground and I have no doubt those | | | | their growth. |
| responsible for passing out pink ribbons will be | | | | I would like to focus on tamoxifen, since it is |
| appalled at my beliefs but as a 41 year old | | | | touted by the cancer industry as a great |
| woman at risk of developing this disease and | | | | accomplishment in preventing breast cancer. Here |
| active in the holistic community, I have a right to | | | | are just a few of the more serious adverse side |
| be disgusted with this obvious lack of progress | | | | effects associated with this drug: (1) some studies |
| and hypocrisy. | | | | have found that pre-menopausal users are at risk |
| FACT: Fewer than one in 10 cases of breast | | | | of developing accelerated bone mineral loss and |
| cancer occurs in women born with a genetic | | | | osteoporosis; (2) women using tamoxifen have |
| predisposition for the disease and as many as | | | | experienced damaged retinas, increased corneal |
| 50% of breast cancer cases remain unexplained | | | | opacities, and decreased visual acuity as well as |
| by traditionally-accepted risk factors. | | | | irreversible corneal and retinal changes; (3) several |
| So what is causing the substantial increase in | | | | studies showed that the risk of developing |
| breast cancer? Epidemiologists and other scientists | | | | life-threatening blood clots increased as much as |
| increasingly believe many cases of breast cancer | | | | seven times in women taking tamoxifen; (4) |
| are linked to environmental factors. If the ACS | | | | depression; (5) asthma; (6) vocal cord changes; |
| would call on both government and industry to | | | | (7) liver cancer and liver disease as tamoxifen is |
| rethink the process by which new chemicals are | | | | toxic to the liver and can cause acute hepatitis; |
| authorized for use and call for accountability, we | | | | (8) inducing a fast moving, lethal form of uterine |
| could make some real headway with regards to | | | | cancer – uterine growths such as polyps, |
| prevention. | | | | tumors, endometrial thickenings and cancers occur |
| For decades the ACS has spun tales of victories, | | | | in a significant number of women. One study |
| so small in reality they have done virtually nothing | | | | detected abnormal endometrial cells in subjects |
| to alter the course of this deadly disease. | | | | the day after the first tablet was taken! It is |
| Meanwhile, chemical companies continue to | | | | interesting to note that nearly every method of |
| develop insidious mixtures of cancer causing | | | | diagnosing and treating breast cancer is a known |
| agents, spraying these chemicals on our food, | | | | carcinogen. |
| adding these chemicals to the water supply, and | | | | FACT: In a survey of 79 oncologists from McGill |
| the air we breathe. The ACS's financial ties with | | | | University Cancer Center in Canada, 64 said they |
| industry clearly influence its policies pertaining to | | | | would not consent to treatment with Cisplatin, a |
| environmental causes of cancer and in some | | | | common chemotherapy drug, while 58 oncologists |
| cases have willfully suppressed information about | | | | said they would reject all the current trials being |
| environmental causes of cancer and is often silent | | | | carried out by their establishment. Why? |
| on this issue, as is its accomplice, the FDA. | | | | “The ineffectiveness of chemotherapy and |
| FACT: 9 out of 10 women will receive a false | | | | its unacceptable degree of toxicity.” Philip |
| positive when screened for cancer, leading to | | | | Day, Cancer: Why We’re Still Dying to |
| anxiety, unnecessary surgical procedures, and | | | | Know the Truth |
| toxic drugs. | | | | Millions of women right now are developing |
| A study performed on 500,000 women by | | | | undetectable, early-stage breast cancer, yet the |
| researchers at the Nordic Chochrane Center in | | | | cancer industry does nothing until the tumor is |
| Denmark to determine whether or not cancer | | | | detectable. Once detectable, an authoritative |
| screening offers any benefit, determined that for | | | | cancer specialist will push chemotherapy, radiation, |
| every one woman helped by breast cancer | | | | surgery and toxic drugs on a vulnerable patient. |
| screening, ten were harmed through false | | | | Never mind that these methods cause |
| diagnosis leading to unnecessary treatments, | | | | permanent, irreversible harm to the brain, heart, |
| which could be devastating to their health. This is | | | | liver, kidneys and other organs. Does no one |
| partly due to the irradiation of breasts caused by | | | | question the lunacy of poisoning cells in a person |
| mammography, increasing a woman’s | | | | who needs their immune system to be strong? |
| chance for cancer but also because the numerous | | | | Why are we so caught up in diagnosis when the |
| false positives lead to unnecessary biopsies and | | | | real key is prevention? Is it because prevention |
| toxic treatment. | | | | would pay so little to the gluttonous industry of |
| Since the introduction of mammographic | | | | pharmaceutical drugs? Is it because it would shut |
| screening, the incidence of a form of breast | | | | down the big business of cancer? Detection is not |
| cancer called ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS) has | | | | prevention and prevention requires personal |
| increased by 328%. It is believed that as much as | | | | responsibility. It requires very little money and that |
| 200% of this increase is due to mammography. | | | | does not work for the drug companies. |
| In addition to harmful radiation, mammography | | | | In an effort to reduce the risk of cancer, one |
| may also spread existing cancer cells due to the | | | | should focus on strengthening the immune |
| considerable pressure placed on the breast during | | | | system because there needs to be a break down |
| the procedure. According to health practitioners, | | | | in the immune system in the first place for cancer |
| this compression could actually cause existing | | | | cells to thrive. And as long as the FDA is unwilling |
| cancer cells to metastasize from the breast | | | | to hold industry responsible, detoxification of |
| tissue. | | | | harmful chemicals and heavy metals is of |
| Before writing this article, I spent some time on | | | | paramount importance and there are products |
| the web site for National Breast Cancer | | | | available to help with this great challenge. It is also |
| Awareness Month, [ and found absolutely no | | | | important to make valuable food and lifestyle |
| information on prevention. It would seem | | | | choices, and avoid exposure to cancer causing |
| mammography is the cancer industry's greatest | | | | chemicals. Do not wait until your doctor diagnoses |
| achievement and yet if you look outside the | | | | you with cancer to make a radical change in your |
| information published by the ACS, you will find this | | | | life. I encourage you to start protecting your |
| particular diagnostic tool to be woefully inadequate. | | | | health today. |