Dear Daniel, I am so grateful I came across your fantastic website - dedicated to Mihaela. I am so sorry for your loss, but want to thank you for continuing to help people with all the knowledge you've gained through your painful experience. Cancer has impacted my family in many ways - and I stumbled across your website when I was researching HCA (Hydroxy Citrate) and Alpha Lipoic Acid. I found your article excellent!
- Listed by Supplement Purpose - SUPPLEMENT PROTOCOL
- Same as above, but Listed by Timing in Day: SUPPLEMENT PROTOCOL
Thank you so much Daniel! I really appreciate your time! 🙂
Hi Daniel, absolutely no rush here - but just wanted to see if you'd had a chance to look over the protocol... my biggest questions are around HCA and making sure it's a good addition to her protocol, or that there aren't other considerations here. We HAVE since added Tocotrienols (Vitamin E), and D-Limonene, plus Holy Basil for its Ursolic Acid content.
Dear Leora,
Thank you for your sensitive communication. I appologize for the delay but during the past days I was often on the phone (oncology related discussions) next to a full time job, and could not find time to respond.
I think you are doing a lot give the NED status of your mom. A good part of the supplements you are using I also addressed in various posts. One such post can be found here https://www.cancertreatmentsresearch.com/cancer-treatments/ So, in terms of supplements I do not have much to add.
The most important aspect to address when looking for prevention of recurrence is inflammation. We need to maintain a constant anti-inflammatory state. Next to the supplements addressing this point that you have already included (of which Omega 3 is one of the most relevant on this line), I would also consider low dose Aspirin (daily 100mg). To reduce the chance of cell adhesion, Cimetidine seems to be one of the most accessible and effective drugs. German clinics are giving it at 400mg/day up to 800mg/day for those with active disease. However, note that Cimetidine may interact with many drugs so whenever using a new drug in combo with Cim, the patient/doctor needs to check the interaction between the two. Diet also needs to be addressed (with a goal of maintaining a lower glucose level) but after seeing the nice YouTube video where you discuss foods, I expect you are addressing this aspect very well.
Regarding HCA, for prevention, there is not a strong need to add it. But if I would decide to add it, I would use it in cycles of several weeks. Again, I think addressing and maintaining a low level of inflammation is the key focus point at this moment.
Kind regards,
Daniel
Thank you so much for your responses Daniel!
And thank you for linking to the post you did... it looks like we are doing MANY of the things you're suggesting, so that was very reassuring for me.
Re: Cimetidine: You mentioned Cimetidine as something to consider, and that was in your "metastases prevention" column on your linked article. Also in that column is Modified Citrus Pectin, which my mom DOES take. So I'm hoping some of those bases are covered for her already.
Re: Aspirin: We have been on the fence with Aspirin because we've been told that the natural therapies my mom is already taking cover all the bases that Low Dose Aspirin would cover, without the side effects. But is that not true? Does Aspirin have a mechanism of action that's unique to it, not covered by the other inflammation-lowering, and COX2 inhibition supplements we are using? Can Aspirin be pulsed - one doctor suggested 1 week on, 1 week off, repeat... your thoughts?
Re: HCA: So it sounds like we're not hurting anything by adding it to her mix, but you'd recommend we rotate it in and out? Like one month on, one month off? (We have added Tocotrienols and D-Limonene as well here, per recommendations in another post on this site, as approved by her doctor.)
Lastly:
- What are your thoughts on Vitamin B12 (as Hydroxo and Adenosylcobalamin) and Folate supplementation? So many very mixed messages out there about this - but my mom does take due to her genetic SNPs and elevated homocysteine.
- Two modalities that are widely recommended in cancer - Modified Citrus Pectin and Melatonin - oddly have been discouraged with ovarian cancer specifically. The MCP because of its galactose (?), and the Melatonin because old studies suggest there could be a problem. Have you seen any issues here, or are you aware of any problems? My mom takes both MCP and Melatonin.
Hi Leora,
Cimetidine: I would not take it as general prevention tool for people who had no cancer, but would consider it for former patients
Aspirin: Also in this case, the anti inflammatory action is a certainty with Aspirin. Supplements depend on bio-availability and substance quality. So I would use the supplements but when the risk is higher such as for former cancer patients, I would use low dose Aspirin as well. Off course can be used as a pulsed strategy - I would at least make sure to use it when the patient is in periods of higher stress exposure
HCA: if I would decide to use it, a more suitable strategy could be 3 weeks on and one week off, I think
B12 & Folate: my rule is: if debatable (which indeed is the case here) better not until strongly needed. If I would think there is a need, I would better take foods containing higher level of these. I think it is less desirable to add specific supplements of these and even less using intravenous unless specifically strongly needed.
MCP and Melatonin: I will check, but in my experience, that is always the case in science. There are always research outcomes pointing towards various directions, and often opposite directions. So the questions is if there is enough evidence supporting a specific statement. Otherwise I take it as noise and move forward.
Kind regards,
Daniel
