In MTD chemo, high doses of cytotoxic drugs – the highest doses possible without causing life-threatening levels of toxicity – are administered intravenously to cancer patients. Because it is very toxic to the body, MTD chemotherapy requires prolonged breaks (generally of 2-3 weeks in duration) between successive cycles of therapy. This gives the cancer an opportunity to recover and re-establish itself. This is why cancer cells often seem to quickly become resistant to MTD chemotherapy.

Recently, I learned about a gentle form of chemotherapy with virtually no side-effects called metronomic chemotherapy. Unlike MTD chemotherapy, metronomic chemotherapy involves taking low-dosage cytotoxic drugs orally – in tablet form – usually daily over a prolonged period, without the breaks necessitated by MTD chemotherapy.

Chemotherapy drugs are designed to inhibit or kill cancer cells by damaging DNA. However, cells can employ a number of mechanisms to repair this damage. When cells experience drug-induced breaks in their DNA strands, proteins called PARPs bind to the DNA at the sites of the breaks and recruit other proteins involved in DNA repair. This process can allow cancer cells to continue to survive and grow despite the damage caused by chemotherapy treatment.

With metronomic chemotherapy, the low-dose chemo drugs are administered regularly, without missing a beat, like the rhythmic beat of the metronome. Hence, the cancer is given little time to repair and restore itself, while toxicity and side effects are kept minimal.

Dr. Harold J. Burstein of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, who has led several early-stage trials of metronomic chemotherapy in women with breast cancer elucidates that “… metronomic chemotherapy …refers to repetitive, low doses of chemotherapy drugs designed to minimize toxicity and target the endothelium or tumor stroma as opposed to targeting the tumor”.

Low, non-toxic doses of chemotherapy drugs, when delivered frequently for a prolonged period of time, can retard tumor blood vessel growth (or angiogenesis) by destroying endothelial cells. Evidence is growing that more compressed or accelerated schedules of drug administration using much smaller individual doses than the MTD can be more effective in controlling tumor growth, and stabilising the patient’s condition for a longer period of time.

Angiogenesis is the creation of new blood vessels from an existing blood vessel – such as from established blood vessels to a tumor – and tumors use this source of nutrition to grow. This vascular structure is the target of drugs like Avastin. Endothelial cells form the lining of newly-formed blood vessels. Standard MTD chemotherapy destroys the endothelial cells in the small blood vessels but in the usual 2 – 3 weeks pause given before the next chemotherapy session, the blood vessel grows into the cancer again.

On February 23rd 2008, at the 28th annual German Cancer Congress, cancer researcher D. McDonald from San Francisco presented a lecture at a symposium entitled: “Anti-angiogenesis, Therapy for Solid Tumours”. McDonald showed pictures from his research and demonstrated that just one day after anti-angiogenesis treatment was stopped, the endothelial cells start sprouting and sending out growth processes from the basal membrane. One week from stopping the anti-angiogenesis treatment, the blood vessels and the blood supply to the cancer tumor – the tumor’s vascular system – are fully re-established.

The metronomic approach was initially proposed and tested in animal models by Dr. Timothy Browder in Dr. Judah Folkman’s lab at Harvard Medical School. The studies recorded that standard MTD chemotherapy regimens caused cell death of endothelial cells in the blood vessels feeding to the tumor first, followed by tumor cells. However, the long breaks needed between the MTD regimens allowed the damaged blood vessels, and thus the tumor, to recover.

On the other hand, significantly lower doses given more frequently on a prolonged schedule proved to be far more effective, including complete tumor regressions, even in mice that were resistant to the same drug when used in a standard MTD regimen.

Various other research groups have confirmed these findings. Further, studies conducted in cell lines and animal models have reported that combining metronomic chemotherapy with targeted anti-angiogenesis agents seems more effective than metronomic chemotherapy alone.

Italian oncologists documented the long-term responses of patients with metastatic breast cancer to a metronomic regimen involving daily cyclophosphamide (50mg) and two weekly doses of methotrexate (5mg per dose)). 32% achieved either a complete or partial remission, or a stabilization of disease lasting at least 24 weeks. In about 16% of patients, no tumor progression was noted for over a year. Even in the patients in whom progression did occur, it was believed that the therapy slowed the spread of the disease.

As metronomic therapy is directed against endothelial cells, not cancer cells, a metronomic regimen that works well with one type of cancer should work with all types of cancer dependent on angiogenesis for growth.

A well-documented case study of a 36-year old patient with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer who had responded poorly to standard MTD chemotherapy reported that she performed well on metronomic chemotherapy. She went on to live a normal working and social life for five more years, without side effects.

A major benefit of metronomic chemotherapy is that it is essentially free of harmful side effects. Only a mild suppression of white cell count was observed in a small minority of the treated patients.

Yet another interesting benefit of metronomic chemotherapy is that it selectively kills a type of immune cell – T-reg cells – that function to suppress the activity of immune cells capable of attacking the tumor – the natural killer (NK) cells and T-cytotoxic cells. T-reg cells are often found within tumors and secrete hormone-like factors that “turn off” the immune cells trying to attack the cancer. Metronomic chemotherapy is therefore a useful adjuvant to therapeutic strategies intended to boost the tumor-killing capacity of NK and T-cytotoxic cells.

For people dealing with cancer, especially those adverse to aggressive cancer treatment, and particularly those for whom traditional MTD chemotherapy has failed, metronomic chemotherapy is good news. Those seeking a gentler, less-aggressive and less-harmful form of cancer treatment at least now have this option to explore.

In a 2010 ASCO (American Society of Clinical Oncology) report, promising results from administering metronomic chemotherapy with capecitabine to heavily pretreated patients with metastatic breast cancer – including those with HER2 positive breast cancer – were reported. This offers hope even to those with advanced breast cancer for whom standard aggressive cancer treatment like MTD chemotherapy has failed.

Of course, some people feel that metronomic chemotherapy may work too slowly for those with clearly progressive cancer. A hybrid approach may be the answer. In a phase III clinical trial which involved women with locally advanced or inflammatory breast cancer, a presurgical (or neoadjuvant), metronomic-like regimen – using higher doses of cyclophosphamide, given daily; doxorubicin; and growth factor support to ensure the continued production of white blood cells – was found to be superior to a standard MTD regimen at eliminating evidence of invasive cancer at the time of surgery.

This outcome, explained Dr. Robert Livingston, a co-investigator on the Southwest Oncology Group-led trial, generally has been found to predict superior long-term outcome in patients. The idea was to try to expose tumor cells to minimum concentrations of chemotherapy drugs for as long as possible.

“I think it’s fair to call the regimen we have developed a hybrid,” said Dr. Livingston. “It can destroy tumor cells and, at the same time, the continuous exposure, particularly to cyclophosphamide, is having an anti-angiogenic effect.”

The hybrid metronomic regimen delivers chemotherapy more frequently, even daily, at significantly higher doses than those used in most metronomic regimens but less than in MTD regimens. The toxicity might be greater than a “traditional” metronomic regimen, but so might the effectiveness.

If you’re looking for a gentler, less toxic and relatively safe form of chemotherapy, talk to your oncologist or check with your nearest cancer center. Clinical trials utilizing metronomic chemotherapy are also ongoing.

HER2 positive breast cancer is one of the most frightening breast cancers to deal with and the drug which is typically used to treat it – Herceptin – is very expensive. So the news that phytochemicals in extra-virgin olive oil – an affordable, easily obtainable and harmless food – can shrink certain breast tumors should give hope to many.

The extra-virgin olive oil study was performed at the Catalan Institute of Oncology in Girona, Spain, and reported in the open-access journal BMC Cancer. It focused on tumor tissue in laboratory culture that the researchers exposed to different fractions of extra-virgin olive oil containing various natural phytochemicals. When rats with induced breast cancers were fed large amounts of extra-virgin olive oil, their tumors’ malignancy diminished.

“Our findings reveal for the first time that all the major complex phenols present in extra-virgin olive oil drastically suppress overexpression of the cancer gene HER2 in human breast cancer cells,” said Javier Menendez, who, along with Antonio Segura-Carretero from Spain’s University of Granada, led the team of researchers who determined to investigate which parts of extra-virgin olive oil battle cancer best.

Some past studies have suggested that the olive-oil-rich Mediterranean diet prevents cancer, while other studies have not. So the Spanish scientists theorized that olive oil compounds kill only certain forms of breast cancer. Their research found that the olive-oil polyphenols known as secoiridoids and lignans are highly effective breast-cancer-cell fighters – but only against the 20 percent to 30 percent of breast cancers that express the so-called HER2 gene.

Extra-virgin olive oil comes from pressing olives in a cold state – without the use of heat or chemicals. It contains natural complex anti-cancer chemicals that the industrial refining process destroys. So will eating large quantities of such olive oil actually prevent or cure breast cancer? Sadly, the authors note that “The active phytochemicals exhibited tumoricidal effects against cultured breast cancer cells at concentrations that are unlikely to be achieved in real life by consuming olive oil.”

Still, the scientists say, “These findings, together with the fact that that humans have safely been ingesting significant amounts of lignans and secoiridoids as long as they have been consuming olives and extra-virgin oil, strongly suggest that these polyphenols might provide an excellent and safe platform for the design of new anti breast-cancer drugs.”

I don’t know about you, but I’m still going to add more extra-virgin olive oil to my salads.

1. They eat foods native to their territory, whether it be plant or animal in origin. Don’t forget that the Mongolians and Eskimos eat a predominantly meat and fat based diet, with hardly any plant food. The Mongolians, in addition, eat plenty of dairy foods. Many traditional European, Middle-Eastern and Indian diets also feature dairy products and meats.

2. Each native group obviously adapted to their respective diets, eating whatever was naturally available in order to stay alive. This is why a diet abundant in meat and fat was not harmful to the Eskimos or the Mongolians. In fact, it was protective for them, living in their harsh, wintry environments.

3. The foods they ate and beverages they drank were organic, unprocessed, unrefined and free from artificial additives like chemicals, hormones and antibiotics. Meat and dairy were completely natural and uncontaminated.

4. Foods were generally eaten fresh, freshly harvested or freshly killed. Any food preservation or storage was usually limited to salting, fermenting, drying or pickling. Modern societies tend to eat food which has been canned, packaged in some way or frozen for quite some time.

5. Cooking methods were completely natural. Nothing strange like microwaving or “nuking” in any way.

6. Kitchen utensils, cookware and materials used were also completely natural (clay, leaves, wood etc). Certainly no plastic.

7. Condiments, spices and flavorings were kept simple and natural. Nothing artificial.

8. In Asia, if oil was used for cooking, it was what was indigenous to the territory eg. peanut oil, coconut oil, soya bean oil, ghee (clarified butter), or lard (made from animal fat). “Healthy” fats like olive oil or grapeseed oil were unheard of.

9. If a sweetener was used, it was natural eg. cane sugar, palm sugar or honey.

10. Carbohydrates were fine and even essential, but they were usually natural, unrefined and free from artificial additives eg. tapioca, sweet potatoes, corn, beans, nuts, seeds, potatoes and other tubers.

11. No leftover food was kept. Everything was made fresh and finished in one sitting, so food did not have a chance to deteriorate further.

12. Usually, native people ate only what they needed, or even starved at times for a while. Excess was a luxury, and generally reserved for special occasions. Modern people are literally indulging themselves to death.

13. With the exception of people living in harsh environments like the Mongolians and Eskimos – where meat and fat was more readily available than plant foods – most native diets are dominated by plant foods. Meat was considered a luxury item to be eaten sparingly or reserved for special occasions. If seafood was available, that was eaten more often than meat. Modern societies consume far more meat than our forefathers did, and the meat we eat today is mostly adulterated and contaminated.

14. Almost all native societies have some fermented foods. These foods are rich in anti-cancer properties. Think sauerkraut, kimchi, miso, tempeh and yoghurt.

15. Almost all native societies have a rich tradition of using herbs for food, healing and beauty. The Chinese, for instance, have a vast variety of herbal teas, using herbs, flowers, roots, tree bark, fungi etc. I grew up drinking herbal teas and soups, but switched to Western concoctions and drugs and soda pop from my early teens. Now that I’m older and (hopefully) wiser, I’m beginning to rediscover Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and learning how to use traditional herbs at home.

16.The true native lifestyle is physically active, even rigorous, on a daily basis. Exercise was a way of life. People living in urban societies are very sedentary, and obesity has become an epidemic.

17 The environment and air was clean and pure. There was no exposure to modern contaminants like chemicals, radiation, electrical currents, vehicle and industrial emissions etc.

18. Furniture, building materials, fabrics etc was all organic.

19. There was no obsession with cleaning or enhancing body or home with products saturated with chemicals, unlike today.

20. People slept early and woke up early. Their sleeping environments were completely dark and quiet, except perhaps for the sounds of nature. No night lights, street lights, blinking lights, TV etc. Perfect for melatonin production.

These are just a few of my observations. As I said in my opening paragraph, the people who adulterate this “formula” are the ones who start getting all kinds of sicknesses, including cancer. Of course, observing a strict native diet and way of life is challenging in an urban society. But I believe we need to try our level best, in order to be cancer-free, even if it means re-locating. Major miracles often require major changes.

So, should we consume green tea, or soy, or turmeric, or flaxseed, or berries, or cruciferous vegetables, or iodine, or dark chocolate etc. or load up on more supplements? I think we know by now that each in itself CANNOT defeat cancer. Diet alone won’t cut it. Even vegetarians and exercise fanatics get cancer, right? A radical, holistic approach is required, and this may include some medical intervention. To keep cancer and other diseases at bay, it’s back to basics, back to our roots.

GO NATIVE, as far as it makes sense. In other words, if you’re a Mongolian working in a nice, cushy office in New York, the traditional Mongolian diet may not be healthy for you in this context. Adapt it to your present living environment, eliminating elements which are harmful (eg. unnatural foods, high-fat diet, chemicals, being sedentary) and adding those which are protective (eg. daily exercise, lots of plant foods, natural foods, fresh foods, safe personal care and household care products, conducive sleeping environment and times).

As long as your foods are natural and your way of life is as native as possible, a little dairy food or meat or dessert once in a while is not going to kill you. Just make sure it is pure, unrefined, unprocessed and fresh. Food which has travelled a long way to get to you is often “preserved” in some way to make it last the journey and storage. They also lose their nutritional value with each passing day.

Avoid anything artificial or unnatural, eat fresh, don’t over-indulge, lose weight, learn how to use herbs for everything, eat some fermented foods regularly, live in a pure and uncontaminated environment, sleep well and exercise everyday. GO NATIVE!

Now, if you’ve ever suffered from cold sores, you know that they are not a pretty sight. They can spread quickly all over the mouth, which is a very embarrassing as well as painful condition to be in. Once they are established, they can linger for seven to 10 days on average. I had meetings scheduled for the week ahead, and I was desperate to get rid of the blisters. I don’t know why, but I decided to try dabbing apple cider vinegar on the sores. I hadn’t heard about that being a natural remedy for cold sores but, somehow, I just felt it would help.

The vinegar was certainly soothing. I kelp applying it to my lips for the next few hours, using a cotton bud. Before I went to bed, I applied the apple cider vinegar again.

To my amazement, when I woke up the next morning, the cold sore had dried up and flattened out. It no longer hurt. Wow! That took less than 24 hours, the fastest healing time ever for a cold sore. No medicine has ever achieved that before for me.  Yay for another natural cure!

After following the Budwig protocol for 14 months and consuming large quantities of flaxseed oil combined with cottage cheese daily, as well as ground flax – an essential part of the program – I’ve come to the conclusion that flaxseed is harmful for my estrogen-sensitive breast cancer. Tumors as large as oranges developed during that time and covered my breast, bleeding profusely. That was a horrifying period. No more flaxseed for me!

Soy, on the other hand, seems to have helped keep the cancer under control for several years since I was first diagnosed. I drank soy milk daily and used it in my cereal until my husband and I sold our house and moved in with his folks for almost a year while we were looking for a new home. During that interval, we could not use the kitchen freely, so we did not buy groceries or prepare our own meals and beverages then. Not only did I stop consuming soy milk daily, I even stopped my daily juicing routine. Whether it was due to these changes in my diet or to the stress of living with the in-laws, the cancer started getting active and the small tumor I had then bled for the first time ever. Shortly after moving into our new home, I started on the Budwig protocol and the breast cancer grew exponentially thereafter.

I’m back to consuming soy daily now. I love drinking fresh soya milk every day, the natural, clean-tasting type which Asians have been drinking for generations, not the additives-loaded fake substitute for dairy milk sold in the West. I also enjoy cooking with soy products like tofu and tempeh, a fermented pressed soy cake. Interestingly, my oncologist suggested I consume more soy products to counter the side-effects of Femara (Letrozole), an estrogen inhibitor. I blend my own fresh vegetable and fruit juices daily too. I even make sauerkraut regularly and eat it daily for its cancer-fighting and estrogen-regulating properties. When I can find space in my fridge, I also make a big batch of coleslaw, one of my favorite salads which also happens to have cancer-fighting properties.

I know what flaxseed did to my body and I also remember how soy protected me against breast cancer so, as phytoestrogens go, my vote is for soy.

It’s a good thing I like cabbage and other cruciferous vegetables, as phytochemicals such as indole-3-carbinol (I3C) and sulforaphane are components of cruciferous vegetables which exhibit antitumorigenic activity. In the digestive tract, indole-3-carbinol produces a metabolite (product of metabolism) called diindolylmethane (DIM), a new class of antiestrogens that inhibit breast cancer growth. DIM also encourages cells that are abnormally multiplying to stop reproducing and die.

Research shows that it is possible for the stronger and more dangerous form of estrogen (estradiol) to be converted into the weaker form (estriol) without using drugs. As all women who have had breast cancer know, estradiol fuels breast cancer. For this reason, aromatase inhibitor drugs (Ais) were invented to block the production of estrogen. Unfortunately, like most drugs, aromatase inhibitor drugs have serious side effects. Also, not all kinds of all estrogen are harmful. Estriol is a weaker and relatively harmless form of estrogen. Being less active than estradiol, it is desirable for it to occupy the estrogen receptor as, by doing so, it effectively blocks estradiol’s strong “grow” signals.

In 1997, researchers at Strang Cancer Research Laboratory at Rockefeller University discovered that diindolylmethane or DIM can change “strong” estrogen to “weak” estrogen and, when this happens, it stops human cancer cells from growing and provokes the cells to self-destruct, a process known as apoptosis. Subsequent studies done at the University of California at Berkeley show that DIM inhibits some human breast cancer cells from growing by as much as 90% in culture.

Apparently, DIM is the most active phytochemical in promoting the synthesis of protective hydroxylated estrogen (2OHE). Also known as 2-hydroxyestrone, 2OHE and 16-alpha-hydroxyestrone (16OHE) are metabolites of estrogens. 2OHE is biologically inactive, while 16OHE is biologically active meaning that, like estradiol, it can send “grow” signals. In cases of breast cancer, the ‘bad’ 16OHE is often elevated and the ‘good’ 2OHE is decreased. Studies show that people who take DIM not only have beneficial increases in estriol, they also have beneficial increases in 2OHE. Low levels of the 2OHE have been linked to breast cancer (in both women and men), uterine cancer, cervical cancer and lupus.

If you’ve had breast cancer, regular consumption of cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, turnips, kale, green cabbage, collard greens and mustard greens is a very good idea. While cooking such vegetables, creating mild acidic conditions by adding some lemon juice or vinegar helps convert indole-3-carbinol (I3C) to the active cancer-fighting substance DIM. No wonder fermented vegetables like sauerkraut and kimchi are recommended cancer-fighting foods. Go ahead and indulge in these vegetables!

We’ve all heard of people who followed everything their oncologists told them to do, and still died of cancer. They suffered through chemotherapy, radiation and surgery, even mutilating procedures like masectomy, only to succumb to the dreaded disease. Of course, there are also many cases of people who chose an alternative cancer treatment approach – generally gentler, free of side effects and not harmful – who also lost the battle. Clearly, there’s no one approach – whether conventional or unconventional – which can guarantee a cancer cure.

In a forum thread which I stumbled upon recently, one person wrote about a friend who “lived’ an extra couple of months following the traditional medical route for cancer, but suffered terribly during those last days. Another person wrote about a friend who had rejected allopathic cancer treatment, opting instead for an alternative approach. He felt great on this natural path and enjoyed a good quality of life until he felt unwell about a year later, when the cancer was found to have spread. He died within a week. So which of the two cancer patients had made the right decision? There’s no simple answer to this. After all, both ultimately passed away. However, the fact that one enjoyed a better quality of life is important.

I had a friend called Lesley once. She developed breast cancer when she was in her late thirties. She had tremendous faith in God’s healing, so she refused all conventional medical treatment when she was diagnosed. She went on to follow an alternative cancer treatment approach which included eating healthily and taking health supplements. Within two years, the cancer spread down her body to her hips and her legs. It ate away at the bone and walking became difficult for her. Reluctantly, she agreed to chemotherapy but rejected surgery, as she did not want her body to be mutilated. The chemotherapy caused her a great deal of suffering, but the cancer retreated and she went into remission. Her immune system had been severely weakened, though. That Christmas season, she left her home for a rare outing and contracted flu. Shortly thereafter, she was found in the toilet, dead. Officially, it was recorded that the flu had caused her demise, not the cancer or the toxic and aggressive conventional cancer treatment.

What to do, what path to take – there’s no easy answer. I can’t say that I always know for sure that I’m doing the right thing to try to keep breast cancer at bay, so what helps me decide? Mostly it’s whether I have a sense of peace. It’s difficult, if not impossible, for me to follow something through if I don’t have that. I don’t know how long I’ll live – nobody does – but as long as I do, I need to feel comfortable with myself. Nobody else can live in my body but me, and no-one can experience what I do.

Anyway, my sister is singing such a different tune now. She’s so impressed by the improvements in her health so far that she’s saying that the Neways magnetic bracelet is absolutely worth it, and she’ll always wear it. She’s no longer resigned to living with aches and pains and she wants to get one for our Mom too. I’m so happy that she feels much better now as it saddened me that she was always in pain before. Thank God that the Neways NewTeq4 magnetic bracelet really works!

There are more cleaning and other household products available today which are safer for people as well as the environment, such as Neways household products range. If, for some reason, you do not have these safer cleaning products at hand, here are some home made cleaning products you can rustle up yourself.

Multi-Purpose Cleaner
Mix 1 cup of white vinegar and I cup of water in a spray bottle. Spray on surfaces like sinks and kitchen countertops and wipe clean.

Tile Cleaner
Use a damp sponge to rub in bicarbonate of soda, then rinse. For tougher stains, wipe surfaces with vinegar first, then follow up with bicarbonate of soda.

Furniture Polish
Mix two parts olive oil to one part lemon juice. Put a small amount on a clean cloth or paper towel and apply evenly over furniture surface. Polish with a dry cloth.

Toilet Bowl Cleaner
Sprinkle bicarbonate of soda into the toilet bowl then add a small amount of vinegar. Leave for at least 15 minutes before scrubbing. To clean the rim, spray undiluted vinegar directly on it.

Window, Glass and Mirror Cleaner
If the glass is not too dirty, rubbing it with a crumpled up ball of newspaper may be sufficient. Otherwise, mix 2 teaspoons of white vinegar with 1 liter of warm water. Dip crumpled newspaper into the solution and wipe the glass. Use another sheet of newspaper to wipe dry.

Chopping Board Cleaner & Disinfectant
Pour boiling water over the board to kill the germs. You can also rub a slice of lemon or pour some vinegar over the chopping board. For tougher stains, squeeze some of the lemon juice onto the spot, let sit for 10 minutes, then wipe. Alternatively, soak the board in vinegar for 5-10 minutes.

Odor Remover
A classic trick is to put a small bowl of bicarbonate of soda in the refrigerator or cupboard. To remove stale smells from food containers, soak the container overnight in a mixture of baking soda and water.

Carpet & Rug Deodoriser
Mix together 2 tablespoons cornstarch, 1/2 cup flour and 3/4 cup bicarbonate of soda. Sprinkle the mixture on the carpet, rub in lightly, and let it stand for 15 minutes before vacuuming.

All of us are different, our ailments are different, the pathways are different and there is no one simple solution for everyone. Whether one chooses conventional medical treatment and/or alternative therapy is not for others to dictate or question. As long as your decision is based on well-researched information and you have peace with it, it should be respected.

Many women today are on synthetic aromatase inhibitors like Femara or Armidex to help stop the aromatase function where androgen is converted to estrogen, the hormone feeding two-thirds of breast cancers worldwide. Here’s a selection of tips (gleaned from various message boards) from some of these women on how to deal with certain side effects:

Pain

• Exercise, no alcohol, healthy diet helped with the pain and general well-being. Had to rest mid day, taking Femara at night reduced the pain, Supplements: calcium+ Vit D and Fosamax for the bones, glucosamine for the joints.

• I have to thank two people who posted on this board that they take their Femara with food and that they experience less side effects. I was taking it at night, just before bed. That night I took it with a granola bar and a yogurt and the VERY NEXT DAY the pain was 75% better. By the day after that the pain was gone.

• My oncologist advised me to take Glucosamine and Condrointin 3x daily from the beginning and it has helped so much it is hard to describe.

• Glucosomine/chondroitin/MSM has helped joint pain,

• I have found that taking TURMERIC (a natural ingredient in curry with anti-inflammatory properties) along with the glucosamine-chondroitin has helped a lot with the joint and bone pain.

• My feet hurt me so bad I could hardly stand and then I started taking Glucosamine, Chrondroitin and MSM Complex. It has helped a lot.

• Got relief for most of the side effects by taking Glucosamine, Chondroitin, MSM pills for joints and it helped greatly

• I started taking 1200 mg Caltrates and 1000 IU Vitamin E daily. This has helped me with joint pains.

• I started taking Pilates 4 years ago and it has helped enormously w/joint pain.

• I exercise 3 times per week and found yoga to be most helpful to reduce joint pain

• Strenuous exercise along w/increased calcium/vitamin D can help to reduce joint pain

• Never been an exerciser but started aqua-therapy which has all but eliminated muscle and joint pain. The key is range of motion and water therapy does the trick. The temptation is to slow down because of pain but exercise has made a difference for me.

• I am exercising 5 days a week, and exercise class in the pool with styrofoam weights two of those days. Water exercise is very soothing on joints and muscles, and can be as strenuous as you want it to be.

• Exercise regimen by riding my bicycle 14 or 20 miles round trip to work, depending upon the location. This has helped tremendously with my achy neck and right hip. I find that movement is much easier upon wakening.

• So many have mentioned foot pain. The only shoes I can wear are called ‘crocs’. if i try to go barefoot, i cannot walk more that four steps without flinching. these shoes are a godsend. however, they don’t look good with dresses!!! but, at this point, who cares? i take one vicodin in the morning as well as meloxicam, an anti-inflammatory med.; folic acid with b vitamins rid the migraines. i take one tylenol-3 at night for foot pain, as well as one extra strength tylenol, plus 100mg trazadone and 1/2 benedryl to help me sleep.

• After two years or so, I started having pain in my right hip and down my leg where it was uncomfortable to walk. I also developed neuropathy in both feet. ended up going to an acupuncturist only because I was desperate! The next day my pain was gone which absolutely amazes me. I still have the neuropathy, but I can deal with that.

• I was referred to a Certified Lymphedema therapist, and have been working with him for 6 months now. The diet changes he recommended included taking cod liver oil, it relieves the joint pain; taking vitamin C; and removing dairy products from my diet. It helps.

Inflammation

• Taking mobicosa, calcium. Vitamin D, glucosomine, fish oil and juicing daily adding spinach and other fresh greenery to juices to help reduce inflammation. Physiotherapy is helping somewhat.

Osteoporosis or Bone Loss

• I take extra calcium, glucosamine and antioxidants and eclasta [iv] once a year for osteporosis and misc antioxidants and fish oil tabs.

• Fossamax works very well (checking on dexa scan): 1 pill weekly.

Brain Fog

• Omega 3 for the brain!

• Take fish oil

• I have starting doing crosswords, Sudoku, even DS Brain Age, and it seems to make a difference.

Fatigue, Drowsiness, Depression & Sleeplessness

• I started taking Femara with a full stomach at night daily. I discovered that helped reduced my drowsiness for the following day.

• Exercise reduced drowsiness.

• Try Clonasepine+Trazadone for depression and GOOD sleep at night time.

Weakness

• I needed to add exercise to try to regain some strength in my body. I just began Qigong, a form of Tai Chi.

Hot Flashes & Night Sweats

• The night sweats were the worst! I found a solution in a product called “Chilipad” It is a pad that is placed between the mattress and top sheet. You just set the temperature to your liking and are cool throughout the night. This has been the greatest discovery as there is nothing like a good night’s sleep.

• It’s the hot flushes I find difficult to deal with so I am having acupuncture and Chinese herbs at the moment and it seems to have reduced the fierceness and number of them.

• I went on Clonodine (used for high blood pressure) AND IT STOPPED THE HOT FLASHES.!!

Vaginal Dryness

• Lubrication, lubrication, lubrication for the sex.

• Replens, lubricants and persistence for sex life

• Use Replens applicator every 3 days and lots of lubricant to have sex- no condom and really lather it on both of you.

• Am taking Replens and Ovestin cream for vaginal dryness, and have succeeded in having a sex life, even though less exciting.

• KY works somewhat for vaginal dryness.

Weight Gain

• I have been able to maintain my weight with exercise three times a week, yoga and a diet with mostly vegetables, beans, fruits, nuts and less than 20% of meat daily.

• Aquafit (working out in the pool puts less stress on your joints) really helps to control weight and keep fit

• EXERCISE (join the gym: be disciplined!) even with a joint pain. This is the best for those of you who gained weight: more weight – more work for joints…. I was on the treadmill even while on 6 months of chemo and 3 months of radiation.

Thinning Hair

• I went to the dermatologist about my hair. She gave me a special biotin, zinc piccolinate and suggested I use Rogaine. Something worked because my hair has stopped falling out and looks thick again. The zinc piccolinate interfered with my synthroid (throid cancer 9 years ago) so I now take it at a different time than I take the synthroid and that has worked out fine.

General Side Effects

• I take numerous supplements to counteract known side effects. I hardly feel the effects of Femara

• I take a multivitamin, vitamin D, red yeast rice (managing cholesterol level), glucosamine (easing joint stiffness), three ibuprofen three times a day for aches and pains, a stool softener and, most nights, Ambien. When I travel I need a separate bag for the medications and supplements. Considering getting a softer mattress.

• I exercise whether I feel like it or not, a walk…..even a stroll seems to help.

• I switched my diet to all organic animal products, especially dairy. Why take a pill to remove the estrogens and eat someone else’s?

• Keep the body moving – I have taken up water aerobics for fitness which does not affect the joints. I also have an ion cleanse detox & reflexology weekly which has me helped enormously. A soft bed has assisted & an understanding family & network of friends.

• I exercise in the morning, as well as in the evening. That definitely helps.

• stay as active as you can because I find that has been helping me. I used to be an avid rollerskater and I had not been since surgery. I recently went back about 1 month ago and can feel a difference. (2) PHYSICAL THERAPY – I started going two days a week and it has been working wonders. I feel like a new person.

• Most side effects have gone away entirely since I started to eat Oatmeal and Buckwheat 30 min. prior to taking Femara. I am also taking B12 vitamins.

• 50,000 icu Vitamin D, hot spa tub for fee/ankles, Requip for RLS, Effexor for hot flashes, STAY ACTIVE!

• DRINK TONS OF WATER DAILY and stay away from alcohol which makes your liver work too hard trying to process that in addition to all the drugs. Also, we know the drill – EAT RIGHT – fruits, vegetables – it makes a difference. I eat right – I don’t hurt so much. Eat crap – feel like crap. Yes, exercise too! I know it hurts, but just WALK if you can – keep moving! The Femara WILL take a toll on your bone density as well, take a calcium supplement.

• I have been able to control all side effects sufficiently. I take Osteo BioFlex (over the counter), 2 tablets once a day, which eliminated the soreness and stiff neck. I took red yeast rice extract, 2 capsules once a day, and that lowered my cholesterol even lower than it was before taking Femara.

• My oncologist, who is Chinese, put me on Omega 3 fish oil, acidophilus,(both 3 times per day) and melatonin almost immediately when I began my treatments and I was already taking milk thistle 2 or 3 times per day. I stayed on these all during chemo and kept them up after I finished it and radiation. I feel that these supplements have helped me. I do have some joint stiffness and a little pain but it’s not terrible and I plan to ask my oncologist about taking glucosamine for the joint pain.

• I take fish oil (4000 mg/day), glucosamine chondroitin (Metagenics ‘ChondroCare’ w/ 1500 mg/day of D-Glucosamine sulfate & 1200 mg/day of Chondroitin sulfate), zinc (100 mg/day), calcium citrate w/ magnesium (1500 mg/day), vitamin D3 (1000 mg/day), Ester C w/ bioflavanoids (4000 mg/day). Whenever I run out of any one of these, my symptoms worsen. It takes a while for them to improve after I replenish my supply.

• I feel GREAT…no joint or bone pain, no weight gain, have tons of energy. I exercise for a minimum of 60 minutes every day and have lost 26 lbs in the past year from weight watchers and exercise. I do a weight bearing exercise class 3x a week.

Of course, there are women who do not want to use aromatase inhibiting drugs. They choose, instead, to try to keep the cancer from recurring through various alternative remedies and lifestyle changes. Here’s an account from one such lady:

No Aromatase Inhibitors At All

• I must be a renegade here because I refused chemo and am now refusing Femara. After surgery (partial mast) and radiation I have gone on doctor-recommended fruit-vegetable diet, exercising 30 mins day at least 5 days a week. Vit D-3 (also doctor-rec) and doing Eastern methods to boost immune system (acupuncture, Qigong, Reiki). I’ve lost 15 pounds (wasn’t heavy anyway) just about given up alcohol and look and feel better than past 10 years. I read Ralph Moss “Questioning Chemotherapy” prior to my decision to decline that and am now reading what everyone here is saying about A/I. As a biologist I also appreciate the seriousness of totally upsetting the balance of the endocrine system It seems counter-intuitive to go on a drug that will age me and make me fat and crippled when the NCI itself says exercise and weight management are key to prevention. I understand that there is a risk of getting breast cancer back. But that risk is always there. Right now I want to choose wellness.