Don't Lose Confidence

A Real Story: For Cancer Sufferers, Their Families, and Loved Ones

The Smiths came to my office with a smile. I wondered why, but before I could ask, Mr. Smith came quickly to where I stood and took my hands.

“Wendy, thank you for the treatment, I feel much better. Since I came here about two weeks ago, my condition has started to improve. And especially like today, I have more energy, and I don't have any pain. I also feel more relaxed. You helped me with my illness. You helped me to build up my confidence. And you have made me feel new hope, and I wanted to know if after today's treatment you thought I could go hunting? You know since I was diagnosed with cancer I haven’t hunted. It’s been about six months since I’ve touched my gun.”

I looked at his eyes. They were filled with excitement and vigor. I started to feel excited too, so I told him:

“Yes go. Of course you can go. But, just don’t overdo it.”

I just couldn’t help it, when I saw Mr. Smith’s change, I was thrilled.

It was on November 18, 2002 when the Smiths first came to my office. Mr. Smith was fatigued, and he didn't even want to speak. He just sat there while his wife told me about his condition and history. While she talked, I looked at Mr. Smith. He was a robust man with a strong frame. Mrs. Smith told me that before the cancer, he was always healthy. Until his symptoms started, he would work like a young person. He was 72 years old when he came to me, and he still ran his own business.

For his free time, he liked to go hunting, and his life was usually very happy. When the symptoms started a few months ago, he started feeling the chest pain. Then he noticed that he had no energy anymore. Mrs. Smith explained that it was then that he started thinking he might have health problems. Even though he knew something wasn’t quite right, he could never bring himself to believe that he’d ever suffer from a severe illness. Mrs. Smith was the one who finally asked him to go to the doctor.

On august 17, 2002, Mr. Smith was diagnosed at MD Anderson Cancer Center with stage three lung cancer. This bad news came as a big shock for Mr. Smith, both physically and mentally. It wasn’t long before he started to feel depressed. At his age, he didn’t think there was much hope for him. His doctor started him on radiation therapy on October 23, 2002. And on the 27th of October he started to receive the chemotherapy as well. Between his anxiety, depression, and the side effects of the chemo and radiation Mr. Smith found that he was not able to eat. He was rapidly losing weight. He suffered a lot.

Mrs. Smith, herself, was a breast cancer survivor. She was obviously a very strong woman, and loved her husband very much. She wanted to try her best to help her husband, not just physically, but she wanted to give him emotional support. She knew what he was going through. She encouraged him to fight with the illness. She was always looking for other avenues of help. It was Mrs. Smith that suggested he look for alternative care.

In her quest for help, Mrs. Smith turned to her friends. Her friend’s husband was also suffering through cancer. Sitting there in my office, Mrs. Smith explained:

“My best friend suggested you to me. He is also a cancer sufferer, and you helped him physically, but you also helped heal his emotions. His testimony encouraged us to come and try your treatments. Before we came to you we asked our oncologist, and he also encouraged us to try your alternative care. This is the reason why we are here.”

As Mrs. Smith spoke, I continued to examine her husband. It was obvious that Mr. Smith had what the Chinese called a lack of shen or spirit. He was very fatigued, and his face was very pale. His breathing was a little rapid, even just sitting still. This made me think his general situation was not good.

I checked his temperature. It was 97° F. His breathing was 24 per min. His pulse was 88 per min, and blood pressure was 150/80 mmHg. His pain seemed centered all around his back from T-1 to L-4. Throughout my exam, he never spoke. His wife answered all questions that I asked.

She explained, “Since he’s been diagnosed with lung cancer, he’s been very depressed, and sad. Then, after the chemo, all his hair fell out. And he always says he feels severe fatigue. He never wants to go outside anymore. The radiation and chemo make him feel nauseous. He sometimes vomits and doesn’t have much appetite. Since he got sick, he’s lost some weight too. In the last few days, his chest pain and fatigue have caused him to spend all day in bed. Wendy, we have a very wonderful family. We love each other very much; our children always love us as well. I cannot stand seeing him suffering and our children want their dad back. Can you help?”

When I heard her say this, I knew I had a patient that needed both physical as well as spiritual healing.

When I sat back down, I explained that according to my examination, Mr. Smith not only suffered from the cancer damage, but he still suffers from the side-effects of the radiation and the chemo. His depression was also adding to the illness.

“Cancer cells grow quickly expending a lot of energy,” I explained, “and the side-effects of the chemo and radiation depress the function of the bone marrow. That’s why Mr. Smith is tired all the time. Also the chemo and radiation damages the digestive function, this is why the patient feels, nausea, vomiting, and low appetite. He’s under a lot of stress and this is causing depression and insomnia. I can make a treatment plan for him, but I just want to say that first of all, he should positively keep receiving the conventional treatment. We can use TCM to help as an adjunct to the traditional therapy.”

“What’s TCM?” Mrs. Smith asked.

“TCM is a system of medicine. It includes herbal medicine, acupuncture, acupressure massage, and qigong (pronounced “chee-gong”) as methods to promote health. TCM, which stands for Traditional Chinese Medicine, is based on a complete internal philosophy and has a rich history of over 2000 years of health care practice. The basic theory is about holistic care. The body, mind, and spirit are treated together. In TCM doctors believe that the human body's organs and functions are interrelated. These functions and activities also have a close relationship with the environment that one lives in, such as climate and pollutants. The second main principle of TCM is dialectical treatment: each individual disease is treated differently according to the person's health condition and to the degree of severity of disease. The third principle of TCM is all about balance. This means that the Chinese think the internal human body should be balanced and the human body should also be in balance with the environment. To keep a human healthy, you have to use the proper lifestyle. When the body becomes out of balance, a TCM doctor will prescribe nutrition, exercise, balanced emotions, herbal medicine, acupuncture, and other natural medicines to attempt to restore this balance.

“According to the TCM theory, the cancer happens in one organ or in one place. For example, lung cancer is located in the lung, and stomach cancer is located in the stomach, but they are not only a local disease, they are a whole body organ system disease. I’d like to try to use TCM to treat cancer, reduce the illness, and increase Mr. Smith’s quality of life.”

The couple listened as I explained. They seemed very interested.

How does herbal medicine work in complementary treatment for cancer?” Mrs. Smith asked?

“Chinese herbal medicine is a major aspect of TCM. The use of herbs also focuses on restoring a balance of energy, body, and sprit to maintain health rather than treating a particular disease or medical condition. Herbal medicine is presumably used to restore balance by nourishing the body. In China there are over 3200 herbs that are used medicinally. Over 700 of those herbs have been used for complementary cancer treatment. There is a lot of scientific evidence in the US that proves the herbal medicine is effective. Take the herb Astragalus, for example. Ninety percent of patients who use it have an increase in the immune function [American Cancer Society]. Ginger is used for treating nausea and vomiting due to chemo, they have good scientific evidence to support this as well. Panax ginseng can increase mental performance. Research has proven that ginko biloba is potent in enhancing radiation treatment. Green tea, it has been traditionally used daily for digestion, among other uses. Current research shows it to be effective in resorting intercellular communication as well as reducing incidences of stomach, pancreatic, colorectal, and breast cancer. This is just a concise list.”

Mr. and Mrs. Smith listened to my explanation. They agreed to use TCM as a complementary approach for his treatment. They had been interested in complementary treatments before, and after a positive response from their doctor, they were even more eager. By the time I finished explaining the situation, they wanted to know if they could get started immediately. After I collected the information and checked on the patient, I decided to make a treatment plan.

To complement the treatment of cancer related fatigue, depression, and poor digestion, for Mr. Smith, I chose herbal formulations called Leucozepin, Apazin, and Relazovac. Leucozepin is an herbal formula containing 15 herbs processed by modern technology. Its main function is to increase the body’s immune functions, adjust the blood cell count, and increase a patient’s energy level. Apazin, another formulation, contains 11 natural Chinese herbs, and it functions to help reduce nausea and vomiting, increase appetite, and promote digestive functions. Relazovac contains 9 herbs and it is designed to reduce stress and depression, to sooth the body and mind, and to regulate sleep patterns without chemical stimulants or depressants. Also due to Mr. Smith’s situation, I chose to use acupuncture to help him. According to recent research, acupuncture increases the level of endorphins in the brain, which act as the body's natural pain relievers. It produces favorable changes in the blood chemistry and affects the electrical stimulation of nerves. My other goal was to use the acupuncture treatment to strengthen Mr. Smith’s immune system as well as strengthen the energy channels that are deficient or weak. Mr. Smith was very cooperative, and I began by treating him three times weekly, and he followed the instructions to take his herbal medicines.

After only one day of treatment, Mr. Smith declared that he felt much easier.

After one week, he testified that his pain was much relieved and that he was feeling happier.

After 15 days, the patient’s hair had grown about one-half an inch.

After 18 days the patient affirmed that his energy level was much higher and that he no longer felt fatigued, his appetite was restored, and he was eating normally since his nausea had abated.

After 21 days, the patient felt very relaxed and was sleeping normally. Also his muscle strength was increasing.

When I gave him treatments, I used both acupuncture and acupressure. I always talked to him about the general information concerning natural medicine. And also we talked about the roll attitude plays in diseases and their treatment. Of course, there were also times that Mr. Smith talked about his family, his work, and his hobbies. It wasn’t long before we were talking just like old friends.

As the treatment continued, his discomfort and pain was easing. The color started returning to his face, and his speech gained in strength as well. When asked, Mrs. Smith confessed that her husband’s energy and mental performance was much better than before, and that he was not suffering from stress and depression anymore either. Mrs. Smith also confessed that he was looking forward to his treatments. But this wasn’t just a relief for Mr. Smith. Mrs. Smith was also relieved. She was very happy to see her husband’s condition improving.

Since Mr. Smith came back from hunting, his energy, and spirit have been very good. He only had a mild pain in the rib area, and I continued to use botanical medicine and acupuncture and acupressure treatment for him. In addition, I encouraged him to get more nutrition from a variety of food sources. I also encouraged him to do some gentle exercise.

During this period of his treatments, he went to see his oncologist regularly. After about five months worth of treatments, his blood tests showed that his red blood cells, white blood cells, platelet, and hemoglobin had all increased back to normal ranges. Compared with the first time that he walked in my office, Mr. Smith looked like a changed person. Not only was he looking better, but he was feeling better and he was doing more activities. He had new hope for the future and his depression was gone as well.

Even his sense of humor had returned. He pointed to his new hair one day and said that he had been saving money by being bald, but now that he had hair again, he would have to start paying for hair cuts. Before he cut his hair he wanted me to take a photo with him. I asked my colleague to take the photo for us. During the picture, Mr. Smith held the Leucozepin box over his head, and he exclaimed, “Thank you Wendy for this miracle formula and the new hope you’ve given me.”

As a practitioner, I think for effective cancer treatment and increased quality of life for patients, that early diagnosis and treatment are essential. I also believe that the patient needs a good, strong positive attitude. Mr. Smith is the perfect example of this. I’ve seen a lot of cancer patients and many of them were in better condition than Mr. Smith, but they couldn’t face the shock of the diagnosis. They didn’t have positive attitudes, and this caused their treatments to be less effective. Mr. Smith pursued traditional cancer treatment, and but when that didn’t seem like enough, he added complementary treatment to it as well. I think that his positive attitude helped him to be more compliant with the treatment protocols for both traditional medicine and TCM. I very much agree with Hamilton Jordan (reference Jordan’s book). He says, “I can only reiterate that your attitude and your beliefs are your greatest strengths in your fight against cancer. Use them.”