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CHEMOTHERAPY AGENTS |
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purpose of this article is to talk about some of the drugs used in the
treatment of cancer - and their side effects.
It is important for cancer patients to be aware of these side effects so that they may make informed decisions - often these are not disclosed by their oncologists for obvious reasons. Ideally,
all the chemotherapeutic agents used by oncologists to treat cancer
should kill ONLY the cancer cells and NOT the healthy cells.
Unfortunately, this is not the case as their side effects are numerous.
All drugs, poisons, radiation and trauma (such as surgery) inevitably
damage and debilitate too many normal cells and organs. They undermine
and destroy our immunity and our abilities to resist disease, our health
and natural healing abilities. There
is no treatment by chemotherapy, radiation, drugs or surgery without
side effects. Only too commonly, these side effects are serious,
dreadful and debilitating. Most doctors are aware of this side of the
story, but prefer not to dwell on it or make it known to patients. In
1986 HAZARDS OF CHEMOTHERAPY You must - as a patient - be informed. What treatments you take must be of your choosing - not the choice of a doctor or nurse. It is your life at stake (not the pocketbook of the 'practitioner'). It is your life that has a right to be respected with a certain reverence - and treated according to its needs. Ironically,
virtually all of the chemotherapeutic anti-cancer agents now approved by
the Food and Drug Administration for use or testing in human cancer
patients are (1) highly or variously toxic at applied dosages; (2)
markedly immunosuppressive, that is, destructive of the patient’s
native resistance to a variety of diseases, including cancer; and (3)
usually highly carcinogenic [cancer causing].... These now well
established facts have been reported in numerous publications from the
National Cancer Institute itself, as well as from throughout the United
States and, indeed, the world. Furthermore, what has just been said of
the FDA-approved anti-cancer chemotherapeutic drugs is true, though
perhaps less conspicuously, of radiological and surgical treatments of
human cancer.... If
it is true that Orthodox chemotherapy is (1) toxic, (2)
immunosuppressant, (3) carcinogenic, and (4) futile, then why would
doctors continue to use it? The answer is that they don’t know what
else to do. Patients usually are not scheduled into chemotherapy unless
their condition seems so hopeless that the loss of life appears to be
inevitable anyway. Some doctors refer to this stage, not as therapy, but
experimentation, which, frankly, is a more honest description. Another
reason for using drugs in the treatment of cancer is that the doctor
does not like to tell the patient there is no hope. In his own mind he
knows there is none, but he also knows that the patient does not want to
hear that and will seek another physician who will continue some kind of
treatment, no matter how useless. So he solves the problem by continuing
the treatment himself. ADRIAMYCIN
(also called Doxorubicin). If
even a little of the drug leaks out onto the tissue, serious injury
occurs. The patient is liable to develop a large ulcer, which will not
heal. The drug reacts with the tissues - and kills their cells. As the
cells die, this drug is released. It contacts neighboring cells and
tissue and progressively destroys more and more layers. The ulcers grow
large and painful. There are cases where the limb had to be amputated
because of too much tissue destruction. Sometimes wide excision of
tissues by a surgeon, followed by plastic surgery can bypass the need
for more serious treatments. The
following are frequent side effects and symptoms of Adriamycin
activity:
There
is a maximum lifetime dosage for each patient. Patients stand very
realistic chances of dying when that limit is exceeded. Since
treatments are given only once every three or four weeks, the tortures
and side effects go on and on and on. Life becomes dismal - in fact a
tragedy. If
administered to animals, whose health and resistance to disease are low,
it causes cancer! To the offspring of such animals - it causes birth
defects! METHOTEXTRATE
(a Lederle product)
Administered during pregnancy it will kill the baby. If a fetus should survive, the drug will cause major birth deformations.
METHODS
OF METHOTEXTRATE USE Sometimes
used, over several hours, in very high doses that are deadly - in hope
of a rapid kill of the tumor. Then an antidote (another drug) to the
drug is given in order to neutralize the effects, which could possibly
kill the patient. This chemotherapy has been used for many years and for quite a few different types of tumors. Now it is used little because of its high cost, the time losses and difficulties of preparation and administration (not because of any regard for the patient or the side effects they suffered). The side effects suffered were quite severe in most patients. Many patients refused to tolerate them and discontinued their treatment by this method. CIS-PLATIN
(also known as PLATINOL) The
hazards of Cis-Platin are:
Treatments are based on administering this drug until the kidneys show damage - but hopefully not enough to threaten life. If the damage is severe and the treatment succeeds in reducing the tumor, you will need to spend time - two or three times a week - in a hospital for the rest of your life, plugged into a kidney machine (dialysis). Large amounts of fluids must be taken to flush out the kidneys in hopes of reducing the damage. The kidney damage does not recede or heal when the drug is stopped. This is the serious hazard that determines the restricting of the use of this drug.
The
side effects of this drug are potentially lethal. Bristol
Laboratories later brought out a slightly different form of the drug
called Carboplastin. It has less kidney damaging potential. It is also
not as effective. The damage to the kidneys could still be serious if
doses administered are increased to produce an equal effectiveness. It
is also much more expensive than Cis-Platin.
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5-FLUOROUCIL Widely used for a long time, especially in the treatment of breast, colon, stomach and other cancers. It is considered to be a fairly mild chemo agent. Its side effects are milder than most other forms of chemo. It is usually used in combination with other chemo drugs in view of adding potency to the combination used because it helps enhance potency without adding too many side effects. The
side effects of 5-Fluorouracil are:
NOTE: White blood cells survive in the body only for a period of hours, dividing rapidly. Because of this they also are young, fragile cells, highly susceptible to destruction by chemicals, drugs and toxins. These make white blood cells a prime target for chemotherapy drugs. White
blood cells are extremely essential blood detoxifiers and body
protectors. Any time white blood cell counts drop, patients are more
prone to serious infections. TAMOXIFEN
(Tamofen) The
role of Tamoxifen is to inhibit the influence, which estrogens can have
on the growth of cells, with the hope of slowing and/or stopping the
growth of breast tumors. Hormones, by making certain proteins available
and usable by cells, promote their growth. Proteins, together with
minerals, make up the skeletal structures of cells. Tamoxifen
has a much greater impact on the growth processes of cells than do the
estrogens. Wherever the estrogen seeks to enter into chemical reaction
with and support cell multiplication, the more powerful Tamoxifen
interposes itself and blocks the estrogen processes. It
prevents the hormones from acting on protein fractions called alanine,
aspartame and gamma glutamide. Cell growth is inhibited. By doing so, it
does succeed in causing a regression of some breast cancer tumors. It
is more effective in women who are hormone sensitive. Not all women are.
However, since it acts directly on cell growth, it has an effect even on
cancers of women who are not hormone sensitive. For
the first three to four weeks, it is difficult to determine whether the
Tamoxifen is bringing about benefits, or it is being harmful. The
first doses of Tamoxifen build up blood levels of 20 - 30%. Up to 40% of
the amounts that penetrate and enter the body are neutralized and
detoxified by the liver and biochemical immunity of the body. The
activity life of each dose is between 7 - 14 hours. Long term
administration and saturation of the body with Tamoxifen prolongs its
effectiveness up to 7 days. Up to 70% of this drug is neutralized and
eliminated via the intestines. Whatever
benefits Tamoxifen gives to the body, there is a price tag. Like all
other chemo agents - the price can be very, very high!
Besides
these evidences of damage to organs, some Tamoxifen patients experience a
number of symptoms:
I
have discussed but a few of the chemo agents used. They and their side
effects are typical and their use is based on and supported by medical
theory. Once
cancer has been detected in the body, doctors believe that leaving just
one single cancer cell intact and alive is enough to trigger cancer cell
growth and restart the formation of further tumors. Because of this,
doctors claim that it is essential to resort to the use of chemotherapy
and/or radiation after tumor eradication - even when no cancer cells can
be detected. Their existence is always suspected. The whole body and its
trillions of cells is subjected to potent, drastic poisons in order to
assure non-recurrence of tumor growths. Most
of us during our lifetime, give growth to - and harbor in our bodies -
many cancer cells and the body is able to control and eradicate these with
considerable ease - as long as the general immunity, resistance and health
of the body are strong. Only with that health the defenses of a healthy
body can destroy cancer cells. There
are several sources readily available to you for information on drugs.
Amongst the most valuable to you is a book known as the "PDR" -
the Physicians Desk Reference, which is available at major book stores
around the nation. Its cost is about $85.00, but well worth it. Unless
you have a medical education, you may have difficulties understanding the
words. Most of the terms used will not mean very much to you - unless you
use a good medical dictionary. If you are a person that is to be treated
by chemo - be prepared! Arm yourself with knowledge so that you can make a
good decision as to whether you wish to be subjected to treatments, which
could be harmful to your health. Do
not even rely on your doctor, who, regardless of his good intentions, may
not have your long-term well being at heart. He may be acting out of
desperation, not knowing what else to do. He may be giving you the kinds
of treatments he has been taught to use. He may not know that there are
other ways, as effective as, and often much more effective than drugs. I
would like to conclude by modifying the quote at the beginning of this
book: Hospitals
put many hundreds of millions of dollars each year into the pockets of
drug companies. These companies do not intend to lose their profits -
regardless of the lives that may be destroyed. One of those lives may be
your own! Read about the politics of Medicinal Drugs by one of Washington's top journalists
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