Breast Cancer Q & A of the Day: Are there alternative treatments that can cure breast cancer?

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The National Cancer Institute’s Office of Cancer Complementary and Alternative Medicine distinguishes between complementary medicine—which it defines as any medical system, practice, or product not thought of as standard care but used along with standard medicine—and alternative medicine, which is used in place of standard treatments.

Purely alternative approaches include high-dose vitamin therapy, antineoplastons, macrobiotic diet, some herbal remedies, metabolic therapies, and detoxification. The use of these therapies is often based on certain beliefs that may not be totally accurate. One such belief is that the body has self-healing properties. This is true—but only to a point. The body does have defense mechanisms that we try to supplement in cancer therapy and there certainly is a mind–body connection, but there are also forces beyond our control. Another belief is that certain things can increase the immune system and help cure a cancer. Again, there’s some truth in this. But there is no known alternative treatment that can cure cancer. 

For all its limitations, Western medicine is still probably the most important component of any successful effort to cure cancer or to put it into significant remission. But there are complementary therapies that can help during and after the treatment process.

You can learn more about complementary care here. 

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This post is courtesy of the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation, dedicated to eradicating breast cancer and improving the quality of women's health through innovative research, education and advocacy.To support this important cause and donate, visit www.dslrf.org.