Have I walked away from Stage 4 Kidney Cancer?

Well, it is nearly two years (23 months) since my diagnosis by Dr Adrian Fairey of Stage 4 Renal Cell Carcinoma, and I am feeling very well. This week is another critical one, because I go to Yellowknife for another CT scan (Tuesday, November 07) and follow-up with an oncologist from Cross Cancer Institute from Edmonton (Thursday, November 09).

If I can I will send a short follow up post from the hotel in Yellowknife on Thursday evening November 09.

I have written an outline for my cancer recovery book Waking up (nearly) dead. I believe the book is very important now. Six weeks ago I lost my dear cousin Karen from the same disease, and that has reminded me of the 8%/5year rule in the stats. Only 8% of us who have been operated on for kidney cancer will make the 5 year mark following diagnosis or operation. That is not a morbid thought, it is a very realistic one. Now this last week, I lost another dear friend, Eric H, from lung cancer. He was about 15 years younger than me, and the cancer was too advanced at diagnosis I believe for immunotherapy drugs or radiation treatment to be effective.

And why should immunotherapy not include nutritive ways of increasing immune response? Why has nearly no research money been put into the importance of nutrition, minerals like zinc that improve the health of the thymus to produce healthy T-Cells, and natural therapies like mistletoe injections, which are proven in accepted medical research to improve quality of life for some cancer sufferers who are experiencing normal chemotherapy and/or radiation treatments. And my thesis is that in cases where the primary tumour(s) can be removed by surgery, Iscador injections (mistletoe from oak) can cause cancerous tumours to shrink and/or disappear. I am convinced that has happened in my case.

More news Thursday or next weekend after my CT scan and oncology consultation.