Navigating Your Cancer’s Terrain
On recent Autumn mornings, I’ve been sitting on my porch watching the leaves change while looking out across the Colorado landscapes. Mountains to the west and open plains to the east and I’ve been deep in reflection about body ecology and what it means to support the terrain of a whole body system.
The body is made up of many internal ecosystems and cellular terrain that when in balance bring vitality but when out of balance disease and abnormal cell growth happen. Cancer is one such example, where the rapid replication of cells in the body goes unchecked by the body’s normal mechanisms that destroy unhealthy cells and clean house regularly to keep you healthy. This process occurs many times throughout our lives but because our terrain is healthy, the cleaning process can usually stop tumor development. Cancer arises because there is an opportunity for unhealthy cells to take over, but what factors tip the scales into the disease process? Cancer is rarely ever caused by merely one thing, it is often a complex layering of influences both internally and externally that affect the terrain such as the following:
YOUR TERRAIN CAN BE AFFECTED BY:
Nutritional status
Environmental toxic burden
Hormone balance
Immune system
Inflammation over time and oxidative stress
Genetics: Genes such as MTHFR, BRCA, and other SNPs
The beliefs of the patient and the emotional stressors in life
Metabolic processes and blood sugar balance
Circulation and angiogenesis
The microbiome
Biorhythms
So where do we go from here?
Many patients are told “just watch and wait” or told that there’s nothing they can do to prevent diseases like cancer but I disagree. I like to educate my patients on how we can optimize all of the above-listed terrain areas to minimize disease progression and empower my patients in all areas of their health! So, let’s dive in and explore a few areas you might need support in.
Nutrient deficiencies can contribute to cancer
Studies have shown that nutrients such as vitamin D deficiency, zinc deficiency, and certain minerals or antioxidants can alter the risk factors surrounding cancer as well as many other diseases (1). We certainly don’t want to throw a generic multivitamin at these complex cellular pathways because certain nutrients can drive a disease state further unless we know exactly what form is needed and the severity of the depletion (2). This is why I love tests like Nutrition Genome which shows us specifically on a genetic level, what nutrients you might have a higher demand for, how your nutrition determines your health, and can give us a road map for personalizing your diet for anti-cancer outcomes. Specific diets, for example, therapeutic keto, can triple the survival rates in combination with chemotherapy because it inhibits cancer cell growth (3).
Environmental Toxins can affect your cancer risk
While certain exposures such as in utero DES can be directly linked with specific cancer types, most of the time the modern world we live in adds an insidious load to our body. Whether we eat organic or not we are still getting exposure to glyphosates, estrogen-mimicking chemicals, molds, and so many others through our water, food, homes, and air. When we take a look at how our toxic load affects our terrain, Naturopathic medicine offers so many tools for opening detoxification pathways, identifying your genetic detox weak spots, and supporting cellular recovery after exposure.
Hormones and their role in driving cancer
Many people don’t realize that hormones can influence several cancers such as lung, breast, prostate, and liver cancers. This is why it is paramount, even for young people, to ensure that your hormone detoxification pathways are optimized, and if they are suboptimal, we need to correct the dysfunctional pathways. Hormone imbalances such as endometriosis, PCOS, heavy menses, etc. are all signs the body is asking for help and are a great opportunity for the prevention of complications later. Not only do we need our amazing hormones in the right ratios to one another we also need to understand how the body is detoxifying them correctly.
Is cancer affected by your thoughts and feelings?
Our mental and emotional state, as our mind may be the single most important aspect, of the healing journey. Every thought counts. An illness journey can be devastating and it can also bring profound inner healing as we ask ourselves “What is my cancer here to teach me”? “What do I want the quality of my life to be”? When we face these questions with courage, we can find the miracles buried deep in our DNA and create healing from a place that supplements and treatments never could.
In addition to diving into the areas of health I’ve briefly outlines above, you can start supporting your body to promote cellular cleaning processes and support the terrain.
Doses will vary and these are not appropriate for everyone, so please consult with your provider before starting any new therapies.
A high-quality supplement plan: for example Quercetin, EGCG/Green tea extract, Curcumin can help to turn back on the p53 pathways that some cancer cells have lost. They help to fight cancer by preventing the cells from growing unchecked.
Fasting practices and therapeutic ketosis (under the supervision of a knowledgeable practitioner)
Good lifestyle foundations such as good quality sleep and healthy circadian rhythms
The above therapeutics can help stem inflammation and promote the healthy death of unhealthy cells. While tackling all the elements of your terrain all at once can seem daunting, it can be life-changing on so many levels. I have had clients tell me they feel better after initiating changes after their diagnosis than they have felt in years. Here at Vessel Wellness, I am dedicated to offering a compassionate approach to guide you to the most effective and targeted approaches to your health and walk alongside you every step of the way. Your health is one of the most valuable aspects of the quality of your life and you are worth it.
Yours in Health,
Dr. Elise Sulser ND
References
(1) Garland CF, Garland FC, Gorham ED, Lipkin M, Newmark H, Mohr SB, Holick MF. The role of vitamin D in cancer prevention. Am J Public Health. 2006 Feb;96(2):252-61. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2004.045260. Epub 2005 Dec 27. PMID: 16380576; PMCID: PMC1470481.
(2) Kreuzaler, P., Inglese, P., Ghanate, A. et al. Vitamin B5 supports MYC oncogenic metabolism and tumor progression in breast cancer. Nat Metab 5, 1870–1886 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s42255-023-00915-7 (3) Lifeng Yang, Tara TeSlaa, Serina Ng, Michel Nofal, Lin Wang, Taijin Lan, Xianfeng Zeng, Alexis Cowan, Matthew McBride, Wenyun Lu, Shawn Davidson, Gaoyang Liang, Tae Gyu Oh, Michael Downes, Ronald Evans, Daniel Von Hoff, Jessie Yanxiang Guo, Haiyong Han, Joshua D. Rabinowitz, Ketogenic diet and chemotherapy combine to disrupt pancreatic cancer metabolism and growth,Med, Volume 3, Issue 2, 2022,
