The Role of Nutritional Supplements in Alternative Cancer Treatment

Patients who spend a little time researching nutritional supplements for alternative cancer treatments will find a mix of advice about the use or uselessness of these products. As an Arizona cancer treatment specialist, I frequently recommend certain nutritional supplements along with more conventional treatments, but I think it is very important for patients to understand the proper role of supplements.

Here are two tips to help people integrate supplements successfully with their cancer treatment plan:

Tip 1: Don’t Forgo Direct Treatment Entirely

The drawbacks of chemotherapy are obvious, but the reality is that chemotherapy is still our most effective tool against cancer. While supplements can benefit a person physically, emotionally and psychologically, patients need to understand that these supplements aren’t a substitute for proven, direct methods of treating cancer.

More people facing a cancer diagnosis are undergoing Insulin Potentiation Therapy (IPT), also called low-dose chemotherapy, because it helps limit the amount of chemotherapy necessary to destroy cancer cells. This chemotherapy treatment alternative avoids the most dramatic effects of chemotherapy without compromising its effectiveness, and it works very well as part of a holistic cancer treatment plan that includes nutritional supplements. Note, though, that there is a significant difference between integrating these two complementary approaches and relying on supplements alone to fight cancer.

Tip 2: Start with an Accurate Assessment of Your Needs

Nutritional supplements work best when they are part of a focused, comprehensive plan that your doctor designs around your body chemistry and your needs. Unfortunately, many patients approach this backward, starting with a nutritional supplement they’ve heard about and integrating that supplement into their treatment routine on their own – without having a medical professional assess whether that supplement even works well with their body.

At the beginning of a course of IPT treatment, diagnostic tests must be performed on the patient to assess factors like blood chemistry so that the cancer cells can be targeted as precisely and fully as possible, and in the process identify issues that these supplemental treatments could help correct. These tests must take place before specific treatments are recommended.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dr._Frank_George
Technorati Tag: Cancer Treatment

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