Biological Cancer Therapies – Principles
A cancer diagnosis is usually a profoundly impactful experience and often associated with serious consequences in all areas of the affected person’s life.
Since cancer is often still associated with the idea of an inevitable, and often rapid, death, this diagnosis is often a shock.
Fortunately, the realities today already look significantly better, and medicine has achieved significant successes in cancer therapy in recent years.
More patients than just a few years ago can be freed from the tumor in the long term and lead a normal life, or the disease can be kept under control for many years or even decades.
Nevertheless, this diagnosis, like hardly any other, is associated with fears, helplessness, and, in some cases, shame; there is a lack of competent and empathetic interlocutors, understandable information about the diseases and possible alternative therapies, and prognoses are made that do not apply in individual cases.
The pressure to quickly decide on one therapy or another exacerbates the helplessness and the feeling of no longer having control over one’s own life.
A consultation in our practice may come into play at this point. The goal is to support and accompany you from the beginning, to support you with necessary information and helpful tips, and to restore your autonomy and self-efficacy.
It is your life, it is your disease, and it is your decisions.
In biological cancer medicine, it is not about “either / or” but the question of which therapies are sensible and feasible in addition to conventional medical options.
The range of possible complementary therapy options is quite large, and it makes sense to first take the time to find out more about them.
We pursue the following goals with biological cancer medicine:
- Recognizing and eliminating blockages that stand in the way of healing
- Building up certain bodily functions (stabilization before or after surgery, strengthening the immune function, substitution with vital substances, etc.)
- Psychological stabilization
- Reduction of the side effects of conventional medical therapies
- Improving the effectiveness of conventional medical therapies
- Specific therapies to reduce or eliminate tumors or metastases
Our practice is committed to the principles of the Society for Biological Cancer Defense e.V., and as a member, we also implement these in our daily practice.
For us, this also means that we understand complementary therapy offers as therapy-accompanying to necessary, conventional medical therapies (surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy).
An overview of the 4 pillars of biological cancer therapy and sensible supplementary diagnostic and treatment approaches can be found on the website of the Society for Biological Cancer Therapy e.V. This is how they are also implemented in our practice.
Mechanisms of Development of Tumors
Tumors basically arise from a change in the genetic material in our cells, which can then lead to uncontrolled growth. The changes can be caused by external influences, but can also arise spontaneously from within.
These faulty changes happen permanently in our cells, but not every damage to the DNA must necessarily result in a permanent gene mutation. Normally, a cell has many mechanisms to repair this damage.
Our immune system is also able to recognize and destroy such altered cells. If these repair and removal mechanisms become overloaded, this can lead to uncontrolled growth and thus the development of a tumor.
Despite the very complex development processes of tumors, the environment and lifestyle are undoubtedly among the essential triggers. But age also plays a major role in the development of cancer, as the frequency of genetic changes during cell division increases with age and the repair mechanisms are less effective.
Lifestyle as a Trigger for Cancer
Environmental and lifestyle factors for the development of cancer are:
- Tobacco smoke and alcohol consumption
- Malnutrition and obesity
- Environmental pollutants / heavy metal contamination
- Radiation exposure
- Lack of exercise
- Infections (papillomaviruses, hepatitis B virus, Helicobacter pylori, Ebstein-Barr virus)
- Chronic inflammation (ulcerative colitis)
Our
psychological well-being
also has a significant influence on the functions of our immune system, and this plays an important role, especially in the therapy of these diseases.
Possibilities of Primary and Secondary Prevention
The causes and co-factors described above for the development of cancer also show us that we have many opportunities to take influence ourselves, both in the prevention and in the healing of cancer.
In this respect, the European Union has also adopted a “European Codex Against Cancer” by recommending the reduction of risk factors.
For me, the treatment of patients with cancer is closely linked to the reduction of the risk of relapses and metastases. Prevention and treatment are therefore two sides of the same coin in our treatment concept.
I am happy to be available for an initial
contact
or consultation.