supportive cancer care
Advancing the care and supportive treatment of cancer
Wherever you are in your cancer journey, we're here to help! Supportive cancer care therapies include all therapies that fall outside of the standard of care, which are implemented to help reduce adverse events, and/or support the standards of care while promoting survivorship and quality of life in the patient.
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While integrative cancer therapies such as high dose Vitamin C or mistletoe therapy should never be considered as alternatives to chemotherapy, radiation, or surgery, these therapies are playing an increasingly expanded role in whole-patient cancer care. Consequently, integrative therapies need to be implemented in a timely and safe manner. This is where our team comes in. Supportive cancer care is designed to be collaborative and we are always happy to work with everyone on your healthcare team including your oncologist, surgeon, family doctor, or nurse practitioner.
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We are absolutely committed to becoming our community's preferred choice for the supportive treatment of cancer!
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-Dr. Steve Rallis DC, ND
"...we are absolutely committed to becoming our community's preferred choice for the supportive treatment of cancer."
A tailored and targeted approach
Cancer is a very complex disease with multiple potential triggers including stem cell, epigenetic, immune and metabolic irregularities. The key is to tailor integrative interventions in a targeted way that enhances, not interferes with the efficacy of the standard of care, while improving survivorship.
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This metabolic approach to supportive cancer continues to gain momentum in integrative oncology. A simple example of this is the intermittent use of a ketogenic diet as a supportive aid in glioblastoma. Because these cancers very aggressively consume mostly glucose for fuel, when carbohydrates are restricted, theses tumor cells can experience difficulty compensating, which may inhibit their rate of growth. (1) Certain nutrients such as berberine, for example can further disrupt energy production, while at the same time -enhancing the efficacy of certain chemotherapies against this cancer. (2,3) A veritable win-win!
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Listed below are some of the supportive cancer therapies offered through our clinic.
nutrition and lifestyle counselling
Nutrition and lifestyle counselling are central components of any naturopathic care plan, this is especially true in supportive cancer care!
Nutritional and botanical supplementation
Targeting the right supplements at the right time is a key component in the metabolic approach to supportive cancer care.
IV therapies
High-dose intravenous vitamin C (HDIVC) therapy is a cornerstone therapy in integrative oncology. IV's for immune support, cachexia, hydration and neuropathies are also used if indicated.
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LABORATORY diagnostics
From specific cancer markers to inflammatory markers to metabolic markers, frequent laboratory assessments (blood work) help us critically evaluate progress and efficacy.
mistletoe therapy
One of the most widely used alternative cancer therapies, mistletoe is a direct immune stimulator that seems to improve quality of life (QOL). This therapy is administered subcutaneously or by IV.
SUPPORTIVE MEDICATIONS
Supportive medications such as low dose naltrexone (LDN) are gaining momentum in integrative oncology. (4) If indicated, supportive meds may be prescribed by our Nurse Practitioner.
Supportive cancer care...anywhere!
Naturopathic doctors are eligible to provide supportive cancer care to any patient who resides in Ontario, or any province or territory where naturopathic medicine is not licensed. So whether you live in Barrie, Toronto or Thunder Bay, if you're okay with online visits, so are we!
let's get started!
Wherever you are in your cancer journey...we're here to help!
REFERENCES:​
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(1) van der Louw EJTM, Olieman JF, van den Bemt PMLA, Bromberg JEC, Oomen-de Hoop E, Neuteboom RF, Catsman-Berrevoets CE, Vincent AJPE. Ketogenic diet treatment as adjuvant to standard treatment of glioblastoma multiforme: a feasibility and safety study. Ther Adv Med Oncol. 2019 Jun 21;11:1758835919853958. doi: 10.1177/1758835919853958. PMID: 31258628; PMCID: PMC6589986.
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(2) Wang J, Qi Q, Feng Z, Zhang X, Huang B, Chen A, Prestegarden L, Li X, Wang J. Berberine induces autophagy in glioblastoma by targeting the AMPK/mTOR/ULK1-pathway. Oncotarget. 2016 Oct 11;7(41):66944-66958. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.11396. PMID: 27557493; PMCID: PMC5341849.
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(3) Qu H, Song X, Song Z, Jiang X, Gao X, Bai L, Wu J, Na L, Yao Z. Berberine reduces temozolomide resistance by inducing autophagy via the ERK1/2 signaling pathway in glioblastoma. Cancer Cell Int. 2020 Dec 9;20(1):592. doi: 10.1186/s12935-020-01693-y. PMID: 33298057; PMCID: PMC7727240.
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(4) Couto RD, Fernandes BJD. Low Doses Naltrexone: The Potential Benefit Effects for its Use in Patients with Cancer. Curr Drug Res Rev. 2021;13(2):86-89. doi: 10.2174/2589977513666210127094222. PMID: 33504322.