Live Long, Live Strong: An Integrative Approach To Cancer Care and Prevention
It’s inescapable! We all know someone who currently has cancer or has had cancer. The National Cancer Institute (NCI) estimates that 1,735,350 new cases of cancer will be diagnosed and 609,640 people will die from the disease in the U.S this year. Both of my in-laws died of cancer—lung and liver respectively, so this disease is very personal for me.
The Big “C” is a Scary and Taboo Subject
Despite the sobering number of cases, many people are afraid to discuss cancer in our culture. It’s awkward socially. For example, what do you say to someone who was just diagnosed or is in the middle of treatment for cancer? Perhaps you’re fearful of saying anything that might make this person feel bad. Do you offer advice or sympathy? Do you acknowledge their fear? Or do you simply clam up and say nothing?
It’s time we stop skirting around the subject and deal directly with the disease and the people who are living with it—with candor, empathy and knowledge. Avoidance of the topic robs us of the opportunity to consider steps that can be taken to prevent cancer in a majority of people while also helping patients better manage their condition and perhaps even experience improved quality of life.
Why A New Book Is Needed
Countless patients whose stories demonstrate courage, faith and the power of integrative healing are the reason why my associate, Frances Lam, has joined me to write the book, Live Long, Live Strong: An Integrative Approach to Cancer Care and Prevention. The book is based on my 30-plus years of clinical experience with our team of exceptional Chinese Medicine practitioners working with cancer patients in collaboration with oncologists, surgeons and specialists. It convinced us, without any doubt, that cancer can be prevented and that the emerging integrative oncology collaborative of East and West approaches to cancer treatment is a winning formula.
The book covers a range of topics, from why cancer occurs to how it’s diagnosed and empowered practices that people can adopt for prevention and during treatment involving diet and nutrition, lifestyle, Chi Gong and meditation, herbs and supplements, and spiritual health. Live Long, Live Strong: An Integrative Approach to Cancer Care and Prevention will be published in January 2019. Here are some of the key concepts from the new book:
Cancer Is an Aging Problem
It’s been said that “Aging is a major carcinogen!” Unfortunately, age is the biggest single risk factor for cancer. Risk increases significantly after age 50, and half of all cancers occur at age 66 and above. According to the National Cancer Institute, one-quarter of new cancer diagnoses are in people ages 65 to 74. The longer we live, the more errors our genes accumulate. Over time, these mutations can lead to cancer.
Weak Immune Function Makes You Susceptible to Cancer
One reason that cancer is an age-related disease is that the immune system is less able to combat cancer as you get older. And getting older is directly linked with decline in the function of the thymus, a gland responsible for training and producing the body’s natural killer (NK) cells. The body becomes less capable of maintaining a diverse group of NK cells that can recognize and destroy cancer cells.
Obesity Leads to Cancer
An estimated 1.97 billion adults and over 338 million children and adolescents worldwide were overweight or obese in 2016.