By Dr. Garcia and Dr. Perez, Bioscience Research Institute.

In answer to questions sent to our email, Dr. Ariel Perez of BioScience Research Institute offers these explanations:

Q: Why should I consider alternative treatments if I have cancer?

A: Alternative medicine has been proven to be efficient and useful in some medical conditions - in some cases as equally effective or better than conventional medicine.

Q: What is the difference between Alternative and Integrative cancer treatments?

A: Integrative medicine refers to the combination of two or more different disciplines related to medical care.  The most common combination is conventional medicine and alternative medicine.  Alternative medicine uses natural remedies such as homeopathy, herbs, acupuncture, etc to treat disease.  When we combine those with proven conventional technology it creates a symbiotic effect that provides the patient with the best treatment possible.

Q:  Don't most hospitals offer only "conventional"  treatments?

A: True, but integrative medicine is achieving more recognition as the best approach to treat chronic disease, therefore more hospitals around the world are adopting some kind of alternative treatment implemented in conjunction with conventional protocols.  Centro Medico Excel is the first hospital to have a complete are devoted to this medicine with the full support of its infrastructure - BioScience Research Institute.

Q: What Alternative or Integrative treatments are the most widely used in Integrative hospitals?

A: Some treatments by definition aren't  alternative ones, but are also not considered mainstream.  It's important to mention that the majority of complementary treatments are well supported scientifically.  Holistic approaches include organic nutrition, mind and body connection, detoxification, bioenergetics, herbs, acupuncture, homeopathy and IV therapy - these are just a few of the proven treatments used at BioScience Research Institute.

Q: How is Vitamin C effective in the treatment of cancer:

A:  Thanks to the work of Linus Pauling and many others, vitamin C has been extensively studied and has been proven to have anti-cancer properties, thanks to the enormous amount of antioxidants.  All major integrative cancer programs include high doses of vitamin C.

Q: How is Hyperthermia effective in the treatment of cancer?

A:  Right now Hyperthermia is being implemented in several major university hospitals throughout the United States as part of their cancer management programs.  Hyperthermia has proven to be a cornerstone treatment for cancer and other chronic conditions.  It has the ability to increase sensitivity to chemotherapy in cancerous cells - high temperatures are very damaging  to malignant cells but well tolerated by healthy cells.  Thanks to these properties there are new protocols using low dose chemo in combination with hyperthermia resulting in less damage to healthy cells and very low non-desirable secondary effects.  Also hyperthermia is proven to lower inflammation kill parasites and strengthen the immune system.  Most, but not all, hospitals use low dose chemo in conjunction with hyperthermia.

Q:  How is Bioenergetic Medicine effective in the treatment of cancer?

A:  Bioenergetic medicine is a discipline extensively used and researched in Europe.  By using acupuncture pressure points, electromagnetic currents and different light and sound frequencies,  various Bioenergetic machines are able to improve cellular function and re-balance energy flow.  The newest therapies include the implementation of laser rays for this purpose.

Q: What role does nutrition play in the treatment of cancer?

A: Nutrition has to be the foundation of any kind of medical treatment.  It's amazing how even to this day, hospitals aren't paying attention to the kinds of foods served to patients; some of these foods can even promote more damage and inflammation.

Food can be used as medicine, making nutrition the most important aspect of any treatment by providing the right amount and quality of nutrients needed for every day function, restoration, protection and balance.  Food can improve the body's response to any treatment, alternative or conventional, by providing the right tools to the body.  It's more than just eating healthy, it's creating a diet that will provide all the support for each condition.

Q: How do Chiropractors play a role in cancer treatment?

A:  Chiropractic is a discipline in the medical field that uses physical manipulations of the structural part of the body for diagnosing and treatment.  Through this approach we can 'talk to the body', acquiring information in a different way and in different terms compared to the conventional model. This allows  a bigger panorama of the situation.  Along with traditional diagnosis, this makes a very unique and complete way to assess and treat a patient.

Q:  How does a Psychologist play a role in cancer treatment?

A: Every illness, no matter how mild, will create anxiety and emotional changes.  Now imagine a problem as challenging as cancer: this definitely will create very intense emotional changes.  It is also important to consider emotional issues not related directly to the illness as they may  participate in the overall scenario.   Stress has been widely researched and has proven to create biochemical changes capable of altering function via hormonal systems resulting in malfunction of different systems in the body they are intended to protect.  It's of equal importance to treat the mind along with the body - if the mind is not treated, the body will not follow. 

Q: Is Laetrile still used in cancer treatment?

Yes, Laetrile is still used, along with other agents such as mistletoe.  If used as a lone agent, these therapies do not posses a considerable healing effect; however, in combination with other treatments they have proven to possess a synergistic effect that is undeniable.  Laetrile is part of our treatment.

Q:  Is chemotherapy always necessary?

A:  No, only in specific situations.  Chemotherapy can be given in different ways, full dose, low dose (1/2 dose) and micrometric dose (10 to 20% of normal dose).  When to use chemo depends on many aspects from the actual condition of the patient (safety) to recent treatments.  Here is Mexico, oncologists have the ability to use different combinations of chemo agents not always allowed in the states.

Q: Can't something be done to reduce the side effects of chemo?  

A: Yes, there is enormous evidence that supports the use of complementary treatments to enhance and to lower chemo's non-desirable effects.  This is different in every patient, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach.  At BioScience, we customize the patient's treatment to shield the healthy cells and keep the side effects to a minimum.

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