A Oncological Medical Doctor Surviiving Pancreatic Cancer

Dr. Maria Guerro has been a California licensed medical doctor who treats patients with cancer for over 20 years. Now she has cancer. In fact one of the worst cancers you can get - pancreatic cancer. Maria finds new hope in the science of Dr. Robert O Young and the pH Miracle Lifestyle and Diet in reversing her cancerous condition.

To view the video interview go to:

Part i:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=1787521329880&set=vb.1294968067&type=2&theater

Part Ii:

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=1788977846292&set=vb.1294968067&type=2&theater

More about → A Oncological Medical Doctor Surviiving Pancreatic Cancer

The Risk of Pancreatic Cancer, Arthritis, Osteoporosis, CVD and More! and How To Prevent or Reverse Cancer, Arthritis, Osteoporosis, CVD and More!

The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network has released a report that shows that pancreatic cancer will move from the fourth to the second leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. by 2020, and possibly as early as 2015.

Among other things, the report notes that it's the only major cancer killer where the incidence and death rates are expected to rise over the next twenty years.

The report states that there is currently a bill being debated in Congress, also known as the Pancreatic Cancer Research and Education Act, which would help reverse the current trend. The bill would create a long-term comprehensive strategy for developing early diagnostics and treatment options that will increase the survival rate for pancreatic cancer patients.

To prevent and/or reverse cancer, including pancreatic cancer it is important that you know that increasing alkalizing mineral salts of sodium, magnesium, potassium and calcium into the diet will reduce the risk of ALL cancers, including pancreatic cancer.  Supplementing these minerals will also prevent and reduce the risk of Athritis, Osteoprosis and CVD!

Not supplementing alkaline mineral salts on a daily basis in your diet could be the single most damaging thing you could possibly do to your health.  And yet, 99% of us do NOT get enough alkalizing mineral salts to reduce dietary and/or metabolic acids that can cause Cancer, including Pancreatic Cancer, Arthritis, Osteoporosis and CVD.

The good news is I am going to share with you my research and others on how you can guarantee you will get enough of the alkalizing mineral salts you need daily to redcue your risk for Cancer, Arthritis, Osteoporosis, CVD and more!

As you read this article in full you will see how my research and the research of others uncovers the scientific proof that alkaline mineral salts are critical to your health, and that an absence of sufficient alkaline mineral salts will not only lead to symptoms such as fatigue, weight gain (or unhealthy weight loss), poor skin and depression, but also insufficient alkaline minerals can certainly lead to Cancer, Arthritis, Osteoporosis, CVD and more.

Background: Why alkaline minerals and your pH matters

Just as your temperature absolutely has to stay at 38.5 C or 98.6 F degrees (and your body will do whatever it takes to keep it at that level) your body has to maintain a pH of 7.365.

If you eat, drink and live an lifestyle that is over-acid, the stress it puts on your body to maintain this delicate pH of 7.365 directly leads to sickness and disease. Your body is naturally acid forming – your natural bodily processes, metabolism and the body’s removal of wastes and toxins leads to small amounts of acid by-products. To neutralize these toxic acidic waste products we have an alkaline buffering system in the body that keeps this 7.365 pH level in our blood and other body cells balanced.

And this alkaline buffering system use to be 100% adequate…until our modern acidic lifestyle kicked in.  Now a diet of pizza, coffee, chips, chocolate, soda, alcohol, white bread, cheese, microwave meals, trans-fats and take aways plus a lifestyle of stress, pollution, chemicals and toxins means that we are constantly pushing our body to the max to try and deal with this constant, overwhelming attack of dietary, metabolic and environmental acids.

To put this in context, the pH scale (that runs from 1-14) is logarithmic. This means that pH 6 is 10x more acidic than pH 7, meaning pH 5 is 100x times more acidic than pH 7 and pH 4 is 1000x more acidic.

Cola has a pH of between 2 and 3 – pH 2.5 is almost 500,000 times more acidic than neutral water, and you need 32 glasses of neutral (pH 7) water to counteract the consumption of one glass of Cola.

So you can see how a diet filled with meats, dairy, fizzy drinks, alcohol, etc. would quickly deplete the body's alkaline buffers to maintain its akaline design.

The Scientific Proof That Alkaline Minerals Are Critical To Your Health

Recent scientific research into human health, sickness & disease has shown with increasing evidence that living an acidic-lifestyle is extremely detrimental to health & that by living alkaline you can increase your health, energy, vitality, immune system, youthfulness and protect yourself from cancer, including pancreatic cancer, arthritis, osteoporosis, and more.

As recently as October 2009, a Cambridge University study published in the highly respected British Journal of Nutrition stated:

The concept of diet-induced ‘acidosis’ as a cause of disease has been a subject of interest for more than a century. The present article reviews the history of our evolving understanding of physiological pH, the physiological support for the concept of ‘acidosis’, the causes of acidosis, how it is recognised, its short-term effects as well as the long-term clinical relevance of preventative measures, and the research support for normalization of body fluid pH.

The available research makes a compelling case that diet-induced acidosis…is a real phenomenon, and has a significant, clinical, long-term pathophysiological effect that should be recognized and potentially counter-balanced by dietary means. (1)

The researchers, Pizzornoa, Frassettoa and Katzinger have clearly identified that acidosis (increased acidity in the blood – pH below 7.365) is a very real threat to our health.
Furthermore, my own research has shown that the effects of acidosis can directly contribute to various cancers, including pancreatic cancer, (2), (3), (12), arthritis (4), osteoporosis (5), cardiovascular disease, (6), diabetes (7), depression/psychological disfunctions (8), Crohn’s disease (9), and kidney disease (10). Yes, all of the top five killers in Western society and a whole heap more. Furthermore, my experience and the experience of those who have used my twelve week pH Miracle "LIFE" style, Alkaline Diet Course have given me significant proof that living alkaline also leads to weight/fat loss, muscle gain (also scientifically proven (11), energy increases, libido increases, skin improvements and more.

An Alkaline Diet and Cancer

Alkaline Minerals Prevent Cancer Growth In March 2009, Robey, Baggett, Kirkpatrick, et al published a paper in the American Association for Cancer Research Journal proving that alkaline minerals (in this case NaHCO3 – sodium bicarbonate) that increases the extracellular pH of cancer tumor cells and prevent metastasis. Their research shows that the pH of the tumors are always acidic and by using highly alkaline minerals to raise the pH – the growth of the cancer (and involvement of lymph nodes) is prevented.

Source: Cancer Research 69, 2260, March 15, 2009

Cancer Thrives in an Acidic Environment

In a Cancer Research Journal, in 2006, Gatenby, Gawlinski, et al researched and discovered that “chronic exposure of normal tissue to an acidic micro-environment produces toxicity by: (a) normal cell death… and (b) extracellular matrix degradation”. They proffer that glucose imbalance (an acid lifestlye) leads to a chronically acidic micro-environment (the normal cells and molecules that surround a tumor cell) which provides the perfect base for cancer.

Source: Cancer Research 66, 5216-5223, May 15, 2006

Acidosis and Osteoporosis
Alkaline Minerals Prevent Osteoporosis

A recently published study in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (Vol 94, No 1 96-102, 2009) has provided further evidence that the consumption of and supplementation with alkaline minerals is essential for good health. The objective of the study was to understand the effect of alkaline minerals (potassium bicarbonate, sodium bicarbonate and potassium chloride) on bone health – specifically, the ability of these alkaline minerals to slow the bone resorption rate and calcium excretion.

The participants who were taking the bicarbonate supplements had significant reductions in urinary N-telopeptide and calcium excretion when compared to the control group. This means that when taking the alkaline minerals, bones remained stronger and healthier.

Source: Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (Vol 94, No 1 96-102, 2009)
Cardiovascular Disease & the Alkaline Diet

Alkaline Minerals Critical to Prevention of CVD

In the Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine, Joseph Campbell provides a thorough review of the scientific literature surrounding minerals and disease and highlights that the alkaline minerals, magnesium and calcium, are critical to the prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD). He also highlights that “Excessive consumption of acid producing foods, results in metabolic acidosis. When this occurs, the parathyroid hormone stimulates the removal of calcium from the bones and teeth (osteolysis), to buffer or neutralize the excess acidity. After many years, such calcium loss results in depleted bone, bone weakness and structure.”

Source: Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine Vol. 10, No. 3 & 4, 1995

Arthritis and Alkalinity

Alkaline Mineral Supplementation Decreases Pain in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients

This incredible study from Institute for Prevention and Nutrition (Germany) provided clear and unquestionable evidence that using an alkaline mineral supplement (30g daily) reduced pain and increased movement in patients with moderately active Rheumatoid Arthritis over a 12-week period.

Source: The Open Nutrition Journal, 2008, 2, 100-105

Do you want to safeguard yourself from degenerative diseases while living with more energy, a lean, fit body, great skin, youthfulness and vitality?

How You Can Guarantee Your Health With Alkaline Minerals

The above studies prove, without question, that having sufficient alkaline mineral buffers to neutralize dietary, metabolic and environmental acids is critical to maintaining excellent health, energy and vitality and to the prevention of degenerative disease.

It is also highlighted in several of these studies that using an alkaline mineral supplement is an effective way of guaranteeing your daily intake of alkaline minerals is sufficient.

The efficacy of using an alkalizing mineral supplement (and these supplements providing a usable form of these minerals) is further supported by this June 2009 study published in the Nutrition Journal, “Effect of a supplement rich in alkaline minerals on acid-base balance in humans”. The study concluded “that the ingestion of a multimineral supplement is associated with both a significant increase in blood and urinary pH”.

If you want to guarantee you have sufficient alkalizing minerals than supplementation is a smart choice.

I’ve been working and researching in the alkaline diet field for over 25 years now and have seen mineral supplements come and go, and the one thing that determines whether a nutritional supplement will be successful or not is: does it work.

Poor quality nutritional supplements get found out very quickly.

With that in mind, there are the two alkaline mineral supplements that I personally recommend to prevent disease and maintain the alkaline design of the body fluids.  I have been using these personally and with my patients for the over 20 years now and they have been incredibly effective.

pH Miracle pHour Salts 

Alkaline Minerals of Sodium, Magnesium, Potassium and Calcium will almost instantly neutralize harmful dietary, metabolic and environmental acids.  The pH Miracle pHour Salts contains all four primary alkaline minerals: calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium. Once these mineral buffers hit the system, they quickly neutralize excess acids.

Another bonus of this supplement is that it makes green drinks taste better when mixed together!

The pH Miracle pHlavor Mineral Salts

A comprehensive multi-mineral formula that will aid your pH balance and give your body all of the most essential alkaline minerals.

An Alkaline "LIFE" style Comes First

You should always aim to get an abundance of nutrients from whole foods – there are no shortcuts here. This is just essential.

To make sure you’re getting plenty of alkaline minerals in your life I have discovered you should both consume good quality (organic) fresh, vibrant, healthy, high-water content, often raw, green fruit and vegetables.  PLUS, you should supplement alkalizing mineral salts to ensure that you always have a safety net against excess dietary, metabolic and/or environment acids.  It is SO important to get enough of the right alkaizing minerals every day and the best way to do this is with organic green fruit and vegetables and supplemental alkaizing mineral salts of sodium, magnesium, potassium and calcium.

This is particularly important if you have been out of balance or over-acid, because there is always blood and tissue repair, detoxification and tidying up to do in your blood and other cells. So providing your body with an abundance of alkaline minerals is one of the very best things you can do.

Here are the whole food sources:

POTASSIUM:
Avocado
Spinach
Soy sprouts
Lentils
Swiss Chard
Tomatos
Broccoli
Cucumber
Beetroot
Greens
Carrots

MAGNESIUM:
Pumpkin Seeds
Spinach
Soy sprouts
Swiss Chard
Broccoli
Cucumber
Sunflower Seed sprouts
Pumpkin seeds
Tomatoes
Celery
Quinoa
Almonds

CALCIUM:
Basil
Turnip
Thyme
Spinach
Greens
Broccoli
Swiss Chard/Silverbeet
Romaine Lettuce
Kale
Celery
Cabbage
Green Beans
Asparagus
Brussel Sprouts
Garlic

SODIUM:
Avocado
Carrots
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Kale
Lettuce
Greens
Parsley
Peppers
Radish
Sunflower Seed sprouts
Turnip

Note on Sodium:  Here I am talking about proper, non-processed sea or lake salts, not processed table salt or the salt added to refined foods.

According to my research:

Today’s common table salt is a poison that has nothing in common with natural liquid colloidal salt. Most common table salt is made up of chemicals that pollute your body and wreak havoc on your health. Your table salt is actually 97.5% sodium chloride and 2.5% chemicals such as moisture absorbents, and iodine. Dried at over 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit, the excessive heat alters the natural chemical structure of the salt causing the potential for a myriad of health challenges in your body. [see the full article here]

Sodium is essential in the body, and the above listed alkaline vegetables provide you with a good, clean source of this important salt.

SUMMARY

Sufficient alkaline minerals is essential to good health. Your body really needs you to minimize the acids you consume from the foods and liquids you ingest and focus on ingesting alkalizing green fruti and vegetable and alkaline water.  When we over-consume acidic foods, the body will use your alkaline reserves in your body (calcium from bones, for example) to neutralize these acids which in turn will may then lead to sickness and disease. The body can only make alkaline buffers from base minerals and so by giving the body an abundance of alkalinity or base minerals we not only ease the acid burden but also give the body the tools it needs to work optimally.

The four main alkaline minerals are calcium, magnesium, potassium and sodium (clean, not refined table salt). These are abundant in fresh fruit and vegetables (particularly greens), and I advise you to eat 12 servings each day!

Once again I recommend two alkalizing mineral supplements - pH Miracle pHour Salts and pH Miracle pHlavor salts for preventing and reversing cancers, including pancreatic cancer, Arthiritis, Osteoporosis, CVC and more.  In the short-medium term these two alkalizing mineral supplements will help undo any previous acidic damage and assist in detoxifying the body of acids, bacteria, yeast, and mold and in the long-term will help to maintain your alkaline balance, giving you a daily safety net to ensure you get enough of these minerals day-in-day-out.

Sources and References:

1.  Diet-induced acidosis: is it real and clinically relevant? British Journal of Nutrition Cambridge University Press; Joseph Pizzornoa, Lynda A. Frassettoa and Joseph Katzingera

2.  Acid-Mediated Tumor Invasion: a Multidisciplinary Study; Cancer Research 66, 5216-5223, May 15, 2006; Robert A. Gatenby, Edward T. Gawlinski, Arthur F. Gmitro, Brant Kaylor and Robert J. Gillies

3.  The Potential Role of Systemic Buffers in Reducing Intratumoral Extracellular pH and Acid-Mediated Invasion; Cancer Research 69, 2677, March 15, 2009; Ariosto S. Silva, Jose A. Yunes, Robert J. Gillies and Robert A. Gatenby

4.  Alkaline Mineral Supplementation Decreases Pain in Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients; The Open Nutrition Journal, 2008, 2, 100-105; Regina Maria Cseuz, Istvan Barna, Tamas Bender and Jurgen Vormann

5.  Treatment with Potassium Bicarbonate Lowers Calcium Excretion and Bone Resorption in Older Men and Women; The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism Vol. 94, No. 1 96-102; Bess Dawson-Hughes, Susan S. Harris, Nancy J. Palermo, Carmen Castaneda-Sceppa, Helen M. Rasmussen and Gerard E. Dallal

6.  Minerals and Disease; Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine Vol. 10, No. 3 & 4, 1995; Joseph D. Campbell

7.  Preservative Effect of Electrolyzed Reduced Water on Pancreatic b -Cell Mass in Diabetic db/db Mice; Biol. Pharm. Bull. 30(2) 234—236 (2007); Mi-Ja KIM, Kyung Hee JUNG, Yoon Kyung UHM, Kang-Hyun LEEM, and Hye Kyung KIM

8.  The Effect of Acid/Alkaline Nutrition on Psychophysiological Function; Int J Biosocial Res. Vol.

9.  (2); 182-202, 1987; Rudolf A. Wiley - Severe Osteomalacia Associated with Renal Tubular Acidosis in Crohn’s Disease; Digestive Diseases & Sciences, Vol 31, No 3, March 1986; Rui MM Victorino, Margarida B Lucas, Miguel Carneiro de Moura10Metabolic acidosis of CKD: diagnosis, clinical characteristics, and treatment; American Journal of Kidney Diseases, Volume 45, Issue 6, Pages 978-993 J. Kraut, I. Kurtz11Lean Tissue: Alkaline diets favor lean tissue mass in older adults; American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Vol. 87, No. 3, 662-665, March 2008; Bess Dawson-Hughes, Susan S Harris and Lisa Ceglia

More about → The Risk of Pancreatic Cancer, Arthritis, Osteoporosis, CVD and More! and How To Prevent or Reverse Cancer, Arthritis, Osteoporosis, CVD and More!

September 11th

Today is the 11^th anniversary of September 11, 2001.  It was a beautiful Tuesday morning, just like today.  On that day, I was flying from Newark to West Palm Beach, Florida on a business trip.  My flight departed at 7:30 am and was to land in West Palm around 10:30 am.  I was going to my company’s training center in Boca Raton to teach an investment class to the sales force.  Everything was proceeding like a normal business trip. I was excited because Serena Williams was in first class on my flight.  I was in coach, so I didn’t get to talk with her.  I’m a big tennis fan and the US Open had just ended Sunday.  Serena was probably flying home to Palm Beach.  At about 10:00, the flight attendants told us to put our seat backs and tray tables up for our landing in Jacksonville.  Everyone started asking why we were landing in Jacksonville instead of West Palm.  We were informed that there had been a terrorist attack at the World Trade Center.  That didn’t explain the unscheduled landing, but everyone stayed quiet after the announcement. 

When we landed, the airport looked like an aircraft parking lot.  Many planes had already landed there and the airport was shut down.  The pilot must have radioed ahead to get Serena whisked out of the airport because I was only sitting 3 rows behind her and did not see her after I deplaned.  Meanwhile, the airport was a zoo, with many people wandering around.  All the rental cars were gone.  I then heard about the planes crashing in to the World Trade Center.  I could not reach anyone in New York City by phone, I had no idea how to get either to West Palm Beach or back home – I was stuck in Jacksonville!  I called relatives in Massachusetts because they were the only ones I could get through to – the phone lines in New York were overloaded.  I told them to try to get in touch with my husband because he did not know where I was.

I ended up on a bus from Jacksonville to Boca Raton and arrived at 7:00 pm.  I managed to find some of my colleagues at the hotel and borrowed a car so I could get toiletries and some clothes.  It felt good to be somewhere that I at least knew someone.  After hearing more about what happened, I realized that United Airlines flight 93 took off about 10 minutes after mine on the same runway that morning.  That gave me a shiver….

Even our hotel in Boca Raton was crazy – by the next day the FBI was all over the place because they thought the terrorist pilots had taken flight lessons in this part of Florida so they were at our hotel looking into things.  Weird!

On Thursday afternoon, three colleagues from the New York City area and I took off in a van to drive back to New York.  We took turns driving for about 5 hours each and got into Northern NJ early Friday morning.  The bridges and tunnels into New York were still closed, so the 2 of us that lived in New York City took the train into the city.  The city was like a police state when I got there.  I live about 3 miles from where the World Trade Center stood and the burning smell was really strong in my neighborhood for about 3 months after that.  It was surreal.  I was just happy to be home, alive and well.  There were pictures in front of the hospitals of the people who were missing – it all seemed so sad. 

My husband, Owen, worked for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey for over 20 years.  He worked on the 55^th floor of the World Trade Center.  He had taken an early retirement package in 1996 – thank goodness or he would have been in the building!  He was there when the first bomb went off in 1993.  He knew some of the people who died in the 2001 attack; I did not.

Now, 11 years later, the time has dulled some of the shock and pain that was the character of New York City at that time.  I was out with friends last Friday night and when we finished dinner we saw the beam of light that shines well into the night sky down at the World Trade Center site for the week or so around September 11^th.   The light is visible from most places in Manhattan, the other boroughs and New Jersey. 

Despite the beautiful weather, this is a sobering day in New York as we remember that fearful time and all the lives lost on 9/11/2001.  I remember that day clearly as most people do and am happy that my plane landed safely.

More about → September 11th

Alkalizing Health Benefits of Celery

Celery leaves have high content of vitamin A (a powerful anti-acid), whilst the stems are an excellent source of vitamins B1, B2, B6 and C with rich supplies of potassium, folic acid, calcium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, sodium and plenty essential amino acids.

Alkalizing nutrients in the fiber are released during juicing, aiding bowel movements. The natural organic sodium (salt) in celery is very

safe for consumption, in fact is essential for the body for building the alkalizing compound sodium bicarbonate. Even individuals who are salt-sensitive can safely take the sodium in celery, unlike table salt (iodized sodium) which is harmful for those with high blood pressure and is not alkalizing.

While many foods lose electrical life force energy during cooking, most of the compounds in celery hold up well during cooking, which are the alkalzing minerals like potassium and sodium.

Alkalizing Health Benefits

Celery has always been associated with the lowering of blood pressure. When combined with other alkalizing green juices, it provides different formula that helps other acidic conditions.

Recent studies have shown that celery might also be effective in combating the acids that cause cancer.

Some of the alkalizing health benefits of celery juice:

Acidity: The important minerals in this magical juice effectively balance the body's blood pH, neutralizing acidity.

Athletes: Celery juice acts as the perfect post-workout tonic as it replaces lost electrolytes and rehydrates the body with its rich alkalizing minerals.

Cancer: Celery is known to contain at least eight families of anti-cancer or anti-acid compounds. Among them are the acetylenics that have been shown to stop the growth of tumor cells. Phenolic which block the action of prostaglandins that encourage the growth of tumor cells. And coumarins which help buffers dietary and metabolic acids from damaging cells.

Cholesterol: This humble pale juice has been shown to effectively and significantly lower total cholesterol and LDL (bad) cholesterol by lowering dietary and metabolic acids.

Colon and stomach cancer: The phytochemical coumarins prevent the formation and development of the colon and stomach cancers.

Constipation: The natural laxative effect of celery helps to relieve constipation. It also helps relax nerves that have been overworked by man-made laxatives.

Cooling: During dry and hot weather, drink a glass of celery juice two or three times a day, between meals. It wonderfully helps to normalize body temperature by reducing dietary and metabolic acids.

Diuretic: The potassium and sodium in celery juice helps to regulate body fluid and stimulate urine production, making it an important help to rid the body of excess acidic fluid.

Inflammation: The polyacetylene in celery is an amazing relief for all the acids that cause inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, gout, asthma and bronchitis.

Kidney function: Celery promotes healthy and normal kidney function by aiding elimination of acidic toxins from the body. While eliminating acidic toxins, it also prevents formation of kidney stones.

Lower blood pressure: Drinking celery juice every day for a week significantly helps lower blood pressure by lowering dietary and metabolic acids.  A compound called phtalides help relax the muscle around arteries, dilating the vessels and allowing blood to flow normally. To be effective, drink the juice for one week, stop for three weeks, and start over.

Nervous system: The organic alkaline minerals in celery juice has a calming effect on the nervous system, making it a wonderful drink for insomniacs.

Weight loss: Drink celery juice frequently throughout the day. It helps curb your cravings for sweets and rich food.

Urinary stones, breaking of: The diuretic effect of celery juice also aids the breaking and elimination of acidic urinary and gallbladder stones.

You can expect many more healing benefits from celery juice as you consume its natural alkalizing sodium.

More about → Alkalizing Health Benefits of Celery

Preventing and Treating Desmoid Tumors

Extensive infiltrative mesenteric Desmoid tumor in 46-year-old man. Coronal true fast imaging with steady-state free precession MR image shows Desmoid tumor (arrows) infiltrating mesenteric fat.

What are Desmoid Tumors?

Desmoid tumors arise from cells called fibroblasts. Fibroblasts

are found throughout our body and their main function is to

provide structural support and protection to the vital organs such

as lung, liver, blood vessels, heart, kidneys, skin, intestines etc.

and they also play a critical role in wound healing. When

fibroblast cells undergo biological transformation from dietary

and/or metabolic acids they can become cancerous and become

encapsulated by the cross-linking of fibrin monomers forming

what is called a desmoid tumor (also known as "aggressive

fibromatosis"). Desmoid tumors can arise in virtually any part of

the body. These tumor formations often occur in women in their

30's, but can occur in anyone at any age. Desmoid tumors can be

slow or extremely aggressive depending on how acidic the

individual lifestyle and diet.

They do not metastasize (move from one body part to another), and if the fibroblasts develop slowly in any given area of the body they can be carefully watched by your Physician using non-radioactive Ultra-sound. However, when fibroblasts are accumulating aggressively they can cause life threatening problems or even death when they compress or block the flow of blood to vital organs such as the small or large intestines, kidney, lungs, brain, etc.

Desmoid Tumors are rare!

In the United States, approximately 900 people are diagnosed with desmoid tumors every year. This means that out of a million people approximately 2-4 people have desmoid tumors. Experts believe that the numbers are likely to be far greater because of the difficulty in correctly diagnosing this acidic disease.

Because of inconsistent and inaccurate reporting procedures, accurate statistics about the number of desmoid tumor cases have not been kept. Individuals between the ages of 15 and 60 are most often affected, but this disease can occur in anyone. The average age is 30's to 40's. They are slightly more common in women than in men (2:1), and there is no significant racial or ethnic distribution.

Causes of Desmoid Tumors

The cause of most desmoid tumors is the increase of fibroblasts in the repair of damaged tissues from dietary and/or metabolic acid being pushed out from the alkaline blood into the connective tissues. Most fibroblast cell aggregations have an acid damaged or mutated gene called beta catenin.

A minority of fibroblast cells are encapsulated or cross-linked by fibrin monomers forming a desmoid tumor are caused by acid damage or mutations in a gene called Familial Adenomatous Polyposis or FAP.  Patients with acid mutations in the FAP gene are predisposed to forming hundreds of polyps in the intestines and go on to develop a cancerous condition of the colon. Unfortunately, patients with FAP are often recommended to undergo surgical removal of their intestines when a change of lifestyle and diet can help in preventing the formation of desmoid tumors.  Medical savants consider that patients with FAP are at a very high risk of developing desmoid tumors, which can arise deep in the abdomen or in the abdominal wall. In older scientific literature, the combination of FAP and desmoid tumors is termed Gardner's Syndrome.

In some rare cases, desmoid tumors can occur in women who are pregnant. This happens during pregnancy or after a surgical delivery. Many researchers believe that this is caused by a combination of elevated hormones and surgery, both of which are disturbing to the alkaline design of the body fluids and tissues, however, these is no strong scientific evidence to support this claim. The relationship between pregnancy and desmoid tumors is very rare and consists of mostly anecdotes in the scientific literature.

Clinical Presentation

Metabolic and/or dietary acids when not properly eliminated through the four channels of elimination (respiration, defecation, perspiration, or urination) are deposited into the connective and fatty tissues.  This may cause cellular damage and a rise in fibroblast cells to repair damaged tissue increasing the risk for the formation of Desmoid tumors leading to the development at virtually any site in the body.  Superficial desmoids tend to be less aggressive than desmoids found deep inside the body (i.e., abdominal, extra-abdominal, mesenteric). Superficial desmoid tumors usually manifest themselves as a painless or slightly painful lump depending on location.  Desmoids inside the abdomen can cause severe pain, rupture of intestines, compression of the kidneys or ureters or rectal bleeding. They can compress critical blood vessels such as the mesenteric vessels and the vena cava. Desmoid tumors may have multiple sites of origin on chest, arms or legs.

Diagnosis

Ultrasound is often the first method of examination of a soft tissue tumor to determine the size and to safely monitor its changes without harmful radiation. If the mass is solid, a CT and/or MRI scan may be used to determine whether it adheres to nearby structures and whether it can be safely removed. A variety of options are available for biopsying a suspected desmoid: a core needle biopsy takes a small piece, usually 1 mm wide by 10 mm long; surgical biopsies may take a portion of the tumor ("incisional biopsy") or may remove all the visible tumor ("excisional biopsy"). While an excisional biopsy may remove all visible tumor, it rarely completely removes all microscopic traces of the tumor – usually leaving a positive margin, that is, tumor at the edge of the biopsy site.  There is always a risk for an increase in the size of the tumor when biopsying.   It is recommended to use Ultrasound as a safe non-radioactive way of monitoring the efficacy of non-invasive treatments.

Behavior of Desmoid Tumors

Although desmoid tumors generally do not metastasize, the formation of Desmoind tumors may be devastating and occasionally fatal when causing congestion or blockages of blood flow or fecal matter in the intestines.  Desmoid tumors may cause major health challenges when a group of tissues and Fibroblasts become locally acidic, infiltrating and sometimes causing acidic damaged to adjacent organs (intestines, lungs, blood vessels etc).  Some Desmoids tumors are well-contained and can be indolent and have periods of stability and temporary regression has encapsulated cells harden and breakdown. These need to be watched closely by physicians using weekly Ultrasound imaging.

Treatment?

Traditionally when one is diagnosed with a Desmoid tumor the recommendation is to be evaluated in a major, academic hospital with experts in sarcoma.  These hospitals are usually designated as NCCN (National Comprehensive Cancer Network) centers which is a recognition bestowed by the National Cancer Institute.  It is suggested when a patient is diagnosed with desmoid tumor he/she should be evaluated by a multi-disciplinary team of surgeons, medical oncologists, radiation oncologists, geneticists, and nurses.  There is currently no cure for desmoid tumors using traditional medical procedures.  When possible patients are encouraged to enlist in clinical trials by the National Cancer Institute (NCCN guidelines).  The prevention of Desmoid tumors may be achieved with an alkaline lifestyle and diet.  In the treatment of Desmoid tumors I have suggested hyper-perfusing the tissues with alkalinity using sodium bicarbonate IV’s to define borders, prevent healthy tissue from being affected, and to reduce Desmoid tumor size.  This reduction in the size of a Desmoid tumor can be followed by using non-radioactive Ultra-sound.

Traditional Medical Treatment

There is no single accepted medical treatment for Desmoid tumors. Numerous reports of individual cases show shrinkage or stabilization of tumor size or at least improvement in symptoms after a very wide variety of treatments.  Chemotherapy is a chemical drug that is usually injected in the veins.  A few chemotherapies that are commonly used include: doxorubicin, Doxil, dacarbazine, methotrexate, vinorelbine and vinblastine.  These are toxic chemotherapies that can have a wide range of short and long term tissue and/or organ degenerative effects.  There have also been anecdotal reports of using sulindac (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory) or anti-hormonal agents such as tamoxifen, however the true efficacy of these drugs have not been investigated in clinical trials.  To reduce the negative toxic effects of full dose chemotherapy one may consider low-dose (less than 10 percent of the normal dose) chemotherapy which is better tolerated and with generally lower toxic degenerative effects.

Alternative Medical Treatment

The pH Miracle “Life” style and diet is a natural way to protect healthy tissues from dietary and/or metabolic acids and prevent and/or treat tissue acidosis from and increase of Fibroblast cells and the formation of Desmoid tumors.  The key to preventing and/or reversing the increase of Fibroblast cells and the formation of Desmoid tumors is to decrease tissue acidosis caused by an acidic lifestyle and diet with an alkaline lifestyle and diet as outlined in The pH Miracle revised and updated book by Dr. Robert O. Young and Shelley Redford Young.  The five basic tenants of the pH Miracle “LIFE” style is as follows:

     1)   Open up the four channels of elimination including the bowels, urinary tract system, respiratory system and the pores of the skin for the removal of dietary and metabolic acids.

     2)   Heal the damage to the intestinal villi due to an acidic diet.

     3)   Build and restore health to the red blood cells.

     4)   Hyper-perfuse the blood and tissues with alkaline mineral salts including sodium bicarbonate.

     5)   Increase the pH of the saliva and the urine in excess of 7.2 with an alkaline diet, lifestyle and alkalizing minerals.

For more information read The pH Miracle revised and updated book published by Hachett Publishing, 2010. 

More about → Preventing and Treating Desmoid Tumors

Gratitude

My mother died when I was 35.  She was 63 and died of a heart attack on her way to work.  She probably did not know what hit her – it all happened so fast.  At that point in my life, I had just started a new job and I had not really experienced the death of anyone up close and personally.  I had lost my grandfather the year before but he was in a nursing home and was 93 years old.  Not only was my mother’s death sudden, she was unprepared to die; she had not yet filed her taxes. We had no idea what her thoughts and wishes were and her “affairs” were a mess.  Thankfully, she had a will and the estate was not too complex.  I was named the executrix. She was divorced many years earlier, I lived reasonably close to her and I worked in financial services so she must have thought I could handle it.  In hindsight, being the executrix may have helped me deal with the sorrow and pain of her death.

My mom was very smart, and quite funny. She was also an optimist who did not have regrets and didn’t dwell on things.  I like to think I that these personality traits are some of the better ones I inherited from her.

When you experience the death of a parent, especially at a fairly young age, you begin to realize that you are next in line and that life is short.  I realized it is important to enjoy every day. You never know when your time is up.

One of my favorite writers is Anna Quindlen.  She also lost her mother at a young age and it colors a lot of her writing.  Thank goodness I had been a long time reader of her opinion column in the New York Times at the time of my mother’s death.  Some of her thoughts on life are below:

Anna Quindlen, the bestselling novelist and columnist, reflects on what it takes to “get a life”—to live deeply every day and from your own unique self, rather than merely to exist through your days. “Knowledge of our own mortality is the greatest gift God ever gives us,” I've been living with mortality for decades, since my mother died of ovarian cancer when she was forty and I was nineteen.  And this is what I learned from that experience: The knowledge of our own mortality is that greatest gift God ever gives us.

It is so easy to waste our lives:  our days, our hours, our minutes.  It is so easy to take for granted the pale new growth on an evergreen, the sheen of the limestone on Fifth Avenue, the color of our kids' eyes, the way the melody in a symphony rises and falls and disappears and rises again.  It is so easy to exist instead of live.

“But you are the only person alive who has sole custody of your life. Your particular life. Your entire life. Not just your life at a desk, or your life on the bus, or in the car, or at the computer. Not just the life of your mind, but the life of your heart. Not just your bank account, but your soul.

 “Care so deeply about its goodness that you want to spread it around.  Take the money that you would have spent on beers in a bar and give it to charity.  Work in a soup kitchen.  Tutor a seventh-grader.”

“All of us want to do well.  But if we do not do good, too, then doing well will never be enough.”

“Life is short.  Remember that, too.”

“I've always known this.  Or almost always” 

These lessons were also my mother’s lessons. Her mother died young from cancer so she knew about the value of life as well.  Anna Quindlen puts those thoughts into words in a very special way. 

 Having cancer is a wake up call for most people.  Some people use the diagnosis to live better lives and others don’t.  My wake up call was when my mother died; the cancer diagnosis was not quite as big a deal.  My first vacation after my diagnosis was a trip to Northern Finland because I wanted to see the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) before I died.  We went to a small town called Nellim and saw the Aurora in all its glory on two different nights; we also went dog sledding which was not on my “bucket list” but was a lot of fun.  

In October, I will be going on a vacation to Yosemite.  I love being outdoors and in my opinion, the national parks are a small slice of heaven.  I also like it when I have the vacation already booked because then I can look forward to the time off. 

Life is so busy. Sometimes I feel like I am playing beat the clock!  As I rush through my frenzied life, I always take time off to enjoy the things I really love – family, friends and vacations.  I will always take the time to see a friend for lunch, even if I am having a busy day at work.  I always use my vacation time because in my opinion, that is why we work.  My motto is to be grateful for life.  Consider the alternative.

More about → Gratitude

Reversing Celiac Sprue - Degeneration of the Intestinal Villi

Dear Family and Friends:

I must share with you an incredible testimony of healing that has taken place for
Aliki Pishev who was challenged with a "life threatening disease."  May everyone who reads and understands Aliki's pH Miracle bring hope to others who are in fear, pain and suffering with this message of healing light.

In love and light,

Dr. Robert O. Young 

Dear Dr. Young:

It is 7:30am on Mother's Day and I should be staying in bed for the traditional "breakfast in bed."  Instead, I feel compelled to write to you this important message.

Yesterday, I was at Jeff's training which was awesome and one of the questions was, "What does pH Miracle Living mean to you?"  I responded quickly but now that I've had more time to think, I've come up with a more meaningful answer.

When you are given a diagnosis of a "life threatening disease," you find yourself falling into this abyss of darkness.  You feel helpless, alone and powerless.  In September, I was diagnosed with celiac disease.  I was told that people with celiac have a higher chance of developing other conditions, including lymphoma.  When I asked about this potential danger and whether or not I should be worried, the response was, ".........well, if you notice fatigue, weight loss or high fevers, come in right away."  My immediate thought was, if I wait until then, it will be too late.  I decided not to wait and took matters into my own hands.  I took control of my health.

As a clinical psychotherapist I was comfortable with advocating for my patients.  I had considered myself a healer in some ways.  But now I needed healing and I didn't know where or to who to turn to.  It was an all too familiar place.  A few years ago, I had gone through six years of repeated miscarriages (five losses in total).  The sense of loneliness, pain and fear that one goes through during a health crisis can be quite difficult.

That was when my journey began.  Through a long time friend who herself had some health challenges and regained health, I also took the leap of faith.  It was in January that I spoke with you and to be honest, it was the first time that I felt a surge of hope and joy.  It brings tears to my eyes just remembering the intensity of those feelings.  It felt like someone had thrown me a rope that I could finally hold onto. 

I was suffering from all kinds of symptoms: anemia for two years, elevated liver enzymes for three years, frequent headaches and migraines, osteopenia, vitamin D deficiency, regular painful mouth lesions/canker sores, low energy, inability to run for two years (after always being a runner), exhaustion.

As you suggested, I did the pH Miracle Whole Body cleanse and the complete program.  I've been drinking the greens faithfully since January.  Three weeks ago, my primary care physician called ecstatic saying, "I have never seen such good blood results on you!! Everything is normal!!!".

Today, I feel like a new person!  My whole life has changed!  I can honestly say I feel the healthiest, probably that I have ever felt.  All my nagging symptoms are gone.  I've resumed running since January and now exercise four times a week (for a 42 year old with 3 young children and a busy job, that's pretty good)!  I've had other surprising benefits as well.  I am sleeping naturally for the first time after years of needing medication to help me sleep. I feel calmer and happier.  People have commented on the changes in me.

So, what does the pH Miracle "LIFE" style mean to me?  I can say it with one word: HOPE.  You, through your research and your products, have given me the greatest gift.  My deepest fear has always been that I would not be around to see my children grow up.  Now I have the tools and knowledge to make sure that I have a long, healthy life.  This is the most valuable gift that we can give to our loved ones and to people everywhere.

On this Mother's Day, an appropriate day for this message, I'd like to thank you from the bottom of my heart.  I know deep in my soul that God sent you to me, at a time that I most needed his help and guidance.  I've seen what miracles you've created for so many other people who have suffered with their health.  Dr. Young, you have changed my life and I will always be eternally grateful to you.

With the greatest respect,

Aliki Pishev

More about → Reversing Celiac Sprue - Degeneration of the Intestinal Villi