Cancer, likewise has multiple causes. Environmental toxins, nutritional deficiencies, environmental stressors as well as genetic susceptibilities have all been determined to play a role in causing cancer. Most cancer treatments, both conventional and alternative, will fail if they do not take into account both the holistic model of humans and the multi-factorial causesof cancer.

Most treatments for cancer available today operate on some form of of the "Silver Bullet" approach -- the idea that one key, sophisticated treatment will seek out and destroy the cancer much like cruise missles seek out and destroy a target. This is true of both conventional and even most alternative forms of treatment. Really advanced programs may combine 2 or even 3 of these "silver bullet" treatments, thinking that the result is "holistic".

Every form of treatment, conventional and alternative alike, has its share of success stories. For those individuals, that particular treatment was the one key piece of the health puzzle that their bodies needed to bring about a recovery. For most people though, by the time cancer develops there are usually many aspect of their health that need correction: multiple nutritional deficiencies, multiple accumulated toxicities, mental, emotional and spiritual blockages, and so on. Only by treating both the patient and their cancer in a holistic manner do we give them the best chance for a recovery. A key point from Naturopathic philisophy is especially appropriate here: Give the body what it needs, take away what it doesn't, and trust the body's natural healing ability to do the rest.

In fact, rather than random, uncontrollable, chaotic events, many if not most aspects of cancer are highly predictable processes of the body's immune system as it systematically tries to defend the higher- level organism from aspects of, or effects of, the actual cancerous cells.

A variety of stimulli, both external toxins and internal nutrient deficiencies, can alter the body's internal environment into a disease-promoting state. When this happens cells in the body go through a 6-step transformation from healthy to cancerous cells. This process was first described by a German physician, Hans Heinrich Reckeweg, in a theory called Homotoxicology. If the body's immune system is strong and has access to all the required nutrients it can actually kill cancerous cells fairly quickly. Healthy individuals do this on an almost daily basis, and we never know it.

Tumors, in fact, are part of the body's attempt to wall-off these abnormal cells and prevent them from spreading throughout the body. The body does this in an attempt to buy time for the organism until proper nutrients are found and a more normal internal environment can be re-established, allowing the body's natural cancer-killing ability to function.

GETTING STARTED WITH HOLISTIC CANCER SUPPORT
Dr. Cage starts by reviewing your medical records so that he fully understands your current diagnosis, current treatment regimen as well as your full health history. This is a vital step of your holistic care to ensure the success and safety of your holistic treatment program. Dr. Cage asks that records be sent in advance of your first visit.