Cancer pain

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If you need some products for pain, the following may also help:

I ran across info on Anvirzel that is said to reduce pain, allowing thepatient to die with dignity at home, with very little, if any, painmedications. The site says "We received one story of a patient with advanced pancreatic cancer, who the day before he died, ran a board meeting at his office. Hetook his first pain medication one hour before dying. He also wrote a letterto the company that makes Anvirzel thanking them for the extra time he wasgiven and the quality of his last days." Go tohttp://www.mnwelldir.org/docs/cancer1/altthrpy.htm for more info andsources.

There is a homeopathic remedy for late stage cancer pain called Aconitum in a 1M or 10M dose. You will probably need to contact a homeopathic practitioner who canget it for you, or do a web search.There is info on pain killers in the book "Alternative Medicine DefinitiveGuide to Cancer" by Diamond and Burton Goldberg. It is packed withinformation. It is an expensive book, though, so you might want to see ifyour local library has it. Or, there is a condensed version called CancerDiagnosis, What to Do Next. The books discuss laetrile as helping withpain, a product called "Cell Com", using magnets for pain relief, as well as ozone. Other suggestions would include acupuncture and mind/body approaches.

Han Husuo has been compared to morphine - http://www.naturalhealthconsult.com/Monographs/yanhusuo.html - this looks very promising. You can order it from the above site.

Ganoderma has been found to be helpful http://www.cancure.org/ganoderma.htm - email Jack Betterton at mapdigest6@... for information. His formula is very good, thought it can be expensive.

You could try SPES - http://www.naturalhealthconsult.com/Monographs/spes.html

Some other suggestions are at http://www.sph.uth.tmc.edu/utcam/therapies/tcm.htm - do a search for pain

If she could get to Hufeland Clinic in Germany, they do pain management - http://www.cancure.org/hufeland_clinic.htm

The following are some suggestions from several websites.

Prevent and control pain through methods other than medication

Use warm showers, baths, hot-water bottles, or warm washcloths.

Heat relaxes the muscles and gives the patient a sense of comfort. Do not use heating pads on the high setting, however, because they can burn the skin. Wrap them in a towel, and do not place them over or near areas where radiation was given, even when the treatments are finished.

Use cool washcloths or ice.

Cooling the skin and muscles also can soothe pain, especially pain that comes from inflammation or swelling. For example, many people use a cool washcloth on their forehead when they have a headache.

Position the person carefully with pillows and soft seat cushions.

Massage sore spots.

Avoid lifting or straining.

Encourage use of deep breathing exercises.

Breathing deeply, slowly, and quietly helps the mind and body to relax, and this can decrease pain. Use tape recordings, or learn simple methods from books on relaxation. Ask the health care team about these techniques.

Distract the patient with pleasant, involving activities.

Doing pleasant, involving activities takes a person's mind off his or her pain. Different people are distracted by different activities, however. One may be distracted by watching television or going through a catalog. Another may be distracted by listening to music or visiting with friends.

Remind the person to use pleasant and relaxing imagery, daydreams, or pictures in the mind to relax muscles.

Remind people with advanced cancer about using images to relax their muscles. The patient needs to be in a quiet, restful place and to be comfortable, either lying or sitting down. Have the person close his or her eyes and picture a nice setting, such as a quiet, warm beach or a field full of colorful flowers. Then, tell the person to imagine being in that setting, feeling peaceful, and enjoying it. Tapes are available that walk people through pleasant scenes like this. They can go on "vacation" in their mind and relax, all of which helps to control pain.

Ask about using biofeedback for muscle relaxation.

Biofeedback has been used successfully by people with all types of pain, especially back pain. Professionals teach patients how to control their own muscles and to become more relaxed. Find out if this option is available in your area.

Offer special foot rubs ("reflexology").

Older forms of healing used pressure on the bottom of the foot and ankle. Rubbing these areas and pushing or pressing on them with a thumb and fingers can feel very good, and you may find that other parts of the body also can be relaxed through pressure on special spots. Try it. See what happens. Books are available on where to push to get relaxation in other parts of the body.

Ask for help with tasks.

Now is the time for both you and the patient to avoid "overdoing" it. Get others to lend a hand. Do not be shy about asking for help. It is part of your job as a caregiver to get additional help when needed.

Do activities when the patient feels most comfortable.

Plan activities when the patient is feeling best and most awake. This might be a few days after a new pain medicine is started or after the dose has been increased.

Keep a diary, rate the pain, and note what makes it worse or better.

A diary can help you to inform the doctors and nurses of how well the pain treatments are working, and it can help you to judge what progress is being made at home. Writing down what makes the pain worse or better helps both you and the person with advanced cancer to think clearly about a plan to solve and prevent pain. Also, keep track of the times, amounts, and names of any pain medicines that are given. If you bring this diary with you to doctor appointments, it helps the staff to understand what you are doing, which helps them to make better recommendations about treatment.

Avoid stressful events when possible.

Emotional stress and anxiety increase pain, so if you can cancel certain events that you know to be stressful, do so. A "bad atmosphere" is not something the person you are caring for needs to struggle with right now.

Consider going to a family-caregiver support group or educational session.

To find out where and when local support groups meet, look in the telephone book, which usually has a large section called "Guide to Human Services." Cancer support groups are listed under "Cancer," and groups for family and friends who help anyone with a chronic illness are listed under "Caregivers."

The following are especially conventional:

There are website on cancer pain at http://www.cancer-pain.org/press/newwebsite.html - maybe someone on it can help you

http://www.noah-health.org/english/illness/cancer/cancpain.html#MANAGEMENT or http://www.cancer-pain.org/treatments/alternative.htmlMelinda Wimanwww.cancure.orgCancer Cure Foundation

Re: Antineoplastons for Cancer etc

hello; there are so many approaches, ans osme seem to contradict eachother, you can do this, thake that, not this not that. And also; it seems known that one msut often combine. how to know? In any case, I think for my mother, who is 7- and in the hospital with a very rare of concer, a retroperenial Liposarcoma, that the end is very much in sight, as shortly, she will not be able to breathe; due to the pressing of the tumor on her organs; Surgery, perfomed 14 mos; earlier was not advised, due to the weakness of the patient, who did not respond to blood strengtheners, and it was felt the recovery could be devastating, if at all. I disagree, but it is too late, and several consultations were made. We are not new to altenative at all, my mother was macrobiotic for seveal years, before that vegetarian, into vita,ins; etc, in fact, the house was a natural pharmacy. Sarcomas always grow bak and in the same place, but no one expected it this fast in a 75 yr: old (which is why I think she is or was basically in good health...it grew las in a younger person's body...) I am so frustrated, because there is little to do, my mother looks pregnant, her feet are swollen, Friday she could not move anymore, so she is in hospital, on IV, but eating, and on antibiotics--swith one alternative dr. we had consulted, we thought of trying hydrazine sulfate, which has not arrived frommy order in Canada, but it will probably be too late, and my mother, being very very anxious is on calmers that don't work with hyd'razine sulfate, it would take days to clear out her body, and then, she would not sleep. i have tried Budwig flax and cottage cheese, and she hates cott age cheese these days, and took flw for years anywya; and I can not convince anyone to put her off certain foods; they say; let her eat what she wants. So I am frustrated, and sad, and wish for time; Not only that, but her ,morale is so low, angry and negative, and she wants to be out of the discomfort--it is less pain than discomfort, from the pressing and compacting--anyone have any ideas? Be in touch,thanks, Carole S. Get HUGE info at http://www.cures for cancer.ws, and post your own links there. Unsubscribe by sending email to cures for cancer-unsubscribeegroups or by visiting http://www.bobhurt.com/subunsub.mv

[Guest guest]

Hi guys,

When I was fighting cancer pain, I took white willow bark. I drank it

by the 1/2 bottle (glycerine) at times but it pulled me through. The

headaches from the brain tumor were hard to go through.

I want to know what you guys do or did?

My friend Gloria is going through cancer pain. Her left breast is

giving her excruciating pain as she is dropping off her first child

to college this week.

Her program is self-styled for the most part because money is an

issue and because she feels better most of the time, I am not sure

how strict she is with what I told her I did and still do.

Can anyone give me some insight? She may be more receptive now that

she is in pain. She normally is too busy to talk or review her

journey with me.

Thanks everybody,

Johanne