Doctor Choice for Chemical-Free Treatment?

try a naturopathic doctor.  I'm foregoing Tamoxifen as well and have consulted with 2 naturopaths who seem comfortable assisting me down this path.

yeah, that's me who had the punctured lung nonsense.  I wish I could say that my port is gone, but unfortunately, I've learned that port-removal is low on the priority list for minor surgeries here, so they tell me it will be *months* before I get it out.  It sounds crazy but I'm trying not to get upset about it, since there's not a lot I can do...

As far as the naturopath goes, they're not covered under public insurance here, so I will have to pay out-of-pocket and get reimbursed through private insurance, but at least my personal insurance covers most of it... And both naturopaths I consulted offered a free initial meeting, so at least I get to assess how I feel about them before paying.

And on the hormone front, I have done a TON of research and learned that there ARE natural alternatives and lifestyle changes I can make; so many things in our environment mimic the effects of estrogen in the body, so there are some we can control or limit our exposure to.  I'm trying to go all-organic (fruits & veg) these days, so avoiding pesticides.  Also, although I learned that in Canada we do not give hormones to dairy cows (in the US you do), I'm still eating organic dairy.  I'm having a harder time finding organic meat, so I've reduced my meat consumption (not that it was all that high).  I'm also avoiding plastics, which may or may not contain Bisphenol A ("BPA") (I can't be bothered to learn which plastics are the "safe" ones) - you may have read some of the scary news about BPA lately, how it mimics hormones in the body, etc.

In addition, supplements like Indole 3 Carbinole ("I3C") (which is synthesized from vegetables like cabbage!) are supposed to be natural estrogen regulators. (See this study.)

I already take several supplements, but I'm thinking of adding more.  Things like melatonin, vitamin D, flaxseed, turmeric, green tea.

Anyway, I'm with you on wanting to be chemical-free.  The thing that has frustrated me the most in dealing with doctors is that they don't seem to encourage you to participate in your own healing - they just want you to sit back and let them treat you.  Nobody asks me about my diet, nobody asks me about my other habits like exercise, smoking, alcohol intake.  I kinda feel like declining Tamoxifen and gearing up for some personal vigilance is my way of taking the wheel.

Let me know what you end up trying!  I have a month of radiation ahead of me, so I'm still in the treatment stage, but gradually phasing in the stuff I mentioned.

I guess I am fortunate (for someone who has bc anyway).  My oncologist strongly recommends that I work with an integrative med dr.  In fact, the integrative med practice has an office in the cancer center that I attend.  My onc suggested accupuncture during treatment and allows certain vitamins now.

It is a good balance of eastern and western med and is truly complementary not alternative.