I just wanted to post an update on my tumor markers...they have started coming down since I have been drinking the shakes made from flaxseed oil, cottage cheese and kefir.  Last time I posted my tumor markers had dropped almost seven points and had returned to the 'normal' range.  The tumor markers were at 22.90 and the normal range was 0-25.  This time they used a different test and the normal range in 0-32.4.  My tumor markers are now 18.80 (as of Friday).  I am currently on no other treatment.  My next CAT scan will be in three weeks and at that time they will update my labs.  For those of you with an interest I will keep you posted. 

It looks like flax tops this list of the 4 most estrogenic foods. http://www.alternet.org/food/4-surprising-foods-pa...

And another list of 12 food high in estrogen. http://bembu.com/estrogen-rich-foods

yes maybe. But if thats the case I would also think it's just as effective and safe for ER+ breast cancer

I consider myself a hybrid because I am stage iv wide spread cancer using alternative and conventional. Although, I did decline chemo...I am getting weekly Herceptin infusions and Perjeta every three weeks. I also get the faslodex shots once a month.

I am doing quite a few essential oils; especially frankincense. I have good quality supplements. My naturopath strongly suggest I take turmeric, green tea and several other types of supplements.

I am also on Rick Simpson Oil. Heat therapy and a few other alternative has made it possible for me to live quality of life, and to be independent...especially when I wasn't given but months to live.

Although I do chemo, I also do a wide variety of alternative treatments along with the chemo.  My onc is very much in favor of doing alternative along with the traditional tratments.  I have been getting weekly IV vitamin C and he recently added Vitamin D.  He advised that he and other Drs. have been having great results with Vitamin D.  I also do weekly Glutahione IV which helps to detox the liver from the chemo and gives a tremendous energy boost.  I have been Stage 1V since 2001, so I am going to stay the course and continue with both traditional and alternative.

Hi Momine

I did have a mastectomy and chemo in 1997 - ACT and radiation.  I did and still have bone mets.  I have been fortunate that they have not spread elsewhere and that I don't have any pain.  I did have a great run with herceptin and hormonals and was not on chemo until 2013.  At this point I have not had Faslodex, but my onc is hoping to keep that for the future. Honestly, the chemo has not been nearly as bad as I would have thought and I attritube a lot of that to the IV infusions that I get.  The Glutathione that I get is great for energy, detox and well being and the C and D for the cancer.  I also take 1000mg of Metformin daily and an antibiotic called Doxycycline which has been shown to be effective against bone mets.

Pearlady, that is an awesome combination! My onc has been urging me to take metformin but I sort of want to save it for later partly because it didn't really agree with me. Antibiotics for cancer seems to work on mitochondria of breast cancer stem cells:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2930753/Has-girl-eight-cancer-cure-Scientist-parents-discover-antibiotics-kill-cells-daughter-suggested-try-dinner-table.html

While on chemo I can't remember the number of times I had to take antibiotics for one infection after another.

MrsM, I still use argan oil, but mostly just for the hands and cuticles. Maybe try pouring a little bit on the tub water so it can coat your skin. I've tried this in the past with verveine oil from L'Occitane and works really well. I should do it too now that winter and Arimidex is drying my skin out.

I've always wondered what they meant when calling something estrogenic. If they're measuring blood plasma levels, then tamoxifen could be called estrogenic, as it raised my estrogen level there being deprived of a home in my receptors by tamoxifen squatters. So I can believe the theory on phytoestrogens, but perhaps it's not all phytoestrogens which have this effect and maybe different phytoestrogens work on different organs differently.

Diana52, great news on your TMs! 

Heidihill

I had great difficulty with the Metformin also and actually stopped taking it.  I did a lot of research and discovered that the generic forms vary wtih the manufacturer and that sometimes switching really helps.  I am now on the brand name Glucophage which has none of the nasty GI effects for me. I've also ready where many women have great success with the generic form manufactured by TEVA.  The Israeli pharmaceutical company is known to have very good generic drugs.  The worst apparently are those from India.  Perhaps if you requested the Glucophage or the TEVA it would agree with you.

Good luck. It's definitely worth a try. 

Thanks for the info, pearlady.  Good luck, Michelle! 

Syrmom, they don't really know how metformin works but it's not just for bone mets. It seems to be beneficial in various cancers. Argan oil helps with dry skin. I buy it in a health food store.

Yes, I saw him talk about them and his mom before. I wonder how his mother is doing now. 

re: Cannabis Oil

I have just begun using FECO (Full Extract Cannabis Oil).  I live in California and I just got a license to carry and use this as a medical dose.  This is not a Rick Simpson or "RSO" cannabis oil that is extracted with Naptha (a combustible petroleum product), but rather extracted using a food-grade ethyl alcohol.  I am using a 2.1 dosage (CBD being higher than the THC) with respect to my ER+ HER2+ breast cancer (Stage IV w/ mets to Sternum).  I am currently on a systemic cocktail treatment of Ibrance and Letrozole.  This oil is placed by a single drop, under my tongue,4-5 times a day.  I am keeping a journal.  Note:  this medical use does not get you high as a larger amount of THC or vap mixes of store bought chem treated MJ.  While some of those can assist in eating problems, sleep disorder, anxiety, some pain issues, this medical oil is a whole different ball of wax.

For those of you who seek this and can get to a chemistry lab that specializes in creating these oils (they are VERY expensive) you may find a non-profit group that will assist you and can offer free services.

Lauren, please keep us posted on your observations with the FECO. Is it available outside California?

Spent the day looking into CBD and CBDa oil - raw kind from hemp. Will boost slowly with additional straight CBD over the months.

Have decided on this coupled with melatonin which will provide deep resting periods for healing. The THC being absent - and I need it to be since ER PR+.

And I think I need a new state of mind. Been a year from hell, I need a psychiatrist just because of all my nurses, physicians and oncologists.

Am using as complementary to hormone chemotherapy - looks like Ibrance w possibly another.

Also will be using ellagitanins again. Red and black raspberry powder and oil, black cumin seed oil and powder.

Just working it out. Appreciate the CBD info I gathered from here. Thank you.

re: metformin and doxycycline

A study being done in Philadelphia, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02874430

doxycycline:

"The natural osteotropism of tetracyclines would allow them to be highly effective in the inhibition of MMPs produced by osteoclasts or tumor cells in the bone. This hypothesis has now been confirmed by experimental evidence showing that doxycycline reduces tumor burden in a mouse model of breast cancer-derived osteolytic bone metastasis."

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/9026092_D.

Still researching...

Antibiotics that target mitochondria effectively eradicate cancer stem cells, across multiple tumor types: Treating cancer like an infectious disease

http://www.impactjournals.com/oncotarget/index.php...[]=3174

http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=...

Lots of similar studies saying doxycycline can be effective against cancer, and bone mets...

Enough for today...

This is interesting as I was in a vaccine trial in which everyone got the vaccine and the control was either a mushroom tea or a placebo. I wasn't allowed to take mushroom supplements during the trial period.The tea was derived from fungi and the element they were interested in was Polysaccharide Krestin (PSK).

From http://cancerguide.org/psk.html: PSK is a polysaccharide complex with immune stimulating effects. Polysaccharides are large molecules made up of chains of linked sugar molecules. PSK is actually a polysaccharide-protein complex. PSK, like Lentinan, is derived from a fungus, in this case Coriolus Versicolor, which is a common edible mushroom. A Western common name is "Turkey Tail".