The day of diagnosis, we had no idea what to do, who to turn to, or where to go. The only thing we were sure of was that we were not going to accept our Dad’s fate. It sounds cliche, but it's true.
After a routine check, Dad was unexpectedly diagnosed with inoperable islet cell pancreatic cancer in August 2015, the same as the late Steve Jobs, though unfortunately was far more advanced than Mr Jobs's at diagnosis. For comparison, Steve Jobs was diagnosed when his tumour was only around 1 cm in diameter, whereas Dad's was 6 cm. He also had tumours in his liver, too many to count, including one over 4 cm in size, and metastasis to a nearby lymph node too. The prognosis was very poor - we didn't believe Dad was going to still be there in 2 months time.
His oncologist agreed chemo would make things even worse, and being inoperable, the best thing he could do was prescribe a tablet that would attempt to restrict the growth of the tumours, to try to extend Dad's life as much as possible. Evirolimus is meant to do just that, though it's impossible to actively shrink the tumour.
For someone just diagnosed with an advanced-stage cancer, along with their loved ones, it is a terrifying world.
But dotted in amongst the doom and gloom, if you clear your eyes and look a little closer, you find the most enlightening and encouraging stories. Of cancer patients all over the world, healing themselves of terribly advanced, and often terminal, cases. Of doctors and nurses turning their backs on their conventional medical jobs to provide life-saving support in the form of natural and holistic treatments. Positivity. Wellbeing. Life.
We’re a family of cynics. Biological scientists and calculated, logical minds. Before our Dad was diagnosed, I would have put my life in the hands of the medical community, and trusted 100 % that they have my best interests at heart, and are doing everything they can. I would have rolled my eyes at seemingly ‘miracle cures’, of stories of people being sent home to die and returning 6 months later completely cancer-free. Because cancer is incurable, right?
But these stories, these ‘miracle cures’, they’re everywhere. Hundreds, if not thousands, of cancer patients are out there every day healing themselves with alternative treatments, often with greater success than conventional therapy. It was then, maybe a couple of days into our tireless searching, having read story after story of positive natural healing, that we stopped searching for any surgeon willing to hack out Dad’s huge, inoperable tumours, stopped searching for the latest, most expensive chemo drug that may have the slightest chance of working, and took note of what these cured cancer patients were saying. It didn’t matter what type of cancer they had, or how advanced, the messages were always the same:
Cut out sugar. Cut out animal protein. Cut out as much processed food as possible. Create an oxygen-rich, alkaline bodily environment. And finally detox. So that's what we did.
His first scan since diagnosis was March 2016 - needless to say, his oncologist was baffled! The tumours hadn't just maintained their size (as the tablets are supposed to do), they had all shrunk by over half in both size and aggressiveness! The doctor was so speechless, he could not understand the results, and instead just told Dad to continue with exactly whatever it was that he has been doing! With committed biologists for daughters, we know that it's the diet changes that have given us such incredible results. It's an outcome far better than any of us were expecting and we are absolutely ecstatic!
We continue every day with our new diet and regime, constantly finding new recipes and supplements, to be better armed against cancer. It’s a brand new lifestyle for all of us, and now hope that we can help share our knowledge and experience with others; with those fighting their own battle and looking for help, encouragement and inspiration along the way.
We've set up a Facebook page 'Healing the Hills', and a website - healingthehills.com - so you can follow our journey and see what we're doing to beat cancer!
More info: healingthehills.com
