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What supplements you are taking?


Paul Edwards

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Most of us take supplements as part of our cancer treatment.  I’d be interested to know what supplements other members are taking.

 

My supplements (which I've run past my oncologist to ensure that they don't interfere with the drugs that I'm on) are:

 

Vitamin D and Calcium recommended by my urologist to maintain bone density whilst on hormone therapy.

 

Lecithin and Co-enzyme Q10 recommended by my GP to mitigate the cognitive side effects of hormone therapy.

 

Fish Oil and Curcumin as recommended by Dr Snuffy Myers.

 

Pomegranate Juice – In my opinion the jury is still out on scientific evidence that Pomegranate Juice is beneficial to prostate cancer sufferers.  But It doesn’t do any harm and might do some good!  I buy the juice made by Bickfords, an Australian company, rather than the more expensive imported American product.

 

MultiVitamin Tablet  Dr Mark Moyad in the February 2014 Us Too Hotsheet suggests that there is adequate research to suggest a multivitamin tablet  could correct some minor nutritional  deficiencies.

 

 

Please let us know what supplements you are taking and why?

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Hi Paul,

 

Good topic to share.

 

I've been using fish oil (3000 mg/day), fully formulated calcium (600 mg Ca/day), vitamin D3 (3000 IU/day), POMI-T (1 capsule / day containing broccoli powder, turmeric, pomegranate & green tea extracts) and resveratrol (1 capsule/day). I drink a fair bit of green tea and a lesser amount of pomegranate juice (which has a fair bit of natural sugars that I don't want to overdose on).

 

I also 'supplement' with dutasteride to block the T-DHT pathway while on Zoladex and Zytiga (with the approval of my oncologist).

 

Bone health by DEXA is continuing to be good (positive numbers), as are  LDL and HDL cholesterol levels, and the nodal mets have been disappearing from my PE/CT scans,  along with a steadily declining PSA (now down to 1).

 

I think we should make the tumour micro-environment as hostile as possible to PCa cells: the right supplements (based on clinical trials), diet and exercise all seem to help.

 

Cheers,

 

Alan   

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Good morning Paul

 

I started with 2 Vitamin D capsules each morning which raised the level from 58nmol/L to 130 -138 nmol/L which was considered too high by my doctor.

 

I take now take 1 Vitamin D capsule each morning. This has my blood test Vitamin D (Hydroxycalciferol) level  around 98 - 101nmol/L.

I am not sure what 100 nmol/L  is equal to in the ng/mc level that is used is the US.

 

I drink 1 Litre of Nuris pomegranate juice over a four day time frame.

 

4 X 1500mg fish oil capsules each morning.

 

 

1 Natures Sunshine Turmeric capsule (526mg Curcumin) each day.

 

Nev 

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Hi Paul,

 

You are certainly a busy man.

The supplement issue has been around for ages and I am sure it will continue to be. I think if you believe in what you take and do, the outcome is more positive.

I have been seeing Professor Avni Sali for some time now. He takes a somewhat different approach to cancer, which I find quite interesting although you have to eventually make up your own mind. His son is the boss of Suisse!!!

I take 4 1500 fish oil

Inner health Bifidobacterium 25mg

Pomegranate ,antioxidant 

Milk Thistle, liver protection

Resveratrol 500 mg, antioxidant

Curcumin 800 mg (Snuffy Myers)

Selenium 200mcg

Multivitamin, insurance

Green tea extract, antioxidant

Vit D3 5000 iu. Advised to take at night. When diagnosed my vit d level was 40, now around 100. Avni Sali advised calcium not necessary if taking Vit D.

Melatonin 750 mcg at night

Prostasol (Saw Palmetto) 460 mg

  

Most of the above supplements I source from life extension.com - A very professional mob.

Also exercise is so important especially resistance exercise e.g. weights.

I watch my diet and meditate daily.

Look forward to catching up on 22 March.

 

Cheers,

John

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What a subject.

 

After my radical prostatectomy in July 2013 I was referred to a radiation oncologist and am now on a multimodality plan; Zoladex and radiotherapy (into week 4).

 

I decided that I should consider all alternative and supplementary therapies including diet, vitamins, exercise and specialised, natural, cancer-fighting foods etc..

 

Well, what a task.  There is such a huge amount of information 'out there'. Some of it may be true, some of it maybe false.  Who knows. I'm certainly confused.

 

Is there any credible repository of information on all of these therapies?  

 

If so could you publish it on this topic.

 

I must add that after my 1st post-op PSA reading, 0.54  which then rose to 0.7, I started taking a ginger-enzyme based powder 'Biohawk Relief' . 

Also, I have eliminated processed sugar, grains and supermarket foods from my diet which is now primarily a Mediterranean diet. 

One doctor, specialising in nutrition recommended I take CoQ10, Zinc and Magnesium tablets daily and I'm doing that.

My PSA is now at 0.04. Whether that's a consequence of the Zoladex, or the change in diet I have no idea.  I'm just hoping to keep it down there

My daily lifestyle also includes Christian meditation, stretching, resistance and aerobic exercise.

I've lost most of my excess weight, losing 14kgs.

 

Right now I'm feeling quite healthy, better than I've felt for quite some time and have set a goal to take part in the Bridge to Brisbane run later this year.

 

But, returning to my question. Is there any credible repository of information on all of these therapies?  If so, could you please post.

 

Cheers

 

John  Dowling

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John44 Great to hear things are going so well.  Good luck with your preparation for the Bridge to Brisbane Run.

 

In answer to your question, “Is there any credible repository of information on all of these therapies?” No, there is no single repository of credible information on all these topics.

 

Exercise

 

Accordingly to Cancer Council Australia, “Studies report that....physical activity can protect survivors against cancer recurrence, improve their quality of life, self esteem and combat fatigue.”

 

In my opinion, exercise is very powerful medicine

 

Meditation

 

According to the American Cancer Society:

"Meditation is one of several relaxation methods evaluated and found to be of possible benefit by an independent panel convened by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The panel found that it might be a useful complementary therapy .........Some cancer treatment centers offer meditation or relaxation therapy with standard medical care. Available scientific evidence does not suggest that meditation is effective in treating cancer or any other disease; however, it may help to improve the quality of life for people with cancer.  ........

 

In the last twenty years, meditation has been studied in clinical trials as a way of reducing stress on both the mind and body. Research shows that meditation can help reduce anxiety, stress, blood pressure, chronic pain, and insomnia". Some studies have also suggested that meditation improves immune response and more meditation improves the chance of a positive outcome.

 

I am currently participating a clinical trial currently being conducted by Cancer Council Queensland and Griffith University, “Living Well with Prostate Cancer: A randomised controlled trial of a mindfulness intervention for men with advanced prostate cancer.”  I was fortunate to be allocated to the guided meditation arm of the trial.

 

Diet

 

Last year a study in the journal Nutrition and Cancer found that “Consistent online dietary recommendations are lacking for patients during and after cancer treatment.”  The "New" Prostate Cancer InfoLink  reporting on this study commented that “This will hardly come as a shock to many in the prostate cancer community”.

 

Dr Dean Ornish, the author of “Everyday Cooking with Dr Dean Ornish” is a leading cardiac researcher who has written a number of books encouraging people to make dietary and lifestyle changes.  Most experts on prostate cancer suggest that a diet which is good for prostate cancer is also heart healthy.  Dr Ornish recommends a low fat vegetarian diet.

 

Dr “Snuffy” Myers (whose books “Beating Prostate Cancer: Hormone Therapy & Diet” and “Eating your way to Better Health – the Prostate Forum Nutrition Guide” are available from the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia) favours the Mediterranean Diet which he feels is much easier to adopt than a low fat vegan diet.  The major fat in the Mediterranean diet is olive oil which, Dr Myers says, owes its health promoting properties to its rich content of mono-saturated fat.

 

How do you decide what diet to follow?  With the treatment of prostate cancer there is no gold standard.  Similarly with diet for prostate cancer patients, I think it is a matter of reading the various books and studies, considering the evidence and deciding what works for you.

 

Dr Ornish and Dr Myers agree on many aspects of diet.  For example, they both recommend that all red meat be eliminated from the diet.  For some men, this is a step too far and they are not prepared to contemplate life without steaks, even though this may ultimately be bad for them.

 

Supplements

 

Few large, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials of supplements have been performed, let alone focusing on prostate cancer patients.

 

I find the information about supplements confusing and often contradictory which is why I asked the question in the first place.

 

I was interested that Alan is using POMI-T capsules.  I’d be interested to know where he gets them from and what they cost including freight.

 

I hadn’t come across the Nuris pomegranate juice that Nev is using.  I’ve discovered that our local Woolworths stock it.  Next time I go to Woolworths, I’ll check it out and will compare it with the Bickfords juice.

 

I’m taking resveratrol in the liquid form, than the capsules that John Murphy is taking.  (Red wine contains resveratrol in small quantities.  This means that large amounts of red wine must be drunk to achieve the necessary dose of resveratrol.  This is now an important part of my regular medication.)

 

I’m interested that diet, exercise and meditation are emerging as themes in the responses so far.

 

What are other people doing?

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Hi Paul,

 

Interesting topic and good to share.

 

As far as supplements are concerned, I am taking the following daily:

Caltrate Plus 1 tablet daily (suggested by my urologist for bone health when first went on ADT)

Vitamin D 5000mg (I was initially very low but am now in the normal range)

Resveratrol 250mg

Curcumin 400mg

Pomegranate capsule (less sugar than juice)

 

All except Caltrate Plus sourced from the major American company previously mentioned and we have also found them to be extremely professional.

 

Since being diagnosed in 2009, we have made major life changes as far as diet is concerned too. We are on a Meditteranian Diet and we have given up red meat and only eat chicken, turkey and fish. We eat fish three to five times a week and salmon more often than other types. We include a lot of fruit and vegetables some of which we grow ourselves and sometimes eat vegetarian meals such as vegetable lasagne or capsicums stuffed with potato, onion and seasoned with curcumin. We make our own vegetarian pizzas on a Lebanese wholemeal flatbread.... love 'em especially laced with anchovies. We do not have dairy (no milk) but a little cheese and ice cream We use almond and coconut milk when needed. We only use olive oil, light for cooking and extra virgin for dressings. We also eat a handful of raw nuts a day (excluding walnuts, pecans and peanuts) We also juice a few mornings a week.

 

Most of the supplement and lifestyle changes are based around Dr Myers/Dean Ornish and Dr Strum’s work.

 

Lauras' special smoothies... banana frozen..or a few ice cubes + quarter of a cup of rolled oats + quarter of a cup of almond meal + berries or mangoes or any fruit in season + almond or coconut milk drink + anything else you can think of.......vitamise it all to your required consistency......

It's fun to make...(don't forget to put the top on the vitamiser!!!!)

If you have a glass for breakfast you won't want any lunch!

 

See you all on the 22nd March in Melbourne.

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G'day Paul,

Here's the detail on my POMI-T purchasing.

 

Original Transaction  Date  Type  Status  Details  Amount  11 Jun 2013 Pay After Delivery To Nature Medical Ltd  Completed  ... -£65.00 GBP    Related Transactions  Date  Type  Status  Details  Amount  11 Jun 2013 Currency Conversion  Completed  Details -$112.74 AUD   11 Jun 2013 Currency Conversion  Completed  Details £65.00 GBP   2 Jul 2013 Add Funds from a Bank Account  CompletedYour transfer from your bank account to your PayPal account is complete.Your transfer from your bank account to your PayPal account is complete.
Your transfer from your bank account to your PayPal account is complete.
 Details $112.74 AUD 
  Business Name:   Nature Medical Ltd (The recipient of this payment is Non-US Verified) Email:   support@pomi-t.com   Total amount:   -£65.00 GBP (equals -$112.74 AUD) Fee amount:   £0.00 GBP Net amount:   -£65.00 GBP   Conversion from:   -$112.74 AUD Conversion to:   £65.00 GBP Exchange rate:   1 Australian Dollar = 0.5765 British Pounds   Item amount:   £55.00 GBP GST:   £0.00 GBP Shipping:   £10.00 GBP Handling:   £0.00 GBP Quantity:   1   Item Title:   Pomi-T Food Supplement Worldwide
Quantity: 5 Boxes Date:   11 Jun 2013 Time:   22:18:39 AEST Status:   Completed     Shipping Address:   Alan Barlee
21 Walnut Grove
Bright, Victoria 3741
Australia     Business contact information
  Customer Service URL: http://www.pomi-t.com Customer Service Email:   support@pomi-t.com Customer Service Phone:   +44 7974076117

 

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Note: Jim also uses POMI-T. It ticks all the boxes for the goodies and their amounts.

 

There's good trial data on cancernet.co.uk/pomi-t.com.

 

Cheers,

 

Alan

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Alan, thanks for the information about POMI-T.

 

I've seen the clinical trial data about POMI-T v. placebo.  I wonder whether someone taking POMI-T supplement gets a benefit over someone who is including the ingredients of POMI-T (pomegranate, green tea, broccoli and turmeric) in their diet.

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Good question Paul - but I suspect that no one really knows the answer.

 

My approach is that doing both is unlikely to cause harm and may improve things - mainly by maintaining steady base loading of the components in POMI-T, which day-to-day dietary variation may not match.

 

Cheers,

 

Alan

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A recent paper “Effects of Selenium and Vitamin E Supplementation on Prostate Cancer Risk Differ by Selenium Status” has just been  reported in the press.

 

 

Study leader Dr Alan Kristal, from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Centre in Seattle, said: 

 

“Men using these supplements should stop, period.   Neither selenium nor vitamin E supplementation confers any known benefits – only risks .....Taking a broad view of the recent scientific studies there is an emerging consistency about how we think about optimal intake of micronutrients.  There are optimal levels, and these are often the levels obtained from a healthful diet, but either below or above the levels there are risks.”

 

On the other hand, Dr Matthew Hobbs, deputy director of research at Prostate Cancer UK, said: " It is very difficult to draw any useful conclusions from this paper that would be applicable to all men. We would need to see data from much longer studies that look at the total health impact of selenium or vitamin E.”

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Hi Folks,

 

How things change! It's only a few years since selenium was being touted as the key nutrients in which we are all deficient - especially prostate cancer patients. (This is a bit similar to the fluctuating view about coffee).

 

This finding confirms the importance of seeking out evidence-based advice, both in the mainstream area AND in the complementary medicine arena. Alll supplements should be considered in the same way as drugs: since most of them are biologically active, they have the potential of doing harm if used at excessive levels, or in combination with some pharmateuticals. That's not to say they should all be treated as dangerous, but that GOOD evidence and sensible doses should underpin their use. At the end of the day, a good balanced diet (especially Mediterranean) and avoiding over-cooking is hard to beat.

 

There's a useful site called "Quackwatch' which can easily be found on Google - it's worth taking a look at it.

 

Cheers,

 

Alan

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This finding confirms the importance of seeking out evidence-based advice, both in the mainstream area AND in the complementary medicine arena. All supplements should be considered in the same way as drugs: since most of them are biologically active, they have the potential of doing harm if used at excessive levels, or in combination with some pharmaceuticals. That's not to say they should all be treated as dangerous, but that GOOD evidence and sensible doses should underpin their use.

 

 
Good points, Alan.

 

 

Supplements can interact with other medication being taken, either reducing the effectiveness of the medication or causing toxicity problems.  For this reason, you should discuss with your doctor any supplements that you are taking or propose to take.

 

Doctors warn that generally supplements should not be taken during radiation or chemotherapy treatments.

 

The quality of the supplements that you take is very important.  There have been cases where problems have been caused by supplements being contaminated with toxic impurities or containing unknown active constituents.

 

Dr Snuffy Myers recommends the supplements made by the Life Extension Foundation as being of high quality.  It appears from this thread that a number of us are using supplements from this company.

 

In my experience, it appears that supplements manufactured in America are required to provide more details of the various ingredients of a supplement than is the case with Australian supplements.

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GoodDay Paul and others,

What supplements are we taking!
A controversial subject if there ever was! You are to be congratulated Paul for starting the ball rolling.

 

The benefits of taking supplements may depend greatly on the following points:

  • Quality Control on the raw ingredient;
  • Packaging ingredient content and quality;
  • Where manufactured;
  • Shelf life;
  • Verifiable research on the Supplement and size of the "trial";
  • What stage was the disease at when diagnosed*;
  • What Medication is one on; (ADT intermittent: Zometa infusion 6wkly: Fentanyl Patch 50mcg/hr)
  • What side effects do you have and how are they impacting on you; 
  • What was your overall health like when diagnosed;
  • Were you taking any supplements prior to diagnosis;
  • Physiological;
  • Last but not least Cost.

Prior to diagnoses in July 2008 I was taking glucosamine  1000mg and fish oil cap 1000mg/ day. Very fit, healthy and active 62yr old working 12 - 14hrs/ day.

Since then I have taken the following for periods of 3 to 12 months, with Medical or Allied health Advice:

 Executive B; iron Tablets; Dr Red Carrot Juice; Super Krill Oil 535mg; Caltrate 600mg; Dan Shean 500mg; Genstein 300mg; Coenzyme100; Green Tea capsule 500mg; A1 15mg; PCa adv Rx1 12.5mg; Fresh Lemon Juice (1 lemon).

 

Did I receive any benefit to help combat Lethargy; Extreme Tiredness; Lack of Energy and Cognitive Issues!!??

No. If I did it was not very noticeable to my self or my wife.

Would I have seen noticeable benefits had I stayed on these supplements longer? Doubtful according to 2 very experienced Cancer Nurses and an Medical Oncologist. All said that perhaps had I commenced some of these supplements prior to diagnoses it might have been different, especially for a person diagnosed with Metastatic (bones) Prostate Cancer; Gleeson 8; Stage IV, T3, M1+, PSA 123ug/L (now 3.8ug/L). In other words the jury is still out depending on the grade of the Cancer.

 

What am I on at present?

Fresh lemon juice as above;

Loose leaf green tea, 2 -3 mugs pm.;

6 - 8hrs exercise / wk including 2hrs Hydro-therapy to offset the side effects from Osteoporosis; Osteoarthritis; Psoriatic arthritis., inturn side-effects from ADT.

 

To close it is important to remember that we all respond differently to medication and supplements. What works for one may not work for another.

 

Good Health and Longevity to All Readers

David

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  • 2 weeks later...

I have concentrated on a chemoprevention diet from reading lots of stuff.

There are things I now eat and those I avoid as a result

 

What I eat

 

Green tea – Gyokuro since it has high concentrations of polyphenols particularly epigallocatechin gallate-3 and it interferes with insulin like growth factor IGF-1. My levels of IGF-1 are above the normal range which is a concern. I use a quite heaped teaspoon for 750ml at morning and also afternoon tea. I avoid any milk based products before and after since it interferes with some antioxidants and polyphenols. Don’t know if it true or not. My friends refuse to drink it at the strength I have it.

 

Pomegranate juice Bickfords. Used to take POM until the supermarkets stopped selling it in 1.4 L bottles and the small ones are quite expensive. I actually take around 300 ml with the green tea in the morning on the basis of Richard Béliveau and Denis Gingras (2006) Foods that fight cancer: Preventing and treating cancer through diet  The authors indicate that there is a synergistic effect by taking more than one chemopreventative agent together.

 

Vitamin D by being in the sun without a shirt for around 10 minutes most days. Not sure what my latest blood levels are as haven’t had the tests for a while.

 

Salmon about 4 times a week

 

Ground linseed for plant based omega 3. Grind it to make it available and keep it in the fridge. I am aware that ‘Sniffy’ Myers doesn’t like it

 

Curcumin occasionally but since it needs to be with Piperine and oil and has a short half life I haven’t used this a lot.

 

Heaps of Kale, I grow it, together with broccoli most nights. Our son-in-law has declared their place to be a kale-free-zone which indicates how much he likes it.

 

Probiotics – was Blackmores but now Faulding – no particular reason except couldn’t buy Blackmores. It certainly makes a noticeable difference to my symptoms from the autoimmune disease Myasthenia gravis. Recent research seems to indicate a possible bacterial cause for some bowel cancer. Obviously lots of media stuff about it but if it helps my MG I will continue.

 

Dark chocolate (70%) since I need something that gives me a kick.

 

What I avoid

Foods that trigger an insulin response because of insulin receptors on prostate cancer cells and also insulin leads to inflammation.

Thus no whilte bread, soft drinks, cakes or sweet things. The only fruit juice is pomegranate juice. Fructose does not have the same insulin pathway as glucose and sucrose so I do eat lots of fruits.

 

Red meat has dropped down the list quite lot and now is only occasional.

 

Is it making a difference?

 

Well I don’t know except I had a radical prostatectomy in July 2009 after PSA 13. All 12 biopsy cores had cancer. Gleeson 7 (4+3) with some 5 as well. PSA after op 0.05 and in the 4.5 years since it has increased fairly slowly to 0.2. My plan is to slow its increase as much as possible and try to outlive it. If it gets a lot worse I will start treatments when the PSA increases significantly. 

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G'day Roger,

 

Your post is very informative, with the references to the mode of action of the various dietary items and supplements adding a lot to your list: you've clearly been doing your homework in becoming an empowered patient!

 

The rapid drop and the very slow progress of your PSA since the RP is highly encouraging, given the somewhat threatening biopsy and Gleason score. I bet your doc is saying " I don't know what you're doing, but whatever it is, keep doing it!"

 

You might want to keep a close watch on PSADT, as well as PSA itself: reducing doubling times can give you earlier warning that things are on the move, and the rate might influence your timing decision to a greater extent than the absolute PSA.

 

If things do  change down the track, you might want to ask for PET/CT imaging prior to meds / radiation: it's good to know your enemy, and there's a lot of good firepower in the armory if and when you might need it!

 

Cheers,

 

Alan B

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