On July 27, 2023, at the age of 78, a routine annual physical with my primary care physician swiftly changed from its predictable pattern and transformed into a shocking diagnosis of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL). CLL is a type of blood cancer. It happens when healthy white blood cells (lymphocytes) in your bone marrow mutate, or change, into cancerous cells that multiply and crowd out healthy blood cells and platelets. Currently, healthcare providers don’t have treatments to cure chronic lymphocytic leukemia. During the past 10 years, providers have developed some treatments that put CLL into temporary remission. Common CLL treatments include targeted therapy, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy to ease CLL symptoms. My next step is making an Oncologist appointment in the coming weeks to explore management and treatment options based on my symptoms and test results. In the interim your prayers for healing and wisdom as to how to proceed would be greatly appreciated. I will provide more information in future newsletters.
On August 18, 2023, multiple advanced blood tests revealed elevated levels of monoclonal B lymphocytosis consistent with early onset of non-curable Lymphocytic Leukemia cancer. I uphold a Christian view deeply rooted in the Bible, and believe that vaccines, chemotherapy, radiation therapy or targeted therapy violate scripture. My religious beliefs prohibit injection of foreign substances into our bodies. To inject any substance which would alter that state into which we were born would be to criticize God and question His omnipotence. Our bodies are a temple of God. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? Therefore, honor God with your body.” As a result of these findings I will explore alternative and complementary cancer treatments under the guidance of the Almighty Physician in coping with symptoms such as anxiety, fatigue, fever, swollen lymph nodes, night sweats, weight loss, difficulty sleeping, and stress.In the interim your continuous prayers for healing and wisdom would be greatly appreciated.
Apparently I had the disease for some time. I sat down with my oncologist to discuss my prognosis and options for treatment. I was offered two choices: watchful waiting or chemotherapy, basically observing the course of disease. The observation was, when the disease made a more aggressive move, it would then receive a violent assault in the form of multiple chemotherapy agents and steroids. I was told my condition was terminal, but that I could live a number of years by managing the disease with various interventions, as needed, a palliative approach.
But how could I, a forward-leaning type-A, get comfortable with the two options? Watchful waiting seemed incredibly passive—essentially a sitting duck. And the multiple chemotherapy agents and steroids appeared incredibly invasive and were against my religious beliefs. Ultimately I chose neither option and went with what I call “proactive observation.” I would not simply wait for the other shoe to drop. I would learn what I had to do to become the center of my own healing, playing a meaningful role in the management of this disease. After all, I was told that the science of CLL was evolving quickly; apparently new cures were on the horizon. Perhaps I could hold my disease at bay until a curative intervention became available.
I shared my preferred care approach with my oncologist and asked important questions. What proactive measures could I take to become more involved in my own care? What lifestyle change might positively impact my immune function, or possibly alter the biology of the CLL? There was unanimity in his response: Nothing I could do would positively affect the course of the disease. The leukemia was caused by a genetic malfunction; it was not my fault; diet and exercise would make no difference; I should focus on trying to live the best life I could.
Soon I would understand that my oncologist was not all that interested, or trained, in nutrition and other lifestyle approaches to cancer care. At the time of my diagnosis, the literature was largely void of studies showing the benefits of diet, physical activity, cancer metabolism, stress reduction on helping to prevent this disease, let alone to control its growth, or to better ensure long-term survivorship. It was incredibly discouraging that my oncologist saw zero value in the behavioral change I planned to investigate.
Suffice it to say, as carefully as I approached the management of my disease, I often felt stranded on a deserted island. If I was going to create a comprehensive program to affect the biology of my disease—or, at a minimum, supercharge my immune function—I would need to figure it out on my own. And so began my cancer journey to find sensible, evidence-based approaches to improving my overall health and quality of life. Internet libraries held many articles on the biology of CLL, and some pioneering works on the impact of lifestyle changes with this disease.
Rod Miller became my first “integrative health” mentor. He taught me various lifestyle approaches to increase my immune function and to create an internal environment less hospitable for cancer growth. Over time, I would learn about the connection between malignant disease and nutrition, inflammation, oxidative stress, insulin-like growth factor, hydration, cancer metabolism, stress hormones and more. I began focusing on a plant rich diet along with multiple vitamins C, D, E, psyllium fibers, algae omega, activated b-12 guard and green tee extract. My exercise regimen was increased: more frequency and a lot more weekly cardio. It’s not been my intention to be prescriptive, but to share my journey purely from a patient’s perspective. Mine is a story of empowerment and self-efficacy, with a simple message: we are each an n-of- 1. The ultimate goal of an n-of-1 is to determine the optimal or best intervention for an individual patient using objective data-driven criteria.
I installed an apartment water filtration system and began drinking each day one gallon of alkaline 9.5ph water. Drinking alkaline water every day in meaningful amounts is the absolute best thing that anybody can do for cancer metabolism. That’s whether you have it or whether you don’t want to get it. In line with the research of Dr. Otto Warburg who spent his life studying cancer, a condition that happens in a low oxygen acidic environment. He firmly believed that cancer could not exist in the presence of high levels of oxygen as you find in an alkaline state. He was a brilliant man, the only human ever offered the Nobel Prize for medicine twice in his lifetime for his research. He also said that acidosis and lack of oxygen are two sides of the same coin, where you have one you always have the other. It is the acid environment low in oxygen that is the breeding ground for all diseases including cancer.
I began learning about balanced nutrition foods which is another area I made some changes. I consulted a clinical nutritionist who reviewed my protocol and made several recommendations to fortify my program. I invested significant time reviewing the literature for scores of natural products showing anti-cancer activity. He had relationships with all of the major pharma-grade supplement brands and a finger on the pulse of dietary supplement products and development pipeline. It took a couple of months to review and understand all of the changes he recommended. I felt quite well. I was living a full and active life.
I told my primary care physician that I would not submit to conventional therapy. At least not immediately. My decision was based on one simple fact: CLL is still considered incurable. The cocktail of monoclonal-antibody, chemo, or prednisone was essentially a palliative intervention—a Band-Aid until future treatment. It might put me into a partial remission for a year or two, but the leukemia was certain to return. And at that point it would most likely be resistant to the same drug therapy. I was also aware of the potential, lifelong side effects associated with the recommended schema. I asked myself what are the limits of the body’s innate capacity to heal? Could I possibly positively affect my immune function to change the course of this acute blood cancer? My oncologist clearly felt I was wasting my time with this approach. However, I had nothing to lose; the standard of care was not curative. I understood the relationship between my blood chemistry and my feelings well enough to hold off. I trusted that I’d know if and when to nod to multiple chemotherapy agents and steroids treatments.
I am continuing with eating healthy and my daily cardio routine of walking and golfing. It is during these walks and golfing that I feel most relaxed. For me, this is the most powerful form of mind and body work. I am simply not the type to sit still and do nothing. Time will tell what the results will be.
February 5, 2024. A follow up “Complete Blood Counts” (CBC) revealed my CLL levels have stabilized. Findings reveal 12.3% kappa light chain restricted B lymphocytes with an immunophenotype consistent with chronic lymphocytic leukemia/small lymphocytic lymphoma/monoclonal B-cell lymphocytosis. WBC14.7, MCV 100.2, Neutrophils 25.0, Lymphocytes 64.0, Absolute Lymphocytes 9.4 and Absolute Eosinophils 0.7 are still “abnormalities” outside the normal test range. Monoclonal lymphocytes in the blood are below 5,000 (per mm3), normal counts of red blood cells and platelets, and no enlarged lymph nodes or spleen. I am still impacted by leukemic cells, though partially reduced since the original diagnose on July 27, 2023. Drinking daily one gallon of 9.5ph alkaline water seems to be a clear trend showing improvement and partial remission without conventional treatment of any kind, as well as absolute the best thing that anybody can do for cancer metabolism.
A CBC with a differential gives a more detailed view of the white blood cells. There are five types of white blood cells present in the blood; neutrophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, basophils, and eosinophils. Each cell type performs a different function. The CBC looks at three different kinds of cells:
• White Blood Cells (WBCs) are cells that fight infection by protecting the body against foreign invaders such as bacteria and viruses.
• Red Blood Cells (RBCs) are the cells in your body that carry oxygen to your organs and tissues then carry the carbon dioxide away.
• Platelets are the cells in your body that help your blood to clot.
Blood cells originate in the bone marrow and are made as my body needs them. Blood cells last for a limited time and must be replaced constantly.
To specifically target my cancer metabolism, I now eat and drink a wide variety of foods that provide more nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, protein, carbohydrates, fat, and water. I have begun eating more vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, legumes, and limiting red meat, processed meat, sugar and highly processed foods. Balanced nutritional food blends effectively control my cravings, hunger, and minimize muscle loss, allowing me to feel good and make me inspired to achieve my desired goal weight through whole-body wellness, exercising, walking or playing golf whenever weather and time allows.
China - in His image 