Senator Kennedy Undergoes Surgery for Brain Tumor
Monday, June 2nd, 2008
Sen. Edward Kennedy is undergoing surgery for a malignant brain tumor at Duke University Hospital today, two weeks after the legendary 76-year-old politician was diagnosed with the illness. See the full report on NewsHour.
2 Responses to “Senator Kennedy Undergoes Surgery for Brain Tumor”
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I was sorry to hear about Sen. Kennedy’s brain tumor. As the widow of 15-year brain tumor survivor, I know their road will be difficult.
Many long-term brain tumor survivors, like my husband Tim, attribute their success to combining conventional and alternative treatments. Unfortunately, I doubt this option will be offered to Sen. Kennedy.
Tim’s doctors told us about surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. Helped by a nutritionist, expert in nutritional cancer approaches, we found an effective integrative approach.
Oncologists remain unaware that conventional and alternative approaches can work together. And most shun learning about “alternative” treatments — or any treatments not taught in medical school, or published in medical journals.
Last week, neuro-oncologist Andrew Norden, said (in Boston.com) of possible alternative or complementary therapies Kennedy’s doctors might recommend:
“. . . I am not aware of any alternative therapies that help to treat the tumors, but these treatments (e.g. acupuncture, massage, others) are very useful for management of symptoms such as nausea, fatigue, and headaches that some glioma patients experience.”
How sad conventional doctors are unaware of promising “alternative” treatments, beyond those Dr. Norden cited. He obviously hadn’t read “Nutritional and botanical modulation of the inflammatory cascade–eicosanoids, cyclooxygenases, and lipoxygenases–as an adjunct in cancer therapy,” by nutritionist Dr. Jeanne Wallace. The abstract is at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14664746. The full 31-page article (at http://nutritional-solutions.net/Articles/ICTarticleinflamJeanne.pdf), provides an excellent resource for physicians eager to learning about integrative approaches.
I really think that cancer doctors owe it to us to educate themselves about integrative treatments.
Julia Schopick
http://www.HonestMedicine.com
I don’t know. He IS “THE Kennedy” at this point and time. Do you really think that anyone would withhold anything to try to save him? I can’t imagine anything not being available to Ted Kennedy.
New technology, auch as Teleradiology and “non trqaditional” treatment do need to go hand and hand, but I just can’t see TK not getting the best of both.
If he can’t get the best of treatment, then, really no one can.