Unchartered Waters

I read with interest the comments made by a anonymous reader on my post Surviving Cancer Program. Thank you for commenting and please continue to share your thoughts with me.

After 17 months of doing Gerson Therapy, I think I am getting tired of the diet. Sad but true. I am finding it more difficult to eat now days. Sometimes I just don't have the appetite to eat. Loss of appetite causes cancer cachexia, a medical term for excessive wasting due to a combination of poor eating and the physiologic effects of the cancer.

I am thinking of moving into unchartered territory, mixing the Gerson Therapy diet with another diet such as the Budwig diet for example. There is no right or wrong here but only what make sense to me. Mixing two different therapies' diet can be adventurous. Compatible additions or adjuncts to the diet can help their healing process or it can also accelerate the disease. Something for me to research further.

Characteristics of Terminal Cancer Patients Who Committed Suicide
In a study carried out between June 1996 and January 1998 and published in 2001, a team of researches from National Cancer Institute of Milan tried to identify the vulnerability factors of suicide in five terminal cancer patients who committed suicide while they were cared for at home by well-trained palliative care teams. The results are not that surprising for me.

All the patients showed great concern about the lack of autonomy and independence, refused dependence on others and had fear/worry of losing their autonomy. Four patients presented functional and physical impairments, uncontrolled pain, awareness of being in the terminal stage, and mild to moderate depression. They had a feeling of hopelessness consequent to their clinical conditions, fear of suffering, and feeling of being a burden on others. They had a strong character and managerial professions. They had isolated themselves from others and they had previously talked about suicide. Before committing suicide, three patients had adverse physical/emotional consequences to the oncological treatments - they showed aggressiveness towards their family and one towards the home care physician. Multiple vulnerability factors were present simultaneously in all patients. However, the loss of, and the fear of losing, autonomy and their independence and of being a burden on others were the most relevant.

It is often believed that only cancer patients in the late stages are more pronounced to commit suicide is not entirely true. Cancer patients may commit suicide at any stage of the disease.

Caregivers should probably learn to deal with the fears and not to brush them aside. By allowing the cancer patient to talk about his/her feelings could alivate the burden off their minds.