Experimental cancer treatment



Experimental cancer treatments are medical therapies intended or claimed to
treat cancer (see also tumor) without the disadvantages of the standard
therapies:

   * Surgery
   * Chemotherapy
   * Radiation therapy

The entries listed below vary between theoretical therapies and treatments
that will most likely become standard procedures within the next few years.
Many of these treatments will only help against specific forms of cancer. It
is not a list of treatments widely available at hospitals!

Angiostatic-based treatments

Every solid tumor (in contrast to liquid tumors like leukemia) needs to
generate blood vessels to keep it alive once it reaches a certain size.
Usually, blood vessels are not built elsewhere in an adult body unless
tissue repair is actively in process. The anti-angiogenesis (angiostatic)
agent endostatin and related chemicals can suppress the building of blood
vessels, preventing the cancer from growing indefinitely. In tests with
patients, the tumor became inactive and stayed that way even after the
endostatin treatment was finished. The treatment has very few side effects
but appears to have very limited selectivity. Other angiostatic agents like
thalidomide and natural plant-based substances are being actively investigated.

Bacterial treatments

Chemotherapeutic drugs have a hard time penetrating tumors to kill them at
their core because these cells may be dead or lack a good blood supply.
Researchers have been using anaerobic bacteria, such as Clostridium novyi,
to consume the interior of oxygen-poor tumours. These should then die when
they come in contact with the tumour's oxygenated sides, meaning they would
be harmless to the rest of the body. A major problem has been that bacteria
don't consume all parts of the cancerous tissue. However combining the
therapy with chemotheraputic treatments has largely proven to solve this problem.

Diet therapy

Clinical experimentation by physician Max Gerson led to a therapy that is
claimed to be successful in the treatment of advanced cancer. It is a high
potassium, low sodium (saltless) diet, with no fats or oils, and high in
fresh raw fruits and vegetables. Other scientists doubt the ability of
these treatments to cure cancer, and point to the lack of detailed
publication of their results.

Insulin Potentiation Therapy

In insulin potentiation therapy, low-dose insulin is given in conjunction
with low-dose chemotherapy. It is claimed to be effective while dramatically
reducing side effects.

Fasting Therapy

For whatever reason, long-term fasting has been known to work against
cancerous tumours. Studies to date are merely anecdotal.

Gene therapy

Complementary and alternative methods (CAM)

In the year 2000, the American Cancer Society published American Cancer
Society's Guide to Complementary and Alternative Cancer Methods. There are
over 200 substances and therapies in this book, and while there is a varying
degree of success with each of the methods, it appears that some of the
techniques will work at times, however no technique will work in all
situations, which, CAM practioners claim, is similar to the success rate of
conventional techniques. Many of these techniques are similar to ancient
ways of dealing with disease. According to practioners of CAM, various
options are available to anyone who wants this information, however, they
caution that discretion is advised no matter what methods a person chooses
to pursue.

Cancer - List of Famous Cancer Patients - Medical Topics - Medical_Terms - Medicine - Alternative Therapies -