David L. Katz, MD, responds to a reader in the September 2007 issue of The Oprah Magazine about the merits of eating soy in relation to preventing cancer. His response causes me to pause even more about jumping on any diet bandwagon.

Katz says we should eat soy foods -- just not too much because the evidence linking soy to breast cancer, for example, is mixed.

In comparing soy-eating Japanese women with American women who eat very little soy, researchers find lower rates of breast cancer in the Japanese women. But in a test tube, soy's plant estrogens can speed cancer cell growth. Maybe soy behaves differently in the body than it does in a tube. Or maybe soy has both negative and positive effects on breast cancer. Perhaps it's not soy at all. It could be that the populations eating soy are benefiting from not eating something else, like meat -- the saturated fat found in red meat has been linked to higher cancer rates. Replacing steak with something else may be the protective key.

Health Canada has approved a medicated spray made from the ingredients of the cannabis plant. The medication, called Sativex, provides patients with advanced cancer a new option for pain management.

Sativex was approved in 2005 for use by patients with multiple sclerosis and has not caused any adverse side effects. Most pain-killing drugs, like Opioids, can't make this claim. They are still very good at what they do, though so for cancer pain, it's likely they will be used in conjunction with Sativex but at lower doses.

For those who may view drugs like Sativex as illicit substances -- because they are derived from cannabis -- one palliative medicine physician says the original substance has been modified and in its medicinal form is an appropriate and legitimate treatment.

The folks at Canyon Ranch in Tucson, Arizona told me all about the merits of flax seed. They told me to sprinkle it here, sprinkle it there, sprinkle it everywhere. While at this desert destination, I did just that. I dipped into the bowls of flax scattered at all dining locations, and I topped my bagels, cereals, salads, and more with this powerful substance. As soon as I got home from this little slice of paradise, I bought my own personal container of flax. I promptly placed it in my refrigerator, have used it a few times, and just recently realized I'd forgotten why exactly it's so good for me.

I've done some research, and now I know a little more about this thing called flax -- and I remember why it must become a part of my everyday life.

Flax, also known as Common Flax or Linseed, is an annual plant that grows to 120 cm tall, with slender stems. Native to the region extending from the eastern Mediterranean to India, its leaves are green, its flowers blue, its fruit round and containing glossy brown seeds. Grown for both its seeds and its fibers, parts of this plant are used to make fabric, dye, paper, medicines, fishing nets, and soap. The seeds, like what sit in my refrigerator, come in two forms -- brown and yellow or golden. The yellow, golden variety is the one most often consumed.

A new study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute suggests that postmenopausal women who eat healthy amounts of plant food rich in estrogen-like compounds called lignans may reduce their risk of developing breast cancer.

Lignans are found only in certain foods. Lignans only come from plant foods, such as whole grains, nuts, seeds, and beans. The best source of lignans are flax seeds.

The study, including over fifty eight thousand French women, showed that they had a 17 percent lower risk of developing breast cancer if lignans were part of their diet compared with women having the lowest dietary lignan levels.

A diet containing lots of plant food is hypothesized to offer a breast cancer prevention strategy, however, if you have already been diagnosed with estrogen receptor positive breast cancer it is best to talk to your doctor before going on any high lignan diet. The jury is still out on whether it can help with lowering the risk of recurrence and if it is safe for ER positive breast cancers.

In 1995 my very dear friend Carolyn, gave me a Zygocactus otherwise know as the Christmas Cactus. Although it was small, it was still full of beautiful pink and white blooms and I loved it more than the most popular holiday plant known as the poinsettia which were decorating my house for the holidays. Shortly after that Christmas my friend Carolyn was diagnosed with lung cancer and passed away in the spring of 1996.

The following year, my little Christmas cactus failed to bloom around Christmas but I nurtured it just the same. Later that spring, one faithful bloom appeared on the anniversary of the death of my friend. I called my other best friend whom loved Carolyn dearly and let her know about the special little bloom and we both shared a cry and a laugh and determined that an angel was watching over.

Every year after that around Christmas or shortly there after a solitary bloom comes out on my little Christmas Cactus and I smile at the thought of that special angel looking down on me. A few days ago the most beautiful solitary bloom burst out of the cactus for this season as a reminder that there doesn't have to be lots of blooms on a flower for it to be beautiful. Just one very special one.

A plant-based diet plentiful in vegetables, fruits and whole grains, combined with stress management techniques, slowed or stopped the spread of prostate cancer, according to a pilot study conducted by University of California San Diego Moores Cancer Center researchers. A diet with less meat, dairy products and refined carbohydrates was encouraged.

During the six-month study, results found nine out of 10 men had a reduction in their prostate-specific antigen (PSA) rates.

To reduce stress, the study participants were taught meditation, yoga and tai chi exercises. When the six-month study was completed, four out of 10 men experienced an absolute reduction in their PSA levels. You can read the abstract concerning this study, Potential Attenuation of Disease Progression in Recurrent Prostate Cancer Progression With Plant-based Diet and Stress Reduction here. You can access the entire study for a fee.

According to a CBC News report, ancient druids believed mistletoe had magical properties because of the way it grows, never touching the ground and without taking nourishment from the earth. However, University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff researchers are warning there is nothing magical about the use of mistletoe extract for the treatment of cancer, and in fact, it can cause harm.

Serious side effects from the injection of mistletoe extract have been reported in the Christmas issue of the British Medical Journal, including a case concerning a 61-year-old woman who had a tumor-like growth develop under her skin, brought on when she self-injected herself with mistletoe extract. The researchers warn that the use of mistletoe extract has been shown to cause a severe allergic reaction, breathing difficulties, joint pain and kidney failure. Some studies have shown that mistletoe might actually lead to cancer growth.

Edzard Ernst, a professor of complementary medicine at the Universities of Exeter and Plymouth is quoted as saying, "The idea that mistletoe may help treat cancer is based on that the idea that mistletoe, like cancer, is a parasitic growth that eventually kills its host." The researchers of this published study indicated that there are over 30 mistletoe extract preparations available in Europe, and its use by cancer patients is well-known.

From another source, the National Cancer Institute's overview of mistletoe includes the following:

• Mistletoe is a plant that grows on several types of trees and has been used since ancient times to treat many ailments.
• Mistletoe extract has been shown to kill cancer cells in the laboratory and to boost the immune system.
• Animal studies have suggested that mistletoe may be useful in decreasing the side effects of standard anticancer therapy.
• Many human studies using mistletoe to treat cancer have been done in Europe with unclear results, and a few clinical trials in the United States and abroad are in progress.
• Very few bad side effects have been reported from the use of mistletoe extract, though mistletoe plants and berries are poisonous to humans.
• The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved mistletoe as a treatment for cancer or any other medical condition.
  

To read detailed information about the highlighted overview, visit the NCI's FAQ about mistletoe.

Nabilone, known as Cesamet, a synthetic imitation of an active ingredient found in marijuana, has been shown successful in treating cancer patients experiencing nausea, pain, anxiety and depression, according to University of Toronto researchers who conducted a study on the effectiveness of the synthetic drug.

During the study of 139 participants, a survey was conducted to rate how well the synthetic drug alleviated the adverse side-effects most commonly associated with chemotherapy. According to the study, cancer patients who were prescribed Cesamet indicated less pain, anxiety and depression.

A prescription drug approved for cancer patients who do not respond to traditional anti-nausea treatments, lead investigator Dr. Vincent Maida stated, "This is not a pot pill and has absolutely no street value."

The trouble with the synthetic drug, which is legal, is the stigma attached to marijuana use in general, even on the part of some physicians, who are said to be hesitant to prescribe a version of marijuana even if it is not marijuana. In our modern society, marijuana is sometimes associated with counter-culture populations, addiction and even as a gateway to more addictive drugs.

I would say I just do not get it when it comes to the denial of making cancer treatment for a cancer patient a little easier, but The Scientific American published a brief history of marijuana that brings us from ancient China to the present with, "In 1937 the U.S. Congress, against the advice of the American Medical Association, passed the Marijuana Tax Act, effectively banning use of the drug by making it expensive and difficult to obtain. Ever since, marijuana has remained one of the most controversial drugs in American society. Despite efforts to change its status, it remains federally classified as a Schedule 1 drug, along with heroin and LSD, considered dangerous and without utility."

As anyone who has undergone the grueling ordeal of chemotherapy can tell you, getting high is the last thing on their mind. However, alleviating the debilitating side effects of chemotherapy is critical.

Other medical marijuana-related posts include:

• Montel Williams: poster child for pot
  
• Medical marijuana pot pill approved for chemotherapy
• Breast cancer has made me a criminal patient story
• FDA rejects medical marijuana use
• Guru of Ganja: medical marijuana advocate faces new pot charges

Colchicine, an anti-inflammatory drug prescribed for gout, appears to prevent some cases of liver cancer for patients with hepatitis virus-related liver cirrhosis, according to Instituto Nacional de Cancerologia researchers in Tlalpan, Mexico.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) risks are higher for those who suffer from viral hepatitis. The study was a small one, involving 186 patients with hepatitis virus-related liver cirrhosis. 116 patients received colchicine. Of those, nine percent developed HCC. In the second group, 70 patients were not treated with the drug, and 29 percent developed HCC. Researchers explained that colchicine has the ability to block cancer cell proliferation.

The results of the study are published in the October 15th issue of Cancer.

Medline Plus offers this information about colchicine. Colchicine is used to prevent or treat attacks of gout. Colchicine prevents or relieves gout attacks by reducing inflammation, however, it is not an ordinary pain reliever and will not relieve most kinds of pain. Wikipedia describes colchicine as a highly poisonous alkaloid, originally extracted from plants known as Meadow saffron.

FREEEEEDOM! is the cry made famous with Mel Gibson's portrayal of William Wallace in the movie Braveheart. The movie stayed true to the reenactment of the Scottish warriors painting faces and chests a bright blue before battle to visually intimidate the enemy. The plant used to create the blue dye is called Woad.

While the ancient Scottish warrior Wallace met with a gruesome fate at the hands of the enemy, women in the modern world diagnosed with breast cancer might gain advantage in the war against cancer with the same plant used as an ancient blue dye in battle.

Italian researchers from the University of Bologna have discovered that the Woad plant, belonging to the same Brassicaceae plant family as Brussels sprouts, cauliflower and broccoli, contains 20 times more glucobrassicin than broccoli. They also discovered that by wounding the Woad plant, they were able to increase the concentration of glucobrassicin seven times the normal level found in Woad. Glucobrassicin is known for its breast cancer-fighting abilities, and researchers are hopeful that isolating this compound will enable them to conduct clinical trials to better understand and clarify its effectiveness against cancer.

According to the Wikipedia entry on Woad, the first archaeological find of woad seeds were found in the French cave of l'Audoste, Bouches du Rhone. It is reported that Julius Caesar spoke of ancient Britons going into battle naked and using blue dye derived from Woad in face and body painting to terrify their opponents during battle. In addition, the blue dye from Woad was used as a tattooing ink and medicinally as an astringent.

Sadly, another cancer death has occurred -- this one caused by leukemia and ending the life of Arthur Lee. Lee, eccentric singer and guitarist with the 1960s rock band Love, died Thursday at the age of 61. His death was shocking to many who knew him because he had the ability to bounce back from just about everything. Leukemia was usually no exception. But recently, Lee, who was diagnosed this year with acute myeloid leukemia, was not faring well after three rounds of chemotherapy failed. And despite a bone marrow transplant using stem cells from an umbilical cord -- the first of its kind for an adult in Tennessee -- Lee could not overcome cancer.

Lee, a Memphis native, called himself "the first so-called black hippie." In 1965, he formed Love -- the first multiracial rock band of the psychedelic era -- and his groundbreaking albums featured a blend of folk rock, blues, and early punk. Lee is remembered for his hit singles My Little Red Book and Revelation, for influencing bands like Led Zeppelin and Echo, and for spending six years in prison during the 1990s for firing a pistol into the air.

After his release from prison in 2001, Lee formed a new version of Love and performed in Europe and North America. And then others -- like former Led Zeppelin singer Robert Plant -- performed for him this June in benefit concerts to raise money to help Lee with his medical bills.

Arthur Lee died in at Methodist University Hospital in Memphis -- with his wife Diane at his side.

I'm not much of a cook -- I don't like to cook, I don't cook well, and I am never really enticed to spend any amount of time in the kitchen preparing food. So my husband picks up my slack much of the time. Tonight he made turkey meatballs with rice and green peppers -- and some other veggie side dishes too -- and he cooks pasta and grills chicken and can successfully feed our family of four without hesitation or frustration. For me, cooking, hesitation, and frustration all roll into one. And that's why I avoid anything of the culinary persuasion and thank my lucky stars for a husband who doesn't mind cooking endeavors. But sometimes, I am forced to enter the kitchen -- I have two growing boys who need to eat, after all, and I am the one mostly at home catering to their every need. So I do okay -- I try to maintain a healthily family menu and I can handle the basics and no one is really complaining so I guess I'm holding my own. But I'd like to find more pleasure in cooking -- and more variety and more creativity too. Perhaps free weekly recipes sent to my e-mail inbox would be a push in the right direction.

The American Institute for Cancer Research offers this service, and I am just moments away from subscribing to this offering that was started by a cancer group who sends out to anyone who signs up free recipes that are mostly lowfat, high-fiber, and plant-based. Launched just several months ago, this service already has more than 10,000 subscribers -- and many are cancer survivors who have learned to make everything from cherry spritzers to brown rice pudding to sweet potato and peanut chili. A name and e-mail address is all it takes to get the ball rolling -- just visit www.aicr.org and look for the health-e-recipes area.  Soon, simple and nutritious recipes will be at your fingertips. And at mine too. Unless I decide to pass them off to my husband.

Compared to cancer rates in England and other parts of Wales, young women under 50 years of age living in the vicinity of the Trawsfynydd nuclear power station in north Wales are diagnosed with breast cancer at a rate 15 times higher than the national averages.

For all other cancers, the rate is double was it is in other communities. The power plant is shut down but the effects from the radioactive waste are still being felt in cancer diagnosis.

When it comes to choosing food for health, the dietary strategies for successful cancer prevention are very similar to the strategies for successful weight loss. For cancer prevention and weight loss, a plant-based diet works best, with the greater portions of food being fruits, vegetables and grains. For cancer prevention and weight loss, an exercise program is recommended. For cancer prevention, maintaining a healthy weight is recommended. For weight loss, reducing portion sizes to achieve a healthy weight is recommended.

Earlier this week, Greenpeace and 52 scientists issued a study stating that the long-term cancer effects of the Chernobyl disaster have been grossly underestimated by the International Atomic Energy Agency Chernobyl Forum, and released an independent report highlighting the grim realities. In another study, called The Other Report on Chernobyl, known as the TORCH study, two British scientists report that 20 years after the nuclear explosion, in what is referred to as the world's worst industrial accident, leukemia, breast cancers, bladder cancers, and kidney cancers in people exposed to the radiation fallout continue to be diagnosed in countries as far away as the UK.

Torch claims that more than half of the fallout from the explosion landed outside Belarus, Ukraine and Russia, contaminating about 34 per cent of the UK's surface. It reveals that there are still restrictions on 374 farms covering 750 square kilometers and 200,000 sheep in the UK. The Other Report on Chernobyl, TORCH, is a 91 page study available online as a PDF document. Its comprehensive information, including an explanation of why the figures have been downplayed, makes for a compelling read. We live on a very small planet, and what affects one area of our planet will eventually have an affect on other parts of the planet. The winds and weather patterns carried the Chernobyl power plant disaster worldwide.

"There are two compelling reasons why this tragedy must not be forgotten. First, if we forget Chernobyl, we increase the risk of more technological and environmental disasters in the future. Second, more than seven million of our fellow human beings do not have the luxury of forgetting. They are still suffering every day." -- Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General 2000