Is Toxic Tamoxifen the Answer to Breast Cancer?

 The media was praising the necessity of doubling the treatment time of an estrogen blocker called Tamoxifen. At first glance, one might see the benefit, but as one digs deeper into the studies that were used, the truth about Tamoxifen takes on a whole new light.

Tamoxifen is an antagonist estrogen receptors, which means it blocks the estrogen receptor on the breast cancer cell. Think of an estrogen receptor on a cell like a key hole and the estrogen fits perfectly into that key hole. Tamoxifen acts by binding with that “key hole” on the cell and thus blocks out the estrogen.

In theory, that sounds like a positive action in estrogen driven Breast Cancers. But in reality, Tamoxifen has serious side effects, driving cancers in other areas of the body. In fact, Tamoxifen doubles and even quadruples  the risk of endometrial cancer in a five year period. Other side effects  include: stomach cancer, colon cancer, blood clots, fatty liver, memory impairment and reduced sex drive.

Since Tamoxifen is classified as a carcinogen by the WHO and the American cancer society, one would clearly seriously think about finding alternatives to this toxic drug.

In understanding estrogen driven cancers, you have to look at the big picture. There are so many sources of xeno-estrogens or  false estrogens from the environment  that many of these chemicals have actually been found in breast tumors. Here is a partial list of products to avoid in order to decrease your xeno-estrogen exposure:

• Weed killers
• Sunscreen lotions that contain 4-MBC
• Food preservatives such as BHA
• Canned foods and plastics (BPA and BPA-S)
• Insecticides and pesticides
• Food Dyes
• Food chemicals that are used to protect fats and oils from becoming rancid
• Anti-perspirants  that are made with  Metalloestrogens or toxic metals
• Make ups and skin care products that have the preservative called paraben
• Tap water (most city waters are contaminated with estrogens from oral contraceptive pills)
• Detergents and surfactants
• Growth hormones in dairy and meat product

In light of the over stimulation from false estrogens from the environment, are there safe alternatives that one can use to help “block” or “bind” the aggressive estrogen from the receptor sites on the cell? The answer is YES.

The solution is Indole 3 Carbinol or I3C that is found in cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage cauliflower, collard greens and Kale. When I3C is metabolized into its derivative DIM ( Di-Indole-Methane) , it helps break down the aggressive estrogen  to a  weaker beneficial estrogen.  DIM has also been shown to cause cancer cells to self-destruct.  We supply DIM which can be taken as a supplement  with an average dosage of 200 mgs, 2 times per day.

Another nontoxic way of dealing with excessive estrogen is by ingesting Flax seeds every day. Flax Seeds contain ‘estrogens’ that regress cancer.

In this study that was published in 2005 in the Journal Clinical Cancer Research,  a placebo-controlled study involving patients who received a 25 gram flaxseed-containing muffin (5 tablespoons) over the course of 32 days. Analysis of the cancerous tissue after surgery revealed that markers of tumor growth were reduced by 30%-71% in the flaxseed group, while the control group did not experience any reduction in markers of tumor growth. The scientists concluded that “dietary flaxseed has the potential to reduce tumor growth in patients with Breast Cancer.”

Grind and eat at least 5 Tbs. of flax seeds and 5 Tbs of fenugreek together every day and sprinkle on your salads or in your smoothies.

With all the advances in evidence based Natural Medicine, drugs like toxic Tamoxifen can hopefully be avoided.

Amanda Mary (Mary) MotherNatureAndYou