Cancer - Natural Treatments - TW

[BradfordGirl]

I am watching a cousin dying of cancer. She is only 42 and is insisting on using only "natural" treatments. In practice this means swallowing a daily concoction of herbs and supplements, having weekly reiki, eating healthily, and doing daily exercises to boost her immune system.
In the meantime she is obviously getting more ill and is complaining of more and more pain.
I am just venting as there is nothing anyone can do. She thinks this is going to cure her, but sadly I only see this ending one way. It is tragic to watch and her parents are pretty desperate, but she refuses to entertain what she calls the "poison" of chemo.

There’s not a lot you can do sadly.
I had cancer, and the subsequent treatments and it was awful, but I never once thought I wouldn’t accept the treatment.

I have also known a couple of ladies who had cancer who went down your cousins route only to realise when it was too late that they actually needed proper treatment.

Supplements etc are great alongside conventional treatments and having had chemo I do get why people avoid it sometimes, but often the thought of it is worse than the reality of it.

I don’t think social media helps, there are so many conspiracy theories over “big Pharma” and how they are hiding the cure to cancer (despite there being many, many different cancers, all treated differently) and how chemo will wreck your life forever etc that if you are vulnerable, scared and facing cancer I can see how someone would get sucked into it.

@Mybloodycat Thanks for replying. I can kind of understand why fear would lead to rejecting chemotherapy. It is just so sad. Hope you are clearly in remission now.
It would be fine if she wanted reiki and similar alongside medical treatment. I guess everyone has the power to make unwise decisions.

Oh my gosh that’s so sad. I know people who have tried natural treatments alongside chemo and all power to them but this just seems like such a waste of all the knowledge and research that’s available now.
could anyone suggest a natural treatment thaf mitigates the effects of chemo so that she can do both?

very very sad. I am having cancer treatment, and it isn't pleasant. Most of my friends are very lovely and helpful and supportive. I have a couple of friends very keen to push me down the "alternative" route instead of mainstream medicine though. One even offering to pay hundreds of pounds for it. I am sure they mean well, but I dont understand where they are coming from at all. Is there anyone like that in your cousin's life? Is it possible to identify them, approach them, take any sort of action against them?

@Oldrosies Sadly she now just gets annoyed if anyone even tries to gently suggest different treatment.
I sadly think this will only end one way.

This is personal choice isn’t it.
This is the way she is choosing to end her life.
Its her path and what brings her comfort and for now, hope.

Desperately sad and futile.

What are her opinions around medical intervention to ease her symptoms of pain? Actually scrap that, again it will between her and her oncology team to come to an agreement and plan about that side of things.
Thos will not be the first time they have encountered alternative personal choices. Be assured that they are absolutely AWSOME at what they do and she will be really well cared for x

I remember a lady called Sarah Valentine all over the news 5 years ago. She was shunning treatment for breast cancer in favour of alternative treatments. She died 3 and a half years later leaving 4 children behind. Tragically she only had stage 1 cancer and would have only needed a lumpectomy and radiotherapy. No chemo. What a waste.

So long as she has mental capacity, it's her choice even if it's a choice that other people are uncomfortable with

Really sad to read this. I'm 42, had my last weekly 12 weeks of chemo in December and just had a mastectomy on Friday. Whilst, like another poster said it is daunting, and it looks scary ahead when starting treatment, but I never once thought I'd not go through it either.

@RelativePitch That is so tragic.
@Nimbostratus100 Thanks, I can't see any particular person driving this except her. I know she has linked up with like minded people on social media, but in her real life nobody seems to be encouraging this. I am sorry you have had a few friends push this on you.
@ColinRobinsonsfamiliar That is a very good point that the Drs will have come across this before and will be used to handling it as best as they can.

That sounds very hard. I have friends who hold similar beliefs, and don't think challenging her will help. Maybe you can say something else that will make her reconsider, if you don't approach it directly.
I don't know your friend so don't know what would work, but I'd say something like ''I can understand you rejecting treatment but I don't understand why you would also reject pain relief. Its difficult seeing you in pain and suffering. I'd like you to think about how bad the pain needs to get before you consider accepting help with the pain.''

I am inclined to think she will accept pain relief once the pain gets bad and prolonged enough. I think that one will naturally work itself out.

I think cancer is scary. Cancer treatment is scary and sometimes because it’s so scary you will cling onto whatever else there is.

I nearly didn’t go to my first chemo session, so high was my fear of it. It wasn’t even that bad, but every 3 weeks I would sit frozen in terror waiting to have it again.

Possibly if I was susceptible to suggestion I could have been swayed. I did look into any alternative to chemo I could find (there were none!) and I did have one person in particular banging on and on and on about special cancer killing diets.

Sad thing is there really isn’t anything else that kills off cancer, things might help and sometimes there’s a freak anomaly where someone is put in remission and it’s put down to the power of food/plants/chanting/whatever, but basically you need chemo (or whatever is suggested)

It’s really sad and I’m sure you feel so helpless.

I had breast cancer and it wasn’t 100% that I needed chemo but my doctor strongly recommended it. It was a tough choice but I felt I needed to throw everything at it and have no regrets.

Some of the chemo drugs are actually originally derived from nature weirdly enough- one of my breast cancer drugs was from the yew tree.

I did a lot of research around natural ‘cures’ and the evidence wasn’t strong enough for me to do in favour of chemo. Lots of natural remedies work really well alongside chemo. So I drank green tea, ate well. Loads of berries, broccoli, mushrooms. But I figured I did that anyway and still got cancer so it can drive you a bit crazy.

It’s a shame she is being influenced by others online. There is a lot of misinformation out there and when you’re terrified it’s easy to fall victim to it.

Totally her choice. I would support my relative without judgement.