Update on My Condition

I have come to the conclusion that the doctors do not know why or how I got cancer, nor do they know how to get rid of the type of cancer that I have. However, this rare type of stomach cancer is generally not considered (by doctors) to be life-threatening.

I personally do not like the idea of ANY type of cancer being anywhere in MY body!

Gastric MALT lymphoma is USUALLY caused by H. pylori bacteria – which they treat by administering a regiment called, "triple therapy," which is two antibiotics and a medication, (a proton pump inhibitor, such as Omeprazole) to keep your stomach from producing acidic digestive enzymes. And, after eradicating H. pylori the gastric MALT lymphoma "usually" goes away (my gastroenterologist says in about 50% of cases, and the National Cancer Institute says in about 80%.)

But the problem is -- I have never had the H. pylori bacteria!

My oncologist treated me with the “triple therapy” regiment, even though I had two test results indicating I was negative for H. pylori bacteria. While taking all those antibiotics (2000 mg of one, and 1000 mg of a second, daily for two weeks!) I insisted on having a blood test, which is the definitive test to check for antibodies of H. pylori. The result of this test was also negative.

My oncologist now wants me to have another endoscopy and biopsy of the lymphoma, because I have undergone the "triple therapy" treatment, and the lymphoma “may have gone away.”

When I asked my oncologist why she thinks the lymphoma may have gone away -- when she admits that antibiotics CANNOT get rid of any type of cancer, including the kind I have in the mucosal lining of my stomach -- she says that she thinks some other bacteria must have caused me to get this cancer.

BUT, there are no other known bacteria, other than H. pylori, that can live in the stomach. The only way that H. pylori bacteria, which was discovered in the early 1980s, can survive in the stomach is by turning the urea enzyme into ammonia, which protects it from being destroyed by the acidic environment of the stomach!

I have done a lot of research, to learn about the link between H. pylori bacteria and the type of cancer I have. Some of my research revealed the following.

"In 1994, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified H. pylori as a carcinogen, or cancer-causing agent, despite conflicting results at the time. Since then, colonization of the stomach with H. pylori has been increasingly accepted as an important risk factor for stomach cancer.
 Epidemiology studies have also shown that individuals infected with H. pylori have an increased risk of gastric mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma, a rare cancer of the stomach." (1)

My research indicates there is very little information about how to treat gastric MALT lymphoma when it is NOT caused by the H. pylori bacteria.

At this point, I doubt that allopathic medicine will provide any answers to my questions about my illness. My oncologist is one of the best in Austin. And, her father is the head Gastroenterologist at MD Anderson cancer hospital in Houston, which is considered one of the top 3 cancer hospitals in the U.S. (the Mayo Clinic and Sloan-Kettering are the other two.)

The best the doctors can do for me for now is take more biopsies of the lymphoma every 4 to 6 months, to measure if the cancer stays the same size or begins to grow. Other than that, we wait and see what happens with this “slow-growing” cancer. It could stay the same size and shape for years. But I find little consolation in this probability because I believe that having any type of cancer increases my risk for other, more invasive, cancers.

I am scheduled to have another endoscopy to biopsy the lymphoma in January, 2012. If, and when, the lymphoma begins to grow, surgery is the preferred medical treatment for me, I am told. Radiation therapy is usually the first option, before surgery, but my oncologist says I am not a candidate because I am not of normal weight, and I am diabetic. This is pretty much okay with me, because the idea of radiation therapy scares the hell out of me!

I want to find a way to get rid of this cancer and become healthier, in hopes of avoiding other types of cancer.

At this time, I am exploring alternative therapies, including the use of hemp oil (2) and traditional Chinese medicine. And, I am looking at each day as the gift that it truly is. One more chance to be the best person I can be, to all I meet.

(1) See “H. pylori and Cancer” posting

(2) http://phoenixtears.ca/