Breast Cancer... A Serious Threat: Questions and Answers

Cancer is the number two cause of death in the United States.
Medical science has little to offer in the way of " a cure" apart from methods of destroying the cancer cells via the toxic and/or potentially dangerous therapies of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Cancer prevention is vitally important since this illness is hard to treat, naturally or medically, once it has begun.

For women, breast cancer is probably the most serious threat. Skin cancer is more common but has a very low rate of mortality. Lung cancer has a higher rate of mortality but is less common and can be avoided primarily by not smoking. The current trend indicates that breast cancer will affect about one in eight women.

Many researchers and natural health practitioners believe that the primary cause of cancer is exposure to environmental toxins and electromagnetic pollution. One particular kind of environmental toxin, xenoestrogens, probably is the main culprit in breast cancer risk. Xenoestrogens are chemicals in the environment that mimic estrogen. They attach themselves to estrogen receptor sites in breast tissue and over stimulate them, resulting in abnormal cell growth.

Xenoestrogens come primarily from pesticides and plastics. So minimizing exposure to these substances is the first step in reducing risk of breast cancer. This can be done by buying organic food and washing all produce in NSP Concentrate to remove pesticide residues prior to consumption, and by choosing food products packaged in paper or glass instead of plastic.
Synthetic hormone medications can also contribute to the development of breast cancer for the same reasons. Hence, avoiding oral contraceptives and hormone replacement therapy can also reduce breast cancer risk.
Exposure to radiation, including electromagnetic pollution from computers, microwave ovens, TV sets and other electronic devices also increases cancer risk. In fact, mammograms, which are promoted for the prevention of breast cancer, actually increase the risk of developing cancer.

The body can also be strengthened nutritionally to be more resistant to pollutants and irritants that set up the conditions for cancer in our body. This is where a product like Estro Assured may be beneficial. It supplies ingredients that help to balance female hormones and inhibit some of the processes that can lead to the development of cancer.

Nutritional substances that help protect the body can act in several ways. One, they can stimulate the body to produce enzymes that deactivate carcinogens (toxins that contribute to cancer development). Also they can block the formation of substances in the body which encourage the formation of cancer. And they produce substances which keep the body balanced so the conditions for cancer are not set up.
For example, as women age, their fat mass may increase while their lean mass decreases. Fat cells and adrenal glands produce estrone (one of the forms of estrogen in the body), which is converted to estradiol (another form of estrogen) in the liver. This conversion helps to maintain the estrogen supply. However, estrogen must be balanced with progesterone, and many women do not produce enough of this estrogen-balancing hormone. Thus, enhancing the body's progesterone is a factor in reducing cancer risk.

Using Estro Assured
The ingredients in Estro Assured are flax meal (Linum usitatissimum), pomegranate extract powder (Punica granatum), kudzu extract (Pueraria lobata), maitake mushroom, lutein beads and calcium d-glucarate. While no scientific research has been carried out on this combination of ingredients, there is research and tradition that suggests that each of these components may help reduce the risk of breast cancer.
Breast cancer is very dependant on hormones, especially estrogen. Prostate and endometrial cancer are also encouraged by excess stimulation of estrogen receptor sites, caused by xenoestrogens or an imbalance of estrogen in the body. By blocking these estrogen receptor sites using phytoestrogens cancer risk can be reduced. Tieing up these receptor sites can also inhibit cancer growth and even help kill cancer cells.

The compounds and the metabolites of the components found it Estro Assured not only assist in blocking these estrogen receptors, they also improve antioxidant capacity and enhance immune function to protect the health of mammary tissue in women. This formula may also have a protective effect against prostate cancer in men.
The recommended use of Estro Assured is two or three capsules once per day. As an adjunctive therapy during breast cancer, slightly larger doses might be required.
Note: Do not try using Estro Assured by itself for the treatment of breast cancer. Always consult with competent health practitioners when dealing with serious ailments like cancer.

Let's take a closer look at each of these ingredients...

Flaxseed Meal
Flaxseed is high in the lignan, secoisolariciresinol diglyceride (SDG). SDG is metabolized by the intestinal flora to mammalian lignans. The mammalian lignans are hormone-like compounds. They bond to estrogen receptor sites and are weakly estrogenic. By bonding to these sites, they block the stronger body estrogens and xenoestrogens from attaching to these same receptor sites.
Lignans also influence intracellular enzymes, protein synthesis, and they have antioxidant properties. They also inhibit various stages of cancer, including differentiation, proliferation and angiogenesis.
Low lignan status is associated with an elevated risk of breast cancer in countries such as the USA, Finland, Sweden and Australia. Consumption of foods or herbs containing lignans has also been shown to reduce risk.
Besides competing for estrogen receptor sites, the metabolites of flaxseed lignans (including the mammalian lignans) may exert other cancer-preventing benefits. They are potent antioxidants and hence protect against free radical damage to the DNA, a known factor in cancer cell formation. They may also improve the structural integrety of mammary gland tissue. They exert beneficial hormonal changes by reducing plasma IGF-1, serum 17 beta-estradiol and estrone sulfate, and by increasing prolactin levels.
Flaxseed is also soothing to bowel tissue, absorbing toxins and irritants in the colon. It is also a source of essential fatty acids which benefit the immune system.

Pomegranate Extract
We are all familiar with the pomegranate fruits, a native plant of Asia. Pomegranate contains high levels of ellagitannins (polyphenols) and triterpenoids. Both of these substances have been shown in scientific research to possess remarkable anticancer activities. One of the ellagitannins, ellagic acid, is particularly powerful in its cancer-inhibiting properties. Pomogranate is the richest source of this acid, which is also found in strawberries and raspberries.

Kudzu
Kudzu is also a plant native to Asia. It was introduced into the Southern United States where it has become an incredibly opportunistic plant. This rapid-growing plant is difficult to erradicate and grows over the top of just about anything. So, if we buy into the traditional "doctrine of signatures" in herbal medicine, kudzu has a cancer-like growth, which means it could be helpful for preventing cancer.
The plant is used in Chinese medicine for muscle aches and pains, headache, dizziness and diarrhea. Modern Western herbalists are also finding it useful for leaky gut syndrome.
Kudzu contains isoflavonoids, puerarin, daidzein, rutin, with puerarin being most abundant. Isoflavonoids have demonstrated antimutagenic effects. Kudzu also contains an isoflavone called genistein. Isoflavones are phytoestrogens, estrogen-like compounds found in plants, which are believed to have a protective effect against xenoestrogens.

Maitake Mushroom
Maitake mushroom have been used as medicines in Asia for thousands of years. They are highly prized for their immune- enhancing qualities. They contain a polysaccharide called betaglucan, which stimulates the activity of natural killer cells, macrophages, interleukin-1 (IL-1), and cytotoxic T-cells. The immune system can destroy cancer cells when they develop and is doing so all the time, so maintaining a strong immune system is a factor in preventing cancer.

Lutein
Lutein is a carotenoid, a natural pigment found in many fruits and vegetables. Studies suggest that lutein is beneficial to health. It is most commonly recommended as a supplement to strengthen the eyes, but it may also have a protective effect against cancer. Higher dietary intake of lutein and higher blood levels of this nutrient are associated with reduced risk of breast cancer and possible reduced risk of endometrial cancer.

Calcium D-Glucarate
Calcium D-glucarate provides the body with D-glucarate, another nutrient with anticancer potential. Glucuronidation is an important process of eliminating toxins from the body, including excess hormones. D-glucarare blocks an enzyme called glucuronidase. The glucuronidase enzyme inhibits glucuronidation or the removal of toxins from the body. Hence, D-glucarate helps increase the elimination of excess hormones from the body.

D-glucarate can slow the rate of cancer growth. It inhibits the initiation of cancer, the promotion of cancer cells and the progression stages of cancer. Research shows that D-glucarate inhibits mammary tumor development, reduces cancer cell replication in breast tumors and binds estrongen receptors, thereby reducing estrogenic stimulation of tumor growth. There are research institutions presently using D-glucarate in a Phase I cancer research trial.

Selected References
National Cancer Institute Surveillance, Epidemiolog and End Results Program (SEER) publication SEER Cancer Statistics Review 1973-1997).
Fentiman IS. Fixed and modifiable risk factors for breast cancer. mt J Clin Pract 2001 Oct;55(8):527-3O Too JC, Thompson LU. Exposure to flaxseed or its lignan component during different developmental stages influences rat mammary gland structures. carcinogenesis 1999 Sep;20(9):183l-S
Thompson LU, Seidl MM, Rickard SE, Orcheson U, Fong HH. Antitumorigenic effect of a mammalian lignan precursor from flaxseed. Nutr Cancer 1996; 26(2):159-65.
Ward WE, Jiang FO, Thompson LU. Exposure to flaxseed or purified lignan during lactation influences rat mammary gland structures. Nutr Cancer 2000;37(2):187-92
Ingram D, Sanders K, Kolybaba M, Lopez D. Case-control study of phyto-oestrogens and breast cancer. Lances 1997 Oct 4;350(9083):990-4
Adlercreutz H. Phytoestrogens: epidemiology and a possible role in cancer protection. Environ Health Perspect 1995 Oct;103 Suppl 7:103-12
Harper A, Kerr DJ, Gescher A, Chipman JK. Antioxidant effects of isoflavonoids and lignans, and protection against DNA oxidation. Free Radic Res 1999 Aug;31(2):149-GO
Hutchins AM, Martini MC, Olson BA, Thomas W, Slavin JL. Flaxseed consumption influences endogenous hormone concentrations in postmenopausal svomen. Nutr Cancer
200 1;39(1):58-65
Chen G, Zhang J. Jiannong Y. Determination of puerarin, daidzein and rutin in Pueraria lobata (Wild.) Ohwi by capillary electrophoresis with electrochemical detection. J Chromatogr
2001 Jul 20;923(1-2):255-62
Miyazawa M, Sakano K, Nakamura 5, Kosaka H. Antimutagenic activity of isoflavone from Pueraria lobata. J Agric Food Chem 2001 Jan;49(1):336-41
Lai XL. Tang B. Recent advances in the experimental study and clinical application of Pueraria lobata (Wild) Ohwi.] Thongguo ZhongYao ZaZhi 1989 May;14(5):308-1l 277
Okazaki, M. Er a!. Structure-activity relationship of (1-.>3) beta-D-glucans in the induction of cytokine production from macrophages, in vitro. Biol Pharm Bull, 18:10, 1320-7, 1995 Oct.
Adachi, Y. Et a!. Enhancement of cytokine production by macrophages stimulated with (1-->3)- beta-D-glucan. grifolan (GRN). isolated from Grifola frondosa. Biol Pharm Bull, 17:12, 1554-60, 1994 Dec.
Dorgan JF, Sowell A. Swanson CA, Potischman N, Miller R, Schussler N, Stephenson HE Jr. Relationships of serum carotenoids, retinol, alpha-tocopherol. and selenium with breast cancer risk: results from a prospective study in Columbia, Missouri (United States). Cancer Causes Control 1998 Jan;9(1):89-97
McCann SE, Freudenheim JU, Marshall JR. Brasure JR. Swanson MK, Graham S. Diet in the epidemiology of endomerria! cancer in western New York (United States). Cancer Causes Control 2000 Dec;1 1(10):965-74
Walaszek Z. Potential use of D-glucaric acid derivatives in cancer prevention. Cancer L.ett 1990 Oct 8;54(1-2):1.8

For Educational Purposes Only
This handout was prepared by Tree of Light Institute P.O. Box 911239, St. George, UT 84791 Copyright 2014
May be reproduced provided it is not altered in any way