Symptoms
The symptoms of cancer vary according to the site of the growth. The American Cancer Society has prescribed seven signs or danger signals in general which may indicate the presence of cancer. These are : a sore that does not heal ; change in bowel or bladder habits ; unusual bleeding or discharge ; thickening or lump in breast or elsewhere; indigestion or difficulty in swallowing ; obvious change in wart or mole and persistent and nagging cough or hoarseness. Other symptoms may include unex-plained loss of weight, particularly in older people, a change in skin colour and changes in the menstrual periods, especially bleeding between periods.
Cancers have a latency period varying from 5 to 40 years between the initial exposure to a carcinogen and the time the symptoms appear. In a large number of cases, either trivial symptoms are noted or there are none at all. One has, therefore, to be vigilant to recognise the first sign of the disease. The best way of diagnosing cancer is through a process called ‘ biopsy’ , in which a piece of suspect tissue is examined and tested under a microscope.

Causes :
The prime cause of cancer is not known. Certain cancer-causing substances, known as carcinogens, however, increase the chances of getting the disease. About 80 per cent of cancers are caused by environmental factors. Forty per cent of male cancers in India are linked with tobacco , a known cancer-causing agent. The consumption of pan, betelnut, tobacco and slaked lime has been linked with cancer of the tongue, lips, mouth and throat. Cigarette and bidi smoking and hukka puffing are linked with lung and throat cancers. Heavy consumption of alcoholic drinks can cause oesophagal, stomach and liver cancers. Occupational exposure to industrial pollutants such as asbestos, nickel, tar, soot and high doses of X-rays can lead to skin and lung cancers and leukaemia.
Other factors contributing to cancer are viral infections, trauma, hormone imbalance and malnutrition. Many well-known biologists and naturopaths believe that a faulty diet is the root cause of cancer. Investigations indicate that the cancer incidence is in direct proportion to the amount of animal protein, particularly meat, in the diet. Dr. Willard J. Visek, a renowned research scientist explained recently a link between excessive meat-eating and cancer. According to him, the villain is ammonia, the carcinogenic by-product of meat digestion.

Dietetic Treatment
The effective treatment of cancer consists of a complete change in diet, besides total elimination of all environmental sources of carcinogens, such as smoking and carcinogenic chemicals in air, water and food. As a first step, the patient should cleanse the system thoroughly, relieve himself of constipation and make all the organs of elimination - the skin, lungs, liver, kidneys and bowels-active. Enemas should be used to cleanse the colon. For the first four or five days, the patient should take only juicy fruits like oranges, grapefruit, lemons, apples, peaches, pears, pineapples and tomatoes. Vegetable juices are also useful, especially carrot juice.

After a few days of the exclusive fruit diet, the patient may be given a nourishing alkaline based diet. It should consist of 100 per cent natural foods,with emphasis on raw fruits and vegetables particularly carrots, green leafy vegetables, cabbage, onion, garlic, cucumber, asparagus, beets and tomatoes. A minimum requirement of high quality protein, mostly from vegetable sources such as almonds, millet, sesame seeds, sprouted seeds and grains, may be added to this diet.
Dr. Ann Wigmore of Boston, U.S.A. , the well-known naturopath and pioneer in the field of living food nutrition, has been testing the effect of a drink made of fresh wheatgrass in the treatment of leukaemia. She claims to have cured several cases of this disease by this method. Dr. Wigmore points out that by furnishing the body with live minerals, vitamins, trace elements and chlorophyll through wheatgrass juice, it may be able to repair itself.
Johanna Brandt, the author of the book ‘ The Grape Cure’, has advocated an exclusive grape diet for the treatment of cancer. She discovered this mode of cure in 1925, while experimenting on herself by fasting and dieting alternately in the course of her nine-years battle with cancer. She claims to have cured herself by this mode of treatment. She recommends fast for two or three days so as to prepare the system for the change of diet. The patient should drink plenty of pure cold water and take lukewarm water enema daily with the strained juice of lemon during this period. After the short fast, the patient should have a grape meal every two hours from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. This should be followed for a week or two, even a month or two, in chronic cases of long standing. The patient should begin the grape cure with a small quantity of one , two or three ounces per meal, gradually increasing this to double the quantity. IN course of time, about half a pound may safely be taken at a meal. The patient may lose strength under the grape diet and under the complete fast, but this is due to the presence of poisons in the system. The patient regains his strength and even puts on weight in some cases with the same diet after the poisons are expelled. Normally, the grape diet should be continued until weight loss stops.
Recent research has shown that certain vitamins can be successfully employed in the fight against cancer and that they can increase the life expectancy of some terminal cancer patients. According to recent Swedish studies, vitamin C in large doses can be an effective prophylactic agent against cancer. Noted Japanese scientist, Dr. Fukunir Mirishige and his colleagues who have been examining the healing potential of vitamin C for the last 30 years, have recently found that a mixture of vitamin C and copper compound has lethal effects on cancer.
According to several studies, vitamin A exerts an inhibiting effect on carcinogenesis. It is one of the most important aids to the body’s defence system to fight and prevent cancer. Dr. Leonida Santamaria and his colleagues at the University of Pavia in Italy have uncovered preliminary evidence suggesting that beta-carotene, a precursor of vitamin A may actually inhibit skin cancer by helping the body thwart the cancer-causing process known as oxidation.

Prevention
It is more important to prevent the disease than to treat it, as measures to treat the disease bring only temporary results in view of the poor survival rate after the use of such treatment. The best way to prevent cancer is to build up the body’s defence through excellent nutrition. The tissues, cells and organs should be kept in such a healthy state that cancer cannot take hold. This can be achieved by completely avoiding all refined, synthetic and processed foods as also white flour, white sugar and foods with chemicals additives. The foods which build up the body are natural, whole foods,raw vegetables and fruits, protein from vegetable sources, raw milk, whole grins and vitamins and minerals in their natural form.
Recent studies from all over the world suggest that the liberal use of green and yellow vegetables and fruits can prevent cancer. The 20-year old, ongoing Japanese study found that people who ate green and yellow vegetables every day had a decreased risk of developing lung, stomach and other cancers. A Harvard University study of more than 1,200 elderly Massachusetts residents found that those who reported the highest consumption of carrots, squash, tomatoes, salads or leafy green vegetables, dried fruits, fresh strawberries or melon had a decreased risk of cancer. The other preventive measures are plenty of rest, complete freedom from worries and mental stress and plenty of fresh air.

[index]