Oncology Association of Naturopathic Physicians Conference

Words matter: The Words of a Caregiver Can Help or Harm, with Dr. Steve Bierman, MD

Dr. Bierman spoke about the impact words can have on our mindset, and health outcomes. A particularly important concept within this is  the placebo/nocebo effect, “ideas can and do impact health and healing” as he wrote in one slide. While there are heavy words within cancer care, such as “terminal”, “incurable”, and “your changes of survival are X%”, he also highlights the fallacy of extrapolation (statistics being applied to an individual), and the fallacy of prophecy (it’s impossible for us to know exactly what someone’s health outcomes will be). He ended by reviewing the importance of delivering informed consent to patients in both an honest and supportive way.

Vitamin D for Cancer Care: Review of Studies to Discover Who May Benefit, with Laura Pole, MSN, RN, OCNS and Nancy Hepp, MS

Laura and Nancy completed a review of studies on vitamin D to determine who may benefit from supplementation, as well as to review safety information and guide dosing. According to their research, for those who have “deficient” or “insufficient” levels of vitamin D, supplementing with vitamin D may lead to a risk reduction or improved survival. Particularly, bringing your blood levels into the “sufficient” category may lower bladder cancer risk, colorectal cancer (CRC) mortality, CRC risk in women, as well as lower inflammation levels. It’s important to note that there appears to be a ‘U’ shaped curve whereby overly low or high levels of serum vitamin D may confer higher risk for cancer occurrence and mortality risk. It’s important to test levels and review your results with an ND who is knowledgeable in cancer care, particularly to optimize vitamin D dosing in the winter versus summer months in Canada.

The Essentiality of Physical Activity in Cancer Care, with our very own, Dr. Dugald Seely, ND

You have probably heard your doctor or other health professionals say that exercise is important, but when it comes to cancer care, how important is it? The answer is, well... very! Dr. Dugald Seely, ND shared some of the benefits of physical activity as it pertains to cancer outcomes, evidence-based recommendations for cardiovascular and strength training, and reviewed some behavioural changes to encourage successful implementation of physical activity. Dr. Seely is the CHI’s clinic founder and CEO, and executive director of the Patterson Institute for Integrative Oncology Research. Apart from benefits like improved mood and sleep, increased energy, preventing certain health conditions and weight management, regular exercise can also help prevent certain types of cancer, help maintain muscle mass, improve wound healing, improve chemotherapy related and radiation-related fatigue, improve quality of life, and more.

The American Cancer Society recommends exercise for long-term cancer survivors, to lower recurrence risk and improve overall survival. In the context of cancer prevention, 150-300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75-150 minutes of vigorous intensity aerobic activity is recommended per week. Strength training at least twice a week is also recommended.

The OncANP conference always includes a poster session, for integrative oncology research. Researchers at the Patterson Institute submitted three abstracts to the conference, which were accepted as poster presentations. These included:

“Enhancing Qualify of Life in People with Lung Cancer: An Integrative Program of Yoga, Education and Group Support” which looked at the impact of an integrative yoga program on quality of life, as presented by Dr. Ellen Conte, ND.