What is Insulin Potentiation Therapy, low dose –and how does it compare to conventional treatment

That you are reading this article means you are among the many thousands of patients who are seeking an alternative to conventional cancer treatment. There is a common thread I’ve noted in my 10 years treating cancer; the patients coming in to see me are simply terrified at the prospect of chemotherapy; they may have a loved one made desperately ill or died after receiving chemotherapy, or they have read about the potential side effects. Some patients have told me they would rather die from their tumor than receive radiation or chemotherapy.

During an internet search for alternative cancer therapies, you will find thousands of web pages, and it’s easy to become overwhelmed. How are you to know which treatments really work? It’s easy to fall victim to disingenuous promises of a cure. But you needn’t despair. I’ve done much of the homework for you.

Part of my job as your doctor is to share what I’ve learned with you, empowering you to make an informed decision regarding your options, helping you discern hype from reality. It is my responsibility as a licensed physician to recommend therapies that I believe to be in your best interest based not only on available evidence but also in thoughtful consideration for your sensibilities. You have a right to choose what goes in your body. When well informed, the average patient needn’t have gone to medical school to make good decisions about their care.

“Yes, you can find websites where patient testimonials report amazing spontaneous ‘cures' with simple nutritional manipulations and supplements, but such responses are truly rare, and the many more patients who failed the ‘cure' are no longer with us to refute these claims.”

Dr. Joseph Shaw Jones

Cancer is not a single disease, and it does not have a single cause. There are many predisposing factors, some genetic, some metabolic and some environmental. In many types, we simply do not know the cause, but underlying all is the loss of control of the cells life cycle, cell division, normal cellular aging, and cell death.

The importance of nutrition

Our immunity — the tissues, and cells that make up our immune system and which are present throughout our bodies — is supposed to monitor for the development of cancerous cells while still microscopic in size. This is called “immune surveillance.” Certain lymphocytes present in everyone are responsible for recognizing these abnormal, mutated cells and destroy them. This surveillance is imperfect.

Abnormal cells can be born with, or develop ways of masking their presence from our immune system. Metabolic abnormalities, nutritional deficiencies, infectious agents, and environmental toxinsA poison made by certain bacteria, plants, or animals, including insects. can weaken our immunity. Circulating hormones, byproducts of our metabolism, and tumor growth factors can stimulate tumor cell growth faster than our immune tissue can respond.

But simply removing toxins, correcting deficiencies, normalizing nutrition, removing the infection or maximizing our immunity will not effectively treat a malignancy once it has developed. You will feel better, be healthier — but the tumor will march on.

Yes, you can find websites where patient testimonials report amazing spontaneous “cures” with simple nutritional manipulations and supplements, but such responses are truly rare, and the many more patients who failed the “cure” are no longer with us to refute these claims.

However, it’s quite clear:

• 1) nutrition is certainly far more important in the treatment of cancer than once realized,
• 2) a healthy immune system is extremely important, especially in the prevention of cancer, and
• 3) actions taken to prevent cancer, be it removing toxins, boosting immunity, exercising, eating right, taking anti-oxidants and vitamins, alkalinizing or juicing among others, are highly unlikely to adequately treat an established malignancy.

What is IPTLD?

For the past 10 years, I’ve offered an alternative to traditional cancer treatment, and an alternative to conventional chemotherapy administration. Following the research and teachings of Drs. Stephen Ayer and Donato Garcia, I have used a procedure called “Insulin Potentiation Therapy, low dose” or IPTLD, in those patients in whom chemotherapy was recommended.

Insulin Potentiation Therapy, low dose involves the administration of conventional chemotherapeutics in a “dose-dense” manner — administering chemotherapy at a lower dose — 15 to 20 percent of the usual dose, administered on a weekly basis. Dose-dense administration has been applied with increasing frequency conventionally, as in most cases it is far better tolerated than full doses administered every 3-4 weeks, while response rates are maintained.

Here, dose-dense protocols are combined with pre-treatment short-acting insulin, resulting in mild transient hypoglycemia. In cell culture, insulin increases tumor cell permeability to the chemotherapeutic and in effect “potentiates” the effectiveness of the chemotherapy. The average patient receives, cumulatively over a month’s time, approximately 70-80 percent of the conventional dose of most chemotherapeutics.

Patients experience side effects many orders of magnitude lower under our care than when treated conventionally. Most are able to maintain their usual daily activities. When chemotherapy is the recommendation from your oncologist, there is a way to receive these lifesaving medications that will not make you so sick, and fear can be set aside.

No therapy should be considered in the absence of demonstrated effectiveness. In a comparative trial in breast cancer published a few years ago, those patients who received insulin prior to chemotherapy had a significantly greater response vs. chemotherapy alone. A number of case reports have been published since, reporting successful outcomes in a number of solid tumors. Unpublished accounts at international IPT conferences are commensurate with my experience, that IPT responses mirror that seen with conventional treatment.

This alternative administration of chemotherapy is but part of the recommended treatment plan. I combine Insulin Potentiation Therapy, low dose with complementary modalities which are directed toward immune modulation and mitigation of symptoms, both from low-dose chemotherapy and from your malignancy.

Specifically, these are the Far-Infrared Sauna, functioning in the dual role of detoxification and systemic hyperthermia, hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), which benefits you by improving immune health and interfering with tumor hypoxia-driven new blood vessel growth, intravenous high-dose Vitamin C, colon hydrotherapy, therapeutic massage, and acupuncture.

You also will receive nutritional counseling, including an explanation of the value of the ketogenic diet. Diagnostic testing for toxic, metabolic and nutritional status is performed, as is an assessment of gut health. Selective supplementA product, generally taken orally, that contains one or more ingredients (such as vitamins or amino acids) that are intended to supplement one's diet and are not considered food. recommendations are made and certain prescription pharmaceuticals such as low-dose naltrexone (LDN) and metformin are recommended.

The diagnosis of cancer can be a life-changing event for you, and this also may include your significant other and your family. Everyone goes through the stages of grief to some degree. Depression can complicate treatment, and loss of hope can significantly undermine your success. Counseling is, therefore, an important component of our program.

While I have been conventionally trained, board-certified in Internal Medicine, I recognize the need and value in alternatives to conventional cancer therapy. Since my certification in IPTLD in 2008, I have been given the opportunity to provide a less toxic path for those who are seeking an alternative. At our clinic, The Gentle Wellness Center, you will find a peaceful space to heal.

Learn more about the Gentle Wellness Center at www.mygentlewellness.com.