Mistletoe

Has anyone ever used mistletoe (Iscador) as a complementary treatment with their chemo? I understand it is widely used in Europe. Has anyone in America tried it or know anything about it?

Thanks, Terri

Yes, I do believe that kissing under a mistletoe could compliment any treatment....we Canadians, like the Europeans, having been doing this for some time!!! Just kidding, but would be interested in hearing a more serious response to this question.

Hi Terri,
Looking at the description from the Sloan-Kettering site, http://www.mskcc.org/mskcc/html/11571.cfm?...rdID=445&tab=HC
I sure wouldn't want to self medicate with this one. Sounds like a few berries might do for the ex-husband. As far as Iscador is concerned, I don't know.
If you read the ingredients of mistletoe however, two of them are Oleaic acid and para-coumaric acids, both frequently discussed as ingredients of olive / flax seed oils and curcumin (tumeric).
Take care,
Al

I used Mistletoe as complimentary treatment. I did not use it for as long as I should have though since it is very expensive and I could not afford it anymore. I used the injectable form 3 times a week. The only side effect I noticed was itching & swelling at the injection site. I understand this is a desired effect since it is meant to stimulate an immune response. If you want to ask me any thing else about it please go ahead and email me at Bbeth69@aol.com.

[michele u]

Mistletoe is what Suzanne Sommers used instead of chemo. Where did you get the Mistletoe Beth? I didn't think we could get it here in usa.

Yes, Iscador is what Suzanne Sommers used, as a complement to her chemotherapy. I also am curious as to where you get it. It is injectable. The papers I've read support it as a complementary treatment, citing a 40% increased survival rate.
I have a friend in Holland who is giving her husband shots of Iscador for another type tumor. It seems to be real common there.

Terri

Terri, I have emailed you a reply but I wanted to let others know that I got it from a doctor who specializes in alternative and complimentary medicine. I am in the suburban Philadelphia area and have included a link to the website of the doctor where I got it. All of the information and adjuvant therapies he prescribed are very helpful and I would recommend that others speak to thier doctors about trying them or being refered to someone who can prescribe alternative therapies. Mt general surgeon was the one who refered me to "The Medical Healing Arts Center" in Doylestown, PA.

Oops heres the link:
Medical Healing Arts Center

Dear Terry Beth and friends,
I have looked around on the Internet for research concerning mistletoe and the treatment of cancer and everything seems pretty sketchy. There seems evidence that it may be an immune booster and there's also evidence that it may encourage the growth of some lymphomas. The other problem I see from a quality control standpoint is because mistletoe is a parasite the properties the extract has would have would resemble those of the host . That is to say an extract from something growing on a pine tree would be different from that coming from something that grew out of walnut tree. Any targeted therapy on certain cancer lines seems to be missing, the type we find with curcumin, mushrooms, and IP-6.
I remember years ago when the editor of Longevity magazine, Kathy Keeton, was advocating the use of hydrazine sulfate. Before that we had laetrile. These two chemicals are still in wide-spread use today with questionable medical action.
The reservation I would have about is Isacor is the same I have about hydrazine sulfate and laetrile is that although there appears to be widespread use the documented science behind it seems to be missing.
It seems easy to get from Europe and I've attached the link.
http://www.aids.org/atn/a-092-03.html
Good luck,
Al

[StephN]

I have a friend who tried to avoid doing chemotherapy, and tried all sorts of "complementery therapies." I think she went to a place in Germany for mistletoe treatments. Probably brought back a supply to use here. Her cancer progressed and she ended up on chemos (navelbine and others) anyway. But the tumors got into her brain and were too hard to treat by the time they were discovered. She had some treatment, but had such widespread mets by then that there was not much use. She passed away about 4 years after initial diagnosis.

I am sure if she had gone for some cutting edge new chemos at the time of diagnosis, she would still be here today. This is a sad story, and one that was a wake up call to me, as her disease was beginning to progress at the time I got my diagnosis. I decided NOT to be afraid to take chemo and all that went with it. I am still here, and had a more aggressive cancer in the first place.

Many of you know that I do use a few supplements to boost my immune system and am doing very well on those.