Judith Coates was determined to fight her breast cancer — and she was going to do it without chemo and radiation.
Coates decided to share her story this Breast Cancer Awareness Month because she won her fight against it without harming her body.
According to the Canadian Cancer Society, 26,300 Canadian women were diagnosed with breast cancer in 2017. This represents 25 per cent of all new cancer cases that year. In the same year, 5,000 women died from the disease.
In 2017, 230 men were diagnosed with breast cancer, 60 of whom died from it. The website also states breast cancer death rates have decreased since the mid-’80s due to the impact of screening and improvements in treatment.
Early diagnosis greatly increases successful treatment outcomes. Survival varies with each stage of breast cancer. Generally, the earlier breast cancer is diagnosed and treated, the better the outcome, according to the website.
But Coates’s faith in conventional screening methods had begun to dwindle when her screening in January three years ago wasn’t able to detect the presence of a lump, which she felt six months later.
“I went to the doctor and she didn't feel a lump but sent me for a mammogram and an ultrasound,” she said. “The mammogram was clear but the ultrasound verified my suspicions.”
There were two lumps in her right breast.
At the end of 2015, Coates went through surgery to have the lumps removed, and she had reconstructive surgery so she wouldn’t have to deal with breast prosthesis.
Post-surgery, her oncologist in Barrie told her the procedure had revealed three more tumours than detected earlier.
All five had been tested, revealing three types of cancer.
“The oncologist advised me that they also removed lymph nodes because it had spread to the lymph nodes,” said Coates. “And that's how it spreads to other parts of the body.”
Being diagnosed with cancer is pretty scary, she said.
“Most of the people who get cancer are afraid of the treatment and not really the cancer,” said Coates. “It's something we can deal with rationally. We need to get our immune system in order so that it could counteract the cancer itself.”
That’s the route she decided to take.
“Before I had my surgery, I kind of was convinced that I didn't want to go with chemo,” said the Orillia resident. “I found out it's poison that not only kills cancer cells but other rapidly growing cells, too. That's why your hair falls out or some people end up with permanent neuropathy. Looking at these side effects, I decided to look at some of the other ways that made more sense. I didn't want to put my body through that and be sick.”
Coates said her doctor told her if she didn’t go the chemo/radiation route, she would have less than six months to live.
“I went home to think about it,” said Coates.
She remembered having watched The Truth About Cancer, a documentary on alternative treatments for cancer, and went back to her doctor and told her she wasn't going to do chemo and radiation.
“(The doctor) was pretty upset, and wanted me to go back and think about it,” Coates said, adding the doctor asked her to come back for a follow-up a year later.
In the meantime, Coates went to see Dr. Bryan Knappett, a naturopath at Red Canoe Naturopathic Clinic in Huntsville who deals with cancer patients.
“He started me on a slew of things. One of them was high doses of vitamin C given to me intravenously,” said Coates, adding she had to switch to taking mistletoe injections subcutaneously, once her veins couldn't tolerate the IV. “There have been studies showing that high doses of vitamin C will kill cancer but only if it's given through IV, because taking it by mouth can have negative effects on your stomach and digestive system.”
She was also given herbal tea, called Essiac Tea. It’s a mixture made of herbs, such as slippery elm, sheep sorrel, ones that the Ojibway had also once used, said Coates.
“I was on that for a while and a few supplements, including green tea extract, other antioxidants and high doses of vitamin D, which I still take daily,” she said.
A year later, Coates went back to the doctor, who did a CT scan and found no traces of cancer.
Having seen the positive effects of this naturopathic treatment, she said she was disappointed hospitals don’t connect patients with dietitians or nutritionists who could help balance their health.
“I have an older sister who has abdominal cancer and she is going through chemo and I can see the toll it's taking on her,” said Coates. “I wish she had other options, but she's of the mindset that the medical community knows best. And she followed chemo because her tumours are of a different type.”
The comparison between her sister’s cancer journey and her own recovery, Coates said, is as different as day and night.
“I didn't go through any sickness,” she said. “I did feel a little low when I was doing a mistletoe injections, but that was expected. Other than that, I was feeling good. I was feeling my health improve daily. I can see my sister's health going down daily.”
As for Coates, she’s been back to the hospital for two follow-ups, both of which have shown her to be cancer free.
“But (the doctors) still won't say that I'm cancer free,” she said. “And I think it's because I took an alternative route to cure my cancer.”
