Saturday, March 17, 2007

Epoetin and cancer risk

Just got a mail that warned of FDA imposing a warning on the use of Epoetin alpha on patients with cancer. Epoetin and the other drugs of the same class are given to people with low RBCs, including patients with chronic renal disease as well as those undergoing chemotherapy.

These drugs increase the amount of RBCs which are important to cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. However, with this warning, it will cause some apprehensions now on the part of patients and doctors alike. Chemotherapy and cancer itself, can lower your blood cells.

I' m sure a lot of doctors now will think twice before giving any of these drugs. I hope that the doctors and patients will now try to look at how to improve your anemia with nutrition which, IMHO, is the best way to go about it.

I use a lot of the "Wonderful but cheap" Malunggay! (Moringa oleifera) Its very much available here in the Philippines. I ask my patients to juice them, in fact when their RBCs go down, I immediately know that they are not taking them!

Our present national hero, Manny Pacquiao, eats it before a fight! That's how much the trust of Manny to the strength giving characteristics of malunggay.

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