Thank you for allowing me to be part of this group. Reading your stories is both happy and sad. So many brave and inspiring people here. The majority of my family has either died of cancer or has had cancer. My mom at 42 when i was 15 years old and my dad at 59. One sister breast and secondary bone *but still here and another with Chronic Leukemia. I have always been interested in integrated health especially for cancer. I read and read and read and listen to podcasts every day to increase my knowledge. Have done for years now. Appreciate and follow the work of Prof Seyfried. I now get lots of people asking me advice which obviously I have to be mindful of as not a dr. I point them in the direction of groups like these and Prof Seyfrieds work. I have been reading a lot of your posts and taking notes as to what you are all doing. Thank you for the opportunity.

In a healthy host, abnormal cells are detected and eliminated by natural killer cells, cytotoxic CD8+ T cells, dendritic cells, macrophages, and coordinated cytokine signaling. In cancer, this system is progressively disabled. Tumors recruit suppressive immune cells, exhaust T cells, polarize macrophages toward a tumor-supportive phenotype, stimulate angiogenesis, and create a metabolically hostile microenvironment rich in lactate, hypoxia, inflammatory cytokines, and oxidative stress. The goal of adjunctive repurposed drugs and nutraceuticals is therefore not merely to “kill cancer cells,” but to help restore the host terrain: improve systemic immunity, reduce immune suppression, normalize inflammatory signaling, and make the tumor microenvironment more visible and vulnerable to immune attack. By Dr. Paul Marik What are the repurposed drugs and nutraceuticals?, read more here, hope it's helpful: https://open.substack.com/pub/paulmarik/p/repurposed-drugs-and-nutraceuticals-a25?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=583u8k

Hi everyone, I just wanted to remind everyone to keep our group norms in mind when expressing our views about dietary interventions. I’ve noticed there is a little bit of dietary dogma (likely unintentional) going on and some contentions being expressed in ways that are getting close to the line of giving medical advice. While most of us follow Prof. Seyfried’s low GKI approach as part of metabolic therapy, this is not a carnivore group. Prof. Seyfried himself doesn’t prescribe a specific diet, he just recommends we get into nutritional ketosis and “drive the GKI way down.” One of the reasons this group was created was that in the “Keto for Cancer” group (in which some of us initially connected mid-2024) people who were not carnivore were vilified. I was one of these people. I was asked by the creator of that group to post photos of my meals (general keto, vegetarian keto and carnivore) and I did this pretty regularly with the intention of being helpful and inclusive. Then, when the creator quickly shifted his dietary stance to meat-only (in order to repackage and sell his own diet plan that he previously lacked success in) things got ideological and nasty. This is the context leading up to when I was suddenly questioned for posting meals that included olives, avocado and other plant-based fats. I was told this was “probably why people like [me] end up with cancer.” Not only is such a comment insensitive, there is no medical or scientific evidence for it. As such, if I have ever in any way made anyone who has had success with a vegetarian or vegan ketogenic diet feel bad, I sincerely apologise for this. Whether someone is having success with a strict carnivore diet, “dirty” carnivore diet, animal-based diet, omnivore ketogenic diet, vegetarian ketogenic diet, Mediterranean diet, calorie restricted diet, or even a vegan diet, it is not our place to give unsolicited dietary advice. With positive intent, we can certainly reference studies and draw on our own lived experience. I am a qualified nutritionist and have tried different ketogenic diets, but I only share my lived experience - I do not profess to know which diet is most universally applicable in the context of cancer management. There is no data to irrefutably support this yet. So, when I talk about my concerns about the extent to which my overconsumption of animal protein impact growth signals IGF-1 and mTOR - which are upregulated in my own cancer cells - this is about MY situation only. My intention is not to fear-monger and it is absolutely fine to disagree with this. But it is not appropriate to give unsolicited medical advice to other warriors in favour of the dietary approach that aligns with your current views. It is also against our group norms to take my lived experience (or anyone’s lived experience) and use it as a false pretext for attacking my views and taking them out of context.

Yes, we have choices. When cancer enters our lives, we can’t just hand over the keys and close our eyes. It’s our body, not theirs. We have to study, to understand, and to choose. But with so many paths, standard, integrative, metabolic, where do we even begin? Think of our body as a garden, and our immune system as its soil. A healthy garden resists weeds; a depleted soil lets them take over. This “terrain” mindset can become our guide through every single decision: 1. We study many paths because the main goal is to heal the soil, not just kill the weed. We look beyond the tumor. We explore how bad nutrition, stress, toxins, parasites, infections and wrong treatment choices shaped the environment that let cancer grow. 2. We weigh the real cost: money, yes, but also the cost to our immune “soil.” Every treatment has a price, but the hidden cost is what it does to our body’s defense. High-dose chemo might shrink a tumor fast, but it may burn the soil. 3. We must know the difference between immune supporters and immune destroyers. Use terrain compass to sort them. A treatment that supports the soil might be oxidative therapies, repurposed drugs, supplements, sleep, exercise, targeted fasting, or insulin control through keto. These are not an exhaustive list. A treatment that destroys it might be a blunt chemo combination or extended radiation. Both might have a place, I don't know, but you choose with full awareness, not as a blind passenger. 4. We walk into the doctor’s office with a concept in mind, not just hope. This compass might give us an unshakable stance. When our oncologist says, “This is the standard protocol,” we gently respond, “Thank you. Can you help me understand exactly how this affects my immune terrain? What’s the cost to my body’s ability to heal?” We're not being difficult, we're being the CEO of our own garden. It’s our body, and we refuse to just blindly accept. We co-create. 5. We need to find an MD who reads the same map. Once we’re grounded in the terrain concept, we look for a guide who respects it.

I’ve been thinking a lot after everything that’s happened recently with my mum. The hospital situation, the pneumonitis, the uncertainty… it forces one to step back and really see things clearly. So I wanted to share a few things I’ve learned through this journey, things I think a many of us overlook. Consistency matters more than having the perfect protocol. Timing actually makes a big difference (press and pulse isn’t just theory). It’s not just about throwing everything at cancer, it’s about combining things intelligently. Supporting the immune system is just as important as targeting the cancer itself Inflammation can completely change the picture (and mislead you if you’re not careful). I’m more convinced than ever that cancer is heavily metabolic, not just genetic. Targeting the relevant pathways and drivers of your specific cancer seems far more powerful than focusing on one. A lot of therapies work better when timed properly (HBOT, IV Vitamin C, etc.) The “terrain” (inflammation, gut health, immune function) plays a massive role… Tumour markers like CA125 can spike from inflammation alone so context is everything. I’ve seen how easy it is for people, including me at times, to overcomplicate things… Burnout is real and this is a long game… Tracking symptoms alongside labs gives a much clearer picture. Gut issues (especially after antibiotics or infection) can set things back more than expected… Simple and consistent beats complex and inconsistent every time. Timing and synergy matter more than people think. Never ignore inflammation or gut health. Don’t panic at one data point and always look at the full picture. This is a marathon, not a sprint. Try to remain calm/grounded and avoid negative thoughts if possible, the mind is quite tricky. The role of the mind matters more than we think. Whether you call it belief, faith, mindset, or even the placebo effect, there’s something powerful there that shouldn’t be ignored. I’ve seen how much perspective, hope, and inner state can influence how people go through this journey.