Many individuals use the terms “healing” and “curing” interchangeably. There is, however, a significant distinction between the two. While curing is primarily concerned with alleviating the symptoms of a condition, healing is a more holistic approach that seeks to cleanse the body of all ailments. Curing, in theory, is similar to traditional medicine in that it focuses on making the patient symptom-free. It is an external process in which the practitioner attempts to influence the course of the disease.
On the other hand, healing is an internal process that can occur at the physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual levels. Cancer is an ageing disease, and the bad news is that we live long enough to see its ravages. Cancer’s new ranking also reflects public health’s outstanding accomplishments against infectious disease, which ranked first until the last century, and heart disease, which currently ranks first. According to current research, at least half of all cancer cases—estimates range from 30% to 70%—could be avoided by implementing what we now know. The other half of cancer cases, including the elusive and frequently fatal forms that are commonly found too late to make a difference, such as ovarian, pancreatic, and brain tumours, could be detected and potentially even avoided far earlier if basic science and promising diagnostic technologies received the sustained government support they need(The Cancer Miracle Isn’t a Cure. It’s Prevention. | Harvard Public Health Magazine | Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, n.d.).
Curing
The word cure comes from the Latin cura, meaning care, concern or attention. The term “cure” means that, after medical treatment, the patient no longer has that particular condition anymore. Because cancer is a highly varied group of diseases with variable biologic properties, clinical manifestations, natural histories, responses to treatment, and outcomes, the term “cured” cannot be applied to all cancer types. Some cancers cannot and should not be defined as “cured” at this time because their stage is too advanced, their cure rate is too low, or their risk of recurrence is too significant.
Curing and Cancer
For ages, doctors have used the term “cure” to indicate a medical problem that has resolved and will never return. For example, if you have appendicitis and your appendix is removed by doctors, you are cured.
In the language of cancer, the word “cure” has a different meaning. Doctors can offer you their best opinion on whether or not your cancer will return based on statistics from big groups of patients. However, no doctor can promise that you will be cured.
This is due to two factors:
1.Doctors do not yet know everything there is to know about the condition.
2.Some cancer cells may persist in the body, develop, divide, and form a new tumour. As a result, doctors avoid saying you’re cured.
Most medical practitioners prefer “treatments” rather than “cures.” You are deemed cured if you receive therapy, and your cancer does not recur for the remainder of your life.
Another important word is “remission.” It indicates that your cancer symptoms have subsided. It is not the same as a cure because remission does not usually last the rest of your life.
There are no cures for any cancer, but there are therapies that may help you live a longer life.
Many people receive cancer treatment, live the rest of their lives, then die from unrelated causes. Many others are treated for cancer and die due to it, even though treatment may have extended their lives by years or decades.
Common types of cancer treatments include:
- Surgery
- Chemotherapy
- Radiation
- Bone marrow transplant
- Immunotherapy
- Hormone therapy
- Targeted drug therapy
- Clinical trials
- Palliative care
Treatment strategies are customised based on the type of cancer, its stage, your overall health, and your preferences. Cancer research has been going on in some form or another for almost 200 years. Though there is no cure, there has been a significant development. When you have cancer, it may not seem fast enough. However, there are more therapy alternatives now than even five years ago. Doctors now understand how to detect several types of cancer in their early stages. They also have a variety of other therapies to attempt if one doesn’t work. The more researchers study it, the more they realise how distinct one type of cancer is from another. For example, scientists have discovered that not all breast cancers are the same. There are four major categories, each with its own set of therapies. Cancer experts are investigating what causes various types of cancer to grow to create medicines to stop it. This includes medications that target the way a cancer cell works and treatments that target cancer cells using your body’s immune system. In medical terms, there has been a significant increase in results. This indicates that fewer people are dying from cancer, but there is still a long way to go. There are no “alternative” or “natural” cancer treatments that have been shown to cure cancer. However, several safe non-medical therapies, such as acupuncture, massage, meditation, and yoga, can help alleviate side effects such as fatigue, nausea, and discomfort. Treatments used in addition to standard cancer therapy are referred to as “complementary” or “integrative” methods. It’s always a good idea to check with your doctor first, especially if you plan on taking supplements(Tralongo et al., 2015).
New approaches
- Boosting immune system
Immunotherapy, which tries to strengthen our bodies’ current armoury against alien bodies and dangerous cells: our immune system’s response to the progression of malignant tumours, has recently received a lot of attention. However, many cancer cells are particularly hazardous because they have ways of tricking the immune system into ignoring them or giving them a “helping hand.” “Reliable Source.”As a result, some aggressive cancers might spread more quickly and become resistant to chemotherapy or radiotherapy. Last year, a study published in Nature Immunology discovered that macrophages, or white blood cells, that are ordinarily tasked with “eating up” cellular waste and other hazardous foreign “objects” failed to eradicate the super-aggressive cancer cells.This was due to the macrophages reading not one but two messages to repel their “cleaning” action while interacting with the cancer cells.
2. Innovative ‘vaccines’ and therapeutic viruses
Therapeutic viruses may be an unexpected weapon in the fight against cancer, according to research published earlier this year by a team from the United Kingdom. They could utilise reovirus to attack brain cancer cells while leaving healthy cells alone in their studies. Another area for advancement in immunotherapy is “dendritic vaccines,” a strategy in which dendritic cells which play an essential part in the body’s immunological response) are extracted from a person’s body, “armed” with tumour-specific antigens (which train them to “seek” and destroy relevant cancer cells), and reintroduced into the body to enhance the immune system.
Strategies for tumour ‘starvation.’
Another method that experts have been looking into recently is “starving” tumours of the nutrients they require to grow and spread. According to specialists, this could be a lifeline in the case of aggressive, resistant malignancies that cannot be effectively removed otherwise. Three separate research, the results of which were all published in January of this year, looked at strategies to cut off cancer’s nutritional sources.
One of these experiments investigated techniques to prevent glutamine, a naturally occurring amino acid, from nourishing cancer cells.
4.Cancer treatments and epigenetics
Epigenetics refers to the changes in our bodies induced by variations in gene expression, which determine whether specific features arise or whether certain “activities” are influenced at a biological level. Many tumours, as well as the behaviours of cancer cells, are governed by epigenetic variables; according to studies that examined the impact of such changes, recent epigenetic breakthroughs have revealed that human cancer cells have widespread epigenetic aberrations. In. At the same time, in addition to multiple genetic changes.“(Cancer: How Close Are We to Curing It? n.d.)
“These genetic and epigenetic changes interact at all phases of cancer formation, promoting cancer growth.”
As a result, professionals must understand when and where to intervene and the expression of which genes they may need to turn on or off, based on their function in cancer development. According to one study, the gene responsible for the onset of Huntington’s disease releases a collection of chemicals whose action may prevent cancer from arising. The researchers now are to harness the therapeutic potential of this process without initiating Huntington’s disease. The scientists, on the other hand, are optimistic.
Another recent study found that estrogen-receptor-positive breast tumours that grow resistant to chemotherapy do so due to genetic alterations that “confer a metastatic advantage to the tumour.”
But this knowledge also gave researchers the “break” that they needed to develop an improved treatment for such stubborn tumours: a combination therapy that delivers the chemotherapeutic drug fulvestrant alongside an experimental enzyme inhibitor.
Healing
Healing can also be referred to as spiritual healing or energy healing.
Healing has been practised for thousands of years. According to certain spiritual healers, the energy emanates from a divine source. Others regard it as universal energy. Healers, for example, claim that your body is already equipped to deal with illness, cuts, and injuries. Healing stimulates your body’s ability to mend itself. Another school of thought holds that love and kindness generate energy. This can urge your soul to alter the course of your sickness physically(Healing | Complementary and Alternative Therapy | Cancer Research UK, n.d.).
Healing Methods
There are various types of healing:
1.Healing through contact
This is also known as the laying on of hands and occurs when the healer touches your body.
2.Touch that is therapeutic
Practitioners enter a meditative condition and pass their hands above their bodies. This allows them to detect and fix any energy imbalances.
3.In the absence of healing
You do not need to be face to face with your healer to perform this because they will transfer healing energy to you from a distance.
4.Healing through faith
The healer employs prayer.
Why do cancer patients use it?
Healing is one of the most prevalent methods of alternative therapy used by cancer patients. It, like many other complementary therapies, assists people in feeling more in control of their circumstances. Healers promote this sort of therapy as a natural technique to help you relax and cope with: stress, anxiety and depression. They also expect that it will control other symptoms such as pain, tiredness and sickness. Many cancer patients who utilise healing claim it makes them feel better. This may be because a therapist spends time with them and consoles them in a peaceful setting. Being away from the hustle and bustle of hospitals and therapy can be rejuvenating.
Adverse consequences
There have been no complaints of ill effects from those who utilise healing. It is a risk-free therapy. However, if you have uncontrolled epilepsy, some specialists advise you to use it with caution. In theory, the deep relaxation it can bring on could cause a seizure (fit) in some people. Healing as a cancer treatment is not supported by scientific data. Most healers would advise you not to engage in strenuous physical activity immediately following your treatment. Inform your healer of your cancer therapy. Tell them whether you use any other complementary cancer research and treatment.
There is no scientific proof that healing can be used to prevent or treat any disease, including cancer. However, it may aid in the reduction of tension, the relief of symptoms, and the promotion of relaxation. In 2018, American researchers conducted a study. They investigated how persons who had just been diagnosed with cancer used complementary alternative therapies. Bowel cancer patients were the least likely to adopt mind-body treatment. Only roughly 9% (9 persons out of every 100) used it. It is safe to use healing in conjunction with cancer treatment. Many doctors believe that healing can be used as a supplemental therapy for some diseases.
Conclusion
Cancer research is moving at breakneck speed, taking advantage of all of science’s technical developments in recent years. But what does this signify in terms of developing a cancer cure? ;.On the other hand, promising research is published and highlighted by the media virtually every day; cancer kinds vary enormously.
As a result, it’s difficult to say that a method that works for one type will work for all. Furthermore, while much emerging research promises more effective treatments, most of these initiatives are still in their early stages, having undertaken in vitro and in vivo trials. Some putative medicines have a long way to go before they can be tested on human patients. But that doesn’t mean we should give up hope. According to some researchers, these efforts should make us optimistic; while we are not yet at the point where we can say that cancer can be easily eradicated, our increased understanding and ever more accurate technologies put us ahead of the game and enhance our outcomes.
