Cancer – What Is It – Cat?

What is cancer? Cancer (medical term: malignant neoplasm) is a class of diseases in which a group of cells display uncontrolled growth (division beyond the normal limits), invasion (intrusion on and destruction of adjacent tissues), and sometimes metastasis (spread to other locations in the body via lymph or blood – Wikipedia).

What are the origins of cancer? If someone were to tell you that the pancreas is an extremely important organ that helps to prevent the spread of cancer in the body, you would probably ask “why?” This question was answered at the beginning of the century!

Trophoblastic Theory

John Beard, Ph.D. was a Scottish Embryologist who formulated the Trophoblast Theory of Cancer in 1902. Beard, who taught at the University of Edinburgh until his death in 1923, was not a physician but a research biologist whose main interest was the placenta. He published his first book “The Enzyme Treatment of Cancer” in 1911.

What he discovered was that cancer cells are virtually indistinguishable from pre-embryonic cells called “trophoblast cells” – these are cells that grow very quickly during the initial stages of pregnancy in order to stimulate the development of the placenta and umbilical cord.

Placental cells not only look like cancer cells under the microscope, Beard realized, but even more significantly, the trophoblastic cells behave like cancer cells. These placental cells are called trophoblasts and are the first cells to differentiate from the fertilized egg. The most highly malignant exhibitions of cancer known are the chorionepitheliomas comprised of frank trophoblast cells – cytologically, endocrinologically and otherwise indistinguishable from normal pregnancy trophoblast cells.

Researchers have identified a number of differences between cancer cells and normal cells, such as:

First, cancer cells are invasive; such cells produce a host of enzymes that enable them to break down tissue barriers and spread through normal tissue with deadly efficacy.
Secondly, cancer cells and malignant tissues develop their own blood supply – through the process known as angiogenesis – allowing the tumour to grow effectively wherever it chooses to grow.
Thirdly, cancer cells and tumours, unlike normal tissues and organs, grow without restraint or inhibition – their apoptotic mechanism has ‘switched off’; normal tissues grow as needed and when needed but only as appropriate.

It is interesting to find that cancer cells, like trophoblast cells, do not induce any immunological reaction. A prime reason for this was discovered in this century by Currie and Bhagshawe who showed that the trophoblast was surrounded by a coating (sialo-glycoprotein) including a molecule that gave it a negative charge. The molecule can be likened to mucilage and has been termed the sialo-mucinous coat.

A negative charge is also found on the white blood cells responsible for immune reactivity. Since two like charges repel, we have delineated the primary reason for lack of rejection based on immune responses. This same type of coating is found on the cancer cell. And in fact, it is one of the chief reasons for classifying all cancer cells as “trophoblastic.”

Another observation was that the placental trophoblasts seem to take a downturn in activity around the time of the activation of the foetal pancreas, which occurs around the 56th day. This ties in with modern research which has shown that these trophoblast cells secrete a hormone called Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG or CGH), and the quantities of this hormone rise until around the 56th day and then begin to taper off.

It is this very hormone that coats the trophoblast and cancer cell to make them both immunologically inert. This pregnancy hormone is expressed in all types of cancers. Dr. Manuel Navarro in the 1960’s and 70’s found that measuring CGH in the urine was 95% accurate in the early detection of cancer – this test is no longer used.

After the trophoblast cells have built the placenta and embedded themselves in the endometrium, they have no further function. On the 56th day the embryo’s pancreas begins to produce pancreatic enzymes which break down the sialo-glycoprotein coat and allows the phagocytes to engulf the trophoblast cell.

Treating Cancer with Systemic Enzymes

So, what is the significance of this regarding the treatment of cancer? Simply that using pancreatic enzymes, which are known as ‘systemic enzymes’ helps to digest this sialo-glycoprotein coat of the cancer cell, therefore changing the charge from negative to positive. This inevitably facilitates the attraction of leucocytes which have a negative charge.

Beard believed that when the health of the pancreas becomes impaired and the output of pancreatic enzymes declines or stops, any malignant cancer cell that begins dividing, grows out of control.

If indeed this is the case, then an interesting question is raised – why is it possible to get pancreatic cancer when there are so many enzymes to digest the sialo-glycoprotein coat of the cancer cell?

The answer lies in the fact that for the pancreatic enzymes to be activated they need a highly alkaline environment such as pH 8.0. This is only present in the small intestine in the initial part of the duodenum. Cancer of the initial part of the small intestine or duodenum is rare. It must also be noted that pancreatic enzymes as used for digesting food, are not adequate for treating cancer as they do not contain the activating factors trypsin and chymotrypsin, which are imperative.

Enzyme formulas have now been created containing both trypsin and chymotrypsin – the most popular of these is Wolf/Benitez “WoBenzyme®” systemic enzyme formula, which is reportedly the second-best selling OTC product in parts of Europe – after ordinary aspirin.

Indeed, Dr. Gonzalez conducted a phase II clinical trial using systemic enzymes to treat metastatic pancreatic cancer, with a 60% success rate.

Cancer and Mitochondrial Dysfunction, also referred to as an “Acid cancer”

Ultimately, all the possible causative factors mentioned trigger the healthy cell to undergo biochemical havoc leading to the proliferation of cancer cells. It is also interesting to note that most of this triggering takes place in the cytoplasm where these pernicious agents and energies concentrate, not the nucleus. P.G. Seeger in Germany who published 290 scientific works and was twice nominated for the Nobel Prize (in 1979 and 1980), showed that in cancer cells the respiratory chain was blocked by the destruction of important enzymes, such as cytochrome oxidase.

It was shown that cancer cells convert glucose into lactic acid to produce energy – Seeger and others found that cancer cells utilise only between 5 to 50% of the oxygen of normal cells. The lower the oxygen levels, the more virulent become the cancer cells. In 1957 Seeger successfully transformed normal cells into cancer cells within a few days by blocking the respiratory chain using chemicals. He also discovered after thousands of experiments that certain nutrients from the vegetable kingdom could restore cellular respiration in cancer cells and transform them back into normal cells.

So what is destroying these very important cytochrome enzymes? There is no question that the heavy metals and xenobiotics in our environment are the prime cause as they target and destroy cardiolipine, a lipid contained in the inner mitochondrial membrane, to which the cytochrome enzymes of the respiratory chain are attached. When the cardiolipine is destroyed by these pernicious agents, the oxidative processes are adversely affected.

The destruction of this enzyme Cytochrome Oxidase (Cytochrome a/a3) is what triggers the cell to begin dividing as a cancer cell. This is really important to understand in order to be able to reverse these degenerative, cancerous cells by utilizing specialized enzyme-active nutritional substances and select vegetable and fruit hydrogen acceptors. These enzyme-rich nutritional substances include: Saccharomyces cerevisiae (live fluid yeast strain), red beet juice, raw blueberry juice, bromelain (pineapple enzyme), raw pineapple juice, raw red grapes, raw red cherries, carotene (specifically beta carotene from carrot juice). Others would include barley Grass powder, Kamut Grass powder and Chlorella.

Steps in the Development of a Cancer Cell with Mitochondrial Dysfunction

Cancer cells do not just grow of their own accord without reason. The first step in the pathogenesis of the cancer cells is the attachment of carcinogenic type molecules to the membrane surface. This involves two factors: (a) the presence of carcinogenic-type molecules primarily of the polycyclic type, and (b) a chronic inflammation from other factors such as disturbed pH that will change the polarization of the cell as well as its Trans Membrane Potential (TMP). These pernicious agents attach to cardiolipine and block the Cytochrome Oxidase enzymes, therefore competing with oxygen and not allowing it to enter the cell in optimal amounts, even though glucose is still allowed to enter. The cell will then begin to convert from aerobic respiration to anaerobic respiration.

The next step in the absence of oxygen is for the glucose to undergo fermentation to lactic acid. The cell’s pH will inevitably become acidic, finally dropping to pH 6.5 or lower.

Finally, in the acid medium the various cell enzymes are completely changed. Von Ardenne has shown that lysosomal enzymes are changed into very toxic compounds. These toxins kill the cells in the main body of the tumour mass. A tumour therefore consists of a thin layer of rapidly growing cells surrounding the dead mass. The acid toxins leak out from the tumour mass and poison the host. They thus give rise to the pains generally associated with cancer. They can also act as carcinogens. The high acidity and low oxygen environment also triggers vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) leading to angiogenesis that feed the growing tumour.

Cancer cells severely punish healthy cells that get in their way. They smear the surfaces of noncancerous cells with their toxic acids, blocking their membrane channels, receptors, and pumps. They clot proteins in the fluids that bathe noncancerous cells, and so rob them of their nourishment.

The process of protein clotting also reduces blood and lymph flow in healthy tissues, so devitalizing them. By those and other nefarious activities, cancer cells also cause mutations in genes of noncancerous cells. The cumulative results of all those phenomena is deoxygenation of normal cells causing cancer-like metabolic changes in noncancerous cells, which literally cannibalizes them.

Cancer and Anaerobic Respiration

Prof. Otto Warburg, a twice Nobel Prize winner for his work in the behaviour of cancer cells summarized it as follows:
Cancer has only one prime cause. It is the replacement of normal oxygen respiration of the body’s cells by an anaerobic [i.e., oxygen-deficient] cell respiration. – Dr. Otto Warburg

As Dr. Majid Ali, M.D. aptly states:
“the state of the oxygen in the body, not chemotherapy or radiotherapy, determines the long-term health and quality of life of the patient”.

He further purports an Oxygen Model of Cancer that has three basic aspects: Acidosis (too much acidity) leading to Oxidosis (too much oxidation) which further leads to Dysoxygenosis (lack of oxygen) – this sequence of events is what is required to trigger the growth of cancer cells. Dr. Ali continues to say: “Chemotherapy drugs significantly contribute to oxidosis (too much oxidative stress), acidosis (too much acidity), and dysoxygenosis (oxygen dysfunction) in many ways. It is for these reasons that nearly all cancers become much more aggressive and grow rapidly when they return following chemotherapy.”

It is reported that cancer cells can produce forty times more lactic acid than normal cells (1). Cancer scientists have assumed that since cancer cells usually have poor vascular systems, they lack oxygen and therefore revert to fermentation for their major source of energy. Researchers believe it is the lack of oxygen that causes cancer cells to produce excessive lactic acid.

Cancer cells have a voracious metabolism for sugar – they use 18 times more glucose than normal cells and produce only 2 molecules of ATP as opposed to the 38 molecules of normal cells. Cancer is therefore also caused by an oxygen-deficient, glucose-rich (sugar) environment.

These observations provide us with important clues to how we should treat a cancer patient – first, DO NOT feed cancer cells SUGAR, which is their primary food. Second, make certain that the body obtains plenty of OXYGEN to facilitate the respiratory chain and unblock important enzyme systems.

Reoxygenation of Cancer Cells

Even though Prof. Otto Warburg won two Nobel prizes for his work on oxygen and cancer cells, demonstrating that a reduction of oxygen by 35% was enough to trigger a healthy cell to become a partially anaerobic cancer cell. One thing that he could not seem to solve, however, was how to get the oxygen back into the cancer cell. He knew that fatty acids on the membrane of the cancer cell had something to do with this, but it was Dr. Johanna Budwig, a German fat researcher, whose research found that phosphatides and lipoproteins were highly deficient in cancer patients and were crucial for the oxygenation of the cancer cell.

By using liberal amounts of high-quality linseed oil and the sulphur-amino acids cysteine and methionine the respiratory chain was reactivated and cancer patients recovered. This is now known as the Budwig Diet and consists of adding Flaxseed oil to Quark or Cottage cheese.

Our experience and research have led us to exclude all forms of cow’s dairy from our patients’ diets, and we thus made adaptations to the Budwig Diet, that work upon the principal of components cobined, without the Quark or Cottage cheese or dairy.

The belief that cancer is a disease of the blood was put forward fifty years ago by Dr Budwig, and with much truth on that level, it is one dimensional in its approach. If this were the only aspect of cancer that needed to be addressed (acidity in the blood), all cancers would show cancer markers when doing a blood test, which is not the case and which leads us to the second part of our theory based upon which, some cancers are alkaline in nature.

RNA induced “Alkaline Cancer”

Under stress of various sources (emotional, environmental, mental) the DNA loses its positive and negative radical sequence, and by utilising the eosinophils and cytokines signalling pathway of making inflammation (hydrogen peroxide), blocking the exchange of carbon dioxide and oxygen and thus through increase of muscle tissue breakdown in alkaline phosphatase release, switches the receptors of the cells off, creating an alkaline environment where oxygen will not be delivered which changes the amino acid sequences entering the cell. (Hydrogen Peroxide with a pH at 6.2 is scientifically considered a “weak” acid.)

Unlike the Warburg theory though, there is proof from the latest research that cancer cells make Hydrogen Peroxide and mirrors the way in which the epithelial cells that make up the skin and the surface of the body’s organs produce hydrogen peroxide during wound healing. In doing so they rally immune cells to repair the damage – but in cancer the signal is never turned off. Cancer is “a wound that doesn’t heal”, because it keeps on producing hydrogen peroxide.

When Lisanti and his team cultured breast cancer cells alongside fibroblasts for five days, they spotted the cancer cells releasing hydrogen peroxide on day two. By day five, most free radicals generated by the hydrogen peroxide were found inside the fibroblasts (Cell Cycle, DOI: 10.4161/cc.9.16.12553).

Also, the team found a reduction in mitochondrial activity in fibroblasts, consistent with the cells self-destructing. There was also an increase in glucose uptake by the fibroblasts – a sign of glycolysis (Cell Cycle, DOI: 10.4161/cc.10.15.16585).

In a further experiment, they found that treating cancer cells with catalase, an enzyme that destroys hydrogen peroxide, triggered a five-fold increase in cancer cell death, possibly by preserving the fibroblasts and cutting off the cancer cells’ fuel supply. (Catalase breaks down peroxide into oxygen and water and is found in apples, celery and pigs liver.)

Ultimately the RNA is changed and the cell becomes apoptotic, completely losing its control mechanism. It is highly likely that chromosomal abnormalities will occur at this stage.

Hemoglobin binds to oxygen in the lungs due to the high concentration of oxygen in the lungs and also due to the high pH in the lungs. Under the right conditions, based on pH and oxygen concentrations in the rest of the body, hemoglobin’s affinity for oxygen decreases, causing the release of oxygen.

An example of this can be seen during exercise: As the lactic acid and CO2 builds up in the skeletal muscle due to exercise, the pH is lowered (due to the relationship CO2 + H2O™ H2CO3™ HCO3- + H+). Thus, hemoglobin’s affinity for oxygen is decreased, and more oxygen is released to the muscle. This is known as the Bohr effect.

The Bohr effect explains oxygen release in capillaries or why red blood cells unload oxygen in tissues. The Bohr effect was first described in 1904 by the Danish physiologist Christian Bohr (father of famous physicist Niels Bohr). Christian Bohr stated that at lower pH (more acidic environment, e.g., in tissues), hemoglobin will bind to oxygen with less affinity. Since carbon dioxide is in direct equilibrium with the concentration of protons in the blood, increasing blood carbon dioxide content causes a decrease in pH, which leads to a decrease in affinity for oxygen by hemoglobin (and easier oxygen release in capillaries).

If Bohr and Haldane had worked together, they would have adequately described this overall sequence of events. Thus, the 3 components (H+, O2, CO2) facilitate the movement of one another onto and off of the Hb molecule.

For this reason, we warn against the diets that aim at making the body too alkaline, as it can cause many other problems, impair muscle function and in fact may contribute to the spread of cancer if you don’t understand what kind of cancer you have. Do read more under our RNA theory.