http://www.newstarget.com/z022452.html

NewsTarget.com printable article
Originally published January 4 2008
Enzyme Therapy For Cancer Prevention And Treatment
by Mary Laredo

(NewsTarget) Enzymes are molecules that act as catalysts for all chemical
reactions within the body and are necessary to sustain life. There are two
basic categories: digestive enzymes which work in the stomach breaking down
food particles before their nutrients can be absorbed, and metabolic (or
systemic) enzymes whose primary work begins in the bloodstream digesting
foreign debris before traveling to bodily tissues to continue this and other
functions. A chronic deficiency of enzymes weakens the immune system,
contributes to illness, and ultimately promotes diseases such as cancer.
Both enzyme types are produced in the body but are also present in raw foods
and through oral supplementation. To achieve and maintain optimum health, an
adequate supply of both forms is fundamental.

There are twenty-two different types of enzymes produced in the body,
primarily by the pancreas, and this production diminishes as we age (1). The
three basic digestive enzymes are amylase, lipase, and protease which
breakdown carbohydrates, fats and proteins. Additionally, cellulose and
lactose break down fiber and dairy. These enzymes work in the stomach during
the period of pre-digestion; however, when food is cooked or processed its
naturally occurring enzymes are destroyed. Consuming denatured food
overburdens the body as it taps into its ever-decreasing enzyme supply in an
effort to complete the pre-digestion process.

When insufficient pre-digestion occurs, the body produces an excess amount
of stomach acid trying to offset the imbalance. This contributes to acid
reflux, heartburn, gas, bloating, and malnutrition (even in overweight
individuals) due to incomplete digestion. Partially digested proteins
putrefy in the intestines forming toxic substances. Once these toxins enter
the bloodstream, they weaken the immune system and contribute to many
serious health conditions as they accumulate in tissues throughout the body.
Consuming raw food, reducing the amount of cooked and processed foods as
much as possible, chewing food thoroughly to activate enzymes in saliva,
plus regular supplementation of digestive enzymes with meals will help
offset the ill effects of an enzyme deficiency. Enzyme-rich food ensures its
complete digestion and leaves the body's supplies available for other
processes.

Complimenting the work of digestive enzymes are metabolic enzymes which
facilitate virtually every chemical reaction and cellular function of the
body, including cleansing the blood and reducing inflammation throughout the
body, among many other vital bodily processes. A deficiency results when
metabolic enzymes are diverted for digestion requirements. A weakened immune
system due to an unmet enzyme deficiency allows for the accumulation of
pathogens (disease causing agents) and carcinogens (cancer causing
substances), and the body's inability to suppress or contain the growth of
cancerous cells.

Nearly all pathogens, including cancer cells, are protected by a
protein-based coating, or "fibrin", that makes it difficult for the immune
system to identify and destroy them. This sticky coating can be up to 15
times thicker than the membrane of normal cells (1,5). This is where
metabolic enzymes are needed. The bulk of these enzymes are proteases, or
"protealytic", which means they speed up the breakdown of proteins. In
sufficient quantities, they digest the protective fibrin membrane and expose
the cancer cells to the immune system.

Since the pancreas produces most of the body's enzyme supplies,
supplementing with metabolic enzymes assists this often-overworked organ and
helps stave off cancer. An ample supply of pancreatic enzymes should be
taken orally between meals to ease the body's metabolic burden and conserve
its enzyme supplies. Unlike digestive enzymes which are taken with food,
metabolic enzymes are taken on an empty stomach to facilitate their entry
into the bloodstream. Due to their protein-digesting capabilities and
health-enhancing properties, therapeutic doses of metabolic/pancreatic
enzymes have been successfully used for decades to help treat cancer.

Historically, the case for pancreatic enzymes in cancer therapy was first
established in the early 1900s by the Scottish Embryologist John Beard, who
observed under the microscope that placenta cells resemble malignant cells
as they grow in preparation for the creation of a baby. Observing that the
placental tissue stops growing at eight weeks once the fetus' pancreatic
enzyme production begins, Beard theorized that a malignant tumor mass would
respond likewise provided a sufficient quantity of pancreatic enzymes was
supplied (2,3).

Beard tested his theories with great success using pancreatic juices to
reduce tumors in humans and animals, and these findings were published in
his 1911 monograph entitled The Enzyme Therapy of Cancer. His pioneering
work was all but forgotten following his death in 1923 until a Texas dentist
by the name of William Donald Kelley established a similar theory based on
Beard's work nearly forty years later (2,3).

Kelley cured himself of advanced pancreatic cancer using a protocol largely
reliant on nutrition and mega doses of pancreatic enzyme supplementation. He
went on to successfully treat thousands of other "terminal" cancer patients;
but despite his extraordinary achievements, he was ostracized by the medical
community who refused (and still refuses) to accept that natural, non-toxic
substances are effective treatments against cancer.

New York City cancer specialist Nicholas Gonzalez, MD began a case review of
Kelley's patients beginning in 1981 while still a med student at Cornell
University. This included research into oral pancreatic enzymes for cancer
treatment, and eventually led to his own practice utilizing the enzyme
approach with advanced cancer patients. He continues to treat his patients
with natural therapies and enzymes based on the work of Beard and Kelley
(4).

Healthy individuals can take small doses of both digestive enzymes with
meals and metabolic enzymes on an empty stomach in order to maintain health
and prevent a deficiency over time. Pregnant women should always consult a
health care provider before beginning a regime of supplementation.

For people with serious health challenges it may be best to begin oral
enzyme supplementation with small doses, gradually increasing until maximum
benefits are felt. Supplementing between meals with as many as 40-60
systemic enzymes as a daily therapeutic dose for cancer patients is not
uncommon (3,4,5). A natural health care practitioner can assist in deciding
the proper supplement type and dosage.

References:

1. Diamond, M.D., W.John, and Cowden, M.D., W.Lee: Cancer Diagnosis, What To
Do Next. Tiburon, CA: Alternative Medicine.com, Inc., 241-6, 2000

2. Fonorow, O.:The Cure for Cancer: Theory, History and Treatment. Townsend
Letter for Doctors and Patients, June 2004

3. Kelley, Wm. DDS: Cancer: Curing the Incurable Without Surgery,
Chemotherapy, or Radiation. Bonita, CA: New Century Promotions, 3-13, 2005
Edition.

4. Gonzalez M.D., N.: Enzyme Therapy and Cancer.
(http://www.dr-gonzalez.com/history_of_treatment_txt.htm)

5. Wrba, M.D., Heinrich: Leading European Oncologist Discusses Systemic Oral
Enzyme Therapy and Cancer. (www.stopcancer.com/enzymes_wobenzym.htm)

About the author
Mary Laredo is an artist, educator and gallery curator who lives and works
in Detroit, MI. As a breast cancer survivor who shunned conventional
treatment, she is writing a book about her experience with natural therapies
and nutritional healing. Visit http://marylaredo.blogspot.com