Beating a tough cancer diagnosis is no easy feat, but thanks to the incredible treatments now available, it’s a reality for more and more people. Take for example the case of Jackie M., a 56-year-old mother of two who had recently gone through breast cancer treatment. As a successful lawyer, she was used to rough courtroom battles, but this one with cancer wasn’t like anything she had ever experienced before.
And while her treatment team successfully helped her to the other side by treating her breast tumor, Jackie was deeply fatigued and internally bruised from the battle. Her energy levels plummeted, and she was experiencing brain fog that was quite distressing to her, as well as other symptoms such as digestive problems and insomnia. Her doctors who successfully treated the tumor didn’t have many answers for the next phase of healing, which was problematic for Jackie given the poor quality of life she was experiencing. Frustrated and discouraged, she found herself wondering, “If my cancer is in remission, how come I feel so terrible?”
It goes without saying that the road to cancer recovery often has many twists and turns. To those who have been through it personally or have had someone close to them experience it, the journey can be harrowing. The first line treatments – surgery, radiation and chemotherapy – aim to kill the tumor, which is critical, but they also take their toll on the healthy parts of the person.
Dealing with the aftermath is often beyond the scope of the treatment team that had been so helpful up until that point, leaving folks like Jackie feeling alone and confused about next steps. Struggling to get back to full function and thrive again, Jackie decided to reach out to the Cancer Recovery Program at the Marcus Institute of Integrative Health – Jefferson Health. Led by an oncologist who is also board-certified in Integrative Medicine, this program focuses on how to regain health after you survive cancer.
The program starts with an in-depth assessment of current physical status – everything from nutrient status and metabolic testing, to cardiovascular health and more. Then the path forward is tailored to the unique physiologic profile of each person.
This precision medicine approach uses a range of therapies aimed to restore health, wellness and vitality. In Jackie’s case, the team discovered that she had a severe nutrient deficiency, an unbalanced gut microbiome and a radiation wound that wasn’t healing fully. She benefited from targeted nutrient repletion that included infusion therapies, and her wound responded profoundly well with hyperbaric oxygen treatments. She also did some mind-body therapies to restore sleep and decrease stress levels. An important aspect of the program is that data informs what the plan is for recovery, and no two people are exactly alike.
“I thought I was on my own to deal with the rest of my recovery after my cancer was in remission and that is just not the case. The Marcus Institute’s support and direction during this phase of my life has been a gift I didn’t know how badly I needed.” — Jackie M.
To learn more about the Marcus Institute of Integrative Health’s Cancer Recovery program, visit JeffersonHealth.org/Recovery.
