Breast Cancer: Beyond Convention: The World's Foremost Authorities on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Offer Advice on Healing [Paperback]

Isaac O.M.D. L.A.c. Cohen (Author), Debu M.D. Tripathy (Author), Mary M.D. L.A.c Tagliaferri (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 16, 2003 | ISBN-10: 0743410122 | ISBN-13: 978-0743410120

Today, more breast cancer treatment options are available than ever before. But how can you determine the course of action that is right for YOU?

Breast Cancer: Beyond Convention is the only single resource that lays out all of the traditional and alternative approaches available today. Assembling a "dream team" of breast cancer experts, the editors of this truly groundbreaking guide encourage readers to work with their practitioners as they consider a variety of approaches, all explained in clear, nontechnical language. Readers will discover

• how to find the right caregiver and how to best complement conventional medical treatment with alternative medicine

• how to be "healed" without necessarily being "cured"

• how to incorporate traditional Chinese medicine -- including herbs, qigong, and acupuncture

• the right diet to choose, no matter the form of treatment; the importance of soy products; plus fifteen delicious recipes to sample

• the best vitamins, minerals, and natural foods, and the specific benefits -- and possible dangers -- of each

• the merits of spiritual treatments, from meditation and directed prayer to the powerful mystery of the "will to live."

The guide features an encyclopedic appendix of websites, and lists of national support organizations, care centers, recommended audiotapes, CDs, and books -- making this the single source to help patients take control of their treatment, assuage their fears, and get them on the road to healing.

A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to the Carol Franc Buck Breast Care Center Complementary and Alternative Medicine Program at the University of California, San Francisco

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Medical treatments seem to get more promising every year, but they also seem to get more overwhelming. Faced with a seemingly infinite array of choices in the area of cancer treatment, what's a patient to do when time is of the essence? Breast Cancer: Beyond Convention is both a starting place and a steady companion through the labyrinth of health care. Assembling writing from over 20 experts, including Susan Love, Dean Ornish, and Rachel Remen, this guide intelligently touches on a range of complementary therapies while teaching readers how to choose among the possibilities for optimum results.

Chapters include essays on Chinese medicine, diet, meditation, micronutrients, and guided prayer, which cover issues from scarring and reconstruction to soy and osteoporosis. Each section includes concisely documented research and tips on how to distinguish the genuine healers from the "quacks"; at the end of the book is an excellent contact guide for information on all these topics, as well as nationwide support groups and specialized research clinics. For purposes of either prevention or treatment education, you'll find supremely helpful information that calmly helps navigate the waters of modern medicine. --Jill Lightner --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

More and more Americans, especially those with serious illnesses such as breast cancer, are turning to complementary and alternative medicine to supplement their Western treatments. This collection of essays edited by oncologist Tripathy and acupuncturist/herbalists Cohen and Tagliaferri (who herself is a breast cancer survivor) is intended to serve as a guide to the alternative therapies most often used by women with breast cancer. The book includes dense and sometimes meandering chapters on approaches such as Chinese Medicine, vitamin and mineral supplementation, meditation and prayer. The authors maintain that little research has been conducted on these therapies because of lack of funding and the difficulty in evaluating alternative medicine separately from conventional, but that data has become increasingly available. Although most of the chapters are largely based on research, others rely simply on seemingly improbable anecdotes (for example, one chapter describes a patient who recovered from inflammatory breast cancer after she began following a macrobiotic diet). Despite its inconsistencies, women with breast cancer looking for alternative therapies might find this book to be a good start in their own research.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: Atria Books (September 16, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743410122
• ISBN-13: 978-0743410120
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,093,644 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reading this book is like having a wise friend by your side, June 10, 2002

By 

SwissAmerican - See all my reviews

This review is from: Breast Cancer: Beyond Convention--The World's Foremost Authorities on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Offer Advice on Healing (Hardcover)

This is a book is about integrative medicine, the emerging field of medicine that attempts to integrate the best therapies from both Western medicine and from non-conventional practices.

As Dr. Dean Ornish points out in his forword, the authors of the fifteen books chapters are striving to build bridges between the two worlds. They have all made profound contributions of their own to the medical community, and the expertise they share in this book may help provide patients with new hope and new choices. There is a great richness of material here, covering many perspectives:

Mainstream physicians such as famed breast cancer experts Susan Love and Debu Tripathy share their experiences and how they came to understand that they had to open their minds and look beyond the traditional boundaries of medicine. Bestselling authors Rachel Naomi Remen, John Kabat Zinn and Michael Lerner share their experiences with the mysterious powers of the mind and heart in the healing process. The role of diet is addressed in chapters by lead editor Mary Tagliaferri and by Larry Kushi. Chinese Medicine, Herbs, Supplements and other natural products are treated in several chapters. Controversial subjects such as distant healing are being explored, and the role of support groups in the well-being of cancer patients is analyzed. There is a portrait of a clinic that has become "a healing place for low-income women", and even tips on how to evaluate health information on the internet.

No one book can cover all the possible alternative and complementary therapies that are being used by breast cancer patients. But one would hope that these thoughtful essays will inspire many more physicians and alternative medicine practitioners to build bridges between their worlds and explore the possibilities of collaboration with open minds and hearts.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An invaluable guide for BREAST HEALTH as well as cancer, November 10, 2002

By 

Barbara Ulrich (New York, NY,USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Breast Cancer: Beyond Convention--The World's Foremost Authorities on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Offer Advice on Healing (Hardcover)

After my diagnosis, I waded through shelves of library books on alternative health/breast cancer/healing options in order to find some of the information in this succinct literate volume. This anthology by complementary and alternative medical experts addresses both scientific and spiritual approaches for living with breast cancer. A road map to help with diagnosis, surgery, and after care . Excellent website directory.

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book, February 7, 2010

By 

J. Smith "jdsmith3031" (Tiffin, Ohio USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Breast Cancer: Beyond Convention: The World's Foremost Authorities on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Offer Advice on Healing (Paperback)

I bought this book for a friend who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer. I skimmed through the book before handing it over to her and found it very interesting and inforative. She found that it was well written. Delivery was faster than I expected and the book was in great shape.