The Nation Newspaper

Tag: cancer

  • Jobelyn ‘can assist cancer cases’

    Cancer has remained a dreaded disease to humanity. The scientific and technological development across the world does not alter this statement. Even in the United States (US) where medical science has reached its peak, the position remains the same. When Mr. Nixon was president of the US, it was decreed that the cure for Cancer must be found within 10 years or so. This was several decades ago, but there is no light at the end of the tunnel yet. The solution to the problem of Cancer is buried in nature and until humanity bows to nature, human suffering as a result of cancer would continue unabated.

    By profession, I am a Chartered Accountant and a Management Consultant, who was led by nature to discover a clue that would eventually make a big impact in the quest to find a solution to the problem of cancer. After a distinguished career in accounting and management consultancy, nature shifted my focus to investigating how a simple folk medicine may solve most of human health problems.

    An attempt on my life in 1993 was the major turning point in my life. I was introduced to a herbal practitioner, who was using a single herb to treat all his patients. I was later to discover that this herb was a special Sorghum bicolor leaf sheath, which had been in use as folk medicine by the natives of Southwestern Nigeria for centuries, to cure diseases of diverse origins, including cancer, diabetes, arthritis, hypertension, stroke, heart diseases, anemia, sickle cell anemia and neurological disorders. My two-year apprenticeship under this herbalist convinced me that it was indeed, a truth that he was using the single herb to cure every disease. I was a witness to the cure of a Teaching Hospital professor, who had a terminal case of Leukemia and this happened within a record time of 3 months.

    I decided to embark on an adventure to provide a credible evidence to substantiate the awesome power of this herb and this project started in 1996. I am satisfied that the effort has so far been fruitful.  My initial task was to transform the herbal concoction from a water extract to a capsule form. I consider this would be more appealing to users including medical scientists.

    The first publication in the Nigerian popular newspaper, The Guardian, created the first awareness and this was before it was packaged as a commercial product.

    In 1998, the product was offered free for Leukemia trial on the internet and someone from the US accepted the offer and the summary of the outcome is as follows:

    An American, whose wife is an associate professor in the Department of Occupational Therapy, Boston University, Massachusetts, US.

    He had Acute Myeloid Leukemia, refractory type M-O. He received three courses of chemotherapy between October and January 1996 -1997.  Two weeks after the last chemotherapy, his leukemia relapsed.

    He subsequently underwent a bone marrow transplant, but the leukemia relapsed later.  He went for another protocol in which he received lymphocyte infusion (helper – T cells) followed by three weeks of interleukin-2 injections.  In spite of all these, his blasts continued to increase and the haematocrit kept going down.  He was transfused with two pints of whole blood every other day.  He also received multiple platelet transfusions.  His case was dismissed by his doctors at Dana Farber Cancer Centre (one of the best two cancer centres in the world) as irredeemable.  He was given two days to live after discharge from hospital.

    His wife placed an order for Jubi capsules (Now Jobelyn) through the internet.  Though the patient is now deceased, his condition while on this therapy  could best be summarised in the spouse’s  own words “The Jubi Formula definitely stabilised his haematocrit for as long as he took it and it may have prolonged his life a few weeks.  Having been able to keep him alive for a month after they thought he was going to die was worth it.

    Another testimony was from the father of a 26-year–old leukemia patient, whose ailment had defied chemotherapy and who was on the verge of receiving a bone marrow transplant. He came to Nigeria from America to procure Jobelyn for his son and returned four to five month afterwards to say that his son had been discharged from hospital as result of complete remission.

    Up to this stage, we did not have any scientific evidence to back up a claim that Jobelyn was useful for the treatment of Cancer, but the work we have done in the past 15 years had provided abundant evidence. It was climaxed by the discovery of a compound which activated the NK Cells and  showed potential in cancer immuno-surveillance.

    After about 80 years of vigorous efforts to find a cure for Cancer, the treatments available are chemotheraphy, surgery and radiotheraphy. Everybody is aware of the dangerous side effects of these therapies. Patients, who survive five years after the start of chemotherapy are regarded as having been cured. Most of the patients do not survive for this length of time.

    In recent times, serious attention is being given to the new science called immuno-therapy. While I was writing this article, I came across an article based on a recent CNN broadcast on the recent developments in this field of science.

    “Cancer immuno-therapy really refers to treatments that use your own immune system to recognise, control and hopefully ultimately cure cancers,” said Jill O’Donnell-Tormey, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Cancer Research Institute, during the conference in New York last month.

    “Many people for many years didn’t think the immune system was really going to have a role in any treatment for cancer, but I think the entire medical community (and) oncologists now agree that immunotherapy is here to stay,” she said.

    The specific sector of the immune system that is responsible for the immuno-therapy function is known as the NK (Natural Killer) Cells.

    The big pharmaceutical companies are now in a rat race to produce drugs or technology that would activate the NK Cells for cancer immuno-therapy and they are facing formidable difficulties. The issue of side effects is enormous and the cost of the finished product would undoubtedly be beyond the reach of the average citizens.

    Medical scientists believe that nature is primitive and that they could ignore nature to find solutions to many problems including health issues. They have not been able to produce a trouble free solution. The approach to solve the problem of cancer with chemotherapy is a complete failure and hence the recent realisation that the immune cells offer the best approach to solving cancer problems.

    But how do you assist the immune cells to achieve this objective? There are several ways that scientists have been exploring. One is by inventing vaccines and the other way is by extraction of the T Cells and manipulating them before re-introducing them to the patients to activate the NK Cells for them to  destroy cancer cells. These unnatural ways have been creating problems and side effects.

    The natives of Southwestern Nigeria claimed they have been treating cancer for decades, using Tradition Herbal preparations but they have either been scorned or ignored because they did not have scientific evidence to back up their claims.

    We have spent the last 20 years carrying out studies and have reached a milestone that could not be ignored in our quest to prove that an African Traditional Medicinal product has some measure of scientific evidence  to support its claim for treatment of cancer.

    In a research carried out at Natural Immune System (NIS) Laboratory, Oregon, in the US and published in the Journal of Medicinal Food with the title: “West African Sorghum Bicolor Leaf Sheaths Have Anti-Inflammatory and Immune-Modulating Properties In Vitro”, it was reported that both aqueous and non aqueous compounds in Jobelyn contribute to anti-inflammatory effects, combined with multiple effects on immune cell activation status. These observations may help suggest mechanisms of action that contribute to the traditional use of sorghum-based products, beverages, and extracts for immune support.

    The latest research carried out by scientists at Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), was published in the Journal of Cancer Research Therapy under the title: “Newly isolated compounds from West African Sorghum bicolor leaf sheaths Jobelyn show potential in cancer immuno-surveillance”. It was concluded that “evidence of innate effector cells activation by ethanolic extracts of Jobelyn® suggests that this variety of Sorghum may be able to mediate direct cell cytotoxicity supporting the control and clearance of a number of tumour cells”.

    Almost all the leading big pharmaceutical companies are investing millions of dollars in immuno-therapy to provide the solution to the problem of cancer, but they have been meeting obstacles because they are ignoring nature in their approach. Vaccines and synthetic agents are repulsive to the sensitive nature of immune system. The solution could only come from organic molecules derived from natural plant sources. Jobelyn has produced the molecule that has demonstrated its potential in cancer immune surveillance. This is no doubt an in vitro experiment and the product will soon be subjected to human clinical trials for Breast Cancer at a Nigeria Teaching Hospital.  Jobelyn, a natural product derived from a unique variety of Sorghum bicolor, has been in use for centuries by Africans for the treatment of cancer and many other ailments.

    Cancer is a complex disease and the current approach to treatment is multi-dimensional. One of the important aspects to Cancer treatment is appropriate food and nutrition. Jobelyn is a perfect example of food and medicine that play an important role in the treatment of cancer.

    Jobelyn’s nutritional contents were assessed by GMP Laboratories of America, Inc., CA, US. SBLS was proven to be a good source of minerals like calcium (35.2 per cent RDA), magnesium (59.03 per cent RDA), sodium (95.83 per cent RDA), selenium (28.0 per cent RDA), Zinc (13.62 per cent RDA) and copper (127.77 per cent RDA). RDA means Recommended Daily Allowance and it is set by Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) in the US.

    More interestingly, it was observed that 100g of this extract provides around 285 per cent of the daily recommended levels of iron.

    Jobelyn contains large amounts of iron and as such it is used in the treatment of anemia. However, most of the excess iron from Jobelyn is chelated by the polyphenols in the sorghum extract and as a result the excess iron is not presented to the body. Such observation suggests that the use of Jobelyn can help improve haematocric (blood level) and quality of life in cancer patients as well as reduce several micronutrients deficiencies, which are common in those patients.

     

    Vitamin Contents in Jobelyn

     

    Jobelyn also contains substantial amounts of vital vitamin B12.

    It is a water soluble vitamin that acts as a cofactor in the conversion of homocysteine to methionine and methyl tetrahydrofolate to tetrahydrofolate.

    Polyglutamate is further added to tetrahydrofolate to prevent the diffusion of folates out of the cell. Folates are essential for the building blocks of DNA in rapidly regenerating organs like the production of blood while excess homocysteine is known to cause endothelial damage and therefore, cardiovascular disease.  It is well documented that the body cannot produce B12 and that it can only be sourced from animal foods or in the form of B12 vitamin supplement.

    Deficiency usually results in anemia, impaired brain function, and symptoms of mental disorder. The only good food sources of B12 are primarily animal foods like meat, fish and eggs producing 2.8 µg/100 1.95 µg/100; 4.15 µg/100 of B12, respectively. Interestingly, Jobelyn is a good source of B12 producing 0.83 µg/100 g. This is the first time a plant product has been reported to contain significant amounts (34 per cent) of vitamin B12. Vitamin B12 could potentially be a useful antioxidant as it directs reaction with reactive oxygen species and through glutathione sparing effect, can modify signalling molecules to decrease oxidative stress and increase total antioxidant capacity

     

    Fatty Acids Contents in Jobelyn

    Jobelyn provides an impressive 1:3 ratio of Omega-3 to that of Omega-6 and as population studies indicate, our diet should contain no more than three parts of Omega-6 to one part of Omega-3, which is ideal for the heart’s health. Omega-6 fats have pro-inflammatory effects while omega-3 fats have anti-inflammatory effects. The ratio of 3:1 will reduce the chronic inflammation that most people recognise as the root cause of many chronic diseases, including diabetes and cancer.  Omega-3 fatty acids play important role in every cell in the body. Omega-3 makes up cell membrane and helps in maintaining membrane fluidity, keeps the nervous system functioning by up-regulating brain derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) and modulating neurotransamitters re-uptake, degradation, synthesis and anti-apoptotic effects once it gets converted into fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and later docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).

    However, Omega-6 inhibits the conversion of Omega-3 into DHA and EPA, therefore, the adequate ratio of 1:2 or 1:3 is usually required to allow conversion of adequate amounts of Omega-3. The Omega balance is critical as Omega-3 and Omega-6 compete for absorption into the cells, and an excess of dietary Omega-6 will result in too few of Omega-6 being incorporated into cell membranes, from where they exert their essential effects

    In some developed countries, alternative holistic systems have been established after identifying the limitation of the orthodox system. There are centres in Tijuana (Mexico), Israel, Germany and other countries where cancer problem is being addressed with holistic system. Patients in search of the holistic solution travel to these places from the US in spite of their highly developed medical system. We are proposing to establish an integrative system in Nigeria where complete wellness would be the target. It will combine the best in orthodox with natural and traditional systems to provide reliable solution for cancer patients in Nigeria. This will saves a lot of foreign exchange from medical tourism by Nigerians to foreign countries like India, Germany, Israel and other countries in search of solution to cancer problems. We hope that that when this system is fully developed, people from developed countries would be attracted to Nigeria for a better solution to their cancer problems.

  • Air Force fights cancer

    Air Force fights cancer

    The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has conducted a cancer awareness campaign and free screening to mark the opening of its brand new cancer screening centre at the 461 NAF Hospital, Kaduna. Assistant Editor SEUN AKIOYE reports

    Those expecting the usual military-style programme at the ceremony to open the Cancer Screening Centre at the 461 Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Hospital Kaduna were disappointed. Instead of marches and parades, there were doctors and specialists who came to deepen the knowledge of the NAF personnel about cancer.

    The Chief of Air Staff (CAS) Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar  since assuming office seems to be in a hurry to deliver on his mandate of “re-positioning the NAF as a professional force” which includes training and provision of infrastructure all over NAF bases.

    One of such was the Cancer Screening Centre and Registry which was commissioned on December 19, 2016 and domiciled at the 461 NAF Hospital Kaduna. The establishment of the centre, which was the first of its kind was to “provide a modern facility with the capability for early detection of the most common cancers affecting our personnel and other people in the local community,” said the Chief of Medical Services, Air Vice Marshal Saley Shinkafi.

    Although the 461 Hospital is the first cancer screening centre, there has been expansion, upgrade and provision of modern, high technology equipment to all of the NAF’s 33 health care facilities and recruitment of specialist manpower to manage them.

    The maiden cancer awareness programme which was tagged: “Kick Cancer out of NAF Bases”, according to the Air Chief would be replicated in all NAF bases across the country. The CAS said the health of an individual is one of the most essential pre-requisites for the individual to survive and carry out his duties effectively.

    He also noted that: “The cost to the Service could be unimaginable if we neglect the health of our personnel and their families,” while expressing the hope that the cancer screening centres would provide the personnel and the host communities of the NAF bases the opportunity to carry out regular checks in order to detect cancers early enough and prevent late diagnosis.

     

    A cancer conundrum

     

    Three experts joined the NAF medical personnel in discussing the cancer challenge and the ways to prevent the untimely deaths usually associated with the disease. Dr. Monday Yilkudi, a consultant surgeon at the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, Gwagalada and breast cancer specialist  said cancer is an abnormal body cell which “keeps dividing and not under the control of the body.”

    Yilkudi said the cause of breast cancer  which is one of the most common forms of cancer has not been determined even though there are risk factors that may contribute to its emergence including’ gender, family history, race, early menstruation etc.

    There are other lifestyle factors including low physical activity, alcohol consumption, obesity which may contribute to its risk factor. However, early detection which can be accomplished either by screening and or detection by constant physical examination by women is essential to beating the disease.

    For Dr. Sam Ojah, senior consultant and gynecologist with the Ministry of Defence, cancer of the cervix may be the second most common form of cancer, it is however the most deadly with over 270,000 deaths and over 500,000 cases every year.

    The cancer which is caused by Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), a sexually transmittable disease affects mainly women and early detection is the only way to survive the cancer. However, a third consultant, Dr. Ahmed Mohammed, a consultant at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria said prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men but it advances with age.

    “Prostate cancer is a disease of men and it is the 6th leading cause of cancer death in the world. It is very rare before the age of 45 and like the other forms of cancer, we do not know the cause,” he said. But there is good news, only one out of 38 people diagnosed with the disease will die of it.

    One of the remedies of prostate cancer is also an unusual and unwilling treatment by most men; “As long as men have testicles, they are at risk of prostate cancer so if a man wants to diagnose prostate cancer early, then they should remove the testicles early,” Mohammed said.

    This unusual remedy drew laughter from the participants but the doctor was not done yet, one of the unproven remedies is frequent ejaculation to the tune of 20 times a month. This proposition though unproven scientifically drew loud applause from the mainly male audience while the women looked on in disbelief.

    After the lecture, a town hall meeting between the experts, NAF medical personnel led by AVM Shinkafi and officers and men of the NAF Training Command, Kaduna took place. Many of the women wanted to reconcile preventing Cervical cancer through abstinence from sex and helping their husbands prevent prostate cancer through frequent ejaculation. However, Dr. Ojah insisted sexual transmission of cervical cancer is a risk factor when multiple sexual partners are involved.

    The Air Officer Commanding, Training Command, Kaduna, Air Vice Marshal Christopher Okoye said the CAS has spent millions of naira  on the cancer screening centre and it must be utilized by the personnel. “ The Chief has spent so much to put this together, you must make use of it, the facility is not only for the personnel and their families, but for everyone in Kaduna,” Okoye said.

    Chief of Medical Services, AVM Shinkafi said there are plans to open the cancer centre in all the 33 health care facilities of the NAF in Nigeria.

    “The Nigerian Air Force has tried to improve our facilities because cancer is becoming a prominent health concern in Nigeria. The Chief of Air Staff felt no area of health care should be left unattended to so we have started addressing the issues of cancer.”

  • Cancer: Osun govt gets help from Germany

    In line with the six point Integral Action Plan of Governor Rauf Aregbesola, the Osun State government has secured the commitment of a notable German institute to assist the state on improved health care delivery. A team of seasoned German oncologists from the Institute for Operative Medicine of the Otto-yon Guericke-University, Magdeburg, Germany, will be in the Osun state between Feb 1 to Feb 4 2017  to perfect plans on collaborative effort on control, treatment and management of various class of cancer in the state.

    The programme will include cancer screening right from Primary Health Centre to Secondary and Tertiary health care system. Cancer is known to be third leading cause of death in this part of the world. The Institute for Operative Medizine of the Otto-yon Guericke-University had acceded to the request of the state government to tackle headlong health challenges posed by cancer related diseases and as well render services on general surgery operation.

    According to a letter of acknowledgment signed by the Head of the institute, Prof. Hans Lippert, the institute will also support the state Government fully in cancer preventive awareness.

  • A claim of coconut oil cure for cancer

    We live in a world of edible oils. Mr Lade Bonuola (a.k.a LADBONE) told me many times he knew of palm oil as an edible oil only when he came from his home town, Kishi, for his Higher School Certificate Education (HSC) at Ijebu-Ode Grammar School, in Southwestern Nigeria. Kishi is an agrarian town in the north of Southwestern Nigeria. In Kishi of the 1960s, shea butter was the staple cooking oil. Mr Bonuola said he saw a palm kernel tree for the first time in the South of Southwestern Nigeria. When he speaks with the nostalgia and love for a meal cooked with Shea butter, you are likely to screw your face in embarrassment if you are one of those people Nigerians call omo a je butter or butty or omo get-inside. These expressions describe in various ways the Anglicised, Europeanised or Americanised Nigerian who is detached from the ways of his or progenital root.

    I am not a Butty. But I do not think I can enjoy a meal of jollof rice cooked with shea butter oil. Maybe this is because I have been used to palm kernel oil and to peanut (groundnut) oil for more than 60 years. Maybe I recoil simply because of nutritional miseducation that, like coconut oil and palm kernel oil, shea butter oil is dangerous for health.

    I am better educated about edible oils today, having read such books as ANOINT YOURSELF WITH OIL and Dr. Udo Erasmus’s FATS THAT HEAL and FATS THAT KILL. We must thank Dr. Erasmus for this great book. It is somewhat a documentation of his several research efforts which “unified the fat theory”. Unification of the fat theory presupposes that, before him, the fat theory was a motley crowd of disparate thinking. The dominant theory or thinking until Dr. Erasmus came on the scene was that fats which solidifies at room temperature, like shea butter oil, were dangerous fats because they contained plenty of the easily oxidisable Lower Density Lipoprotein (LDL) a fraction of cholesterol.

    Palm oil and Coconut oil, which may become semi-solid or solid, especially if kept in the refrigerator, came under nutritional “badmouthing” by nutritionists and researchers in Western countries.

    In the West at that time heart disease, heart attack and stroke were major killers, and these deaths were linked to cholesterol blockage or damage of the arteries and other blood vessels.

    So, many people fled from oils, touching them with only long spoons as it were. But it was soon discovered that this did not  stop or reduce the rate of heart and vascular (blood vessel) disease, heart attacks or strokes, and that, in many cases, the victims were the people who abstained from fats and oils.

    Dr. Erasmus’s mission was probably to remind us that there is a reason Mother Nature provides us with fats and oil. If you press the tip of your nose, you would find oil. If you check your skin, there is oil in it. The brain is fatty. The eyes have oil. The heart uses oils for energy. The testes and the ovaries and the breasts have oil. If we avoid oil in the diet, how will these organs obtain the oils which are their constituents and maintain them. If we situate this thought in the context that a lion eats mostly the oil-rich organs of its game, we may come closer to an understanding of the importance of oil in our lives and health. I am humbled the more in this line of thinking when I remember that petrol, which drives our civilisation, is nothing but the oils from the leaves and trees and other vegetation which leached into the soil probably millions of years ago!

    Dr. Erasmus found that these are good oils maintain our bodies and heal diseases. He found, too, that there are bad oils which  damage health and kill.

    Based on this new thinking, I wondered why the people of Kishi had not all died because they eat shea butter, if this oil was bad, as we were informed pre-1960s. I wondered as well why I am still alive, because I eat Palm kernel oil. I remember, also, that my friends who eat Banga soup, made from palm kernel oil, are all alive and doing reasonably well. What of Coconut oil? Why have the people of Badagry not all died, because Coconut oil is their own palm oil?

    The story has turned out to be that farmers in the United States produced lots of Soya bean oil which they wanted to unload on the world market. Canadian farmers too wished to sell Canola oil. And since these oils could be unloaded on African and Caribbean populations, the traditional cooking oils of these people had, first, to be taken away from them and replaced with soy oil and Canola oil. This was the basis of sponsored studies which, thankfully, Dr. Erasmus’s independent investigations have now dislodged, despite the power of advertising which propelled them. The Caribbean people, too, have come of age, and done their own studies, which shows that their staple cooking oil, coconut oil, is one of the world’s best and safest for health.

    Is it not surprising and shocking as well today that coconut oil is one of the fastest selling oils in the United States? Not only is it used as an edible oil, it has found uses in cosmetics and in medicine. Medicinally, it has found an important place in Alternative Medicine protocols for weight control, digestion, HIV therapy, and, lately cancer management and cures.

    It is to provide evidence for these suggestions that the following article which I received on my chat-group platform, is produced below. It is the experience of one woman who was knocked down by a cancer which responded to no hospital protocol but who eventually became cured on a coconut oil therapy… she writes:

    “I’m positive that the testimonial below will be a blessing to someone fighting cancer somewhere. Please spread the word, will you.

     

    SHARE THIS TO SAVE LIVES !!!

    ________________________________

     

    COCONUT OIL CURES CANCER

    Posted on June 1, 2015

    Julie Figueroa – Maryland, Ohio

    “In 1998, I was running a computer company in New York. I also had an Internet company in the Philippines and was in charge of a very exciting Internet trade show in Asia (Internet World).  I was very busy and enjoying work but always made sure I got my yearly executive check up, including my yearly mammogram.

    “In February of 1998 I got a clean bill of health. A few months later I began feeling a strange sensation in my breast. Late October it developed into a sharp pain. I went to the doctor and was immediately referred to an oncologist for testing. I was told I had a very aggressive form of breast cancer and needed surgery immediately. This came as a shock to me. I began to wonder why? There was no history of cancer in my family. Was it the toxic waste in New Jersey where I had lived for the past 10 years? Was I stressed at work and did not know it? I thought there had to be a reason people get cancer. Before going through with a mastectomy, I wanted a second opinion.

    “I went to a different specialist but he told me the same thing. I kept trying to find a doctor that would tell me that all I needed was a lumpectomy or just chemotherapy. Finally, the fifth doctor told it to me straight, “You don’t have a choice. We don’t even know if we can still save you. You are at stage 4, the most serious stage, we need to do the surgery immediately.”

    “Here I was, in February cancer free, now just eight months later I was knocking on death’s door with a very aggressive form of breast cancer. I went through with the operation and afterwards several months of chemotherapy. While doctors said that the cancer was under control, it wasn’t completely gone. So they kept me on medication. I decided to go back to the Philippines for a visit. I owned a farm there that I loved and had always wanted to grow medicinal plants. The farm was filled with coconut trees, which were harvested for the copra. I thought about planting coffee under the coconut trees and start an herbal medicine garden.

    “Then in 2001, I began to experience painful headaches. They became so severe that it felt like the bones in my skull were being fractured. I walked into my doctor’s office and told him I wanted an X-ray of my skull. “Were you in an accident?” he questioned. “No,” I said, “I just feel that I have some kind of fracture. He smiled, “How do you know you have a fracture? Maybe a strong pain killer will solve your problem.” “I know what a fracture feels like.” I said, “I’ve had several bones broken in the past and I know what it feels like.” He didn’t argue any further and I had an X-ray taken. I went back the next day to see my doctor and instead, met with seven other doctors. They had never seen the type of skull cancer I had. Almost half my skull looks like cheese that had been eaten by rats. I was in shock. I asked them what were my chances for survival? They said, “In the Philippines, at your stage … none.” I probably had two months.

    “I took the next flight to the United States. I went to see my doctor the afternoon I arrived. The doctors in Manila had already faxed and spoken to him about my condition. The next day I visited with my neurosurgeon. We discussed my condition and scheduled a craniotomy. My prognosis was poor. He ordered an MRI, CT scans, bone scans, blood work, etc. This was the same cancer that had so aggressively attacked me before. It had now spread up into my skull. Surgery was scheduled for the morning after. The cancer was hairline close to the main artery in my brain. The bad news was that he could not take it all out; 20 per cent of it was at the back of my skull in the center over the main artery. Chemotherapy had not been successful after breast surgery so there was little hope it would be of any use now. But, at this point, it was the only hope I had. My chances for survival were grim. I knew I’d better make the most of the time I had remaining.

    “After several months of recovery from the surgery, I went back to my farm in Philippines to visit my family. I was really weak and would just sit on the hill watching the farmers work among the coconut trees planting coffee seedlings. I knew I had to do something to strengthen my immune system. I wanted to plant an herb garden. I started doing research on what medicinal plants I should grow that would boost my immune system. I thought about planting ginseng or bitter melons. I even considered growing a shrub from the Amazon.

    “Just about that time, I came across some research on coconut oil. I read about clinical trials for AIDS in the Philippines using coconut oil. I figured if coconut oil can boost the immune system and cure AIDS, it might work for my cancer. I started taking three to four tablespoons of oil a day plus whatever I used in preparing my meals. I would add it to my oatmeal in the morning, put it in my hot chocolate, cook my meals in it. I also snacked on fresh coconut and drank coconut juice.

    “By July my doctors started to worry. I had been gone for nearly six months. They needed to monitor the cancer that was still in my skull. So, I flew back to the US. To their complete surprise I had gone into remission. They asked me what I had done. I told them I found a cure-virgin coconut oil. Today, I continue to use coconut oil and I am cancer free! I had grown up around coconut trees in the Philippines. My grandmother used to make coconut oil from fresh coconuts just as many of the farmers did. I never used it because we were told it was a saturated fat. We were healthy. Conscious so we used hydrogenated soybean oil and corn oil. I had coconut oil around me all my life. It took getting cancer and a desperate search for a cure that made me rediscover this miracle oil.

    ________________________________

    “Don’t forget to share this. It will save someone from untimely death.

    It takes nothing to add coconut oil to your diet today. I wish to experiment with cooking my beans and my rice not with coconut oil but with the coconut itself. I would grate the coconut and add the chaff to the food in the pot on the stove. I believe this will bring a lot of coconut oil into the food and provide me with coconut fibre for digestion and make me constipation free. Ulcer patients may not try this. For the grazing of the fibre on their injury may worsen ulcer wound and pain. But they may profit from one tablespoonful of the oil taken just before a meal and another added to the meal. We must thank our coconut industry in Nigeria, especially all the young people who are struggling to keep coconut and coconut oil culture alive in our memory. Many people are now making coconut oil and coconut product for sale. The buyers complain that this product are expensive and wonder why the cost is up when the coconut tree grows in Nigeria and their is not much American dollar input, if any, in production. These critics do not know that most of Nigeria’s coconut trees are older than they are and that, despite increasing demand, coconut plan are not being planted in enough quantum to keep pace. The sad news is that we  import coconut from Ghana to bridge the gap. In this regard, we are like a stupid, foolish, and cursed nation. Last week on Facebook I suggested that the Minister of Agriculture should be one of the Ministers President Muhammadu Buhari should politely ask to go if, as speculated in the media, he plans a cabinet reshuffle. How can we have a Minister of Agriculture who is a farmer, saying nothing to the nation as the price of palm oil rockets to N1,000 per liter while petrol is N145 per litre at the pump. What we expect from him is a master plan to reverse Nigeria’s ineptitude in his own sub-sector within the tenure of this Administration.The change we expected from this administration is the change in the way we think and do things. Malaysians change their way of thinking about agriculture when they came to Nigeria to buy palm kernel seedlings. We even gave them agricultural officers who taught them how to farm palm kernel in plantations. Today, Malaysia is one of the biggest palm oil exporters in the world. Today, Nigeria, a former leading palm oil exporter in the world, must import palm oil to have peace on the dinning table. Why can we, for example, not start today a 10-kilometre square palm kernel plantation which will create jobs for farmers, transporters, security and medical personnel and recreational people in a new forest habitat?  Can we not do the same for coconut trees has they have done in the Caribbean, to become one of the biggest coconut oil producers in the world?

    Meanwhile, let us once again enjoy the good old coconut and coconut oil.

  • ‘Early discovery, treatment prevents death from cancer’

    A non-governmental organisation, Health Education and Empowerment Initiative (HEDEN), has advocated early and thorough medical screening once a sign of cervical cancer is noticed.

    This, according to the organisation, is to ward off the disease and create a new lease of life.

    The organisation’s Executive Director, Mrs. Folasade Ofurune, gave the advice at an awareness programme organised at Ijoko-Lemode area, Ifo Local Government, Ogun State at the weekend.

    She urged parents to vaccinate their children, boys and girl, noting that cervical cancer is preventable by receiving the Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine before first sex from age 11 or above.

    Mrs. Ofurune described cervical cancer as a fatal disease, if left unrecognised and untreated.

    She stated that it was very important for every woman to undergo regular cervical screening to detect abnormalities.

    “Regular cervical smear testing through pap’s test or screening with low cost methods using Visual Inspection with Acetic Acid (VIA) are the most effective ways of detecting cervical abnormalities, which may be the early signs of the disease,” she said.

    She expressed confidence that with the support of SFH, screening of women aged between 25 and 60 years will continue , to diagnose women during the long pre-cancerous phase.

    The HEDEN Executive Director said the intense campaign in less developed communities was carried out as a result of the high mortality from cervical cancer.

    The awareness programme which was taken to a faith-based women group in Abule-Ijoko, Ogun State, was supported by Society for Family Health (SFH).

    The programme included talks, video presentations on symptoms of cervical cancer, its progression, stories of how early detection saves lives, question and answer session and eventual screening and treatment of women who tested positive.

    Many of the women who attended the campaign expressed surprise at the subtle signs and symptoms of cervical cancer.

    Many women mentioned that they had never heard about cervical cancer before.

    Many of the women expressed their appreciation to HEDEN and SFH for bringing the programme to hard-to-reach communities at the grassroots.

    Cervical cancer is the commonest genital cancer killing women especially in sub-Saharan Africa.

  • Burning old phones, PCs causes cancer, chemist warns

    Burning old phones, PCs causes cancer, chemist warns

    •’Rare metals in devices can generate Forex’

    A Professor of Chemistry at the University of Ibadan (UI), Oladele Osibanjo, has warned against burning digital devices to dispose of them.
    He underscored the need to enlighten Nigerians about the immense returns in recycling old mobile phones and computers, which, he said, contain rare metals, such as gold and silver.
    Osibanjo spoke yesterday at the launch of the 4th PZCussons Chemistry Challenge (PZCCC) for secondary school pupils at the firm’s headquarters in Lagos, where he explained the relevance of chemistry to life.
    The don, who chairs the advisory board of the competition, said burning of mobile phones release harmful chemicals, which have endocrine disruptive properties that are carcinogenic and can cause cancer.
    As a result, he said people working or resident in places like Computer Village in Ikeja, Alaba and Olusosun in Ojota, where such mobile devices are disposed, have a high risk of developing cancer.
    He said: “All these devices contain chemicals that are carcinogenic – your screen, mobile phones and computers. Don’t burn them. Poor people, uninformed people, non-chemists are getting exposed to dangerous chemicals.  People living in Alaba area and Computer Village, God help them because what they cannot repair they burn.  These chemicals don’t kill you off.  It may take five to 10 years to manifest.  When they develop cancer, they think it is witchcraft or their step mother in the village.”

  • NAF commissions cancer screening centre, registry in Kaduna

    As part of its commitment to protect Nigerians, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has commissioned  a cancer screening centre and registry in Kaduna.
    Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar said the health of its officers, men and members of their family is important as the cost of neglecting such is greater.
    The chief of staff who was represented by Air Officer Commanding, Training Command of the NAF, Air Vice Marshal Nurudeen Balogun, said in the past one year and half the NAF has established new hospitals, expanded and upgraded 33 health care facilities.
    As regards the short for in the numbers of medical personal, Balogun said 21 medical officers were  among the newly commissioned Direct Short Service Course 25 that passed out on 16 December 19, 2016.
    He said it became important to establish a cancer screening owing to the high death rate as a result of the silent killer citing that death of most women between ages 15-45 years are cancer related as one in every 25 women stand the risk of developing breast cancer.
    Balogun  said the establishment of screening centers at various hospitals will provide easy access to medical attention to personnel, their dependants and members of the public, thereby assuring early diagnosis and treatment.
    His words : “ health of an individual is one is one of the most essential pre-requisite to carry out his or her duties effectively and efficiently, when an officer or airman is unwell not only that he or she will be unable to do his job properly but his safety and that of the equipment he is working with becomes compromised.  Hence the cost of to the service could be unimaginable if we neglect the health of our personnel and dependants.
    “ It is for this reason that we have in the past one and half years embarked on the general upgrade of our medical facilities which saw the establishment of new hospitals, expansion of the existing ones and provision of modern high-tech equipments to virtually all of our existing 33 health care facilities.
    “We have made significant efforts in addressing the manpower problem in the medical trade through increased enlistment of medical professionals. This is evident as the medical trade had a total of 21 officers amongst the newly commissioned DSSC 25 out on 16 December 2016.
    “ According to the world health Organization (WHO), Breast  and cervical cancers are the most common causes of cancer related death in women between ages 15-45 years. It is estimated that one in every 25 women are at risk of developing breast cancer in her life time, while 1 in every 400 women will develop cervical cancer in her life time. Hence it is important to detect these cancers early through screening in order to prevent untimely death associated with late detection.
    “It is hoped that, establishing these cancer screening centers in our hospitals will provide our personnel ns their families as well as teaming populations around our bases, the opportunity to carry out regular checks in order to detect cancers early enough”. He added
    Chief Medical Officer, Air  Vice Marshal Saleh Shinkafi disclosed that the facility has been equipped with equipment that can cater for different types cancer and treatment at early stage.
    Shinkafi said the center will also provide best of training facilities to all heath care provides both within and outside the NAF.
    He however said the registry will serve as a data base as practiced in other countries, which will aide in research and planning in the health scetor.
    According to Shinkafi :”This centre has been equipped with facilities for screening of cancer of the breast, cervix, prostrate colon and liver among others.
    “The centre will provide excellent training facilities for health care providers outside the NAF.
    “We believe the cancer registry will provide a reliable data base for use in research and planning for public health intervention programmes for cancer in the nation,” he added.
  • ‘Cancer is not death sentence’

    ‘Cancer is not death sentence’

    A National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member, Bless-me Ajani, has organised free breast and cervical cancer screening for residents of Ipokia Local Government Area of Ogun State. The programme, held last Saturday, also featured a rally round the council to raise awareness on the deadly disease.

    The screening, which was Bless-me’s Community Development Service (CDS) project, was organised in partnership with Health and Psychological Trust Centre (Project Pink Blue), an Abuja-based organisation. Over 100 women were screened and counselled on breast and cervical cancer.

    The event started with a health walk during which Corps members moved round the community. They were joined by wife of the Oniko of Ikolaje, Olori Olubunmi Olakunle.

    Addressing residents during the  exercise, Mr Ifeji Ugwu of the Project Pink Blue, stressed the need for the public not to misconstrue what cancer is, saying: “Cancer is just a word and not a death sentence.”

    He told the residents that cancer could be prevented if they regularly go for medical check-up. Ugwu noted that the best ways to avoid the pain of cancer was early detection through self-breast examination and prompt report at the hospital.

    Dr Hassanat Saliu of the Society for Family Health (SFH) advised women to avoid eating refined and canned food. Fresh food, she said, would boost women’s resistance to diseases.

    Appreciating the Corps member’s efforts, the NYSC Local Government Inspector, Mrs Eze Nkiru, said the scheme was poised to do more to cater for needs in rural dwellers.

    She said: “One of the main objectives of the NYSC is for Corps members to identify and execute projects that will be of great help to members of their host communities.”

    Bless-me, a graduate of Microbiology from the Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife, Osun State, said the project was informed by her effort to fight cancer among people living in rural communities.

  • Fed Govt plans cancer control agency

    The Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, has said the Federal Government plans setting up the National Agency for Cancer Control (NACC).

    He made this known at a meeting with Head of Eastern Europe, Middle East, African (EEMEA) region, F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd, Pharmaceuticals Division, Dr. Peter Hug, in Abuja.

    Adewole said the institution would be responsible for research, prevention, diagnosis, treatment and palliative care for cancer patients. It would also provide leadership and technical direction for cancer control across the country, integrating services provided by the National Cancer Centre and a cluster of public and private tertiary hospitals.

    Other functions expected to be performed by the agency include policy formulation, advocacy and mobilisation, adopt best practices in the Global Non-Communicable Diseases Framework to make the NACC a centre of excellence for cancer prevention and care.

    It is also believed that the agency would develop the national plan for cancer prevention and care, measure burden and impact of cancer and establish registries for routine monitoring.

    He said the ministry and other stakeholders in cancer control was working hard to create awareness in the rural areas on the early detection of cancer.

    Adewole expressed the government’s determination to work with Hug.

    “If you ask me what do I want from Dr. Hug, I will say how we can build a strong  partnership and move from talking to action, what can you bring to the table in terms of partnership that would bring reliable service to Nigerians?”  he said.

    The minister and Dr. Peter Hug agreed that the deal would focus more on Human Papiloma Virus (HPV) and breast cancer.

    Hug said his company was interested in partnering the government on cancer prevention and treatment.

    He said they have the facilities to support Nigeria in the fight against cancer.

  • NGO partners Osun, Fed. Govt. on cancer education

    NGO partners Osun, Fed. Govt. on cancer education

    In its bid to stem the rate of prevalence of cancer in the country, the Glorious Youth Empowerment Centre (GYEC), a non-governmental  organisation (NGO), in partnership with Marie Stopes International, Nigeria, the Osun State and the Federal Ministry of Health, has held a cancer sensitisation and screening programme in Osun State for women.

    No fewer than 23 nurses were trained by a team of specialists from Marie Stopes International, Nigeria at a week-long workshop entitled “Who Shall Deliver us From This Plague?” held in Osogbo, Osun State capital city.

    Out of the 23 nurses, 15 were from Osun Hospital Management Board, seven from Osun Ministry of Health and one from the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology Teaching Hopital (LAUTECHTH).

    Subsequent to the workshop, a capacity building training was carried out for health personnel at the General Hospital Asubiaro in Osogbo.

    According to the team leader of the cancer project, Glorious Youth Empowerment Centre, Dr. Samuel Ekundayo, 200 women were screened for cancer during the week-long programme.

    Ekundayo, who revealed that 80 women were screened for cervical cancer, said at the end of the exercise, no case of cervical cancer was recorded, adding that medical advice was offered to the participants.

    Explaining the mission of the programme, the founder of the NGO, Mrs. Remi Ajibewa, noted that the GYEC had vast interest and experience in the provision of support and necessities for the vulnerable youth, women and widows in the society, saying “our mission is to promote quality life for women, children, young people and other vulnerable population through skill development, enlightenment, advocacy engagements and direct support services.”

    Continuing, she said: “We have specifically focused the attention of this workshop on cancer in order to enlighten our people, especially at this time when our current lifestyles predispose us to different kinds of diseases.

    “Our interest in cancer is because the disease is one of the toughest fights anyone can face. Or even one of the greatest challenges difficult to come to terms with when it is diagnosed. The disease is growing rapidly in our community like a raged fire and the entire world at large, with several lives lost and dreams shattered.

    “The World Health Organisation (WHO) says cancer accounts for 13 per cent of all deaths registered globally. Seventy per cent of that figure occurs in middle and low income countries. In Nigeria, about 10,000 cancer deaths are recorded annually while 250,000 new cases are recorded yearly, with breast and cervical cancers being the commonest among women.

    “Prostate cancer is more prevalent in men. Unfortunately, many Nigerians are still poorly educated on this growing disease. Many Nigerians still see cancer as a disease of the wealthy, the elderly and even restricted to the developed countries. While many sufferers of the disease in the country, on the other hand, still regard it as their fate and, as such, a death sentence.

    “Cancer is not just a health issue; it has far-reaching social and economic implications. It also does not discriminate. It is a global epidemic that affects all ages. Its consequences are alarming, challenging and very demanding; even as it has been noted to kill more than HIV and AIDS.

    “Although persistent research is still ongoing towards finding a permanent cure for this most puzzled disease, we at GYEC believe that massive awareness of the general populace is critical to stemming the tide of cancer in Nigeria and indeed globally.”