Today, more than writing anything new to impart, I want to share a very compelling article in ONCOLOGY NEWS Nov 2014. The article is entitled “Fungi and Their Mycotoxins: An Underappreciated Role in Cancers.” It is an older article, but was recently brought to my attention by a doctor who helped me and my family through our mold ordeal. While the article is a bit dense, with lots of biomedical and scientific terminology, it is still an interesting and worthwhile read, even for some of us that are not experts. Asked why a mold cleaning blog is posting an article like this, I am also focused on the long term health of me and my family. Cancer is a terrible disease and articles like this one help me to recognize the importance of taking good care of my body and the environment I live in. Articles like this one also re-energize my passion for writing and sharing this blog with others, which is important to keeping what I write pertinent to you.
This particular article addresses the links between cancer and fungal infections that are caused by mold mycotoxins (the toxic chemical by-products produced by some molds). In other words, the article conjectures that the way in which cancer cells and fungal infections alter healthy cells in the body, have similarities that should not be overlooked. The article also points to the many likely, but not yet proven links in humans between cancers and the mycotoxins produced by some types of mold.
Pictures of food-borne molds up close.
In the beginning, the article explains that most of the fungal/cancer links have been established with food borne molds—for example Aflatoxins, mycotoxins produced be a common fungi, aspergillus, are some of the most carcinogenic substances known to man. In lab testing, Aflatoxins have produced cancer in every animal or human tested. While a common fungi found near dampness, we are most vulnerable when aspergillus contaminates foods, including stored grains and peanuts. And, while food storage has greatly improved over the years to lessen the risk of this type of exposure, the article argues that by only looking at the primary, food borne molds as dangerous, we are missing a potentially larger and more dangerous picture. That picture is the ability of mycotoxic molds, airborne and otherwise, to also contribute to cancer cell growth. Some mycotoxins are known mutagens, meaning that they cause chromosomal damage or DNA to mutate, much like cancer cells. There have even been cases initially diagnosed as cancer , when the patient actually was found to have a fungal infection that was subsequently successfully treated with antifungals. For the two (cancer and a fungal infection) to look so much alike in organ scans, is a fact that the article asks doctors not to ignore. The authors go on to encourage further medical and pharmaceutical exploration of combined antifungal and chemotherapies, due to some early indication of some cancers seeming to respond positively to antifungal medications. This idea obviously needs additional depth and research to pursue, but it is one to get us all thinking and paying better attention to keeping yeast and Candida outbreaks in our own bodies in check.
Rather than dissect and note the whole article, I will let you read it for yourself and draw your own conclusions. The biggest takeaway for me, is the section on probiotics and the importance of healthy bacteria in the gut. Not only does taking a high-quality probiotic seems to restore gut health, but it seems to also halt and prevent recurrence of both fungal infections and some types of cancer. That is enough info for me to keep taking mine every day, and to also make sure my kids take theirs.
Anyway, I hope you read the article, look more comprehensively into some of its claims and evidence, and use the information to advance your health for the long run. I feel that, many times, the more I read this type of medical literature, the more I am empowered to dig a little deeper and to find out more about my body and why it is performing wonderfully or falling short. Sometimes, something I read will cause me to make some small change that amends my health in a very beneficial way and makes all of the difference.
Happy reading!
1 comment
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