Guest guest Posted November 5, 2003 Report Share Posted November 5, 2003 " JoAnn Guest " <angelprincessjo Sat Nov 1, 2003 3:56 pm Re: Fwd : Patrick Holford Newsletter ---Thanks Marianne. This article helps to clarify a number of things regarding breast cancer. It is wonderful to know that this dear man was instrumental in helping women recover from breast cancer. That Iwasn't aware of. JoAnn In DietaryTipsForHBP , marianne2406@a... wrote: > This is extremely informative. > Marianne > > Natural Hormone Pioneer Dr John Lee, author of 'What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause', passes away > > John Lee MD passed away unexpectedly on Friday 17 October 2003 of a heart> attack. Dr Lee was known by millions of people as the doctor who pioneered the use of natural progesterone cream and who had the courage to stand up against the medical establishment's dangerous and misguided HRT (hormone replacement therapy) treatments. Dr Lee had a tremendous impact on the movement for alternative approaches for women's health and undoubtedly saved thousands of women's lives by pointing out the true causes of breast cancer. I knew John since the late eighties, when he had retired from his family practice in California. He dedicated his time to talking about the true dangers of conventional oestrogen and progestin based HRT and the true value of natural progesterone for those many women who are progesterone deficient. > He wrote three superb books which will live on as his legacy: What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause, What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Premenopause, and the most recent, What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Breast Cancer. > I remember him debating natural progesterone at the Royal College of Physicians, and winning the argument on the basis of impeccable logic. Someone asked 'Who is funding the PR for natural progesterone, which is appearing in all the > newspapers?' With a smile on his face he said 'The women's underground movement.' John made no money from the sale of natural progesterone. > I interviewed him last year, when he came to Britain to present at the Pauling Lectures for the Institute for Optimum Nutrition. In his honour, this last interview is printed in full below. > > John planted the seed of rightful doubt about HRT and other causes of oestrogen dominance that lead to breast cancer and other diseases. He established the importance of progesterone as the major hormone deficiency that leads to osteoporosis and menopausal problems. It is now up to us, members of the public, practitioners and scientists, to carry on his work. Thank you John. > > Patrick Holford interviews Dr John Lee, best-selling author and a pioneer in women's health issues such as breast cancer, menopause and osteoporosis. > > PH: You are often quoted as having started a revolution in our understanding of hormones and their effects on women's health. How did it all begin? > > Lee: I qualified in medicine in 1956 and spent 35 years in general practice. In the late 70's I started researching hormones and realised that the > conventional story didn't add up. I retired in 1989 to focus exclusively on teaching and researching and wrote Natural Progesterone, later followed by What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause, which has now been translated into 13 languages. > > PH: That book certainly kick-started a whole new way of looking at menopause and osteoporosis, putting the emphasis on progesterone deficiency,rather than oestrogen. Now you've written What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Breast Cancer. Why? > > Lee: This year 46,000 women are expected the die from breast cancer in the US > and around 12,000 in Britain. In my opinion 90 per cent of these deaths are > preventable. But breast cancer is not only preventable, it's also treatable by > reversing oestrogen dominance. However, current treatment has barely changed > and fails to address the underlying cause. > > PH: Yet we're told that we are winning the breast cancer war, not losing it. > > Lee: It's a myth, or rather a twist of the statistics. Since the advent of > mammograms, the detection of what's called 'ductal carcinoma in situ' or DCIS's > has risen. This accounts for a quarter of all breast cancer diagnoses. This > type of cancer is 99% curable. However, the real concern is invasive breast > cancer. If you take DCIS's out of the equation nothing has really changed in terms > of survival rates from invasive breast cancer in the past 20 years. The > message women are still getting is that medical treatment is getting better and, > anyway, there's little you can do to prevent breast cancer. This is a lie. > Breast cancer is not only almost completely preventable by correcting oestrogen > dominance (see feature overpage), but this major cause is promoted by continuing > to prescribe HRT. So, current medical treatment is contributing to the > problem, rather than solving it. In fact, there is no good evidence that mammograms, > radiation, chemotherapy or Tamoxifen save lives. On top of this, only 5 per > cent of the National Cancer Institute's budget is spent on prevention. > > PH: What's your view on HRT? > > Lee: Women are either given oestrogen-only HRT, if they don't have a womb due > to a hysterectomy, or oestrogen-plus-progestin HRT. In my opinion > oestrogen-only HRT should never be given and prescribing oestrogen- plus-progestin HRT, > for a woman who may have been oestrogen dominant for years, is like throwing > petrol on a fire relative to breast cancer risk. Natural HRT using progesterone, > instead of progestins and, in some cases, oestrogen when called for, is not > only as effective for menopausal symptoms, it's more effective for increasing > bone mass density and reverses, rather than promotes, breast cancer risk. The > evidence is now overwhelming that conventional HRT, with or without progestins, > increases breast cancer risk. > > PH: This is bad news. What's the good news? > > Lee: The good news is that invasive breast cancer can be both prevented and > reversed. Myself and other medical colleagues who've been monitoring oestrogen > dominance in patients, and using natural progesterone plus diet and lifestyle > changes to correct it, have seen thousands of women with breast cancer become > cancer free and never have a recurrence. What's more, those who follow the > advice in my book never need get it in the first place. > > PH: How do you know if you are oestrogen dominant? > > Lee: Through a hormone saliva test. The hormones your body makes are > inactivated within five minutes because they get engulfed by proteins. The only > 'active' hormones in the blood, which are fat-like compounds, hitch a ride on the > back of red blood cells in order to > > get to your cells. Since saliva is produced by the cells themselves, salivary > levels of hormones reflect the 'active' hormones. When you measure hormones > in > > the watery part of the blood, the serum, you only get a measure of the > protein-engulfed, inactivated hormones. Yet the medical profession continues to use > serum hormone levels as the gold standard. I prefer salivary hormone tests > such as that offered by Higher Nature (call 01435 884561 for details). > > In essence the body should have at least 200 times as much progesterone as > oestradiol [a type of oestrogen]. So, a saliva test taken in the mid-luteal > phase †" that's half way between ovulation and menstruation †" should show at least > 200 times as much progesterone as oestrogen. Anything less is suggestive of > oestrogen dominance. > > PH: If you are oestrogen dominant, what can you do about it? > > Lee: Read my book! It explains all the major causes of oestrogen dominance > which include poor diet, sugar, stress, exposure to hormone- disrupting > chemicals, HRT, the birth control pill, obesity and smoking - and how to reverse breast > cancer risk by reducing these. Using natural progesterone, given in > physiological doses around 15 to 20mg a day as a transdermal skin cream, can rapidly > reverse oestrogen dominance and thereby reduce risk. > > PH: Does your work have significance for men? > > Lee: Absolutely. The same basic causes of oestrogen dominance make a man > susceptible to prostate cancer, the incidence of which is rising even faster than > breast cancer. > > To find out more... > > In his book, What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Breast Cancer, Dr John > Lee presents a comprehensive guide to the disease, exposing the failings of > conventional treatments and offering a revolutionary hormone- balancing programme > featuring natural progesterone. Author of the million-copy bestseller What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Menopause, Dr Lee provides clear, practical information, advice and questionnaires to help determine if you may have a hormone imbalance. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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