Regular exercise routine

I now have a more regular exercise routine thanks largely to a book that I re-found recently. I like to workout as soon as I wake up and I don't like using equipment so this book is ideal and is one of the best fitness books I have ever read. It has an incredible amount of progressive bodyweight exercises for all abilities. 

Patience

At the moment I'm sitting in my room thinking about all the things I need to do but I'm doing very little about it. This is definitely a case of paralysis by analysis and certainly very out of character for me. I have just had a minor skin operation (I will discuss this more in future) and I am waiting on a number of things so I need to be patient. Everything on the outside is so calm and still yet thoughts inside my head are spinning around rapidly. This time it is predominantly with excitement so I can deal with that! 

May started with me receiving my MRI results which were very positive. Rather than the usual routine I had come to expect from these meetings, we barely mentioned anything about the latest scan results because it was so clear that they were the best they could be and I had recently come off levetiracetam completely so even though there is always a doubt, I was quietly confident. My symptoms were largely resolved and I could see out of the corner of my eye that the scan showed noticeable improvement. 

My oncologist seemed very interested in my unique personal approach to the ketogenic diet and asked me a lot of questions about how I thought it should be implemented. He asked me if I am working at the moment because he is very keen to have me on his team in some capacity to help other patients with the ketogenic diet in clinical settings and to further research in this area with the potential of starting clinical trials. I was delighted with this opportunity and I instantly stressed how keen I am to get started as soon as possible. I have been desperate to get back to work for a long time but was unable to due to fatigue, dizzy spells, vertigo, trigerminal neuralgia, all that fun stuff that I barely feel at all now. I'm still waiting and a little impatient but I have been assured that he will get back to me soon. For my records I asked for a copy of my last 2 MRI scans so that I can compare the 2. 

I'm now going to ask for the CD after every scan so that I don't have to wait for results. I have found that to be quite a stressful thing in the past, luckily I have a pretty good idea about how to best interpret these scans. In a strange way I quite enjoy it because the brain is so fascinating. Here is a video of my latest scan that I took while I was bored! Below is one of the stills. 

*video coming soon

It is quite clear to me (although these scans can be quite vague), that the unusual looking tissue on the right hand side- left temporal lobe area- is scar tissue and that there is no visible disease here as there was previously. It looks a little menacing but it really isn't and I'm not overly concerned by it. I will keep an eye on this area and take every action I can to attempt to continue the healing process. Ideally in the future I would like hyperbaric oxygen therapy alongside my ketogenic diet to give me the best chance of achieving this and to potentially give me better survival odds going forward. I firmly believe that I can manage this disease indefinitely with the right metabolic approaches. Having the access to more of these approaches and the opportunity to help others in clinical settings would be a great step forward so I'm very excited about this prospect.

MRI results- just over 2 years (Anaplastic Astrocytoma)

Fantastic MRI scan results today, the best yet. I look forward to viewing the images again on my computer. Remarkable healing thanks to my own version of the ketogenic diet after I declined more chemotherapy over a year ago. 

I will continue to work on the diet, to share my ideas, and to improve it. My oncologist has offered me a job which may mean moving back to London. :)

Epilepsy and vitamin D

'Antiepileptic drugs cause vitamin D deficiency through induction of hepatic microsomal enzymes that metabolise vitamin D.'

http://aop.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/38/6/1002

I believe this is one of the main causes of lethargy and break through seizures for individuals with epilepsy but neurologists will often dismiss this suggestion in my experience and tell you to increase medication instead. They do not study nutrition in enough depth at medical school so usually they don't know this. 

You can get a free vitamin D test from your GP. If vitamin D is low you will need to supplement with vitamin D3. The type of vitamin D you get through diet is D2 which is not adequate. It is very difficult to get enough vitamin D3 from the sun to reach optimal levels in the blood (typically 100-150mmol/l). 

Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin so you will also want to eat plenty of quality fats with enough vitamin A which works together with vitamin D. We typically already get enough calcium, magnesium and phosphorus in our diets so this consideration is less important.

I hope this information helps people to control seizures better and to have more energy, less muscle weakness, better moods, etc. contact me if you have any questions. :) 

This is the best vitamin D3 supplement I know of. It is completely natural and contains no corn, soy, gluten, sugar, starch, or any nasty ingredients to fill it up. 

 

The somatic theory of cancer- embryo studies

If the somatic theory of cancer really is completely true then surely this should be impossible. Epigenenetics is both the cause and potential cure for my 'incurable' cancer in my situation. It is not a simple reversal process by any means and I may fail, but it is certainly not an imposibility.

Eating brains for brain cancer

Yesterday I added grass fed lamb's brains to my ketogenic diet. Because we are squeamish about eating brain in this country my local butcher gave me 6 quality sheep's brains for free! I read an interesting article recently about this recently...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/foodanddrinknews/11364723/Eating-offal-will-the-British-ever-fall-in-love-with-brains.html

I also found some videos of Gordon Ramsey (with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall) and and another video from Heston Blumenthal cooking brains. I understand brain is a delicacy in many top restaurants around the world so I was even more interested in trying it. Here are the videos:

http://youtu.be/hb1YFPLany0

http://youtu.be/X4tItqWIKe4

Obviously I would make KETO versions of these recipes! Let's think about this...

Sometimes the unorthodox approach is perhaps the most sensible. Consider this: 

Brains are built from large amounts of selected fatty acids and specialist components that when eaten could have a potent healing effect to manage/reverse neuroinflammation and improve cognitive functioning. 

Brain is very high in omega 3 fatty acids which are anti-inflammatory and phosphatidylserine lipids in cell membranes play a significant role in apoptosis, blood clotting, and so could be beneficial in combating neurodegenerative disease. 

Numerous studies with Alzheimers over the years have produced some very interesting results. Phosphatidylserine made from cow brains seems to improve attention, language skills, memory in ageing people with declining thinking skills. http://www.cell.com/biophysj/abstract/S0006-3495(14)02208-5

As the brain is mostly fat I feel it compliments my ketogenic diet perfectly and tastes brilliant with egg and ghee. 

Here are some videos I made of me cooking and eating brain for Brain Tumour Research's Wear a Hat Day yesterday! Enjoy!...

Part 1

http://youtu.be/J4fjfstAzyo

Part 2

http://youtu.be/oRNatOteSbU

Part 3

http://youtu.be/RlP23z0P3zk

Surviving Terminal Cancer with Q & A on Health

My local screening of a patient led documentary film project by Dominic Hill

Featuring a live Q & A session with: 

Adam Afriyie- MP Windsor, Maidenhead

Andrew Scarborough (host)- 2 year brain cancer Survivor, ketogenic diet trials patient advisor at Charing Cross Hospital.

Jane Mclelland- 16 year stage 4 cervical cancer survivor and patient advocate for access to medicines.

And more including the Brain Tumour Charity, Brain Tumour Research, and health professionals! 

Adam Afriyie has recently shared his thoughts on this event and on the current situation with brain cancer. Please read:

http://adamafriyie.org/index.php/2015/03/18/bravery-in-the-face-of-an-awful-disease/

Also please sign this petition if you can to give terminal brain cancer patients more treatment options. 

http://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/74463