Cancer Recurrence Musings

One of the most common questions I receive is why I experienced a cancer recurrence almost a decade after my initial diagnosis, despite making significant diet and lifestyle changes. I wanted to share my experience, as I hope it will be helpful if you're concerned about recurrence and looking for ways to support your health.

My Journey From the Beginning

After finishing conventional breast cancer treatments in early 2007 at 28, I was declared

"cancer-free." However, I knew intuitively that I couldn't truly heal in the same environment where I had become sick. After nearly 18 futile months of trying to feel like myself again, I decided to make radical lifestyle changes to avoid recurrence and the trauma of conventional treatments.

For nine years, I lived in a warmer climate, ensuring I had sun exposure whenever it was out. I significantly reduced my alcohol intake, used only non-toxic personal hygiene and household products, detoxed my kitchen, exercised regularly, and did annual cleanses of every kind. Ninety percent of the time, I ate a whole-food, plant-based, organic diet. I truly believed I was "bulletproof."

My passion for health led me to launch Yogi Beer, a kombucha brand, just as the craze hit Australia. It was a success, and I finally felt the validation I'd always sought. I built something I felt inspired by, but after four years, the accumulated stresses caused my passion to wane. It no longer felt aligned, and I wanted out but feared being seen as a "failure." So, I kept pushing, hoping for an epiphany.

Despite my otherwise healthy lifestyle, my health rapidly deteriorated in 2015. As the owner of a health-focused business advocating for gut health, I felt like a fraud because I was so unwell. By July of that year, I could barely function. I had dozens of mystery symptoms, chronic recurrent infections, hair loss, and unintentional weight loss. I honestly felt like I was dying.

In August, my greatest fear materialized: I was diagnosed with advanced breast cancer. It had spread to my chest wall and lymphatic system, in areas where breast cancer doesn't typically spread. Based on my symptoms and the unusual spread of glowing lymph nodes on a PET scan, lymphoma was also suspected. The anxiety of facing two malignancies was crippling, yet paradoxically, a part of me felt relieved. The diagnosis was my "ticket out" of the business without being seen as a failure. As the saying goes, "The Body Keeps the Score" is not lost on me.

So What Happened? Why Did My Body Start Making Cancer Again?

Cancer Stem Cells

Cancer Stem Cells (CSCs), or "Mother cells," are a dangerous subset of cancer cells (roughly 1 in 10,000 within a tumor) responsible for metastasis and recurrence. They replicate slowly and resist standard treatments that target rapidly dividing cells, often becoming more aggressive and resistant to further treatment.

Contrary to what most survivors are told, I believe we are never truly cancer-free due to the presence of CSCs. Despite harsh treatments, surgeries, and medical assurances of "getting it all," as long as a single CSC remains, there's always the potential for new growth. In essence, I don't believe the cancer ever truly "went away." My decade of clean living likely kept them dormant and under control—until it didn't.

Psychoneuroimmunology

Thanks to the field of psychoneuroimmunology (PNI), we understand that your mental health and nervous system profoundly impact your immune health. Living an inauthentic life, out of alignment with your truth, and in a chronic state of fight or flight alters cellular chemistry, weakens immune function, and ultimately creates an internal environment where cancer can proliferate.

While running my business, I was constantly fueled by cortisol and adrenaline. Initially, I enjoyed the rush, but after four years, I was burnt out. The financial stress and constant pressure to sell and fulfill orders became a burden. I also struggled with imposter syndrome and underlying issues of "being good enough" and worthiness. Most importantly, the business no longer felt aligned. I would collapse into bed each night, dreading the next day. I felt trapped without an exit strategy, and this manifested in physical symptoms.

There were also a few other less obvious but critical issues.

Infections, Mold, and Parasites

Living in a sub-tropical region meant black mold was hard to avoid, and my house was no exception. For almost five years, I unwittingly breathed in mold spores daily, slowly undermining my health.

Additionally, in the year leading up to my diagnosis, I had an infected tooth that I delayed addressing for months. As a result, I was constantly swallowing bacteria which, like mold, sabotaged my health. Dental infections are often a missing link in root cause healing.

A couple of months before my diagnosis, when my "mystery symptoms" became unbearable, I desperately decided to do an extended water-only fast. I knew I had systemic candida overgrowth (a side effect of chemo nine years earlier and the contraceptive pill six years before that), which I'd struggled to control for years. During the fast, to my absolute shock, I discovered I was infested with parasites – truly infested! I literally starved them out after abstaining from food for eight days. Interestingly, many of my mystery symptoms lessened during that time.

Here's Why It All Matters

Mold, parasites, candida overgrowth, heavy metals, chronic infections, chronic stress, emotional pain, and living out of alignment indirectly fuel cancer growth by weakening immune function and creating an internal terrain hospitable to cancer.

We know that cancer is a symptom of poor immune function. Immune cells are responsible for surveilling and eliminating cancer cells that don't die as programmed. If there's a weakness in this system, cancer cells can evade immune surveillance and replicate uncontrollably.

Then, of course, there are cancer stem cells—the elephant in the room that most conventional oncologists don't seem to want to discuss, let alone acknowledge. These opportunistic cells would have lain dormant for many years until the conditions of my inner terrain could no longer keep them at bay due to the systemic dysfunction caused by parasitic and toxin overload, coupled with the harmful effects of chronic stress.

Cancer doesn't suddenly appear out of nowhere, nor does it suddenly "return" after being declared "cancer-free." Cancer is a natural response to an unnatural environment, and as long as cancer stem cells remain in the body, there's always the potential for new growth. Ultimately, the strength of your immune cells determines whether or not these CSCs will proliferate and take hold in the future.

This is why optimizing your internal terrain is critical to help prevent cancer from taking hold again. This involves:

* Detoxing your environment

* Detoxing your body

* Detoxing your mind

* Healing your heart

* Living authentically and showing up as your true self

This is also my favorite work to do with my clients because I know that true health is an inside job. The greatest gift I can give them is to support them in achieving the health transformation they've been dreaming about.

If you're curious to learn more about my offerings and how I can support you in achieving the health transformation you desire and deserve, please schedule a free call with me today.