Preventive Medicine
Last Friday went to see a Medical Doctor specialising in Preventive Medicine; Dr Pang at Wellness Clinic in USJ. This is the kind of doctor you can go to when you are still healthy! :)
The tagline of her clinic is "Health is not an absence of disease but rather the state of well being of physical, mental, social and spiritual".
I am happy to find a doctor who believes that diet, nutrition and supplements are essential to good health. This is contrary to propaganda by some alternative or complementary medicine practicioners who gave the impression that the orthodox medical establishment is against nutrition as part of healthy lifestyle. Dr Pang is also familiar with my cancer and its medication and therapies. She knew Dr Selva my NCI oncologist; having met him once.
She looked at my scans and x-rays. I have also emailed her my history of therapies, diet and supplements. We also discussed about my other complementary therapies like qigung and Chinese medicine.
She is quite concerned that I am on Iressa only once every 2 days; saying that it is better to do a scan to know the status of the nodule; if it is still there it is better that I take it on alternate days if I can't take it everyday. Or if the nodule is gone, it is ok to stop Iressa. She also urged me to return to the recommended 2 tablets of Bonefos, which I am currently taking only once a day.
She gave me a list of recipe for healthier cooking. She also asked me to take a blood test, and to see her again the following week for recommendations after the test result is ready.
So today I saw Dr Pang again. We went thru the result. Of main concern is the low count of lymphocytes which is the natural killer cells. Our main objective is to raise the count of the NK. She also wants to monitor the count of phosphate (renal function), alkaline phosphate and GGT (liver function), red blood cells. All of which are below or above the normal range. Also of concern is my tumour marker reading which has increased by one ug/L since the last test in July.
She then proceeded to recommend supplements. We went thru my current supplements, discarding many and substituting them with cheaper but equally or more effective versions. She recommended many substitutes which can be bought "off-the-shelf" compared to more expensive versions which I bought from direct-selling distributors. Based on the test, she also said which supplement don't seem to improve my health. She is very familiar with different brands of supplements.
After that, she gave me a daily diet plan which included exercises. It is not that far off from my daily routine, so no surprises here. She asked me to continue my qigung. There are some adjustments like no mixing fruit and vege because of their different fermentation rate, and no kicap (soy sauce) because of their sugar content..boohoo! She also asked me to use my Norwalk juicer to blend my own peanut butter :) Yes, Norwalk is no ordinary juicer because it can do what many normal juicer can't do...haha! You should read the hardship we went thru to get it! But malas la...to use the juicer and to wash it later so many times... :P
Overall, I enjoyed my consultations with Dr Pang. We have good discussion about the various therapies, diet and supplements, and she is very frank in her recommendations. I am happy to have found her thru Ms K who introduced her to me. As a cancer patient, you get all sorts recommendations from well-intentioned friends and relatives, and also from books. At least here is medical doctor who can guide you, and it is up to you to decide whether to follow or not.
What I really like is her assertion that she only recommends stuff which have studies to back them up; any supplements with even good testimonials are not good enough unless confirmed by research and studies.
So here is the start of another phase in my adventure!
The tagline of her clinic is "Health is not an absence of disease but rather the state of well being of physical, mental, social and spiritual".
I am happy to find a doctor who believes that diet, nutrition and supplements are essential to good health. This is contrary to propaganda by some alternative or complementary medicine practicioners who gave the impression that the orthodox medical establishment is against nutrition as part of healthy lifestyle. Dr Pang is also familiar with my cancer and its medication and therapies. She knew Dr Selva my NCI oncologist; having met him once.
She looked at my scans and x-rays. I have also emailed her my history of therapies, diet and supplements. We also discussed about my other complementary therapies like qigung and Chinese medicine.
She is quite concerned that I am on Iressa only once every 2 days; saying that it is better to do a scan to know the status of the nodule; if it is still there it is better that I take it on alternate days if I can't take it everyday. Or if the nodule is gone, it is ok to stop Iressa. She also urged me to return to the recommended 2 tablets of Bonefos, which I am currently taking only once a day.
She gave me a list of recipe for healthier cooking. She also asked me to take a blood test, and to see her again the following week for recommendations after the test result is ready.
So today I saw Dr Pang again. We went thru the result. Of main concern is the low count of lymphocytes which is the natural killer cells. Our main objective is to raise the count of the NK. She also wants to monitor the count of phosphate (renal function), alkaline phosphate and GGT (liver function), red blood cells. All of which are below or above the normal range. Also of concern is my tumour marker reading which has increased by one ug/L since the last test in July.
She then proceeded to recommend supplements. We went thru my current supplements, discarding many and substituting them with cheaper but equally or more effective versions. She recommended many substitutes which can be bought "off-the-shelf" compared to more expensive versions which I bought from direct-selling distributors. Based on the test, she also said which supplement don't seem to improve my health. She is very familiar with different brands of supplements.
After that, she gave me a daily diet plan which included exercises. It is not that far off from my daily routine, so no surprises here. She asked me to continue my qigung. There are some adjustments like no mixing fruit and vege because of their different fermentation rate, and no kicap (soy sauce) because of their sugar content..boohoo! She also asked me to use my Norwalk juicer to blend my own peanut butter :) Yes, Norwalk is no ordinary juicer because it can do what many normal juicer can't do...haha! You should read the hardship we went thru to get it! But malas la...to use the juicer and to wash it later so many times... :P
Overall, I enjoyed my consultations with Dr Pang. We have good discussion about the various therapies, diet and supplements, and she is very frank in her recommendations. I am happy to have found her thru Ms K who introduced her to me. As a cancer patient, you get all sorts recommendations from well-intentioned friends and relatives, and also from books. At least here is medical doctor who can guide you, and it is up to you to decide whether to follow or not.
What I really like is her assertion that she only recommends stuff which have studies to back them up; any supplements with even good testimonials are not good enough unless confirmed by research and studies.
So here is the start of another phase in my adventure!
posted by Hee Boon at 4:18 pm
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