In 2006 the American Cancer Society urged cancer survivors to do the following: (1) exercise moderately an hour and a half a week or pour it on with an hour of strenuous physical activity during a typical week, (2) eat at least five servings of vegetables and/or fruits daily, and (3) duh..... quit smoking. One could easily amp up the amount of recommended exercise, don't you think?

Well, c'mon people......it turns out that only 5% of cancer survivors are meeting all three recommendations!! In fact, according to research done in the US and Australia, fewer than 10% of survivors are meeting at least two of the three recommendations.

Before going for vitamins, supplements, natural cures that no-one knows about and all of that, how about getting back to the basics? There is very good data in the medical literature (never mind the alternative literature) that says exercise and a good diet absolutely, positively extends your life as a cancer patient and survivor.

Hmmm.....a no-brainer to think about? Better yet....... just DO IT!!!

We have known for a while that the mineral Selenium helps reduce resistance to carboplatin, one of the main drugs used for ovarian cancer treatment. Along with that favorable action, Selenium also acts as part of glutathione peroxidase, a powerful anti-oxidant enzyme. So, while enhancing treatment Selenium also has the ability to bind to platinum drugs, resulting in less damage to normal cells. That's what's called a two-fer and is very appealing IF it delivers as promised.

According to the New Jersey Cancer Institute's Dr. Lorna Rodriguez, whose new study results will be presented at the upcoming American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting, Selenium may in fact improve the results of initial Taxol/Carbo chemotherapy. While her study is a small one, this is a complementary approach which holds significant promise since it resonates with other similar studies. Who might benefit the most from Selenium ovarian cancer treatment might be predictable by a serum marker.

An important take-home message here is that there are interested researchers in the "main-stream" of medicine who are exploring avenues for better targeted care. In many cases this involves "natural" substances, like Selenium. This is very encouraging because there is a lot of published junk out there with only a "testimonial" to back it up. That makes your decision-making based on whether or not you trust that this person even exists leave alone whether or not they are telling the truth. Making decisions about what your best treatment options are going to be is far more reliable when you have medical research study evidence to back it up. Let's applaud those who are looking at all angles towards curing ovarian cancer.