Welcome to the First Part of a Three-Part Series
By Jackie Totilo, Breast Cancer Survivor Advocate & Personal Health Coach
As you all know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. This month, you will be relentlessly reminded to do your breast self-examinations, get your mammograms, and have your yearly checkup with your doctor. This is all so important in the early detection of breast cancer, which we have gotten really good at.
The fact of the matter is that more women are being diagnosed with breast cancer at an earlier stage, and their outcomes are much better with most likely to survive. While this is certainly something to be celebrated there is still the alarming statistic that 1 in 8 women will get breast cancer during their lifetime. In the US, there are currently over 4 million breast cancer survivors, and this year, an estimated additional 300,000 individuals are expected to receive a diagnosis. The good news is that with early detection the 10-year survival rate is almost 85%. We have made great strides in early detection; however, I am going to invite you to look at Breast Cancer from an entirely different perspective, and that is from a prevention focus.
I have mixed emotions about Breast Cancer Awareness Month. At 52 years old, I was living my best life. My husband and I had three girls in high school and college, and we emphasized eating healthy and exercising regularly. We were extremely active biking up and down the Jersey Shore. You can imagine my shock when I was diagnosed with Stage 2, ER/PR+, HER2- Invasive Lobular Carcinoma. I had a double mastectomy and was fortunate not to undergo radiation or chemotherapy. This month marks my sixth anniversary of being NED (no evidence of disease). I know Early Detection saved my life; however, throughout these last six years, I have spoken with doctors and spent countless hours researching and reading studies from traditional medicine to holistic/alternative medicine treatments, and what I have learned has only highlighted the importance of and reinforced my belief that preventing breast cancer is possible and where our focus needs to be. I will be sharing a three-part series around breast cancer and my Four Step Healthy Living Roadmap to preventing breast cancer.
Before I dive into my Four Step Roadmap, let’s look at some breast cancer statistics. As I said, 1 in 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetime. Less than 10% of those are genetic, which means 90% of breast cancer is environmentally related. In addition, 80% of all breast cancers are estrogen-positive (ER+), meaning estrogen is the fuel for this type of cancer. The questions we need to ask are:
- When did estrogen become the enemy?
- Despite estrogen naturally decreasing as a woman ages, why does the rate of breast cancer increase during the same time?
- Despite menopause and hormone suppression therapies, why does ER+ breast cancer have a recurrence rate of 40% after two decades post-diagnosis?
We only need to look at our environment for answers.
We live in a time in which, every day, we are exposed to environmental toxins in our food, our personal care products, our cleaning products and the air we breathe. We can’t escape them; however, we can significantly reduce our exposure. It is especially important as it relates to hormone-positive breast cancer. A substantial portion of these harmful substances falls into the endocrine disruptors (EDCs) category, a notable subset being referred to as xenoestrogens. Xenoestrogens are chemical compounds that mimic human estrogen and are not produced by our body, nor can our body distinguish these from human estrogen. Conventional medicine treatment is designed to suppress human estrogen; however, it does nothing to address the xenoestrogens that exist in our bodies.
Through my research, I was fortunate to find a functional medicine doctor who focused on the root cause of my breast cancer. He explained how xenoestrogens contribute to ER+ breast cancer and even ran some simple blood/urine tests to confirm that I had an extremely high toxic load of xenoestrogens that had built up in my body. In addition to surgery, detoxing the increased toxic load in my body became the second most crucial part of my breast cancer treatment. While we cannot eliminate all the environmental toxins we are exposed to, we can optimize our body’s detoxification systems to help stop them and significantly reduce our exposure to them.
To say I was driven to detox my body would be an understatement. I became committed to learning about the chemicals that had built up in my body. I found ways to replace the everyday products composed of them in my daily life. I realized how critical good nutrition is to eliminating residual build-ups and everyday toxin exposures. I took on various activities that speed up the body’s ability to remove these chemicals. These daily activities became my roadmap to better health, and I’d like to share these prevention-based lifestyle habits with you.
My Four Step Healthy Living Roadmap is designed to optimize your foundational nutrition, strengthen your body’s natural detoxification systems, lower your exposure to EDCs, and reduce your toxic load.
Part 1 of this series will focus on optimizing your body’s nutrition to best support your natural detoxification pathways. Truly, this is the most powerful – and thus – the first step in the roadmap.
Step 1: Provide your body with solid foundational nutrition consisting of whole, nutrient-dense foods with a focus on fruits and vegetables
Our body’s internal systems are designed to heal themselves daily. Eating a diet that includes 7 to 10 servings of whole fruits and vegetables every day gives you the nutrients needed to fuel your body. More importantly, you get the antioxidants your body needs to protect your cells from free radicals. Picture antioxidants as Pac-Man, actively scavenging and neutralizing free radicals to prevent cellular damage.
Since the primary goal is to reduce our exposure to environmental toxins, buying produce that does not contain harmful chemicals such as pesticides and fertilizers makes sense. It has been proven that choosing organic fruits and vegetables can almost immediately reduce the amounts of pesticide residue in a person’s body. With that said, there are smart ways to select those items that must be organic, such as leafy greens and fruits that you are eating the skin of. Other items, such as those you peel, have less pesticide residue; therefore, choosing organic may be less critical. It has been proven that choosing organic fruits and vegetables can almost immediately reduce the amounts of pesticide residue in a person’s body.
I suggest following the Environmental Working Group (EWG) annual report on the prevalence of pesticides and chemicals found in produce.
- The Dirty Dozen lists have the highest traces of pesticides found, and buying organic is strongly suggested.
- The Clean 15 have the lowest amounts of pesticides detected, and buying non-organic is okay.
Nourish and Hydrate your body with clean, filtered water
Drinking water is essential for maintaining a healthy body, but it is even more important when discussing our detoxification systems. The lymphatic system is a network of vessels that transfers lymph, a fluid rich in white blood cells and waste products throughout the body. Staying adequately hydrated ensures the lymphatic system can effectively filter and remove toxins, pathogens, and cellular debris. Water also plays a key role in supporting the production of lymphocytes, the immune cells responsible for defending the body against infections. Drinking enough water helps your lymphatic system function optimally, promoting overall health and a robust immune response.
Whether you are a breast cancer survivor, someone who knows one, or someone interested in optimizing your health to stack the odds in your favor of preventing this or other diseases, the information I have shared applies to fostering your best health. The disease I got was breast cancer, and I am forever grateful it was detected early and the treatments I received got me to where I am today: a six-year cancer survivor with no evidence of disease. As a mom, I relentlessly questioned why I got breast cancer hoping to find answers that would spare my three daughters a similar fate. I dove headfirst into medical journals and sought opinions from alternative medical doctors and support from detox specialists. I did not stop at conventional medicine but instead took an integrative approach that ultimately led me to the knowledge that not only explained one of the reasons I got breast cancer but also empowered me with the tools to enhance my health. While I’m forever changed by my cancer diagnosis, I am profoundly grateful. This has led me on a journey of discovery, resilience, and newfound hope that breast cancer can not only be detected early but can also be prevented.
In the second part of this series, I will share strategies on how to avoid environmental toxins and how to eliminate the toxic load in your body, as well as the remarkable results that my Healthy Living Roadmap journey provided me.
Jackie Totilo is a tireless advocate for breast cancer survivors and a personal health coach. Jackie’s journey through breast cancer and incorporating holistic and functional medicine has strengthened her conviction that prioritizing prevention is fundamental to decreasing the alarming rate of breast cancer and the cornerstone of a healthy life. Jackie’s unique approach to prevention focuses on optimizing the body’s internal systems and adopting a non-toxic lifestyle. Her advocacy focuses on the power of nutrition, exercise, stress management, and mindfulness in maintaining a robust immune system for overall wellness and prevention. To learn more about her approach, get started with her free guide: The Four Step Healthy Living Roadmap.
