I am wondering if my mom's high uric acid levels can cause problems in the long run. Just as a reminder, she did test her urine's pH and it was found to be very acidic a few months ago, and when she does drink baking soda, a good majority of her pain immediately eases up (usually, though not always).
Uric acid is actually beneficial up to an extent since it is one of the body's primary antioxidants. But as with anything it is possible to have too much of a good thing. The biggest risk would be to the kidneys, where most of the uric acid is excreted. If the uric acid is not completely hydrolyzed with sufficient water the uric acid will remain as sharp crystals that can cut the kidney tissue as it passes through.
I've been reading up a little on high uric acid levels, and have found that it is often associated with cancer death, but that there may be complications associated with it. What are the chances of renal failure (Acute uric acid nephropathy)?
Again this depends a lot on the ratio of uric acid to water since water hydrolyzes the uric acid in to urea, which does not damage the kidneys.
Do you think that she also has uric acid in the blood?
Uric acid is always present in the blood. It is the amount that can be a problem.
Can she have tumor lysis syndrome?
With destroying the cancer cells so rapidly with the ozone I would be surprised if her uric acid levels were not elevated.
If nettle leaf tea, juniper berries (will have her start on these today), malic acid, and water don't help too much, do you know of any prescription pills that help patients control uric acid levels? A prescription for uric acid will likely reduce her need for oxycodone, which is probably for the best for her.
There is one drug that I have seen advertised that I think is supposed to lower uric acid. I don't recall the name though and do not recall the side effects. All I really remember is that the actor is carrying around a large flask of antifreeze, which I think they chose because drinking antifreeze will shoot your uric acid levels through the roof. If it comes to that I can find the drug name.
And some of the older gout drugs, such as the very dangerous colchicine, did not lower uric acid. It was an anti-inflammatory to reduce the inflammation from the uric acid crystal damage.
By the way, caffeine also raises uric acid levels so make sure she avoids coffee, tea, chocolate, etc. Also mushrooms, yeast, and alcohol.
Are there any minerals that my mom can take to keep her uric acid levels down?
The magnesium malate would be best as for minerals. The magnesium is a buffer and the malic acid dissolves uric acid.
Also, you mentioned that oxycodone can cause low blood pressure. It has been 100-110/70 during the last few check-ups, but the nurse told us that it is within the normal range.
Yes, that is normal. Blood pressure in women is about 8-10 points lower systolically and diastolically than in men. So her pressure is normal, but you do not want much lower than that.
I think that I will ask the doctor to check uric acid in the blood and urine just to have the oncologist have knowledge of it and have it on file.
EDIT: My mom has been speaking with a former Russian oncologist (now a general practitioner in the US) who told her that an acidic environment is hostile for cancer. She took that to mean that she shouldn't try to rid the body of uric acid and deal with her pain in order to get better more quickly. I told her that the ozone is probably doing plenty enough and that she should not have to deal with the pain for what little the acid would contribute to her recovery. What is your advice on this?
It is a little more complicated than this. Cancer cells are actually alkaline, which is what helps them to survive and thrive. And there are various acids that will kill cancer cells such as betulinic acid, found in chagas popular in Russia, and chlorogenic acid. But there is a lot of controversy as to what cancer cells produce as a result of their fermentation. Generally this is accepted as lactic acid, although the body does not generate significant amounts of lactic acid but rather non-acidic lactate. Unfortunately these two terms are used interchangeably even though they are not the same thing. Some people claim though that lactic acid helps cancer cells to spread even though there is still question as to whether the lactic acid even remains as lactic acid by the time it leaves the cell or of it is converted to lactate.
Secondly, not all acids are the same. Some acids are dangerous as where others are quite beneficial. Some are very strong and others very weak. Some are organic acids and some are not.
Again uric acid is a primary antioxidant for the body, but too much can be damaging.
If I were in her shoes I would keep moving forward with the ozone and herbs with plenty of water and the herbs and magnesium malate or malic acid to help reduce the uric acid to reasonable levels. And if possible, talk to the doctor about possibly injecting the ozone directly in to the tumor. Since he is apparently familiar with ozone he may be willing to do it. Note though that if doing ozone injections you need to use a glass syringe.
(This is the guy who told her that if she'd been in his office, he would suggest chemo, but because they're speaking over the phone, "under no circumstances should you get chemo." He suggests that she continue ozone therapy, etc., and has been offering phone consultations free of charge.)
EDIT 2: You were curious about my mom's prolactin levels. About two weeks ago, she tested them and these are the results:
TSH: 1.480 uIU/mL, 0.270-4.200 reference
FERRITIN: 8 L0 ng/mL, 10-291 reference
PROLACTIN, SERUM: 45.3 ng/mL
VITAMIN B12: 419 pg/mL, 211-911 reference
---
Clinical Abnormalities Study
GLUCOSE: 105 HI
CHOLESTEROL: 217 HI
LDL CHOLESTEROL: 130 HI
FERRITIN: 8 L0
TRIGLYCERIDES: 192 HI
HDL CHOL., DIRECT: 49 L0
The prolactin is quite high. This would account for the release of breast milk, but now she has to figure out why she is producing such high levels of prolactin. By the way, prolactin is also a depressant. But dopamine lowers prolactin levels so the DLPA can also help reduce the prolactin levels.
As for the other labs that are high I am not worried about those right now. Pain and stress can raise cholesterol, blood sugar and triglycerides.
I'm don't think that the doctor practices ozone therapy even though he seems to be a proponent of it. In the unlikely event that the PET scan does not show progress in November, we will find a doctor around here that can inject ozone directly into the tumor.
What do high levels of prolactin typically mean for a breast cancer patient like my mom? Is it due to excess estrogen?
No, it is not from the estrogen. Prolactin though is inhibited by dopamine. And the pain killers that she is on is shutting down her dopamine production, which will raise prolactin. This is not really dangerous, but elevated prolactin is a depressant.
(My brother told me that my mom used to get night sweats all the time, which is often related to excess estrogen, but after starting ozone therapy in June, she has never suffered a hot flash a single night after that. He said that ozone destroys excess estrogen, so if the prolactin levels are estrogen-related, I'm wondering what this contradictory scenario means.)
Yes, ozone destroys estrogen, but the elevated prolactin is not from estrogen.
My mom sometimes has an alternative practitioner visit her, a woman who my brother just met today that sells her various minerals, among other things. They are expensive -- hundreds of dollars a week, but my mom has claimed that she felt great while taking them. But she mostly took them before starting ozone therapy, which is the very same time that she started experiencing this pain and swelling of her right arm. She never took the minerals in August, September, etc. -- the last few months during which her ozone therapy was most intensive. I'm wondering if you could go through the list of minerals, etc. that she gave my mom:
lipidic sulfur- This is pretty vague. Lipids refer to fats, so it sounds like a lipid containing sulfur such as turkey red oil. I could not find anything specific on this.
heptanol- This is an alcohol, not a mineral. It has effects on heart and smooth muscle, but makes no sense for cancer treatment.
red selenium- An unstable allotrope of selenium.
copper sulfite- There is nothing on the safety of the sulfite.
heptanoic acid- Not a mineral. Considered hazardous to ingest and caustic to membranes.
lipidic copper- Again a vague term. Just means copper bound in a fat.
heptanone- There are various forms of hepatone, which are ketones, not minerals. Some are naturally occurring in foods, and some used as pesticides.
pentanone- Another ketone that has also been used as a pesticide. Ingestion can cause nervous system and organ damage.
Are any of these effective for uric acid?
No.
Also, my mom currently uses an ozone machine that does not require an oxygen tank, so I'm assuming that it's generating ozone from the air in the room. Is this method fine? Ideal? Worse than using a machine that uses pure oxygen from a tank?
If using the ozone internally she should really be using oxygen as a starter gas. Especially since many units generate harsh acids when air is used.
EDIT: My mom has been feeling better for a few days now. A bit less pain and the swelling in her right arm and wrist is easing up. This happened only once before, the week when she did not do any ozone therapy. Maybe there is less cancer for the body to deal with, so less uric acid (pain) and less immune system activity (swollen lymph nodes, swollen right arm and wrist)?
Yes, this is a definite possibility.