LORENZO COHEN, PhD and ALISON JEFFRIES, M.Ed. discuss Anticancer Living: how the “Mix of Six” can radically transform health

Despite the hundreds of billions of dollars spent in the last 50 years on cancer research, cancer remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Within the next 20 years, the number of new cancer cases is expected to increase by 70 percent. In the U.S., one in two men and one in three women will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime. But most people don’t realize they can reduce their risk of getting cancer and improve their chances of surviving a cancer diagnosis by making six fundamental changes in their lifestyle. In their new book, ANTICANCER LIVING, Lorenzo Cohen, PhD, director of the Integrative Medicine Program at the Center; and Alison Jefferies, Med, show that by focusing on social and emotional support, stress management, sleep, exercise, diet, and minimizing exposure to environmental toxins, 50 to 70 percent of cancer can be prevented and cancer survivors can live longer and better lives. People are waiting for a cure to cancer, when the most promising antidote is already here, and it doesn’t come in a syringe or a pill. Lorenzo Cohen and Alison Jefferies answer questions such as: · What exactly is the “Mix of Six” and how does it work in concert with conventional cancer treatments like chemotherapy or radiation? · Is there really evidence that lifestyle change makes a difference? · Isn’t it enough to eat less junk food and exercise regularly? · Can high stress really counteract the benefits of eating a healthy diet? · Cancer is a terrifying thought, but it seems like there’s not much we can do to avoid it, beyond avoiding tobacco or other carcinogens. Isn’t it, to some extent, genetic? · You rank social and emotional support and stress reduction as higher than diet and exercise – why? · Environmental toxins we can’t see surely affect our health, but is there much the layperson can do about it? In a society that remains embedded in an illness model of health care, ANTICANCER LIVING empowers us to engage pro-actively and with optimism, built on a belief that self-care is health care and that greater wellness is available to us all. ABOUT THE AUTHORS Lorenzo Cohen, PhD, is the Richard E. Haynes Distinguished Professor in Clinical Cancer Prevention and director of the Integrative Medicine Program at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. He is on the board of the Academic Consortium for Integrative Medicine and Health and is a founding member and past-president of the Society for Integrative Oncology. Dr. Cohen has published more than one hundred and twenty-five scientific articles in top medical journals and has edited two books on integrative medicine for cancer care. Follow him on Twitter at @DrLCohen Alison Jefferies, MEd, has worked extensively as an educator. She is a former president of the MD Anderson Cancer Center Faculty and Family Organization, and works closely with Lorenzo Cohen to foster health and wellness in individuals and their communities. Cohen and Jefferies live in Houston with their three children.