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Interview with Ann Fonfa, Alternative Cancer Treatment Advocate and Educator                                                              

I saw a note in my email about a conference one of my long-time pen pals, Ann Fonfa, is running in January. Ann is up to such great things in life, I decided to give her a little promotion.

One look at Ann Fonfa's schedule would send most folks running for the hills, but she has the “energy of a teenager” when it comes to forwarding alternative cancer treatment research.

Her schedule provides work to dozens of organizations including the Cochrane Collaboration and the American Association of Cancer Research. Ann involves herself in cancer legislative affairs, research protocol and volunteer organization, and much more.

Ann’s personal struggle with breast cancer took her life in an unexpected direction and even spurred the creation of a world-renowned web site. Here is Ann’s story.

OHC: When were you first diagnosed with Breast Cancer?

Ann: I was only 44 and pre-menopausal with no family cancer history. On top of that I had been a vegetarian for 18 years. I thought ‘How could this happen?’ But knowing what I know now, it's not surprising. I didn't eat meat but I didn't eat healthily either.

I would still go to Wendy's and get everything but the hamburger. I would have salad but it would be an iceberg lettuce salad with little nutritional value. I wasn't getting nearly enough fruits and veggies, and I didn’t recognize organic was important. It was hard to get a decent vegetarian meal in the 1970s!

Even now, I see so many people in the health food store with so-called healthy sodas, candy bars, and corn chips!

Anyway, back then, I had just started donating money to a breast cancer group, but I didn't even think to call them for support. I didn't get to pick my doctor, and I thought getting a second opinion was just something your insurance company required.

They took 18 lymph nodes from under my arm. I didn't want chemo because my cancer was caught early enough. Besides that, I was so chemically sensitive, I got sick just looking at an aspirin bottle.

My doctor insisted that I really should have the chemo. I refused and said, "There must be some alternative!" I went to the book store and found whatever I could on alternative methods. In those days, there were just a few books -- nothing like the resources we have now -- but it was enough to get started!

OHC: How did your work in cancer education and advocacy begin?

Ann: I gathered some of the information from my books and shared it with the support group I had joined.

Not too long after we began, the head of social work at Cancer Care called me and asked if I would come speak with them. To prepare, I made a handout that opened a lot of conversation about what else could be done to stay alive and healthy.

I brought copies to the National Breast Cancer Coalition Advocacy meeting and I carried it around with me to different organizations. Eventually schlepping copies all over just got to be too much, which is a major reason for creating the Annie Appleseed Project web site.

OHC: We love your site and have linked to it in the past. Tell us more about the Annie Appleseed Project.

Ann: In 1999 I started the Annie Appleseed Project, a web site devoted to new directions for true Integrative Oncology.

The mission of The Annie Appleseed Project is to provide information, education, advocacy and awareness for people with cancer about complementary, alternative medicine (CAM), and other issues.

We support people with cancer making more fully informed treatment decisions.

We are now members of the Society for Integrative Oncology, American Association for Cancer Research and the National Breast Cancer Coalition. We’re the most comprehensive site on this topic and we now get between 72,000 and 75,000 visitors a month.

We are a shoestring organization, so I am basically just a volunteer. I’m lucky that my husband is able to fund the rest of my life so I can do this. I run my life on a credit card to get flight points. I run my office out of my home. He and my brother pay the administrative costs for the Annie Appleseed Project.

Even our advocates and speakers have to cover most of their expenses but they want to do it anyway because they care about the information getting out there.

We answer every single email we receive, and the most common question is:

“Is it ok to take antioxidants while undergoing chemotherapy?”

There is no formal answer, as there have been few if any randomized trials.

I have tried to talk to pharmaceutical companies about funding a randomized clinical trial on antioxidants, and they say, “Ann, we can’t patent the results…” It’s sad.

There is no question that greater intake of fruits and vegetables makes a huge difference. One study on breast cancer survivors showed that women who ate 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables and exercised 20 minutes daily – no matter how much they weighed – lived 2-3 times as long as those who didn’t.

OHC: What is your biggest message for cancer patients?

Ann: Support and education, in my opinion, are by far the most important thing. Doctors don’t typically offer support in nutrition. People can make changes in their lives with support and education, which gives them a much better shot at recovery!

What’s sad is that families often work against change. We’ve received emails sharing how family members laughed at their cancer-laden loved ones for making healthier choices.

OHC: What do you think about Myers’ Cocktail and IV Vitamin C?

Ann: IV Vitamin C is very exciting! The trouble is getting to the final step. The incredibly positive studies always say, “Need more studies.” Animal studies are showing the same results.

Unfortunately, the medical community is still hearing (from pharma reps), “Diet and exercise don’t work, you need this pill.” People have heard this so many times, they believe it.

OHC: Tell us about your Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Cancer Advocacy and Patients conference.

Ann: The conference has been put together by a committee of volunteers, all focused on the evidence behind the decision-making process in cancer care. Our goal is for consumers to be able to make informed decisions and be supported by lifestyle strategies like supplements, yoga, massage, Reiki, etc.

Our speakers will include two integrative oncologists, a homeopath, and a Chinese herbalist who’s trained as a western medicine biostatistician.

We will be sharing evidence for complementary and alternative medicine, how to use it, and how it can be integrated into cancer treatments. So many people have cancer now – one in three women and one of every two men will have cancer in their lifetime. The question is where do we go from here?

Our aim for the conference is to facilitate networking and education about better ways to treat cancer. There’s room for dreaming, scheming, and even being scared, but in an environment where there is a whole lot of hope!

There is no downside to eating healthy, exercising, detoxifying, and relaxing. None. Why take a chance? It just takes a little bit of effort to make a huge difference in your health.
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Well, congratulations to Ann Fonfa, long-time reader of this kat’s newsletter, for putting together her Evidence-based Complimentary and Alternative Medicine for Cancer Advocacy and Patients conference. It’s a huge endeavor and a huge testimonial to Ann’s work to see this come together.

If you are interested in attending Ann’s conference, follow this link for more information: (link to web site promotion page).

To learn more about the Annie Appleseed Project, please go to the following page: (link to information included below).

If you would like to contribute to the Annie Appleseed Project, please write to: annieappleseedpr@aol.com.