Callie's Cancer Part 3

Obviously, a blog about a house cat is hardly appropriate for a site dedicated to human health, but I feel that Callie's story is indeed significant to the human side of cancer.

This post is Part 3 of Callie's Cancer blog that was posted on Monday, 22 August 2016 and of Part 2 that was posted on Wednesday, 25 January 2017.

A Quick Recap

Callie was diagnosed on 6 June 2016 with terminal stomach and intestinal lymphoma. She was given six months to possibly a year to live with chemotherapy and steroid treatments. Her symptoms included: extremely weak and lethargic, bent back, too weak to straighten her hind legs, face and body drawn in intense pain, incontinence – total loss of bowel control, diarrhea, frequent vomiting, stools black with blood. She was so weak, it was hard to imagine her living the rest of the week, much less six months. 

We decided against the prescribed treatment as explained in Part 1 and Part 2, and instead, try her with the only cancer treatment that we have witnessed to be truly effective – a plant based diet. There didn't seem to be anything to lose. 

A year has passed and Callie is still with us and going strong. Callie's success in beating cancer with a vegan diet as her only treatment has far exceeded our most ambitious hopes. Not only are all of her cancer symptoms gone, but other lifelong inflammatory issues disappeared as well. Her latest veterinarian visit yielded a diagnosis of a trim, healthy 15-year-old cat with a clean bill of health. I believe Callie is another mark of evidence that a plant based diet is the most effective "treatment" in preventing and reversing cancer – especially since she is not even anatomically equipped to eat plants! 

Callie's story may be argued as not scientific proof, but it is indeed another significant example adding to an already long list of human examples. Callie is now enjoying her life. She is trim, strong, pain free, active, loving and fully in-charge.

Is Feeding a Cat a Vegan Diet Recommended?

No. Doctor McDougall often points out that each species has a specific optimum diet. I believe that is certainly true, but I believe there is more to it than that. The original source of food, for all animals on planet Earth is plants. Plants are the beginning of the food chain and is the most nutrient rich – as that is where it all starts. From Callie's cancer experience, I have learned that all carnivores suffer from getting their fuel and nutrition second-hand, however due to their anatomy, that is all they can do, and it shows: the average herbivore is larger, has more stamina and a longer lifespan than carnivores.

Is Feeding a Cat a Vegan Diet Easy?

No. Callie is indeed an obligate carnivore that we are feeding a diet that is in conflict with her gastric anatomy. Resulting issues include food passing too quickly, due to the fiber for which carnivore anatomy is not equipped, thus requiring more frequent meals. It also requires highly processed food to reduce the fiber content. As you might expect, her stools are loose due to the amount of remaining fiber, though she does have perfectly regular bowl control. Other issues include pH control. Cat's require acid forming foods while humans and other herbivores require alkaline forming foods. This can be extremely problematic, even fatal in some cats, particularly males. Fortunately, Callie's pH has remained in the safe zone.

Is it Difficult to get Cats to Eat Vegan Food?

Not really. All three of our cats love the vegan food. Just like humans, cats taste is learned and they like what is familiar. Also like most humans, they don't know where it came from. Additionally, they are individuals each with their own tastes.

What Has Been Learned?

While surviving cancer is a wonderful blessing, that is not the end of it. This has been a very enlightening journey, being that Callie's anatomy does not include elements for digesting plant based foods – a polar opposite of human anatomy. However, apparently, we are very similar at the cellular level especially with issues of inflammation and cancer. This experience adds another connecting dot to how inflammation is so involved in essentially all Standard American Diseases - including cancer. 

Please understand that I am not a medical professional in any capacity. This writing is only to share my experience and what I have learned from it.

Nothing in life is more inhibiting, failing or debilitating than the belief; "I Can't."
Nothing in life is more freeing, enabling or successful than the belief; "I Can."