Did I Make the Wrong Decision?

Knowing that cancer has spread to my bones now begs the logical question of whether my decision made four years ago to fight my cancer naturally instead of getting radiation and chemo was the right thing to do.  There are also some "I-told-you-so"ers out there--people who are convinced that the reason the cancer has spread is precisely because I refused chemo and radiation.  Are they right?  Did I make the wrong decision?

In order to answer that question, another question needs to be asked.  Do cancer patients who do choose the standard treatments of chemo and radiation have recurrences and/or metastases?  The answer, of course, is "yes."  Over half a million people die of cancer in the U.S. every year, and it's safe to say that the vast majority of them chose standard cancer treatments.  So, treating cancer with chemo and radiation is far from a guarantee of curing it or preventing recurrences.  In light of that fact, it is unreasonable to conclude that someone who chooses alternatives to chemo and radiation is acting recklessly or ill-advisedly.  Alternative treatment options are not a guarantee of cure, either, but they must be recognized for what they are:  viable alternative treatment options.

I have never claimed that choosing alternative methods would cure me of cancer.  I have consistently said that I believe they are safer and healthier options, since chemo and radiation both not only have devastating effects on the rest of the body, but also cause more cancer in the process.  {For more info on chemo and radiation, refer to my earlier posts in 2013.}  I do believe that alternative treatments have the ability to cure cancer and that they offer better odds than standard treatments, but I also know that there are no guarantees.  As I have stated before, I am simply trying to be the best steward of this body that God gave me, but the end result is up to Him.  God's plan for my life--and death--is already written, and it will be accomplished regardless of which treatments I choose.  Which is why I have never told a cancer patient who chooses standard treatments that they are wrong for doing so.  We can only make decisions for ourselves.

What I do know is that for the past four years, adopting an anti-cancer/anti-inflammatory diet and making lifestyle changes to reduce toxin exposure and promote overall health gave me four years of improved overall health and completely normal living.  I also believe that without those changes, the cancer would have returned sooner and possibly worse.  Personally, I prefer that over being ill, tired, and suffering from other side effects of chemo and radiation.

Up to this point, those diet and lifestyle changes along with regular breast thermography scans were the only steps needed to fight the cancer. 
Obviously, I now need to pursue actual treatments, which is what I am doing.

Having said all that, my faith and hope are not in cancer treatments of any kind.  My hope rests in God my Savior, and I will strive to walk worthy of Him through this journey.

Psalm 39: 4-7
     O Lord, make me know my end and what is the measure of my days;
         let me know how fleeting I am!
     Behold, you have made my days a few handbreadths, and my lifetime is
         as nothing before you.  Surely all mankind stands as a mere breath!  Selah
     Surely a man goes about as a shadow!  Surely for nothing they are in turmoil;
         man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather!
    And now, O Lord, for what do I wait?  My hope is in you.