More than 260 oncologists from Tata Memorial Hospital have refuted recent statements by former cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu about his wife's cancer treatment. Sidhu claimed that Navjot Kaur Sidhu's recovery was due to a diet incorporating turmeric, neem, and intermittent fasting. However, the oncologists attributed her recovery to standard medical treatments. Sidhu announced on Thursday that his wife is clinically cancer-free, sharing details of her diet and fasting regimen during a video conference. He asserted that these practices played a role in curing her “incurable” disease.
"Cancer treatment should happen under the supervision and advice of trained oncologists, which is most of the times multimodality, needing integration of 2 or 3 specialties together to be able to cure/control this at the best. Any information regarding cancer diagnosis and treatment can be easily obtained with an oncologist ‘s consultation." says oncologist Dr. Aditi Agarwal.
Cancer is a complex disease caused by genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors. While a healthy diet is crucial for overall health and prevention, treating cancer requires medical interventions. "Diet plays an important role in our life, as it helps maintain energy levels, boost immunity and also protect us from several diseases. This becomes more important during an illness or treatment as body need more energy and nutrinets to fight the ongoing stress in body. Consumption of some selective components/substances in excess, however may prove to be deleterious as well. Alternate therapies and dietary modifications can help in building immunity and hence tolerance to anticancer therapy/minimize side effects, however there is no data/evidence/report on alternate therapies being able to control cancer/cure it in any form in absence of anticancer therapy." says Dr. Agarwal.
Diet cannot cure cancer as cancer is a complex disease that arises from genetic mutations, environmental exposures, and multifactorial processes that drive uncontrolled cell growth. While a nutritious diet can strengthen the immune system, reduce inflammation, and support the body during treatment, it cannot directly target or eliminate cancer cells.
Doctor Agarwal expands, "A recent statement by a renowned cricketer on neem, haldi being able to cure his wifes cancer is absolutely illogical, as it is the anticancer treatment with chemotherapy, radiation and surgery which is curative/controls cancer, rather than the dietary substances mentioned by him. There is no evidence or study to support use of these agents for cancer cure independently and such statements are completely misleading. Such information can misguide people and cause them to rely on alternate therapies instead of the standard treatment for cancer. This can unfortunately lead cancer cells to multiply and progress, making the disease incurable if left untreated."
"Also it has been clarified in various scientific meetings/ discussions/ that starving cancer cells and not consuming sugar/carbohydrates does not help in cancer control. This is one of the myths listed by WHO few years back. In fact, all cells in human body metabolise food into glucose and utilize it for human functions. Non consumption of carbohydrates actually starves body cells of the glucose, energy required for functioning, making tolerance to any treatment difficult, induces lethargy, weakness and irritability." she further added.
Cancer treatments like chemotherapy, radiation, surgery, and immunotherapy are designed to attack the disease at a molecular level, something food cannot achieve. Although certain foods contain bioactive compounds that may have cancer-fighting properties, their effects are not potent enough to replace medical interventions. Diet is crucial for prevention, managing side effects, and enhancing overall health, but it must be part of a broader, scientifically validated treatment approach.
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