This journey began because of a skin biopsy I had this past June that indicated I had a squamous cell carcinoma located on the right side of my nose, very close to my eye. My dermatologist recommended surgery – Mohs – which I asked to postpone until after my nieces wedding the end of July. The surgery was scheduled for early August, but I cancelled it just prior to leaving for our trip to Maine. I sent my doctor a letter trying to explain my reasoning, knowing full well he would not agree. I have two things in my life that keep me from wanting to accept everything the medical profession wants to say. One is faith and prayer. I fully believe that God has provided all that I need for healing – first from the sacrificial death of Christ on the Cross for my life and, second, in the plants he created that hold all the true “medicines” we need for health.
One of the most amazing recent discoveries for me, is essential oils. After being into nutrition for most of my adult life, somehow I missed learning about these oils – the vital fluids of plants – with molecules so small that they penetrate every living cell. These oils are chemically very special in the universe of God’s natural substances. Their healing power has been known and used since the most ancient of times. They are considered to be the first medicines of mankind and were an important part of the prescriptions of Hippocrates.
The beauty of oils as medicines is that they don’t have negative side effects like the synthetic drugs and chemicals of modern pharmacology. Therapeutic grade oils are pure essential oils derived from organically grown or wildcrafted plants. They must be steam distilled at atmospheric pressures and minimum temperatures in vessels that are non-reactive. they must be bottled in dark or opaque non-reactive containers with no adulteration, dilution, refinement or tampering with the oils in any as they come from the still. Young Living Essential Oils is a company that meets all of these standards. They have always led the way with innovative technology for plant production and distillation for the extraction of the highest therapeutic-grade essential oils.
So, shortly after my “diagnosis”, I was introduced to these oils and learned quickly about the healing properties of Frankincense – one of the precious oils brought to the Christ child by the Wise Men.
Frankincense has a sweet, warm, balsamic aroma that is stimulating and elevating to the mind.
Useful for visualizing, improving one’s spiritual connection, and centering, it has comforting
properties that help focus the mind and overcome stress and despair. Frankincense is considered the holy anointing oil in the Middle East, where it has been used in religious ceremonies for thousands of years. More recently, it has been used in European and American hospitals and is the subject of substantial research. Frankincense is also a valuable ingredient in skin care products for aging and dry skin. The ancient Egyptians used it in rejuvenation face masks.
I used this oil on the spot for about two months, applying with prayer, expecting all cells to be healthy.
Curaderm BEC5 is a natural anti-cancer drug derived from the eggplant. Twenty five years of basic research, pre-clinical research and clinical research have established that BEC from eggplants, in a cream formulation, is effective for treating non melanoma skin cancers.
I ordered the cream and read the book and decided this was worth a try – just trying to avoid a costly and inconvenient surgery.
The way it works is, you apply the cream to the area at least twice a day and cover with medical tape. Initially the lesion will increase significantly and then as treatment progresses the diameter of the lesion will decrease until all cancer cells are replaced with normal cells.
In my case, I has no lesion protruding from the skin, which made it harder for me to be confident I was dealing with a squamous cell carcinoma. So I applied the cream in the spot where the biopsy had been taken, which was all healed by this time and difficult to even see. (Remember, I had been applying Frankincense all summer to the area). In this photo, after one week, it does appear that the Curaderm was destroying something
– had to be cancer cells, as it doesn’t harm healthy cells.
By the end of the second week, there was a noticeable erosion of the skin. Again, indicating the cream is destroying cancer cells well within the epidermis and dermis, causing an apparent hole in the skin. Instructions are to continue to use the Curaderm until the skin starts to fill in.
By the third week I started having an allergic reaction to the medical tape I was using. I realized the tape was not latex free and I have a sensitivity to long exposure to latex. UGH! I immediately purchased latex-free, for sensitive skin tape and it felt so much better to just change the tape. It was getting a little itchy and just looked irritated and bad. I also wasn’t sure about using the oils as an anti-septic, as they can cause skin sensitivities too, especially in the light of this kind of irritation. So, I may have aggravated it with the oils??
We were heading to Atlanta for a wedding this day and I was rather depressed about how bad I looked. I had decided I’d have to wear my shades to everything. (Hide behind the Foster Grants!) On the way to Atlanta, it just seemed to be getting more and more irritated. I had decided to apply Polysporin to the area as well, trying to stop the infection. After arriving in Atlanta, I washed the area carefully and decided to only put Polysporin and the tape on it… let it rest. By the next morning, it felt and looked a little calmer. I washed it carefully again and reapplied Polysporin and the tape. No Curaderm. I wasn’t sure, really, if I had used the Curaderm as long as I was supposed to. The whole thing is kinda a guessing game, since I was self-medicating and had no experienced practitioner advising me. However, the book by Dr Cham has photos and lot’s of invaluable information to help you do this on your own. It seems from the testimonies that three weeks often is enough to do the trick. http://curadermtestimonials.blogspot.com/
On returning from Atlanta, I continued only Polysporin covered with the tape. At first things calmed, as you can see at the end of the 4th week. My skin is looking pink and smooth, just the way it is supposed to. To prevent scarring, I continued to apply Polysporin and covered it with the tape. (That had always been the recommendation from my dermatologist after previous procedures).
However, this now makes over a week of applying Polysporin and, low and behold, I started getting a rash. The interesting thing is, I spent the weekend of the 23rd & 24th at the Young Living Essential Oils Convention and was exposed to many, many oils. There was an amazing EXPO hall where you could touch, smell, taste, and ask questions. I sampled so many oils. I left that weekend feeling a little “off” – like I was catching something… and my rash was spreading…
I work part-time for an ophthalmologist, Dr. Sam, who has been so helpful in advising me about some of this. He spotted the rash and asked what I was using and then informed me about the high level of allergic reactions in the form of a rash caused by Polysporin. Oooohhh Nooooo. I rushed home and got in a hot tub with Epsom salts and baking powder – trying to detox my skin from this ointment. The hot bath felt good too. I immediately stopped putting anything on the wound and finally went bare skinned.
The area where the Curaderm had been applied still looks pink and smooth, but you can see the crusty rash forming on my nose and face. The fact that this area is so close to my eye made for concern during this whole ordeal. But, I didn’t like the thought of surgery in that spot either!
Well, even after stopping everything, the rash didn’t stop. I now had a full blown case of contact dermatitis developing. By the next day, the rash was so bothersome, I couldn’t wear clothes. I just wanted to sit in a hot tub and soak. It was so itchy!!!! I was getting weary.
I stayed home from all work this week. On Wednesday, 10/5, I called a friend that has a clinic with an far infrared sauna. I thought that sweating might help. However, you can see by this photo that I only got worse! I wasn’t sure if that was just a sign of detoxing or what. It actually felt better, initially, after being in the sauna. This is getting serious now.
On Friday I sat in the sauna again. Afterwards, I had an appointment with my chiropractor, Dr. Haskel, and he was very concerned. He said no more saunas until I was healed and to seek the advise of an MD. Well, here it was late Friday afternoon, so the doctor’s office would be closed. I just went home and crashed – had to take Benadryl to sleep.
Sauna caused major inflammation! The Far Infrared rays emitted by the Sauna through the use of carbon panels duplicates the healthy rays that come from the sun. As healing as this can be normally, obviously it wasn’t a good idea for dermatitis!
So when I awoke on Saturday morning, my eye was so puffy I could hardly focus out of it. I sent this photo by text to Dr. Sam (the ophthalmologist) and asked if he thought this would wait until Monday when my dermatologist would be open. He immediately called me and told me to get to the ER at Altamonte Florida Hospital and to ask for Dr. O’Brien – he would be waiting for me. It was pouring down rain. Not a day you want to go out in, but Jack drove me over there and I was admitted to ER and given and IV of a very potent steroid along with fluids. I was there a couple of hours then dismissed with a RX for oral steroid for 5 days and an antibiotic to assure no infection on the skin. So much for my natural alternatives. But when you get yourself in a fix (due to the chemical ointment), be glad for quick relief.
Dr. Sam sent this photo to a friend that is a dermatologist and they suggested it looked like I had phytophotodermatitis – The pattern is one in which you would have probably spread some lotion or cream on your chest and this area was exposed to radiant energy. Hmmmm…. seems like the sauna was equivalent to me laying in the sun – as far as the reaction anyway. So, it turns out, that the hot baths were only aggravating the situation as well. It needed cooling – which I used ice packs to stop the itch when I wasn’t in the bathtub.
It is Sunday evening now. I have had the IV steroid yesterday in the ER, an oral dose last night, and a second oral dose tonight. Everything is calming down and I feel so much better.
You can see marked improvement from the morning photo to the evening photo. The eye is hardly swollen and the inflammation is manageable. Tomorrow, Monday, I have to try to get my dermatologist to follow up on this. He will not be happy, as we haven’t spoken in person since this whole ordeal started.
As far as the skin cancer area, I can’t be sure with all this eruption around it. As the dermatitis subsides and I can evaluate the area, I will have more confidence on how the Curaderm went. After attending the Young Living Conference and learning about the extensive research with Sacred Frankincense and cancer, I will continue to put the oil on my skin – all over. They even say to put it on your breasts, or any area you are concerned about, to prevent and/or destroy any cancer cells.
If you want more info on the oils or the Curaderm, please feel free to contact me. You can visit my Young Living website at www.youngliving.org/jgates10
Update – 5 days since the ER and the IV steroids – I’m almost completely healed. I really believe that my amazing rebound is due to working with my chiropractor, Dr. Haskel, the last few months and working on my immune system with nutrition and Young Living essential oils.