“You have cancer.” As a wife and mother, those are the last words you ever want to hear.

Life was rolling along and my days were full with caring for a family, helping my husband run our remodeling business and putting our extra time into a church plant. And then cancer struck, not once, but twice.

The first time was in 2012: the diagnosis was ovarian cancer, stage 3.

Life sputtered, came to a stall, but then returned to normal until 2016 when the cancer resurfaced, this time, full blast with no surgery option. All both oncologists could offer was chemotherapy with no cure and one suggested hospice.

But, of course, life went on around me.

The first of our children to be married was looming just months away as well as the graduation of our youngest daughter. After 30 years of home schooling, I felt like I was crossing the finish line. And now everything once again had to come to a halt. The church plant folded, but by God’s grace I determined I was not going to miss being there for my son’s wedding or my daughter’s graduation.

And I wanted to dance at my son’s wedding, not be home lying in bed sick and bald. There had to be another way.

As a Christian and biblical counselor in training, I knew there was only one place to run for the wisdom I needed to move forward. He knew me, He had made my body and He could do what no man could do–give wisdom and healing.

The journey hasn’t been easy, but it has been rewarding. The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is safe. (Proverbs 18:10)

WISDOM FOR CANCER
When you are backed into a corner with no where to go, you find God there waiting to show you He is able. In James 1:4, we learn that when going through trials, we are to ask God for wisdom; that He welcomes our prayers for it.

That is the first step when faced with hardship–run to Him. Lean into Him for strength and boldly pray as a child to his father. I earnestly pleaded with Him to help me and the prayers of others were also imploring the throne on my behalf. I knew without a doubt if He didn’t intervene, there was no hope.

I’m alive, writing this to you today, because of His power and those prayers.

A year ago, I had little energy, was losing weight, and had no appetite. I asked my daughters to let me just wash the dishes so I felt I was accomplishing something for the day. The rest of the day was spent in rest. All outside activity came to a halt just so I had the energy to attend church on Sunday–I needed that fellowship and encouragement.

ALTERNATIVE PATH FOR TREATING CANCER
Those prayers for wisdom were being heard by my Father and He began orchestrating events that brought two people into my life to help me find an alternative path to treating this cancer.

One was a doctor of osteopathy, the other a certified nutritionist who was also a medical technician. Both had experience in successfully treating ovarian cancer. The crazy part of this is both of these individuals lived in the area I’ve lived in most of my life – and I had never heard of them.

I began on their plan in August of 2016 and can tell you as I write this now in October of 2017 that my life has turned around. Once again, I am able to function at a normal pace, live life with a full head of hair, and yes, I did dance at my son’s wedding last fall!

I share this window into my world to encourage those who are facing cancer or will face it in the future. The current statistics are 1 in 3 women and 1 in 2 men will be diagnosed in their lifetime with some form of this dreaded disease.

It is the second leading cause of death in this country behind heart problems–I’d say we are doing a poor job of winning the war on cancer.

When I think of cancer, I think of the word epidemic or plague because it seems to be everywhere. By the end of 2015 I had lost two family members to cancer and in the first month in January of 2016, I had two friends diagnosed with cancer, one lived and one didn’t.

In our small neighborhood, at least ½ of us have had or are currently battling cancer and that is not unusual. It is everywhere.

When I began on this alternative path of treatment, I vowed I would do my best to tell others that there is hope when the medical community can offer none. That is why I share my story–to bring glory to the One who can save and the means He used to accomplish that in my life.

WHAT WE HAVE BEEN LEAD TO BELIEVE
We have been led to believe that treating cancer with anything other than the standard options of chemo and radiation is just foolish and that you are signing your death certificate if you choose that path.

And why is it so crazy to believe that God put plants on this earth that help us heal? There are commonly used medicines made from plants such as digitalis (foxglove) and aspirin (willow bark). The natural chemo I use in my protocol comes from Yew Tip Branches, which is what Taxol, one of the gold standard chemo’s for female cancers, was originally made from.

The Bible also refers in several passages to people being anointed with oils. I mean, before there were ever drug companies, people treated with things God had made on this earth, right?

Is it so hard to believe that the God who created the earth and everything in it actually knows best how our bodies are made and what our bodies need to heal?

I BELIEVE NATURAL TREATMENT DESPERATELY NEEDS A HEARING IN THE UNITED STATES.
There are other countries where what I’m doing is considered normal, yet here, physicians are not allowed to even consider other options. They have not been trained in the use of nutrition, let alone alternative treatments, and they can lose their license if they offer anything outside of what the FDA has approved.

WE NEED MEDICAL FREEDOM IN THE UNITED STATES.
If the issue is the health of the patient, then we should be even more open to alternatives as it is clear that the current forms of treatment offered in standard medical practice to treat cancer are anything but healthy for the patient.

The goal is for the chemo to kill the cancer before it kills you–many times that just is not the case and the patient goes through terrible suffering before finally dying.

The diagnosis of cancer can overwhelm you with extreme fear and crippling anxiety.

You will most likely be pressured by your oncologist to begin treatment right away. It is very easy to cave to fear and jump headlong into a treatment plan you may regret later.

SEEK COUNSEL
Most of the time, when you are dealing with cancer, you have time to do some research, seek counsel, pray to God for wisdom, and then make a decision on a treatment plan.

You must take control of your health. Never just blindly turn your decisions over to a doctor without first seeking the Great Physician and doing your own research.

The choice you make for treating your cancer has drastic consequences if you don’t choose wisely.

Take the time to calm down and get counsel from outside sources in the medical and alternative fields as well as from cancer patients and cancer survivors.

1. Look for treatment plans that have success in treating your type of cancer.

2. Ask yourself which treatment will help you be the best steward of the body you have been given.

3. After you do all that, then make your decision and move forward with it.

For me the choice I made was the one that offered me hope and one I knew I could live or die with.

My decision was influenced by what I observed in the care of patients in my family and friends. I watched chemo hasten their deaths or leave them with life-long disability and/or secondary cancers and surgeries.

I asked cancer survivors or spouses (of those who didn’t survive) if they would ever take chemo again and without exception, each one told me NO WAY.

I also knew chemo can cause secondary cancers–my oncologist was honest enough to tell me they would have to monitor me for leukemia while treating the ovarian cancer.

STANDARD CANCER TREATMENT CAN CAUSE CANCER
You mean the very thing they are using to treat cancer can cause cancer? YES.

Another observation I made between alternative and standard cancer care was this: one offered help to the immune system (which is the body’s line of defense) and one destroyed the immune system.

Many times cancer patients die from something other than the cancer because the immune system is so weakened by the treatments given to them. You need a strong immune system to fight illness.

The standard medical protocol would definitely attack the cancer AND me while the alternative protocol would attack the cancer without attacking me.

After weighing all the evidence, it wasn’t hard to make the choice I made. And it only strengthened my resolve when I spoke with two different medical doctors who told me they would choose natural treatments themselves–wow!

My treatment plan centers around the use of a Rife machine, various supplements, diet, exercise, and some alternative plant-based medicines used and developed in Germany. (Carnivora is one of those and was used by President Reagan when he had cancer).

God has used what I’m doing to bring wonderful results, and I am now experiencing remission.

The treatment may be modified, but I will use much of what I’m doing the rest of my life.

The very nature of cancer tends to be chronic. Any one who has ever been diagnosed with cancer will tell you that you are a patient for life.

You will have 3 or 6 month blood checks and scans that will go to 1 year after you have survived for 5 years.

The protocol in the medical community is after 5 years, you are labeled a cancer survivor.

But that doesn’t mean cancer will never return. You must remain ever vigilant because it can rear its head again at any time. To think you will go for treatment and be cured forever is a very rare reality for most people.

I found that using alternative care helped me focus more on the root cause of the disease instead of treating just symptoms which is what cancer is–a symptom of a failed immune system.

The standard protocol of chemo, radiation, and surgery just temporarily removes the symptom and the underlying cause is never dealt with most of the time which is why the cancer returns.

Alternative care seems to focus more on why the body is failing. As a side note, please do not try and treat your cancer alone.

Cancer is deadly business and you need professional help. I’ve seen some go back and forth between traditional medical care and alternative care, never fully embracing either and it doesn’t tend to go well.

If you choose to work with alternative practitioners, do their program fully with a laser-focused discipline. I’ll be honest here–chemo can seem like the easier choice because it doesn’t require you to change one thing.

Using an alternative protocol will demand disciplined living in your eating habits, exercise plan, and faithfully sticking to your supplements. I spend 3 hours a day under my Rife machine and I’ve been doing that for over a year.

You are going to participate in getting well. That is so much more hopeful than just being a victim of your situation.

GOD CAN STILL HEAL TODAY
I have learned God can still heal today and He can use means outside the standard protocol to accomplish it.

When I was given my death sentence, my mind couldn’t help going back to a story I had read many times in the Bible–there was a woman who had spent all her money on doctors and no one could heal her. The book of Luke (who was a doctor himself) tells us she had been hemorrhaging blood for twelve years and no doctor could help her.

But then she heard about Jesus, a prophet claiming to be the very Son of God. He was coming to her village and she had heard He was healing people. She knew He was so powerful that if she could just get close enough to touch his clothes, that would be enough to heal her. She knew He was her only hope!

So, I, too, in faith, reached out to my Savior and He was there. Can I encourage you no matter what you are facing today to do the same?

God continues to write my story and this is a journey I will be on until I finally meet Him one day. He has taken what seemed like the end of my world and turned it into a platform from which to minister to others and lift Him up.

~ the Author ~
Rhonda is a homemaker and secretary for their family-owned business. She and her husband are certified biblical counselors with ACBC and enjoy helping others change and grow through the teaching of God’s Word. They have been married for 34 years and have four children. Their oldest is an editor for World Magazine. Their second son is just newly married and their two daughters are still at home helping with the business and also currently training with ACBC.

Rhonda’s book ‘Hope: Living With Cancer‘ (in which she gives resources to help you on your journey) was borne out of social media posts where she chronicled her treatment plan and progress. Encouraged by friends, she shares her story so that others might find hope in the midst of a devastating diagnosis, especially those who have been deemed terminal by the doctors.

Written by Rhonda Devine and published by Deep Roots at Home ~ October 27, 2017