I’m not a big fan of traditional cancer treatments, which are making oncologists and pharmaceutical companies a lot of money but doing little to help cancer patients or their families. Once cancer has spread (metastasized), the chance of traditional treatments affording even a five-year survival is extremely low.

We’ve now learned that cancer stem cells, not wayward normal cells, are the origin of the disease. Stem cells are resistant to almost all chemotherapies, and a recent study found that radiation may have just been making things worse.

One review found that cancer radiation induced inflammation (which has been known for a long time). Furthermore, almost all cancers are inflammatory, and inflammation intensely stimulates cancer growth and spread.

Oncologists recommend the use of postoperative radiation in virtually all cases of breast cancer in situ, despite the lack of metastasis on pathology exam. We now know that many in situ breast cancers are actually benign, and will never spread. But the radiation after surgical removal drastically increases the risk that the residual cells or other at-risk cells will be converted into cancer.

The same effect occurs with the radiation that comes from mammograms. The radiation exposure of the breast is cumulative and can eventually lead to cancer. Of course, the oncologist will take credit for finding it. But the truth is that he or she may have caused the cancer with yearly mammograms.

I have known women who religiously got their mammogram each year, then suddenly developed an inflammatory cancer of the breast — the most deadly kind. I am convinced (along with others) that the radiation from yearly mammograms actually caused those cancers to develop. I’ve seen this several times.

A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan of the breast uses no radiation and is far more accurate. Another advantage is that the breast does not need to be compressed during the exam.

Other tests include the self-exam and the breast thermogram. The latter test is considerably more physiological, as cancers are a lot hotter than benign breast lesions. It is painless and uses no radiation.