Special Thanks to The Monroe Monitor & Valley News
By Pam McGaffin

Six years ago, a routine physical exam led to the detection of a killer lurking in Milton Nazarenus' body.

A chest x-ray showed a spot on his lung no bigger than a nickel. He underwent surgery to remove part of his lung, but subsequent scans showed the cancer had spread. The Monroe-area man was told he had advanced-stage melanoma and months to live.

That the 75-year-old is still alive today is a miracle he attributes to "God's healing hand" and the wonders of natural medicine.

"I don't know how they do it, but they do it," he said.

Nazarenus and his wife, Nancy, decided early on they didn't want to go the traditional route: chemotherapy combined with immunity-enhancing drugs.

Then, Nancy and a co-worker who had battled cancer found a tiny newspaper advertisement for the Seattle Cancer Treatment and Wellness Center. The Capitol Hill clinic combines medical oncology with natural and complementary treatments, including nutrition, acupuncture and Chinese medicine.

Nazarenus made an appointment and soon began seeing Dr. Paul Reilly, a naturopath who co-wrote the book, How to Prevent and Treat Cancer with Natural Medicine.

Reilly got Nazarenus to change his diet, eliminating most sugars, simple carbohydrates, meat and alcohol and adding more fish, fruits, vegetables, beans, whole grains and nuts. The naturopath also prescribed a two-page-long list of cancer-fighting herbs and supplements, including vitamins A and C, which boost immunity.

Nazarenus followed the regimen and showed improvement very quickly, Reilly said. The tumors were shrinking.

Today, Nazarenus is officially in what doctors call stable remission. Scans still show scar tissue or tumors that have stopped growing, but there's no evidence the disease is progressing.

He took an active role in his treatment and stuck with it, Reilly said.

"A lot of people want to do something natural, but when it comes time, they don't want to give up their hamburgers and junk food," the naturopathic physician said. "He was a good patient."

Actually Nazarenus did several things right, starting with getting that physical in 1997, Reilly said. Annual physicals are recommended, as are regular self-exams of the skin. Any suspicious-looking moles, growths, sores or patches of skin discoloration should be checked out right away, he said.

Melanoma, if found early, is very curable, but it becomes deadly once it spreads, Reilly noted.

Overexposure to ultraviolet rays, to the point of sunburn, is the most common cause of skin cancer. Nazarenus spent years working in the sun as a construction worker building houses and laying foundations. He usually wore a hat and a shirt, but no sunscreen.

"Back 50 years ago, it (skin cancer) was not the issue it has been," he said.

Nazarenus believes the melanoma spread through his blood stream to his lung and liver. A while back, he had a spot on his back removed and still has small skin growths on his face and head.

He's glad "beyond all measure" that he sought a second opinion and found doctors who believed he could be successfully treated without chemotherapy and immunity drugs.

The problem with conventional treatments, Reilly said, is they are so toxic to the body that patients sometimes don't finish them.

"By offering a full spectrum of care to patients, Seattle Cancer Treatment and Wellness Center is able to reduce the negative side effects... so people can tolerate treatment well enough to complete it," he explained

Nazarenus found it easy to take the supplements and follow Reilly's prescribed diet, although he's not quite as strict with his food choices as he was when he started. The only pain he feels are the cramps in his rib cage when he bends down to put on his shoes. He blames that on the surgery and has learned to live with it.

But then this grandfather of three is one tough bird. The cancer notwithstanding, he's survived a stint in the Army as well as two potentially serious car accidents and a mishap with a skill saw eight years ago that took his left thumb. The latter effectively ended his ability to work as a carpenter, but didn't strip away his spirit.

It's enough to make one believe, as Nazarenus does, that someone is looking out for him. He has no doubt that his faith has helped him through life. In fact, after his devastating cancer diagnosis, three of his oncologists actually advised Nazarenus to look to a higher power.

He didn't need to be told.

The doctors are trying "to give a person hope," he said, "because if you give up, that's the end."

No case is typical. You should not expect to experience these results.