Surgery — Member Experiences & Open Questions

This page gathers the fuller community-sourced surgery material that sits behind the main surgery guide.

Jump to

• Overview

• Key protocol themes

• Dr-McKinney pre-op

• Dr-McKinney post-op

• Emotional prep

• Surgical technique

• Nutrition and pain

• Member experiences

• Key resources

• Open questions

Overview

This material was compiled from the group's dedicated Surgery Pre & Post thread.

The core concern running through it is simple:

surgical stress, inflammation, tissue injury, and wound healing can create a short biological window that may favour metastasis or recurrence.

That is why members focused so heavily on:

• reducing perioperative inflammation

• preserving immune function

• improving wound healing

• choosing anaesthesia carefully

• timing supplement pauses correctly

• preparing emotionally as well as physically

Key protocol themes

Modified citrus pectin

Members repeatedly shared modified citrus pectin (MCP) as a perioperative tool.

The main pattern discussed was:

• 5 g three times daily

• start at least 2 weeks before surgery

• continue for at least 1 month after surgery

Some group discussion extended use much longer.

The practical rationale was reduction of cancer-cell adhesion through galectin-3 targeting.

A common issue raised was gas and digestive discomfort.

Flaxseed pre-op only

A recurring pre-op strategy was:

• 25 to 30 g fresh ground flaxseed daily

• used for about 1 month before surgery

The strong note from the group was that this was treated as a pre-op window strategy, not a routine long-term post-op strategy.

Iodine before and after surgery

Members highlighted the survival difference reported in human breast-cancer data when iodine was used both before and after surgery rather than only after.

The unresolved practical issue was form.

The group repeatedly raised the question of molecular iodine versus Lugol's.

Boswellia before surgery

The group highlighted the window-of-opportunity breast-cancer trial using:

• BosPur 800 mg three times daily

• taken from surgical scheduling until the night before surgery

Members also discussed the relevance of higher-AKBA products relative to the trial formulation.

Propranolol plus etodolac

This was one of the most concrete protocol areas because trial-style dosing schedules were shared directly.

Two main schedules circulated in the group:

Trial-style 20-day window

Trial-style 6-day window

A separate group note also mentioned tadalafil plus influenza vaccine from a perioperative trial context.

That remains a much more specialist discussion.

NSAIDs and opioid avoidance

Members repeatedly raised the concern that opioids may not be the ideal default for cancer-related perioperative pain.

NSAIDs were discussed as potentially more favourable from a recurrence-risk angle, but always with bleeding-risk caution.

One unresolved question kept resurfacing:

• ketorolac versus etodolac

Anaesthesia choice

This was one of the strongest discussion areas.

The main group message was:

• ask specifically for propofol-based TIVA

• do not assume anaesthetic choice is neutral

• raise the question before the day of surgery

Menstrual-cycle timing

Premenopausal breast-cancer patients discussed trying to schedule surgery in the progesterone-dominant second half of the cycle.

The group understood that surgeons usually ask cycle dates mainly to exclude pregnancy.

Members stressed that anyone wanting cycle-aware scheduling needed to ask directly.

Dr. McKinney pre-op

The group repeatedly quoted and applied the pre-op material from Naturopathic Oncology.

Commonly started pre-op

Wound-healing support when nutritionally depleted

The group highlighted:

• vitamin C

• zinc citrate

• vitamin A

• whey protein

Common stop list around 1 week before surgery

These were repeatedly flagged because of sedation, anaesthesia, or blood-pressure concerns:

• St John's wort

• valerian

• kava

• ginseng

• skullcap or baicalein

• passion flower

• hops

• melatonin

• inositol

• GABA

• 5-HTP

• ephedra

• licorice root

• peony root

• milletia

• ginkgo

• high-dose niacin or niacinamide

Common stop list around 3 days before surgery

These were repeatedly flagged because of bleeding or clotting concerns:

• garlic

• bromelain

• vitamin K supplements

• salvia

• ginger

• curcumin

• rehmannia

• ligusticum

• atractylodes

• carthamus

• reishi

• cordyceps

• CoQ10

• resveratrol

• green tea extract

Practical notes from the thread

• baicalein was specifically discussed because it appears both as a useful anti-inflammatory and on the stop list

• some members were told that COC medications such as doxycycline, mebendazole, and metformin could continue, but only after individual review

• members repeatedly emphasised giving the full supplement list to the anaesthetist

Psychology protocol

The mind-body message from this part of the thread was strong:

• rehearse success

• visualise the procedure going well

• treat surgery preparation like serious performance preparation

Infection prevention

One practical note discussed was pre-op skin preparation with chlorhexidine when infection risk or immune compromise was a concern.

Dr. McKinney post-op

Preventing spread and limiting inflammatory fallout

The post-op emphasis stayed on:

• PectaSol-C

• catechin-containing antioxidant support

• mixed tocopherols in some protocol versions

Immune support

The group discussion mentioned:

• vitamin A

• vitamin C

• zinc

• cat's claw

• reishi

• selected homeopathic supports

Wound-healing support

Topical wound-care ideas from the thread

• Rosa Mosqueta / rosehip oil once the incision is closed

• aloe vera for scar and tissue support

• silicone gel

• calendula

• chickweed

• comfrey leaf

Anaesthesia recovery

Two recurrent mentions were:

• NAC to help recovery after anaesthesia

• homeopathic support for post-anaesthetic symptoms

Gut and microbiome support

The group also discussed:

• probiotics when diarrhoea follows surgery

• restoring gut resilience during recovery

Physical activity

A strong repeated message from members was:

• resume movement as early as safely possible

Emotional prep

This was one of the clearest themes in the thread.

Members repeatedly described emotional preparation as clinically meaningful, not optional.

Common themes included:

• reduce fear before surgery

• reduce feelings of aloneness and helplessness

• use meditation, imagery, or coaching if needed

• work consciously with relief and emotional release after surgery

• combine this with the practical protocol, not instead of it

Some members described surprisingly low post-op pain after intense mind-body preparation.

That does not prove a universal effect.

It is still one of the strongest recurring lived-experience themes.

Surgical technique

One of the most valuable member warnings was about asking how the surgeon will approach the operation, not just whether the operation will happen.

Questions members wished they had asked earlier included:

• what incision will be used?

• how long will tissue be retracted?

• is a more direct incision better than a more hidden one?

• what are the trade-offs between cosmetic appearance and tissue trauma?

This came up especially in breast-surgery shares.

Nutrition and pain

Nutrition for healing

Members asked a practical question that comes up often:

• How do you support healing and protein intake without feeling you are “feeding cancer”?

The thread included discussion of:

• whey protein

• collagen protein

• lower-sugar diets

• green tea

• mushrooms

• vitamins A, C, D, and E

• selenium

• zinc

A separate practitioner point discussed in the thread was that a very strong whole-food diet may reduce the need for some supplementary wound-healing support.

Member experiences

Major liver and pelvic surgery

A member described a long surgery involving multiple surgeons and extensive tumour removal.

They used the pre-op and post-op protocol discussed in the group.

The main takeaways were:

• faster recovery than expected

• strong healing of the incision line

• particularly strong praise for PectaSol-C, the homeopathic surgery mix, and Rosa Mosqueta oil

Radical modified mastectomy

A member described intensive emotional and mind-body preparation before surgery.

The reported outcome was:

• no pain medication needed

• very fast return to light movement

• a strong sense that the preparation changed her experience

Repeated lumpectomies

A member described a more complex path involving recurrence, unclear margins, and repeated surgery.

By the second lumpectomy, she had added:

• propranolol

• etodolac

• MCP

• high-dose IV vitamin C

Post-anaesthesia grogginess

A member shared severe post-op dizziness, dry mouth, blurry vision, and exhaustion.

A key practical discovery was that a scopolamine patch was contributing to the symptoms.

That became a useful reminder for other members to check for all patches and administered products after surgery.

Biopsy site concerns

A member raised the under-discussed issue of cumulative biopsy trauma.

The concern was that each repeated biopsy is still a wounding event.

That fits the broader surgery-risk logic discussed across the thread.