My Mother's Healing from Cancer

I’m indebted to Jordan Rubin in many ways, but what I will never forget is how I was inspired by the principles of his “Maker’s Diet” when my mother was facing a life-threatening disease—breast cancer—more than a decade ago.

I was twenty-four years old, in school training to become a physician and working as a nutritionist outside of Orlando, Florida, when I received a phone call from home. My mother, Winona, was on the line, and she sounded upset.

“What’s wrong, Mom?” I asked.

“The cancer has come back,” she said through sniffles.

Back when I was in seventh grade and growing up in Dayton, Ohio, Mom had first learned she had breast cancer when she was just forty-one years old. The prognosis was so serious that she underwent a total mastectomy of her left breast and started four tough cycles of chemotherapy that greatly weakened her. Seeing my mother suffer so greatly led me to say to myself, I never want to see Mom or anyone else go through chemotherapy again. My mother proved to be a fighter and eventually recovered, but the cancer left its calling card. A gym teacher at a local public school, Mom felt lousy every single day, which left her depressed.

Hearing her distressed voice again shook me back to the present. “My oncologist told me they found a tumor on my lungs that was 2.5 centi- meters,” my mother said. “He wants to do surgery and start radiation and chemotherapy right away.”

I expressed my sorrow and did my best to encourage my mother. From my studies in the medical field, I knew we had to stop feeding the cancer cells and get to the root cause of the disease. “Your body can heal itself from cancer, but you’ll have to follow a detailed plan that I lay out for you.”

I decided to fly home to Dayton immediately. When we sat down in the living room, I asked her about any symptoms she had been experiencing and other health problems. Mom replied that she had dealing with multiple food sensitivities and had been diagnosed with hypothyroidism, but it was her last health symptom that shocked me.

“I’ve been having an average of one bowel movement a week for the last ten years,” she said.

“Why didn’t you say something earlier?” I asked. “Because I thought it was normal.”

“One or two bowel movements a week is definitely not normal, but we can do something about that.”

Mom needed to clean up her diet. I explained that we were going to start all over in her pantry and refrigerator—out with the old processed foods and anything in a box and in with new organic foods, especially organic fruits and vegetables as well as wild-caught salmon and pasture-raised chicken.This is where Jordan Rubin was a big help. I knew Jordan through mutual friends, and when I reached out to him, he suggested that I have my mom start taking a probiotic supplement with soil-based organisms (SBOs). Known as “good bacteria,” or probiotics, SBOs increase the absorption of nutrients and improve bowel function.

Mom—who knew her days could be numbered—followed my diet and lifestyle advice to the letter. The SBOs helped her constipation problems tremendously. She began having one bowel movement every day and lost twenty-two pounds. A big smile returned to her face.When my mom went in for another biopsy, not only was her blood work normal, but her cancer markers dropped dramatically. Because her largest tumor had shrunk by 52 percent, her doctors told her that they were postponing surgery. Mom completed a radiant health comeback, and I’m deeply appreciative of the role that Jordan played in helping her defeat a significant disease that nearly took her life. I must also mention that Jordan’s discovery of soil-based organisms inspired me to write my best-selling book, Eat Dirt.

Jordan is no stranger to comeback stories like my mother’s because he is a living example of someone who was at death’s door yet persevered to make a health comeback that ranks as one of the most dramatic natural healing stories ever told.

Although Jordan came from a family that stressed a healthy diet, his own deteriorating dietary habits while a student at Florida State University may have contributed to the onset of his nearly terminal case of Crohn’s disease. Once the diagnosis had been made, initial medical treatments, which consisted of massive doses of intravenous and oral antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs, only exacerbated his condition.Faced with his own battle to stay alive, Jordan searched the world for answers. He learned about the amazing dietary secrets employed by our ancestors that allowed them to live long, disease-free lives. Most of all, his consumption of beneficial microbes found in pristine soils helped him return to excellent health.But even greater than his own healing journey are the secrets of health and longevity that Jordan has gathered together for the benefit of all humanity. Throughout Patient Heal Thyself, Jordan shares the concepts of ancient healing that have been lost through time and modernity but are absolutely essential to becoming—and staying—healthy.In Jordan’s prescription for health, you’ll find nutritional treasures that are far more powerful than simply your run-of-the-mill vitamins and minerals. Primitive dietary essentials such as health-giving phytochemicals found in herbs and whole foods, the ever-important essential fats, and, of course, the role of soil-based organisms are all part of the healthy diet.Jordan calls his eating program the Maker’s Diet, which will be explained in detail in Patient Heal Thyself.

I truly believe the information in this work will form the foundation for your journey to super health or recovery from disease. That’s why I encourage you to enjoy Patient Heal Thyself and to pay close attention.Your health and the health of your loved ones may depend on it.