Q: What causes cancer on the cellular or biochemical level?

A: Nobel Laureate, Dr. Otto Warburg, in his article “The Prime Cause and Prevention of Cancer” (1966) wrote, “Cancer, above all other diseases, has countless secondary causes. Almost anything can cause cancer. But, even for cancer, there is only one prime cause. The prime cause of cancer is the replacement of the respiration of oxygen (oxidation of sugar) in normal body cells by fermentation of sugar… In every case, during the cancer development, the oxygen respiration always falls, fermentation appears, and the highly differentiated cells are transformed into fermenting anaerobes, which have lost all their body functions and retain only the now useless property of growth and replication.“  (http://www.alkalizeforhealth.net/Loxygen2.htm).

Do modern scientists have a different opinion? Find out the answer in Part 1. Tissue hypoxia: the prime cause of cancer (modern research)

Conclusion. Appearance, development and metastasis of tumours are based on tissue hypoxia. Tumours are cries of the human organism for more oxygen.

Q: When some tissues suffer from low oxygenation due to pollution or other causes, what happens with our breathing? In other words, how can suppressed cellular oxygenation influence our outer respiration?  

A: It is a known physiological and toxicological fact that the presence of toxic substances (medical drugs, carcinogens, etc.) intensify respiration (our outer breathing) due to stress on the immune system and organs of elimination (the kidneys, liver, skin, etc.). Hence, a person’s breathing will be deeper (increased tidal volume) and heavier (greater minute ventilation).

The detailed mechanism and Western research in this area are summarized in Part 2. Tissue pollution and hypoxia: how they affect our breathing

Conclusion: Local pollution causes systemic stress and increased ventilation (outer respiration). We breathe heavier.

Q: What is the effect of deeper and bigger breathing (increased minute ventilation) on cellular oxygenation of all tissues, the polluted included?

A: Even slight over-breathing, which people never notice, makes us CO2-deficient ("hypocapnia" is the medical term). This causes 2 effects:

1. Vasoconstriction of arteries and arterioles and reduced blood supply to all vital organs and tissues

2. The suppressed Bohr effect (increased chemical affinity between haemoglobin cells and oxygen)

Both effects reduce oxygenation of vital organs and tissues. For further information, go to Part 3. Effects of unnoticed increased breathing on cellular oxygenation (or how our slight over-breathing influences breathing of cells)

Conclusions: Even slight unnoticed over-breathing or increased ventilation reduces blood and oxygen supply for all vital organs causing tissue hypoxia and decreased perfusion.

Q: Apart from toxins and pollution, are there any other factors that make breathing heavier or deeper?

A: Our breathing reacts to any changes during our interaction with the environment. Hence, there are numerous lifestyle factors that influence breathing. Some lifestyle factors can intensify breathing 2-3 times, while we usually do not notice these changes. More details can be found in Part 4. Lifestyle factors and their interactions with breathing

Conclusion: Presence of various abnormal lifestyle factors makes breathing bigger and deeper causing chronic hypoxia of vital tissues and organs.

Q: How do our genetic make-up, local toxicity in certain tissues, and lifestyle factors interact with each other and influence development of cancer?

A: Tissue hypoxia appears due to local effects of some carcinogenic substances (anything that can suppress the respiration of cells) and abnormal lifestyle factors. Both these elements result in chronic, usually hidden, hyperventilation which washes out the CO2 from each cell of the human organism. Since all vital organs are going to suffer from hypoxia, malignant cells can thrive in tissues and parts of the body which are most compromised in relation to their oxygenation (the genetic component of cancer). Toxic overload due to smoking, dietary toxins and poisons, radiation, and other causes can intensify local hypoxic effects in certain parts or organs of the organism (the environmental component of cancer). Further growth of the tumour and its metastasis are also controlled by the same factors, where tissue hypoxia plays the central role. You can find out further details in Part 5. A dynamic model for development of cancer (theoretical ideas)

Conclusions: Tissue hypoxia appears due to local effects of some carcinogenic substances (anything that can suppress the respiration of cells) and abnormal lifestyle factors. Both these elements can result in chronic hidden hyperventilation which control dynamic of cancer.

Q: Is there a simple DIY test that reflects body oxygenation and cancer development?

A: The behaviour of tumours is predicted by the oxygenation index or the CP (control pause or stress-free breath holding time). The test is intensively used for the Buteyko self-oxygenation medical therapy. More details about the oxygenation test and the Buteyko medical therapy are in Part 6. A simple test to measure body oxygenation and cancer dynamic

Conclusions: The dynamic nature of cancer can be expressed by the index of oxygenation, or stress-free breath holding time after usual exhalation: 1-10 s – metastasis; 10-20 s – growth of tumours and advance of cancer; 20-40 s – the intermediate state (deadlock); over 40 s – reversal of hypoxia and disappearance of cancer.

Q: What is the most logical way to deal with cancer?

A: Elimination of all factors that we can control and that cause low cellular oxygenation. The most advanced system of self-oxygenation is the Buteyko medical breathing self-oxygenation method. The ultimate goal of the Buteyko method is to achieve his standard of ideal health manifested in 60 s CP at any time of the day or night. Such breath holding time ensures thorough oxygenation of all tissues and inability of appearance of any tumor or existence of conditions for tumour elimination. For further information, go to Part 7. The self-oxygenation therapy for treatment of cancer

Conclusion. The main goal of cancer treatment is to eliminate the foundation of cancer: tissue hypoxia. Cancer treatment, therefore, should be based on the restoration of normal breathing parameters (minute ventilation, blood carbon dioxide content, tissue oxygenation, the CP, etc.). Currently, there is only one therapy which aims to increase body oxygenation: the Buteyko breathing method, a medical program to conquer diseases.

(These webpages are based on information contained in the books “Oxygenate yourself, breathe less” and “Normal breathing: the key to vital health” by Dr. Artour Rakhimov, both available through www.normalbreathing.com).

Learn more about self-oxygenation and the Buteyko method Education pages

© 2008 Artour Rakhimov (If you copy the content of these pages for educational purposes, please, indicate the site address and author's name).