By Alan Cocchetto, NCF Medical Director © 2016

From Winter 2016/7 Forum

The “Just Ask.’ ” column is intended to act as a means for patients to inquire about issues related to the NCF ‘s research activities. This column is NOT intended to act as medical advice in any way, shape or form.’ The National CFIDS Foundation assumes no responsibilities for any action or treatment undertaken by readers. For medical advice, please consult your own personal healthcare providers.

Q: I don’t know if you have already seen these, I found these 2 news stories about a potential treatment. I just thought it might interest you: www.popularmechanics.com/technology/a18501/could-this-pill-cure-radiation-sickness
In more detail here: http://ideas.ted.com/how-were-making-a-pill- that-cures-radiation-poisoning

What does your medical director, or whoever has the medical knowledge think about it?

I am thinking of doing the HBOT therapy that was written about in the last Forum. My only friend with CFS here in Israel is thinking about it too. It will be some time before I start it because it costs somewhere around 12,000 to 25,000 shekel and I don’t have the money or energy yet. It will be under Dr * who did the original research on 60 fibromyalgia patients, in the same place in Israel.

I will let you know how it goes. I don’t really know about the study he did for CFS, because the majority of the Israeli patients I see, seem more energetic than the ME patients. Plus Dr * himself repeatedly said that it mainly helps those fibromyalgia patients who got ill after a head injury, not those who got it after a virus. On the other hand, I am intrigued by the idea that HBOT can help damage from radiation. Please let me know what you think of the articles.
Thank You.

A: Since the NCF has been funding research that is associated with the radiation sickness model of CFIDS (chronic radiation sickness), we have spent most of our scientific efforts on delineating the primary mechanisms associated with aberrant changes at the cellular level along with the pathways associated with these changes. At the same time, we have pursued and examined various compounds for their effects on those pathways that are directly involved. We are very optimistic in our efforts to bring appropriate disease identification as well as subsequent disease treatment protocols to those who fit this model for internal alpha-radiation exposure. We have been a very busy bunch as you can imagine… but that is what $3 million in directed research can accomplish. We currently have numerous publications in the pipeline in regard to all of this.

As such, I am forwarding some of the scientific work regarding the use of hyperbaric oxygen (HBOT) to antagonize the late effects of radiation exposure. I hope that you will find this to be useful and would certainly suggest that you discuss this with your personal physician(s). Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for the treatment of the late effects of radiotherapy: www.cochrane.org/CD005005/GYNAECA_hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy-treatment-late-effects-radiotherapy

TREATING RADIATION DAMAGE WITH HYPERBARIC OXYGEN THERAPY:
http://connect.hyperbaricmedicalsolutions.com/blog/treating-radiation-damage-with-hyperbaric-oxygen-therapy

Hyperbaric medicine - Radiation Tissue Injury:
www.virginiamason.org/radiationtissueinjury

I forgot to comment on the article in Popular Mechanics. A team at the Lawrence Berkeley Lab, led by Rebecca Abergel, have a new way to combat radiation sickness: in pill form. This is a decorporation agent or in other words, a chelating agent. We have tested several chelating agents in our own research and have found that these can accelerate the lymphoma/leukemia process so we feel that this approach is rather iffy. This is why the NCF has taken the more difficult scientific path to understand and resolve the necessary issues regarding internal radiation exposure.

Speaking of which, the Lawrence Berkeley Lab research is based on the following patent data:
http://appft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearchbool.html&r=15&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=PG01&s1=Abergel&s2=radiation&OS=Abergel+AND+radiation&RS=Abergel+AND+radiation

Note the following taken directly from this patent: Exposure to radionuclides accidentally or deliberately scattered by a radiological dispersion device or deposited from a nuclear power plant accident or nuclear device detonation could result in the contamination of a large population. As internalized radionuclides are highly toxic and may cause both acute and chronic radiation injury, such contamination event would have dramatic public health consequences.

The CFIDS patient community does not truly appreciate nor realize yet what has occurred worldwide regarding widespread contamination of water and food by high energy alpha-radionuclides… and of course the subsequent chronic radiation sickness that develops… all of which has been seen in Chernobyl liquidators who went on to develop CFIDS.
Thanks for allowing me to comment.