The LDN (Low Dose Naltrexone) Research Trust is at the
forefront of raising awareness of the potential of low dose naltrexone as a
treatment in auto-immune diseases and cancer. Not just in the UK, the LDN
Research Trust has done an outstanding job on the international as well as the
national stage. At the heart of this hive of activity – with multiple projects
on-going at any one time – is Linda Elsegood, who founded the Trust in February
2004. Ahead of a busy schedule in organising the 2014 LDN Research conference,
Linda was kind enough to answer a few questions on LDN and cancer.
Pan: There seems
to have been a real rise in the level of interest in LDN and cancer, what’s
driving that?
Linda: It’s been
incredible really, there is so much interest coming from all areas now – not
just in this country but internationally too. Social media has made a huge
difference to this. People can access information much more easily than when we
started more than 10 years ago. And it’s not just from patients. We get a lot more
interest from doctors too. People want to know. And we’re really busy at the
LDN Research Trust. We’ve got seven projects on the go at the moment, including
the filming of a documentary, there’s the conference which we really want to
live stream to everyone for free, to achieve this we have to raise the money.
Again, social media is making the difference to this sort of thing.
Pan: In terms of
this level of interest, how much is it driven directly by doctors, and how much
is it doctors pushed to find out by their patients?
Linda: It’s a bit
of both. A lot of the time it’s patients finding out about LDN on the internet,
finding our site or others and downloading the information to take to their
doctors. But increasingly we are seeing cases where patients are being told
about LDN by their doctors. This is definitely starting to happen more, even in
the UK. We do have cases where people are getting LDN on the NHS, even cancer
patients. It varies in other countries, in some places it’s really hard to get
LDN and in others it’s much easier. And there are some wonderful doctors
working with LDN – for example Pradeep Chopra who is doing some great work with
LDN and pain relief in the US.
Pan: How much
more interest in the cancer world?
Linda: There’s a
phenomenal amount of interest in LDN in the cancer world. We’ve even had cases
where oncologists in the UK, working in the NHS, have prescribed LDN to their
patients. It’s frustrating in that it goes on, but people are made to feel that
it’s against the norm and so no one wants to attract too much attention to it.
It’s the same in other countries, and in some parts of the world there’s a
definite risk attached to doctors working with LDN with their patients. I don’t
want to say where because it will make life even more difficult for the doctors
and patients in those countries.
Pan: Where next
for the LDN Research Trust? Any plans to set up or fund clinical trials?
Linda: Our aim
was to raise funds for trials but I can’t see us achieving that. What we are
achieving is spreading the word – to
doctors and patients alike. A lot of it is word of mouth, or else people visit
our web site and download the information packs. It’s working, there’s more
interest but there’s always more to do. Right now being able to stream the 2014
conference live would make a huge difference. Not everyone can afford to go to
the conference, or is healthy enough, but if we can raise the money to stream
it then nobody needs to miss out.
Pan: Thanks, Linda. And for those who want to support the free
streaming of the 2014 conference, the fund raising site is just a click away
at: http://ldnresearchtrust.org/ Read also our interview with one of the pioneers of LDN and cancer, Dr Burt Berkson.
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