hemotherapy has the potential to damage healthy cells, with cells in the bone marrow and digestive tract lining often hit the hardest, causing bone-marrow damage and gastro-intestinal distress. This damage and distress can reach the point of forced reduction or discontinuation of chemotherapy dosages for patient safety.

But chronotherapy can reverse this scenario. Because the division of these bone marrow and digestive lining cells occurs at different rates throughout the circadian cycle, it is theorized that toxicity and damage to these healthy cells can be reduced if specific chemotherapy agents are administered during the rest phase when cell division in these areas is less prolific.

Animal and human studies support this conclusion, and the library of evidence continues to grow. One of the most recent of reviews of the progress chronotherapy research is making on the medical front was published in May 2001 in the respected medical journal "Lancet Oncology." Dr. Francis Levi, a French physician and pioneer in clinical chronotherapy research, concludes that after testing chronotherapy on more than 1,500 patients with gastrointestinal cancer, patients are much better able to tolerate the chemotherapy agents when receiving chronomodulated doses.

"The chronotherapy concept has played an important part in the recognition of the activity of a new drugs against colorectal cancer, and has given rise to a new ... strategy with curative potential with patients with metastatic disease," Levi states in the review. (Lancet Oncol 2001: 2: 307-15) He goes on to state that the survival rates of metastatic colorectal cancer patients were consistently the longest reported for this disease in multiple trials.

Levi's most recent review serves as a follow-up to his 1997 breakthrough study, in which researchers conducted a clinical trial involving almost 200 patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. Using chronotherapy in combination with chemotherapy they administered traditional constant-rate infusion to half of the patients, and used fractionated dosages corresponding with certain circadian or biological rhythms among the other half. "Lancet," researchers concluded that chronotherapy treatment was able to achieve significantly less toxic results while improving upon the effectiveness of traditional chemotherapy infusion. (Lancet, 1997: 350(9079): 681-6)

Chronotherapy at Block

Until now, chemotherapy administrations at most U.S. cancer treatment centers have been scheduled without consideration for timing, other than clinical staff convenience. However, Block Center for Integrative Cancer Care uses an exclusive pump to precisely time up to four channels of infusion simultaneously to the individual needs of the patient. The pump is highly portable - small enough to fit in a fanny pack - and patients are able to maintain full mobility, or enjoy a full night's sleep. Block Center for Integrative Cancer Care is the only cancer treatment center in the U.S. to use this revolutionary pump, and Dr. Keith Block has been an integral part of bringing this technology to the United States.

After two years of chronotherapeutic administration of chemotherapy to qualified patients of the center, Block clinicians are demonstrating promising results. Since its inception, the chronotherapy program at Block Center for Integrative Cancer Care has enabled our qualified patients to undergo chemotherapy while eliminating or drastically reducing what would have been recurring side effects of nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and fatigue.

Please note that chronotherapy is not for every patient, and is not a guarantee that treatment will be 100% effective.