Episode Details

When a woman sits across from Dr. Anna after a breast cancer diagnosis, she asks one question. What did your oncologist say caused it? Almost every time, the answer is a blank stare.

Dr. Nasha Winters has lived that silence from the inside. By 19, she had collected a decade of diagnoses, including PCOS, endometriosis, IBS, anxiety, and thyroid trouble. Then she landed in the ER with a grapefruit-sized tumor and was told she was too ill for treatment. In this conversation, she shares the three things she credits with changing her path. She also explains how childhood trauma can shape the immune system and why she sees the body as a garden to tend rather than a battlefield.

Dr. Nasha is a naturopathic doctor and the author of The Metabolic Approach to Cancer. She walks through the ten areas of terrain she evaluates, the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio hiding in a standard CBC, and her inflammation "trifecta" of CRP, sed rate, and LDH. She explains why ringing the bell after treatment is the beginning of rebuilding. She also shares the four S's she sees as common threads in breast health.

Key takeaways

• Recurring symptoms and diagnoses can be signals worth investigating, not just labels to manage.

• Dr. Nasha looks at ten areas of terrain and now starts with mental and emotional health.

• A standard CBC can reveal your neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio. She prefers it closer to 2 to 1.

• She tracks CRP, sed rate, and LDH together as a picture of inflammation and metabolic health.

• In her view, finishing treatment is when the work of rebuilding healthy cells begins.

• Research links a balanced microbiome with a better response to immunotherapy.

• Her four S's for breast health are sugar, stress, sleep, and sex.

Timestamps

00:00 The question most women are never asked 05:45 A terminal ovarian cancer diagnosis at 19 12:15 The three "accidents" she credits 17:00 Dr. Anna on the 13-hour overnight fast 19:00 The ACE score and psychoneuroimmunology 37:45 The 10 areas of terrain 44:40 The neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio 48:15 CRP, sed rate, and LDH 53:30 Why ringing the bell is the beginning 56:00 The microbiome and immunotherapy 61:30 Saliva vs. urine pH and your body's capacity 71:00 The four S's of breast health

Memorable quotes

"So I thought I was pre-med. Cancer had another story for me." Dr. Nasha Winters

"They were trying to be a guidepost of, hey, there's something wrong here that needs our attention." Dr. Nasha Winters, on her early diagnoses

"It's very simple. Test, assess, address, don't guess." Dr. Nasha Winters

"What I tell folks is that's actually just the beginning." Dr. Nasha Winters, on ringing the bell after treatment

"Your body is always speaking to you." Dr. Anna Cabeca

"The best years of your life aren't behind you. They're waiting for you." Dr. Anna Cabeca

Resources mentioned

• Dr. Nasha Winters at drnasha.com, which has her books, terrain questionnaire, podcast, Substack, and free resources on what to do after a diagnosis

• The Metabolic Approach to Cancer by Dr. Nasha Winters

• M