DeBcc, the Alternative That Really Can
A cream that treats skin cancer!
By Vida Ricaplaza

  The primary cause of BCC is overexposure to the sun. This is why it occurs mostly on the head, neck, nape, shoulders, and upper extremities. It appears as a dark, pigmented lesion that may at first look like an ordinary mole or a white patch. From a small lesion, it grows bigger and as it does it develops a central ulcer. This is why it’s sometimes referred to as a “rodent ulcer.”

Being the slowest growing of all skin cancers, BCC has the best chance of being cured. But if left untreated it will eventually eat up everything—starting with the superficial layer of the skin, then down to the fat, and finally into the muscles and bones.
As with other types of cancer, treatment for BCC is almost always surgery. For years, in fact, surgery has been the only option—that is, until recently.

Enter DeBcc

Dr. Eric Sta. Maria Talens shares the good news: skin cancer may now be cured surgery-free, thanks to a wonder cream called DeBcc

The good news is that a nonsurgical alternative has been developed to treat this most common of skin cancers. It’s called DeBcc and, amazingly, it’s a simple topical cream that you apply to the affected area just like any ordinary cream.
In case studies over the last six years, amazing results have been documented attesting to the cream’s efficacy. Its inventor, Rolando C. dela Cruz, a noted Filipino herbalist and inventor, has collaborated with a group of noted Filipino surgeons from the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital (UP-PGH)—led by Dr. Eric Sta. Maria Talens, chief of UP-PGH’s Division of Trauma—on a clinical-trial paper, “A Combination of Gliricidia sepium and Anacardium occidentale (Linn.) (DeBcc)for the Treatment of Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC) or Skin Cancer.” DeBcc later won several international awards and recognitions, including: the World Invention Diamond Award (Group Award) in the British Invention Show put together by the British Inventors’ Society at the Alexandra Palace in London, England (October 2006); the Gold Medal Award from the IENA Invention Fair in Nuremberg, Germany (November 2005); and the Gold Medal Award from the Archimedes Invention Fair held in Moscow, Russia (March 2004).

Last October 2007, DeBcc won its latest international award: the Best Scientific Exhibit Award given at the 93rd Annual Clinical Congress of the American College of Surgeons, the world’s largest convention for surgeons of all specialties. The convention is the world’s most prestigious forum for the presentation of research and innovations in surgical treatment. Although Dr. Talens’s UP-PGH group only submitted the manuscript on the DeBcc for the scientific-poster exhibit, one of only 275 research entries from all over the world to be accepted for scientific exhibition, it also was later accepted for the bigger Poster Exhibit. It was chosen as one of the 11 “Posters of Exceptional Merit” and, ultimately, was adjudged the Best Scientific Exhibit for 2007.

This impressive breakthrough win, plus all the previous international recognitions it has received, confirmed DeBcc as a potent option for treating BCC.

From the shell of cashew nuts
And yet, DeBcc is not new. DeBcc was invented way back in the 1970s by dela Cruz, who’s also the brains behind the DeWart and DeMole treatments offered by his company, Amazing Touch. Both DeWart and DeMole use the oil of the pericarp (shell) of the cashew nut, Anacardium occidentale, as main ingredient, and both have proved effective.

Before	After

Dela Cruz first discovered the potency of the cashew-nut shell when as a boy he noticed that it produced a burning sensation whenever it touched his lips while he was eating the nut. From that observation he would go on to invent a topical cream based on the cashew-nut shell that was effective in removing warts and moles—little knowing that he had also invented a remarkable product that could treat skin cancer!

Its use against BCC was first attempted when, about six years ago, a patient with a large lesion on his left eyebrow insisted that he do so. He did and, much to his surprise, it produced favorable results.

On his own, dela Cruz went on to document in “Before,” “During,” and “After” photos the BCC cases that he treated with the DeBcc. Much to his amazement, the lesions decreased in size until they totally disappeared, creating no disfigurement. (In contrast, surgery removes the lesion but leaves behind a deep, unsightly wound.) Remission, besides, is virtually 100 percent.

A meeting of minds
Encouraged by these cases, dela Cruz approached Dr. Eric Talens—not to present his results but to volunteer as dermatologist in one of the doctor’s surgical missions. Dr. Talens did see later the inventor’s documentation photos and was amazed. “But I told him [that] we had to [properly] document the cases and present them in a paper before scientific conventions,” recalls Dr. Talens.

Backed up by UP-PGH, Dr. Talens and dela Cruz were joined by Dr. Daniel dela Paz and Dr. Orlando Ocampo, both consultants for the hospital’s surgery department, Dr. Porfirio Tica, a plastic surgeon, and the late pharmacologist Dr. Horacio Estrada.

The study involved 14 patients with documented BCC lesions of the middle-third of the face. Seven patients had lesions near an eye, four had lesions on or near the nose. The lesion sizes ranged from 15 mm to 64 mm. Weekly topical applications of DeBcc were done and within an average of eight treatments, the lesions completely dissolved. No recurrence was noted during the follow-up period of two to four years.

Now an option
Because DeBcc cream is a treatment for cancer, it cannot be bought over the counter. However, it is available at Amazing Touch clinics in most SM branches.

No standardized cost has been set for DeBcc treatment yet, and, as Dr. Talens admits, it will not come cheap. But this topical treatment will cost significantly less than the traditional treatment, which is surgery cum reconstruction.

“It obviates the need for surgery and [eliminates surgery’s] complications, which include scars so huge, deep, and visible they are difficult to reconstruct,” Dr. Talens points out.
Dr. Talens also stresses that the DeBcc specifically targets BCC patients whose lesions affect the “H area” of the face (the area bounded by the eyebrows, upper lips, and the anterior of the ears). Cosmetic reconstruction is difficult in this area because lesions here are next to vital structures and orifices of the face. DeBcc, adds Dr. Talens, is also the best option for patients who, for one reason or another, cannot undergo surgery.

Into the Brain with ETBS
Endoscopic transnasal brain surgery offers the less-invasive alternative to craniotomy
By Rosario N. Banzon

    To a layman, it will really be quite a mouthful to say “endoscopic transnasal brain surgery.” ETBS, for short, can be chopped down into the following prefixes and words for greater understanding:
endo – within or inside
scopic – of or relating to an instrument for seeing or observing
transnasal – through the nose
brain – the mass of tissues inside the cranium or skull
surgery – treatment of an illness or injury by operations with the hands or instruments to remove diseased parts of the body

“You really require training for it. It is not your basic neurosurgical procedure,” says Dr. Michael Sabalza, who is only one of five ETBS practitioners in the country

ETBS is a procedure for removing tumors that develop at the base of the brain, upper spine, and neck through the use of narrow endoscopes and miniature surgical tools inserted through the nostrils. The small endoscopes are like small flashlights that guide the surgeon through the nasal passages to open small holes at the base of the brain and the membrane covering the brain.

It can also be used to remove malignancies in the pituitary gland, diseases of the sinus cavities, and problematic blood vessels in these areas. Doctors map the tumor’s exact location using a navigation system to guide them to the spot. A high-resolution mini video camera, on the tip of endoscope, allows the surgeon to probe and determine exactly where he is going and where the tumor is. Suitably small, thin instruments are then used to disintegrate, suck away or remove tumors a little at a time out through the nose. The area is then covered by a replacement membrane.

ETBS advantages
ETBS offers significant advantages over traditional procedures like craniotomy, including greater patient comfort (since no incision is involved), minimal invasiveness, no bones destroyed, no disarticulation of the face, and shorter hospital stay.

Because of the faster recovery that ETBS offers, especially to those with malignancies at the base of the skull, patients can be subjected to chemotherapy or radiation therapy at once. This way, the chemotherapy drugs can be given more chance to work--and the tumor a lesser chance to grow again.

ETBS disadvantages
Like all surgeries, ETBS is not completely without risks. Because of smaller access points, doctors may need to perform additional endoscopic surgeries, especially with large tumors. In fact, ETBS takes longer to perform than some traditional procedures. “It takes about two to three hours for simple cases like pituitary adenomas,” says Dr. Michael Sabalza, a neurosurgeon and ETBS practitioner. “And at least four hours for harder cases.” It takes that long because Filipino nasal passages are typically smaller than a Westerner’s, restricting the surgeon’s movements.

“If there’s bleeding and the access is small, you can’t control it as easily [as in conventional surgery],” Dr. Sabalza points out. “Sometimes, you have to wait. You can’t go in at once.”
Also, not all tumors can be reached through ETBS. And there is a possibility of cerebral-fluid leakage.

ETBS as treatment option
Although many Western doctors use ETBS both as a standard care and as a treatment option, ETBS is not yet standard care in the Philippines. However, it already is an option presented to local patients with brain, pituitary, upper spine, neck, or sinus-cavity tumors. Unfortunately, only a handful of doctors (five, to be exact) perform the procedure in the Philippines. Dr. Sabalza is one of them, having started using ETBS in 1999. He learned the ropes from Dr. Manuel Mariano, who first performed ETBS at the Philippine General Hospital. Dr. Sabalza furthered his training in ETBS in Singapore and Japan. He also worked with Dr. Amin Kassam of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in the United States who, with Dr. Ricardo Carrau, is a leading advocate of ETBS.

Dr. Sabalza says that ETBS is not yet standard in the Philippines because, “Not many people do it. You really require training for it. It is not your basic neurosurgical procedure. The learning curve is really steep, requiring real training to enable you to do it confidently.”

ETBS future
That our hospitals are well equipped is enough encouragement for other doctors to open up to the possibility of performing ETBS. Dr. Sabalza, for instance, needs more trained doctors in his team because ETBS is like dancing in sync--other pairs of helping hands operating the probe instruments enables the neurosurgeon to concentrate better on his job of removing the problem spots.