Liana Werner-Gray began a cancer battle 15 years ago — and she believes that if she had not made substantial changes to her diet and lifestyle, she might not be alive today.
Fox News Digital spoke to the author and wellness advocate about her health journey on Wednesday on Capitol Hill as Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was speaking during his hearing for Health and Human Services secretary.
While living in her native Australia, Werner-Gray, when she was just 21 years old in 2009, was told she had a tumor and the early stages of cancer in her lymphatic system.
She was also suffering from chronic fatigue, parasites and other digestive issues.
The lymphatic system “is the body’s sewage system,” Werner-Gray said.
“The only reason you get cancer in your lymphatic system is because you have too many toxins in your body.”
Werner-Gray had a hunch that the food she was eating had caused her illnesses.
“I knew it was because of my diet,” she said. “Because my diet was horrendous.”
Rather than pursue traditional cancer treatments such as surgery, radiation or chemotherapy, Werner-Gray instead made radical changes to her diet.
Working with a naturopath and a functional doctor, she embarked on what she called a “massive detox plan” and focused in particular on improving her gut health.
Werner-Gray quickly saw positive results, she told Fox News Digital.
“After three months, the tumor had completely dissolved,” she said.
Her other health issues also improved considerably, she added.
Following her recovery, the author said she felt moved to create “The Earth Diet,” which began as a blog about what she ate to help fix her health problems and promote healing.
The Earth Diet, she said, is “all about going back to nature and eating foods from nature, eating real nutrition, eating foods that God provides us with naturally.”
Her book, also called “The Earth Diet,” was first published in 2014, five years after she began her health transformation.
Werner-Gray has since published several other books on curing both physical and mental conditions with food.
The Make America Healthy Again movement, or MAHA, is something that’s been “needed” in the United States, according to Werner-Gray.
Over 1,600 people die from cancer each day in the U.S., per the American Cancer Society.
“That’s just not acceptable,” Werner-Gray said.
She believes that “cancer is preventable” and that unless things change – including nutrition – the statistics will continue to worsen.
“There are many, many cures for cancer other than conventional treatments,” she said.
“Combined approach”
Dr. Marc Siegel, clinical professor of medicine at NYU Langone Health and Fox News senior medical analyst, pointed out that “all cancers have spontaneous remissions.” (He was not involved in Werner-Gray’s care.)
“Having said that, diet and exercise have been shown to play a huge role in cancer treatment and recovery,” he told Fox News Digital.
“Standard treatments such as surgery, chemotherapy and immunotherapy are very important and have been evolving with the help of biotechnology,” Siegel said.
The doctor also predicted that artificial intelligence will play a huge role in matching patients with personalized medicine.
“So it isn’t one way or another — it’s a combined approach, and prayer also plays an important role,” he said.
“Personal and complex”
Fox News medical contributor Nicole Saphier, M.D., associate professor at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, noted that navigating cancer treatment is “deeply personal and complex.”
“Every individual’s cancer journey is unique — which means what works for one person might not be effective for another,” she told Fox News Digital in an interview.
“I advocate for a balanced approach where natural treatments can complement traditional methods,” Saphier said.
Treatment approaches should consider the specific type of cancer, a patient’s overall health and the person’s beliefs about medicine, according to the doctor.
“While there are many anecdotes of full remission following natural treatments alone, it’s crucial to remember that every person responds differently,” Saphier noted.
“I have seen many people suffer and die who have forgone traditional treatment for natural methods alone,” she said. “I have also seen many people suffer and die because of complications of their traditional treatments.”
It is essential that the benefits and risks of treatments are fully disclosed so that patients can make educated decisions for their health, Saphier added.
