Our
Director
Precision Health & Integrative Medicine Doctor
Director of Synthesis Clinic, Head of Integrative Cancer Care
MB BChir (Medicine) and MA Hons Natural Sciences (Cambridge)
MSc Precision Cancer Medicine (Oxford)
FBANT FRSA IFMCP DipIM DipAc DipCHM PGCert DipION RYT200
Dr Nina Fuller-Shavel is an award-winning Oxbridge-trained integrative medicine doctor, scientist and educator with over a decadeʼs experience in integrative healthcare. Alongside her scientific and medical training, Dr Nina holds multiple qualifications in nutrition, integrative medicine, functional medicine, health coaching, herbal medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), yoga, mindfulness and other therapeutic approaches. Dr Fuller-Shavel regularly presents at conferences, as well as being a guest lecturer, participating in research and contributing to guidelines, books and medical journal publications.
What is the Systems Approach to Cancer?
Through her extensive study and clinical experience in integrative and functional medicine, nutrition and other therapeutic modalities, Dr Nina Fuller-Shavel has created the Systems Approach to Cancer Programme, which is applied in clinic and used in training programmes for nutrition and medical professionals.
This is an approach that takes the systems biology view of cancer and cancer hallmarks, while applying the whole person perspective and treating the ecosystem as a whole. For every person who comes to the clinic, Dr Nina and her team will assess the different aspects below in detail from the clinical history and targeted testing as appropriate, providing a detailed and personalised plan to address the aspects that come to the fore. This not only helps us dynamically manage symptoms but more importantly, supports whole person resilience to deliver better quality of life and clinical outcomes.
Our Systems Approach to Cancer group programmes
We offer separate online group programmes for people in early survivorship (within the first 3 years post-treatment) and people living with advanced or metastatic cancer. Our next cohort starts in January 2025 with enrolment closing 12th Dec 2024.
Please note that this is not a self-paced course, it is designed to be mostly attended live with recordings only for catching up on the material provided on the Circle platform. While many downloadable materials are provided to keep as a reminder following the course, there is no ongoing access to videos after the course has been completed outside of a community membership model. We update the course regularly to keep up with the latest research in cancer care and integrative oncology.
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We will start with an introduction to integrative oncology and how it intelligently synthesises the best of conventional, nutrition, lifestyle, psycho-emotional wellbeing and complementary medicine in week 1. This session is usually covered by one of our doctors, including Dr Nina Fuller-Shavel and Dr Emma Davies.
We will then go over the foundations of nutrition in week 2, movement in week 3, and stress management and sleep support in week 4. The exact schedule is subject to change but by the end of month 1 you will have build solid foundational knowledge in nutrition and lifestyle support.
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In month 2 we start delving into the Systems Approach to Cancer. Our sessions delivered by different members of our cancer care team will cover the following aspects:
Mental/emotional/spiritual health and the importance of circadian rhythms for our health and wellbeing
The role of the gut microbiome in cancer and treatment support
The role of the immune system and inflammation in cancer development and treatment and how we can support a healthy immune balance
Factors that affect our environmental exposures and toxic load and how we can support healthy detoxification without affecting medications
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In month 3 we continue exploring the Systems Approach to Cancer with our multidisciplinary team, covering the following topics:
Supporting healthy circulation and the structure of our body, including bone and muscle health, the role of fascia and how scar therapy can help
Mitochondrial and metabolic health, including the importance of blood sugar regulation, fat metabolism (incl. cholesterol) and supporting energy
Hormone balance, including sex hormones, thyroid hormones and other influencers of our hormone environment, as well as medications that can impact hormones and managing related symptoms
The role of methylation in the body and how epigenetics is important in cancer development and progression, as well as exploring impact of genes that can affect genomic stability, e.g. BRCA1/2, PALB2, TP53 etc
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After the foundational 3 months, we will co-design the programme with you as a group. We will ask you about regular sessions, e.g. yoga, breathwork, EFT, exercise, and any additional topics you would like to cover, from herbal medicine, acupuncture or mistletoe therapy to fasting, hyperthermia etc. We can arrange sessions with the team or guest speakers on the subjects you would like to learn most about.
Who is the integrative oncology group programme suitable for?
We offer separate online programmes for people living with cancer and people in early survivorship (within the first 3 years post-treatment). If you are interested in how integrative oncology and the Systems Approach to Cancer can support you, this is a great opportunity to learn more within a group setting.
How will the Systems Approach to Cancer group programme be delivered?
The programme is delivered by our multidisciplinary team of healthcare professionals, including doctors and nutrition, exercise, yoga, health coaching, and mental wellbeing professionals, as well as expert patients. It is a mix of live 60 min sessions (usually once every 1-2 weeks) and pre-recorded content and resources related to that monthʼs theme. In our live sessions, we aim to provide information for 30-45 minutes with 15-30 min for Q&A to keep them interactive.
The programme is delivered mainly through the community platform called Circle, although we use a separate system for delivering course assessment questionnaires. Please do not share any links or proprietary Systems Approach to Cancer information with anyone who is not on the programme. All recordings are confidential, and all Systems Approach to Cancer resources are copyrighted and should not reproduced without prior written permission. Recordings are available to you as long as you are continuing with the membership programme. Please note that this is not a self-paced course, it is designed to be mostly attended live with recordings only for catching up on the material. Ongoing access to recordings can be obtained through an ongoing community subscription after the completion of the course.
You may be asked to complete some questionnaires and scores. This is to help us see where you are at and to help us evaluate the programme as we go on.
What is the monthly fee and how do I get started?
The monthly membership fee for the group programme incorporating input from our multidisciplinary team is £125 per month. Please contact Jody, our Integrative Cancer Care clinic coordinator (jody@synthesisclinic.co.uk), via the form below or via email for further information or sign up on the links below.
Our next intake for group courses will be January 2025. Enrolment closes Thursday 12th December 2024.
When do the group consultations take place?
Thriving after cancer (survivorship support) - Wednesdays 6-7pm - sign up HERE with the first session starting Wednesday 8th January 2025
Living well with cancer - Thursdays 1-2pm - sign up HERE with the first session starting Thursday 9th January 2025
Occasionally due to speaker/facilitator availability times may change but we will always give plenty of notice and record the session so that you can watch it later via our portal.
Please contact Jody, our Integrative Cancer Care clinic coordinator, to discuss group programmes or 1:1 care and book in.
If you have any questions about our integrative oncology services or are unsure about the support you may need in your individual case, please contact our Integrative Cancer Care clinic coordinator, Jody Middleton. Please read the detailed group course description under Course Information before completing your enquiry here.