“Dr. Gurdev Parmar has brought naturopathic oncology into the 21st century”
Ralh W. Moss, PhD, Author of 10 books including The Cancer Industry
Hello, and thank you for taking the time to read this.
I would like to invite you into my world. My name is Gurdev Parmar and I am the co-founder and medical director of the largest naturopathic health care facility in Canada, the Integrated Health Clinic (IHC). My life partner Dr. Karen Parmar, ND and I opened IHC together in 2000, with the intention of creating a healing centre providing a healthcare model we would choose ourselves. Our incredible IHC team today in 2021 provides exactly that. Our healthcare model has helped thousands of patients, and in order to keep up with demand, we are opening a second location of IHC in White Rock, B.C.
I am licensed in both British Columbia, Canada and Washington State, USA. In Washington State I am a fellow of the American Board of Naturopathic Oncology (FABNO(USA)), whereas in my home province of B.C., this unfortunately remains an unrecognized specialty. There are efforts in place to progress this forward for public safety. I have recently completed a primary palliative care provider course through The CSU Shiley Institute for Palliative Care in California.
I have been active as a researcher/clinician since 2010, having completed an eight-year retrospective study on our treatment approach, particularly on the use of loco-regional modulated electro-hyperthermia (LR-mEHT). This research has been presented internationally and has recently been published by Cambridge Scholars. IHC was also chosen as one of seven original clinics to participate in the Canadian and U.S. Integrative Oncology Study (CUSIOS), a 7-year multi-centre, prospective trial which is now nearing publication.
I am also a residency director and primary teaching supervisor of a naturopathic oncology residency. IHC is a CNME-approved post-doctoral training facility for Bastyr University in Washington State. I have now trained three residents and will continue to offer this opportunity to other NDs interested in naturopathic oncology.
I am passionate about several topic areas in my field but have a special history with hyperthermia and fever therapy, which I first became interested in during my undergraduate degree in evolutionary biology.
After learning more about the clinical use of hyperthermia in Europe, starting with an impactful trip to Germany early in my career, I established the introduction of LR-mEHT treatment in Canada in 2009. Immediately upon introducing this treatment into IHC we started collecting data. In 2018 I was nominated President of the International Clinical Hyperthermia Society (ICHS), the first ND to be given that honour in its 40-year history. I am currently writing a book about the critical role that fever has played throughout the animal kingdom, but specifically about its role in health and disease.
Which brings me to the last piece of my world that I would like to share in this introductory blogpost. I really enjoy teaching. Whether that is through the residency, preceptorships, writing or lecturing; I like teaching. My main areas of interest clinical hyperthermia and fever therapy, the tumour microenvironment, and integrative cancer care.
I am the Lead Author and Editor-in-Chief of the Textbook of Naturopathic Oncology: A Desktop Guide of Integrative Cancer Care, as well as the Pearlz Clinical eBook Series. The textbook is already being used by integrative oncologists of all stripes around the world. My intention with the Pearlz eBook Series is to make the knowledge from the textbook accessible to patients and the public at large, in bite-sized pieces. More on these and other “Clinically Relevant Bits of Cerebral Treasures” will also be coming your way in my upcoming Podcast called “The Pearlz”.
I hope to get feedback from my audience as to what topics are of most interest.
So, let’s get started. I hope you enjoy the ride.
