question: My 67-year old father has undergone two of his first chemotherapy visits to our local hospital, due to colon cancer which metastized into his lymph nodes and several lesions on his liver.  Last Monday, he underwent his second chemo treatment and came home with the pump for 48-hour time-release of chemo.  The chemo is administered through a port into his chest and included avastin for the first time.  My dad is a smoker and his eating habits are poor, and he does not exercise. Last week, for about four days, his complexion was very rosy and he said he felt the best he has felt in about 8 months.  Yesterday, however, he experienced pain in his upper abdomen and explained a squeezing pain on his heart.  My mother just took him to the ER, as recommended when calling his chemo treatment center, and he was discharged after chest and abdomen x-rays which concluded that his heart was "fine."  As an aside, my father is taking oral supplementation of "blood root", a plant used alternatively for some conditions.  His friend told him that it "cured" an acquaintance's skin cancer.