While we at OLM believe that the information itself is accurate, we were immediately skeptical of the idea that Johns Hopkins Hospital would make such “alternative” claims going against everything they stand for…

Recently an email titled, “Cancer Update from John Hopkins Hospital, US – Please Read,” began circulating arond the internet within the alternative health community. In most of these emails the spelling of Johns Hopkins Hospital is spelled incorrectly (“Johns” is spelled “John”).

The email states:

• Every person has cancer cells in the body.
• These cancer Cells do not show up in the standard tests until they have Multiplied to a few billion. When doctors tell cancer patients That there are no more cancer cells in their bodies after treatment it just means the tests are unable to detect the Cancer cells because they have not reached the detectable Size.
• Cancer cells occur between 6 to more than 10 times in a person’s lifetime.
• When the person’s immune system is strong the cancer Cells will be destroyed and prevented from multiplying and Forming tumors.
• When a person has cancer it indicates the person has Nutritional deficiencies. These could be due to genetic, But also to environmental, food and lifestyle factors.
• To overcome the multiple nutritional deficiencies, changing Diet to eat more adequately and healthy, 4-5 times/day And by including supplements will strengthen the immune system.
• Chemotherapy involves poisoning the rapidly-growing cancer cells and also destroys rapidly- growing healthy cells In the bone marrow, gastrointestinal tract etc, and can cause organ damage, like liver, kidneys, heart, lungs etc.
• Radiation while destroying cancer cells also burns, scars and damages healthy cells, tissues and
• organs.
• Initial treatment with chemotherapy and radiation will often reduce tumor size. However prolonged use of Chemotherapy and radiation do not result in more tumor destruction.
• When the body has too much toxic burden from Chemotherapy and radiation the immune system is either compromised or destroyed, hence the person can succumb to various kinds of infections and complications.
• Chemotherapy and radiation can cause cancer cells to mutate and become resistant and difficult to destroy. Surgery can also cause cancer cells to spread to other Sites.
• An effective way to battle cancer is to starve the cancer cells by not feeding it with the foods it needs to multiply.

While we at OLM believe that this information is accurate, we were immediately skeptical of the idea that Johns Hopkins Hospital would make such “alternative” claims going against everything they stand for, and furthermore, we found it doubtful that this would not be much bigger news easily found on main stream sites all over the internet. In addition, there are a lot of mistakes in the email that we doubt such a professional and respected institution would allow to go out to the general public.

The email went on to state:

*CANCER CELLS FEED ON:

• Sugar substitutes like NutraSweet, Equal, Spoonful, etc are made with Aspartame and it is harmful .A better natural substitute Would be Manuka honey or molasses, but only in very small amounts. Table salt has a chemical added to make it white in color. A better alternative is Bragg’s aminos or sea salt.
• Milk causes the body to produce mucus, especially in the Gastro-intestinal tract. Cancer feeds on mucus. By cutting off milk and substituting with unsweetened soy milk cancer cells are being starved.
• Cancer cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based diet is acidic and it is best to eat fish, and a little other meat, like chicken. Meat also contains live stock Antibiotics, growth hormones and parasites, which are all harmful, especially to people with cancer.
• A diet made of 80%fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains, seeds, nuts and a little fruits help put the body into an alkaline environment. About 20% can be from cooked food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide live Enzymes that are easily absorbed and reach down to cellular levels within 15 minutes to nourish and enhance growth of healthy cells. To obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells try and drink fresh vegetable juice (most vegetables including bean sprouts) and eat some raw Vegetables 2or 3 times a day. Enzymes are destroyed at temperatures of 104degrees F (40 degrees C).
• Avoid coffee, tea, and chocolate, which have high Caffeine Green tea is a better alternative and has cancer fighting properties. Water-best to drink purified water, or filtered, to avoid known toxins and heavy metals in tap water. Distilled water is acidic, avoid it.
• Meat protein is difficult to digest and requires a lot of digestive enzymes. Undigested meat remaining in the intestines becomes putrefied and leads to more toxic buildup.
• Cancer cell walls have a tough protein covering. By refraining from or eating less meat it frees more enzymes To attack the protein walls of cancer cells and allows the body’s killer cells to destroy the cancer cells.
• Some supplements build up the immune system (IP6, Flor-ssence, Essiac, anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, EFAs etc.) to enable the bodies own killer cells to destroy cancer cells. Other supplements like vitamin E are known to cause apoptosis, or programmed cell death, the body’s normal method of disposing of damaged, unwanted, or unneeded cells.
• Cancer is a disease of the mind, body, and spirit. A proactive and positive spirit will help the cancer warrior be a survivor. Anger, un-forgiveness and bitterness put the body into a stressful and acidic environment. Learn to have a loving and forgiving spirit. Learn to relax and enjoy life.
• Cancer cells cannot thrive in an oxygenated environment. Exercising daily, and deep breathing help to get more oxygen down to the cellular level. Oxygen therapy is another means employed to destroy cancer cells.
• Noplastic containers in micro.
• Nowater bottles in freezer.
• Noplastic wrap in microwave.

The last half of the email left no doubt in our mind that this email is a hoax. And, much of the advice in the last half, while likely coming from an alternative health care practitioner, is full of half truths and inaccuracies.

When people find out the truth about an email such as this it discredits the whole cause. This makes us wonder if this email was designed to hurt the alternative medicine movement. Either way, it’s pretty sad.

Poland’s Health Minister, Ewa Kopacz, was heavily criticized for her decision not to purchase the swine flu vaccines. The Polish Ombudsman, Janusz Kochanowski (appointed as the mediary for citizen rights) threatened to sue Kopacz for her decision.

Kapacz considered purchasing the vaccines for Poland, but decided the pharmaceutical company’s terms were unacceptable. Instead, she adopted an anti-swine flu strategy that resulted in the virus being less virulent in Poland than other countries.

The European council’s Committee on Social Health and Family Affairs said Ewa Kopacz’s decision was the right decision.

Each diagnosis of cancer is (on average) worth somewhere between $300,000 and $500,000 to the medical industry. More than half of this money goes to the drug companies. Due to lobbying and other incentives, it’s no secret that both the FDA and the AMA are heavily influenced by drug companies.

What if we’re not crazy? What if nutrition could not only prevent cancer, but cure it as well? What would the FDA, politicians, drug companies, unhealthy food companies, and the American Cancer Society stand to gain? What do they stand to lose?

In the United States the cost of treating cancer has doubled within the last 20 years.  But according to a new study, the rising cost of cancer treatments is not the reason. The study shows that cancer accounts for only five percent of the U.S. total medical costs which has not changed much in the last 30 years.

In other words, medical costs as a whole have doubled in the last 20 years. The rise in cost of cancer treatment appears to be caused by more people getting cancer.

We also hear the argument that cancer rates are rising becuase the American population is living longer. We at Organic Lifestyle Magazine contend that this is inaccurate. Studies that show people are living longer are flawed because they take into account the infant mortalities, and people dying in wars. The actual average age the elderly die at is not significantly older then it was 50 years ago. It seems to us that the rise in cancer costs, which appears to coincide with the rise in overall medical costs, is skyrocketing because more and more people are seeking medical treatment. And the amount of people seeking treatment for medical problems is climbing faster than the population increase.

Many have blogged about the New Jersey mother who lost her parental rights for refusing a C-section and acting erratically during labor. What is unclear is whether she refused to sign permission for a C-section in the event one was indicated or if she refused when the baby was in distress and doctors wanted to perform one. It may be a moot point, considering the child was born vaginally and without complications, but still there is a clear distinction between signing a cart blanche permission to allow doctors to do whatever they want before the need arises, and refusing care when an unborn child is experiencing fetal distress.

The parents’ rights have now been terminated and the court cites chronic mental illness on both their parts as the reason. (The mother had received mental health care for 12 years prior to the incident.) Many blogs make the point that if the mother had not refused a C-section, her mental health would not have been in question. We don’t necessarily agree.

If this couple was receiving on-going care for chronic mental illness, Child Protective Services likely would have been notified about their case by their mental health worker. But so little is known about the actual facts in this case (and the links to the court ruling are broken on multiple sites), most of what is posted is assumption.

In another case in 2004, a mother was charged with murder for refusing a C-section for her twins. One was stillborn. This mother also had drug and alcohol issues. The case was plea bargained and the murder charge was dropped.

While both of these cases have extenuating circumstances, it is still quite clear that a woman no longer has the right to refuse an invasive procedure without facing parental termination or, in the case of a child’s death, murder charges.