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Subscribe to RSSCritics may call her irresponsible, but Suzanne Somers says America's doctors just aren't telling cancer patients the whole truth. This Sunday on "Dateline NBC," Dr. Nancy Snyderman speaks with Somers about the experiences that propelled her to write one of her most controversial books to date, in which she highlights the non-traditional methods of doctors that she says are being shunned by conventional medicine. In the episode airing at 7 pm/et, "Dateline" also speaks with two of the doctors that Somers claims are curing cancer-- hearing more about their unorthodox methods that range from protein treatments, to coffee enemas and tests for cancer using hair.
Taking a closer look at the methods and curing effects that these doctors claim to be valid, we'll also hear from various medical professionals who call these types of cancer treatments nonsensical and irresponsible. Dr. Nancy Snyderman tries to get to the bottom of why Somers, a nationally recognized and respected TV icon, would put her endorsement behind what appears to be such odd science. "Stop looking at it as quackery," says Somers, who denies any feelings of acting irresponsibly. When it comes to her support of these alternative cancer treatments, she says, "This is my proudest achievement so far."
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Suzannes book Knockout just arrived in the mail yesterday. wow. lots of good info.
I had the opportunity to see the clip on Today Show with Suzanne and Ann Curry - it was quite obvious that Ann was not supportive of the book Knockout - but it was not necessary for her to be rude. I also saw the Today Show with Suzanne a couple of weeks ago and Natalie Morales appeared very "curt" with Suzanne which she made comments about alternative medicine.
Chemo and radiation is not the be all end all treatment for cancer - as a highly intelligent independent thinker we must think outside the box when it comes to our health. Suzanne is not saying do Alternative Treatment all she is doing is providing information - I applaude her for the courage to write the book and for promoting the book despite much backlash.
I totally agree Why are we so closed minded when it comes to alternative medicine. Suzanne is just really speaking what she believes to be true. Providing us with information that could make a difference in our lives You go Suzanne!!!!
Tonight should be pretty interesting. No matter how many people these doctors cure of cancer, the status quo will not allow themselves to accept it. Dr. Burzynski is the first doctor in the history of medicine to have ever cured an inoperable brainstem glioma, with a 27.5% cure rate under strict FDA guidelines and supervision. Burzynski has been given permission by the US government (FDA) to conduct Phase 3 trials, which will be done worldwide and independent of Burzynski. There is a great film called "Burzynski" that tells the entire story if you care about wanting to see a project that isn't dependent on PhRMA ad dollars to get their message out. Google it.
My mother saw a commercial for a Dateline episode about the woman who murdered her own 2-year-old granddaughter by throwing her off a 6-story walkway between an upscale VA mall and the parking garage, and she said she would have sworn that it was supposed to air tonight. Was my mother mistaken, has it changed, or will it air following the story about Suzanne Somers? I'm not really interested in the story about SS, but I am very interested in this story so I want to make sure that I don't miss it. Thanks...
Dateline has in its hands the greatest news ever for millions of cancer patients, and what do they focus on? The controversy of the outspoken messenger! Obviously that angle will turn off many otherwise intelligent people: witness "koko61" and her disinterest in "the story about SS"... Sad for Dateline that it can't focus on the message. Of course, big pharma sponsors the very existence of our media these days ... you don't suppose there is a connection there to the angle of this big story???? Nah ... must just be a coincidence.
Kathy - I completely agree with you. Pharma biz owns NBC News.
It's even worse than that. Big Pharma also makes the largest donations to the medical schools. They aren't doing that without getting something in return. Connect the dots and follow the money trail. It tells you everyting you need to know.
I've been looking forward to this Dateline program for a while because one of the doctors Suzanne has featured is Dr. Nick Gonzalez. He is my doctor and he has cured my stage 3 breast cancer. I was told I would be dead 8 years ago by Sloan Kettering.
So I don't care how many carrots I need to juice, or how many supplements he prescribes me and I look forward to the coffee enemas BECAUSE HIS PROGRAM WORKS. I am alive and feel great. Dr. Gonzalez is a medical pioneer. The most brilliant, earnest and honest doctor I have ever known. Don't let NBC's media machine scare you away. Go now to his website to learn the truth: www.dr-gonzalez.com.
God Bless Dr. Gonzalez and his partner Dr. Isaacs who is also curing cancer. They are heros.
YEAH CAROL!!!!!! love your post! I had breast cancer also... never going the conventional route again... Dr. G is where I'm going... I just wish I knew what metabolic type I am - now - so I can work on prevention... because I'm sure that the radiation I recieved will most certainly bring about another onslaught of the c-word... Cheers to you! So happy for you!
These guys are quacks. How many thousands of dollars have they taken from terminally sick women, men, and children and giving these people something to hold onto and taking advantage of their grief. If you want alternative medicine follow someone like Andrew Weil who is an MD and also believes in EAstern medicine. Forgot about this stuff. The body is the hero. Suzanne Sommers is trying to make a living on this. She takes vitamins but she bleaches her hair, has fake nail, which are stuff on my clue that is toxic, and has toxic injections in her lips, yet she insists she thinks she knows what she is talking about. One of the Doctors last night analyzes hair with a machine based on some wacked women down south who measures the results with her feelings?? I mean are you kidding me?? My mother died of cancer, it was her time. She was young and she didnt smoke or drink and ate healthy, so it is what it is. Maybe we aren't supposed to know. Just dont throw you're money away for nothing.
I agree that the doctors featured on this program fall into the "quak" category. The methods they claim work so well have been studied in the past and fall short of being reliable and reproducible upon closer examination. Sommers' book is a collection of touching patient stories, but in terms of evidence it can at best be equated to a collection of case studies. This puts them very low on the hierarchy of evidence-based medicine, and also means they are subject to certain scrutiny. Flyvbjerg (2006) identified common errors people make when examining case study data like the kind in her book:
Alternative or Integrative approaches to medicine can be appealing, but potential users need to take care to evaluate the level of evidence supporting the therapy or procedure before using it. If in doubt of ones ability to do this, get help from someone with a scientific background, and a legitimate one. If you can not find a solid study supporting the efficacy of a therapy or procedure, and anecdotal evidence makes up the bulk of the supporting data, then further investigation is definitely needing before proceeding.
I am a medical journalist and I fully support Ms. Somers attempts to tell the truth behind the pharmaceutical companies and the doctors who are their pawns. Unfortunately, I don't have their names in front of me, but the arrogance of the fellow called America's top cancer doc was laughable. Does he think HIS methods are any better than those he calls quacks? As for the woman in black, she needs a reality check. Andrew Weil is no better in my opinion.
I've seen friends die from various cancers and the appalling slash/burn/poison misery they endured with not even the gift of hope. Of course these alternative docs require payment. They're not getting paid for their therapies through any other source, are they?
one very good reason Ann Curry, Dr. Sunderman, et. al. are openly hostile to Somers and alternative medicine in general. Have you seen the advertisers that pony up to pay for Dateline and most NBC programs? Lots of backing by Big Pharma which is in turn in bed with the medical profession and insurance companies. These Big Corporate Three parade under the smug arrogance that they have "science" on their side, when what they have is the biggest hoax ever hoisted on the American public in the name of greed and arrogance.
NBC and its cronies run countless programs mocking anything alternative, with its chief corporate shill, Nancy Snyderman, looking angry and rigid, giving her stern, party line on all things medical: we doctors know better because we have science on our side.
What science? For starters, why doesn’t NBC do an in-depth interview with Dr. John Ioannidis, who has spent his career challenging his peers by exposing their bad science. As quoted in the Atlantic Monthly,
“Ioannidis is what’s known as a meta-researcher, and he’s become one of the world’s foremost experts on the credibility of medical research. He and his team have shown, again and again, and in many different ways, that much of what biomedical researchers conclude in published studies—conclusions that doctors keep in mind when they prescribe antibiotics or blood-pressure medication, or when they advise us to consume more fiber or less meat, or when they recommend surgery for heart disease or back pain—is misleading, exaggerated, and often flat-out wrong. He charges that as much as 90 percent of the published medical information that doctors rely on is flawed....he worries that the field of medical research is so pervasively flawed, and so riddled with conflicts of interest, that it might be chronically resistant to change—or even to publicly admitting that there’s a problem.”
On the other hand, alternative therapies, even those as rigorously researched and with genuine successes, as Dr. Burzynski's cancer therapy, are gone over by the corporate reporters at NBC with a fine tooth comb to find any disparities, discrepancies or failures. This is hypocrisy at its height.
Somers is not the ditzy no-nothing blonde, she is one brave voice saying loud and clear that the Big Pharma Corporate Medical Emperor has no clothes, and asking us to wake up to the reality of that.
Meanwhile we are subjected to endless Big Pharma commercials on NBC telling we consumers to take their latest drug for eternal health and happiness, with half the commercial warning us of all the ways we will kill and maim ourselves if we do so. This is medicine? This is health? But hey, it pays the bills and lines the pockets of everyone at NBC, from Nancy Synderman on down.
I completely agree this your statement. Hey, Synderman where is the data from your favored group of Dr. of the number of people that was cured of cancer verses the number of people who died from the treatment itself being chemo and radiation and other drugs that brought on another type of cancer. Nor did you address the hundreds of thousand of dollars that you Dr. charge the insurance company for your treatments. The FDA and insurance industry fail the people everyday. The only one that benefits are the Dr. because they still get their money. Synderman do the people a favor and stop being a text book dummy and look outside the the box and better yet outside of the US. Other countries have cures.
I love Suzanne Somers and her research. First, my 18 year old daughter was mysteriously struck with a severe hormonal imbalance. We saw dozens of doctors and specialists but no one knew what it was. Then I found Suzanne's book and realized she was in menopause! We flew to Austin, TX to meet with a doctor there who prescribed bio-identical hormones. She is now a senior in college and living a healthy life.
Second, my father was given 4 weeks to live when he was accepted into one of Dr. Burzynski's trials. That was 18 months ago and he is doing better every day.
Folks, if they cure cancer, think of the money companies will lose?? What did Suzanne say--$200 billion?? There's your answer. It's like I say about all the "pink" products from breast cancer. They can't afford to cure it!
Burzynski and his wife should be put in jail. He killed my husband much faster than the brain cancer would have. He preys on people who have no hope and steal thousands of dollars from them knowing they would pay for every tiny ray of hope. Shame . Shame. Shame
The chances of you being a paid shill is 99%! Who do you think you're fooling? Even a child could see through your deception; give it up. I suggest you go pound sand and (by the way) how the hell do you sleep at night??
How do you sleep at night Debra? It is people like you and Somers promoting this idiotic nonsense that threaten people's lives. More and more people are dying because they believe quacks like those promoted by Somers can cure them when they can't. Why do intelligent people believe this rubbish?
I am appalled about the failure to reveal the "quackery" especially regarding Dr. Nicholas Gonzalez. I am a Long Island physician who witnessed the falacy of his protocol on one of my own dear treasured patient's life. She died as expected due to the aggressive nature of her terminal disease. However, she was a victim of Dr. Gonzalez. As all scientific protocols, I did expect the news piece to show statistics and pathologies. Cancers vary greatly and so do their prognosis. Over the past two decades, I agree we have not made the progress expected, however advocating for such practitioners who are truly financially motivated is irresponsible. To give airtime to such an important manner, I was disappointed that the oncological mavens were not more favorably protrayed in your piece.
I am not only a physician. I am a daughter of a 77 year old man who is living with stage IV pancreatic cancer. He was first diagnosed in July 2009 and underwent conventional treatments by Memorial Sloan Kettering. I am enjoying time with him and would never think of turning his care to someone like Dr. Gonzalez.
Sincerely submitted, Dr. Sunita M. PS I remained by the side of my terminally ill patient to the end at her home surrounded by loved ones.
The clear and present danger is that many of these alternative therapies remain untested and with out double blind studies. The terminal cancer patient may have died with or without the alternative therapy, the mistake perhaps some people in the alternative community make, is in underestimating the agressive nature of their particular type of cancer and the appropriateness of one type of treatment over another. It is also unfortunate that diagnostics sometimes only catch the cancer at a relatively progressed stage. I use alternative therapies all the time to treat and manage a chronic health condition that I have, but I am hard pressed to locate objective information regarding those therapies primarily because research is cost driven, and my therapies can be concocted from the local drug store. There is no doubt whether we are dicussing alternative, or conventional therapy that cost is a major influence on the type of treatment chosen. The conventional system of medicine is just as guilty for charging outrageous fees for drugs, procedures and treatments as the alternative systems are. One is validated by the AMA the other is not. It is also possible to rearrange data through statisical analysis, making testing by big Pharma appear more safe that it really is. We could all benefit from an FDA that is not filled with people who have stock and connections to pharmaceutical companies.
Are you really going to stand there and cite one person who died from alternative therapy when there are 560, 000 who die every year from conventional therapies? There is a purpose in nature for death however when you see people like Randy Paushe who are on television doing push-ups in June and then die in August after undergoing chemo you should, I say should understand that it was the treatment that killed him and not the disease. The medical profession is making NO PROGRESS with cancer, and yet educated lemmings like yourself argue for the merits of poisioning people. And up until 2004 it was legal for FDA employees to moonlight at pharmaceutical companies. Now just use your common sense; if you are making $70K per year at the FDA and Merck is paying $300K to moonlight for them, are you going to approve their drug? Kanematsu Saguira was the premier cancer reasercher at Sloan Ketterling. After 5 years of research he stated that Laetrile was the best treatment for cancer to date. After that press release he was taken off research and another team was brought in to recreate his research and debunk what his findings. Ralph Moss was the PR director for Sloan Ketterling and he felt so strongly about Saguira's work that he called another press conference to annouce his findings; he was fired immediately. The point is that there is tons of data to support alternatire treatments but individuals do not have enough money to fight big Pharma and the FDA. How smart do you need to be to understand this?
I compare Susanne Sommers to Sara Palin!! Each is focused on the "bucks$$$$$", and will go to any level to obtain them! I feel that this program was just a waste of time, because most of the info has been seen before on other networks and/or videos. If I were a cancer patient, or had a loved one who had this horrible disease, I certainly wouldn't go out and buy this book, nor would I recommend these so called Doctors to any of my loved ones or friends. I suppose we shall continue to hear from both of these "Divas", even though there are MANY of us that wish both would just "evaporate" and/or "just go away"!
Ellen: Have you read the book? How can you be so critical of Ms. Somers without knowing the details. THe TV show was very biased against alternative therapies. Right here in Houston Dr. Stanislaw Brzyzinski has fought the AMA, the FDA, and the NCI in court and he has won. He is saving many, many lives. Dr, Gonzalez has a similar story. These guys are pioneers, not quacks, and yet they are being vilified by people who want to maintain the status quo. I you want to read the truth, read Politics in Healing by Daniel Haley. There you will find the very dark side of an all out war against non-toxic therapies being waged by your US government and the lobbyists who own the best government that money can buy. Stick your head in the sand if you want.
Ellen, you may wish that Suzanne and Sarah would "evaporate" and/or "just go away", but there are others who do not.
Have you ever had a loved one die of the dreaded disease? The chemo and radiation killed the mother of my daughter-in-law. From the time that she began treatments, she never had a day that she felt well. After radiation, there were more tumors and they grew so fast from Monday to Friday that she looked like she was nine months pregnant with twins. I'd try an alternative treatment!
Ellen, you wish that Suzanne and Sarah would just "evaporate" and/or "just go away"! There are otherw sho do not feel that way.
The mother of my daughter-in-law was diagnosed with colon cancer in June. She opted for chemo until December, then took five weeks of radiation, having no treatments of any kind for three weeks after completing the radiation. She went to the doctor on a Monday and found that not only had the original tumors grown, there were many others in her abdominal region. From Monday to Friday when she died, the tumor grew so that she looked like she was 9 months pregnant with twins. Never, after she began treatments, did she ever have a day that she felt decent.
I would try alternative treatment before standard of care any day.
As hmiller says, you need to read Suzanne's book!
Good Job Suzanne! 20 years ago, one of my teachers in high school made a comment that I will never forget. He said that there was a cure for cancer, but because the insurance/political companies would lose out on the millions of dollars, we would probably never know about the cure. (He also said that there was a car that was able to get 50mpg, but because of the oil/political companies would lose money, we wouldn't see it) It all comes down to the mighty dollar!
I lost my brother to pancreatic cancer a little over a year ago now. He was a fighter! He fought it for 19 months even his last day! He even wrote to Dr. Gonzalez to plead with him to take him on as a patient. Unfortunately, he was denied. I believe that Dr. Gonzalez could have given him many more years to be with his young family. After watching this segment, I now wonder if he was denied because of the scrutiny that Dr. Gonzalez was under.
and if you are battling some kind of cancer, no matter what kind, the best thing to do is to NEVER GIVE UP HOPE!!!!!!
Thank you Dr. Nancy Snyderman for this show!!! Suzanne Somer's book contains information that is totally unproven. As a Nurse Practitioner and a Breast Cancer Survivor, I have been so angered for myself and other cancer patients and survivors, by claims that her information cures cancer. I am not totally against alternative treatment, and in conjunction with PROVEN MEDICAL TREATMENT, many of the nutritional and life style recommendations can be helpful. As a Nurse Practitioner I have counseled many cancer patients. I have spent a lot of time explaining why Ms. Somer's book and other unproven alternative treatments are not going to cure their cancer. Thank you again Dr. Snyderman for putting information out there that is real and helpful for cancer patients.
I would just like to know if the people on this site and others that say that they are cured from cancer like, Flipper 515794, how long has it been that she was "cured" from cancer? You have to be in remission for 5 years to be considered cured. Has it been 5 years for Flipper? I want to hear from them after 5 years to see if they are still alive with their "cure" from conventional medicine. I know that if you here the word "cured" come out of Dr. Burzynski's mouth, they have been in remission for at least 5 years. So until then, I don't consider them "cured".
I've been cured of metastatic cancer for over 20 years since I first started seeing Dr Gonzalez. His approach works, and if you go to New Spring Press you can buy books and tapes that explain the scientific basis behind his approach. Millions of people are dying because of the unwillingness of the cancer establishment to review his work in an unbiased way.
I cured myself of cancer in the summer of 2010. There are four cures I know of for cancer, Sonodynamic therapy, IT-101 Chemo Therapy, Beta-Glucan, and Fasting. All except for fasting can be found on Wikipedia.org. I fasted for 28 days and all my symptoms disappeared.
I have been toying with fasting since 1999. When my second cat scan in two years showed the growth in my bladder had doubled in size in two years to the month in July 2010. I prepared to fast immediately. At the same time I researched the standard medical procedures for Bladder Cancer for the remainder of the summer.
Biopsies are standard procedure prerequisite for specialist such as a Urologist to identify cancer for treatment by an Oncologist. However, 50% of biopsies spread cancer cells in the blood and or lymphatic system and or the surrounding tissue. I declined the biopsy as a result. However, the Urine FISH test color codes healthy and cancerous dead cells in the urine and it is more effective in the identification of high risk cancers. This test must be unbiased and the FDA unbiased guidelines are not mandatory. Unbiased means the medical specialist, technician handling the sample, and the pathologist should not know each other. These guidelines are to rule out conflict of interest because cancer is an multibillion dollar treatment industry.
My Urine FISH test returned positive for cancer weeks after my fast despite the fact I no longer had symptoms. I investigated the company which tested the sample and found the medical specialist had many associates involved in the company and they were fined for corrupting test in the past. These facts, although not analyzing my specific sample, biased their results. I and I think everyone would want a medical organization to be beyond question when your life is on the line. However, I have found that most people never question doctors or standard medical procedures.
"Excuse me, I'm the doctor...I went to medical school", said my second urologist.
"Excuse me, I'm the patient...my life is on the line and your standard medical procedures offer me a mortality rate of 25% comparable to the the Bubonic Plague, What are you offering me?"
In any case even though I did not trust the Urine FISH test or the second opinion offered by the associate recommended by my first specialist, which was a red flag, I had to take him seriously.
I had already ruled out Chemo's 5 to 10% success rate, an "F" in any students book and with those stats I declined to even heavily research radiation yet alone toxic drugs. I tried a fast but that life and death issue was not there to motivate me so I took Beta-Glucan for 30 days. There are special requirements for this alternative medicine but it is the easiest and cheapest treatment. Two to two an one half hours after you eat or when you wake up you take the pills with only water and an equal time 2 to 21/2 hours after before you eat or drink anything except water. Beta-glucan is organic and breaks down it works best by itself in your system.
However, if you have 100 thousand dollars you can go to Indiana and get Sonodynamic therapy, $40 thousand in Mexico, and two weeks later you can be cured. IT-101Chemo is new and still going through FDA test.
What Suzanne Somers did to cure herself is new to me, but I didn't have to pay big bucks to anyone to cure myself. It pains me to see people announced each day that they are dead or dying from cancer. But who will listen to me? I'm not a doctor. I'm not apart of a multimillion dollar medical establishment.
Jesus, Buddha, and Mohamed fasted. I believe they were trying to tell us something of how to save ourselves from ourselves and the temptations that diminish our humanity.
Dr. Snyderman;
I am an 8 year cancer survivor and because I respect your work, I will keep this as reverent as possible. Suzanne Somers was absolutely correct in her assessment of the cancer industry, what she failed to do was point out the dismal numbers that conventional medicine is producing. One gentleman from the ACS actually stated that they have saved over 765, 000 lives. This is just a plain lie, the actual numbers of cancer mortality figures are buried in their yearly reports. I know this because I have them posted on my site www.healinghut.net. They are on the first page and if you take 10 seconds to log on you will see the actual numbers from ACS reports along with the data. The problem is no one takes the time to go through them. There are 2 facts here that without question; 1st more people are dying from cancer, not less. 2nd, more people are being diagnosed. Now, I have written books on this subject, done interviews and given many talks, while I have no letters after my name I do have a PHD in results. If modern medicine was making progress these 2 trends would not be taking place. I cured myself of brain-cancer; today I take no medication, see no doctors, have no deficets, I work full-time, write, speak and live a very active lifestyle. I can tell you that this is possible for everyone. Oh and I still have the lab report if anyone claims that I never had cancer to begin with.
Bewell
RC
Rod, you claim, "I cured myself of brain-cancer", yet on your website you say that you had surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy. It seems obvious to me that you are alive today because of that surgery and the "19 sessions of Radiation therapy and 3 months of chemo therapy" you admit you underwent. Yet instead of showing gratitude to your oncologists you rail against them and the very treatments that saved your life. Some people will likely believe you and reject those life-saving treatments. I simply don't understand why anyone would do this, unless it is simply a cynical ploy to make money from the many advertisements I notice on your website.
By the way, the statistics for cancer you present are very misleading. The longer people live the more likely they will get cancer. We have an ageing population thanks to the triumphs of modern medicine over diseases that used to kill people in large numbers. Someone who would have died from polio or TB in their 20s now lives to get and die of cancer in their 80s. You might find it educational to browse the SEER cancer database stats that show just how successful modern medicine is now at treating many forms of cancer that only a few decades ago were almost always fatal.
I did undergo 3 months of chemo and radiation therapy; thanks to them I was going blind, turning grey (skin) and losing a great deal of weight. I was dying.... The only people who do not understand this is those who have not undergone the therapies. As far as an aging population you've got be kidding; the biggest killer of children under 14 is cancer. When I was young they had children's wards at hospitals; now they have childrens hospitals. Less than 5% of cancers are reversed with chemotherapy. (see my site) Oh and just in case the numbers are hard for you to understand the overall mortality percentage is going up.. This is a percentage of all deaths broken out by category and the category for cancer is rising. This means that more people are dying from cancer not less. Why is that such a stretch? When is the last time you heard of someone who died of scurvy, pellegra or pernicious Anemia? You don't because all of those diseases were defeated with nutrition, and they had much higher mortality rates than that of cancer. The U.S. is 49th in the world for longevity and we spend twice as much on healthcare as any other country. Does that seem intelligent in any form? As far as thanking my oncologist; I do not have the wisdom to respond such a thoughtless comment. There is some poor child, laying in a lonely bed with poison dripping into their little body and inch by inch they are dying. That little person is there for no other reason than an oncologist (lied) convinced the parents that it was their only hope. Do you still want to thank them?
Think for yourself; it is truly the only thing you have control over.
The plural of anecdote is not data.
I researched Beta-glucan extensively on Wikipedia. The AMA and drug companies found it 55 years ago one month before I was born. They ignored the ability of it to inhibit cancer and made antibiotics from it. Why?
They could not change the molecular structure to patent it. Ownership like Sonodynamic therapy by "SonneMed, LLC" means they hold the rights to make money off the cure. However, the drug companies have not totally ignored it. They are trying to combine it with Chemo saying that it enhances the effectiveness.
We are blessed with a medical system which puts money before the patients health. However, many doctors are really doctors to help patients despite money. However, after I've read the same data from multiple medical sources it is depressing. It reminds me of the financial scandals this country has already suffered except people are loosing more than money.
What shoddy journalism! Dr Nick Gonzalez is an amazing, brilliant doctor. Patients who come to him have been diagnosed with cancer by conventional medicine. They are cured by his pancreatic enzymes and eating an organic diet, not by whacking off their hair and using coffee enemas. Dr Gonzalez' protocol is based on 100 years of medical research. You weren't even listening Nancy Snyderman!
You do know that the Gonzalez protocol was subjected to a clinical trial, and those given conventional treatment lived on average three times as long, and had a higher quality of life?
Paul - clearly you do not know the truth about that Clinical Trial. You are welcome to read and educate yourself:
Paul - Trying to post the link again. For some reason this website doesn't want to accept links to Dr. Gonzalez's website. ;-)
If this doesn't work (again), and you want to read about what really happened to the NIH Clinical Trial Paul refers to above, go to Dr Gonzalez's website and look for the Research Efforts section. The link is:
What shoddy journalism! Dr Nick Gonzalez is an amazing, brilliant doctor. Patients who come to him have been diagnosed with cancer by conventional medicine. They are cured by his pancreatic enzymes and eating an organic diet, not by whacking off their hair and using coffee enemas. Dr Gonzalez' protocol is based on 100 years of medical research. You weren't even listening Nancy Snyderman!
Thanks for telling the truth Jharmon111. Dr. Gonzalez put me on a customized organic diet to balance my autonomic nervous system and help my body fight off my cancer. It has worked - I'm cancer free 8 years. His work has been proven and peer reviewed. Since we cannot trust Dr. Nancy to get it right, please educate yourself by going to his website www.dr-gonzalez.com.
And by the way, his program doesn't cost "$12K a year". I'm on it and I should know. The initial office visit is just a few thousand dollars and then you can buy the monthly nutritional supplements from a 3rd party. The Doctors don't get any of that money. And it is a LOT LESS expensive than CHEMO!
Dr. Nancy had the chance to show people successful alternatives and let them have a CHOICE. But she is a saleswomen for Big Pharma and she shouldn't get away with this biased journalism while people are dying.
Quacks!
Hair sampling? Really?!!? That is the biggest joke I've ever seen. I really want to go off on this, but it's not worth my time.
Their license to practice medicine should be revoked. This story was the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen.
I am a 4 year survivor of colorectal cancer, diagnosed at the age of 38. I do believe that proper nutrition and exercise are very important to preventing cancer. I also believe that people who prey on those who only want a glimmer of hope, should be locked up, and the keys be thrown away.
Shamefull.
I have stage IV colorectal cancer and am a patient at Burzynski clinic. Suzanne Somers book was not a factor in my decision to come here (I never read it). Like many of the patients here I came from a prestigious university clinic who were boxed in by the FDA and the closed mindset of some doctors like the one at Sloan Kettering you interviewed (they were caring and well intentioned but nevertheless in a box). You failed to ask her how many cancer patients they have "cured". You failed to look deeply at 5-year survival rates, for the FDA approved standard treatment used by all these prestigious institutions (Sloan Kettering, Dana Farber, MD Anderson etc), which for my type of cancer is about 5%. Burzynskis records indicated for 155 patients with my type of cancer approx 52% responded positively, 28% were stabilized and 20% did not respond. This far exceeds the dismal success rate of standard treatment. Still, my decision to come here was based on two other factors that you did not go into any depth on: gene targeted therapy where an individuals genetic profile is determined with biopsy and a mix of meds is formulated based on their receptors, and finally, talking to many patients who have been through their treatment. I spoke with a Bryan Ogdon of Chicago, among others, who has high regard for Bruzynski and says his tumors were shrunk to almost nothing. It is expensive and they do request payment up front and will not take Medi Care (not sure why). To be sure big Pharma and the FDA have a stake in the outcome, you should ask why trials of Burzynski's medicine like the one started in 1993 but never completed, are not funded by the billion dollar institutions like the ACS or AIC who only give money to big pharma for research. However to be completely honest, there are highly regarded integrative clinics like the Block Institute in Chicago and Hippocrates Institute in Florida who require a strict dietary regimen (as well as coffee enemas) and deal with the other critical aspects of cancer treatment; exercise, mental and spiritual. These type of "alternative" clinics deserve attention from "investigative" programs such as yours. Therefore, it appears to me your segment was more an indictment of Suzzane Somers than an in-depth look at the current state of cancer treatment in America. However, I did appreciate the carefully selected snippets of Dr. Weil who I have a great deal of respect for.
It was interesting to see how biased and one sided the show was. Dr Nancy Snyderman did an excellent job of showing how conventional medical practitioners would never ackowledge the existence of alternative therapies that may actually work. Many patients current and past will know how their doctors give up on them, throw up their hand and ask them to go home and wait to die, infact some doctors would even nudge them in the direction of alternative therapy, ofcourse anonymously! How come the success rates of traditional medicine in the treatment of brain tumors was not mentioned. This being named the most deadly incurable form of cancer. The only difference being that it is justified if traditional methods of surgery, chemotherapy and radiation are used on pateints treated as guinea pigs in well known institutions, but the fact that Dr Burzynski has run a successful FDA monitored clinical Phase II trial is ignored. It was disgusting to see how it was mentioned that the patients who responded perhaps never had the cancer to begin with. This is an outright mockery of the person who has suffered a deadly vicious disease. I would urge the patients who are put through traditional techniques to also ask their physicians if they truly have the cancer.
This show will likely not have impact on decision making for patients who are looking for alternative therapies, since they would not have heard anything new on this show. All this information has been around forever and has been scrutinized plenty of times. get with the beat dateline and try to find out why the FDA has asked Dr Burzynski to proceed with Phase III trials!!!!
I certainly hope that because cancer generates so much revenue, it is not a factor in not seeking a cure. That would be a grave (pun intended) injustice to humanity. The history of medicine is filled with hits and misses, and it is a process of discovery. Science is also an ever-changing discipline as new theories are discovered and old ones discarded. Suzanne is a good example of her philosophy - but I believe she used both conventional and alternative treatments in her fight against breast cancer. I think that both have their place in the fight against cancer. The last half of her book is devoted to cancer prevention, and a physician on 20/20 stated that was 50% of the battle. Why are people still smoking, still inactive, still overweight - when the research states that these are contributing causes for cancer and so many other diseases. We need to take responsibility for our own health, and to keep an open mind, but not so open that our brain falls out.
Another thing your investigations may have uncovered but your producers did not want aired (big pharma's not so secret secret). That is because each individual has different genes, drugs made by big pharma and anyone for that matter, are not always effective. Many drugs are only 50%, 30% or less effective yet are still prescribed. I am sure this fact is well known in the drug industry. You should pursue this issue in your researching.
There is NO CURE for all cancers and never will be. Thank goodness we cure many individuals with cancer. Aging is by far the biggest risk factor for cancer-And the is NO CURE or aging
Dr. Rick Lippin
Southampton,Pa