Month: July 2011

Breast Lump: Sister died – And did she ever learned from this tragedy?

PG (M995) is a 50-year-old Indonesian. For the past ten years, she had been living with lumps in her right breast. She went for massage hoping the lumps would go away. They did not. The lumps grew bigger instead. In early 2011, PG had pulling sensation. She took medication from a Chinese sinseh. This did not help. She finally came to a private hospital in Penang.

USG of her right breast done on 5 July 2011 showed:

  1. An irregular, 2.3 x 1.9 cm soft tissue mass at 8 o’clock position. Two small satellite lesions (0.4 cm and 0.9 x 0.3 cm) were noted adjacent to the mass.
  2. An irregular, 1.5 x 1.3 cm mass at 10 o’clock position.
  3. Two axillary nodes, 0.9 x 0.6cm and 1.3 x 0.7 cm.

Impression: Two irregular masses at 8 o’clock and 10 o’clock are suggestive of Ca breast.

PG came to seek our help on 8 July 2011.  Watch this video.

 

 

Transcription of our conversation:

Chris: Your sister had similar problem – breast cancer?

PG: Yes, same problem.

C: She had lumps in her breast – did she go for operation?

PG: No. the lump burst. There was wound. It was painful. Then she had an operation.

C:  That was a bit too late. What happened after the operation?  Did any radiation or chemo?

PG: No. She died – today operate, tomorrow died.

C: So if you follow the same path that your sister took – you do not do anything now – your lump will also burst. You will have a lot of pain. That will be too late. Even if you operate after that, you will die like your sister. Do you understand what I am trying to tell you? What I am trying to tell you is – you have to remove the lumps in your breast before they grow bigger and burst. It is best that you remove the whole breast.

PG: You want to have it removed totally?

C: Yes, remove everything. There are many lumps in your breast. 1 + 2 + 1 lumps in the breast and 2 lumps in the arm pit. In total you have 6 lumps. I don’t believe that you can make them disappear by just taking herbs.  Later, these lumps will grow bigger and bigger and then burst. If you come when that happens it will be too late. So if I were you, I would operate the whole breast now. You don’t die by removing you breast.

PG: When I operate, it will come back again?

C: Yes, for some people that can happen. That is why doctors ask you to do chemo and radiation. (Knowing that patients are scared of chemo or radiation. Chris added). Let me tell you this. After the operation, if you are afraid of chemo or radiation, you can come back and see me again. I shall teach you how to take care of yourself. You can take herbs, take care of your diet, etc. If you don’t want to do chemo, I am not going to force you to do it.

The reason why I ask you to go for operation is that I am afraid as the lumps start to grow bigger and bigger they will burst. There will be a hole in your breast. It is going to be difficult. Then you have to have it removed anyway. So why wait for this to happen? It would be too late if that happens.

Son: What if she does not the operation and just takes your herbs?

C: Oh, if I can do that, I would not have asked you to go for surgery! Everyone who comes here wants to do that. Better still – why not ask me to just “blow” on you and your lumps disappear? That is the best way! But I cannot make your lumps disappear. I am here not trying to mislead anybody. I am here to help you because I am afraid you will die if you don’t have the lumps removed. Many patients from Indonesia come to me. I ask all of them to go for surgery.

Son: Okay, after surgery, we shall tell the doctor that we don’t want any chemo or radiation.

C: You don’t have to talk much or go into such detail. The first thing to do is get it removed. The one who cuts you is not the same person who is going to give you the chemo or radiation. Take note of whatever suggestions your doctor gave but first thing is to get the breast removed. One or two weeks after surgery, you can come back and see me, if you like. Bring all the medical reports.

PG: I am going home to Indonesia tomorrow.

C: What do you want to do in Indonesia? If I were you, delay your return trip for a day or two. Go and consult these two doctors in the hospitals. Make preliminary preparation for your surgery. Ask them how much it would cost, etc. Then you go home.  If the doctor insist that you do the operation immediately, let him know that you need to go home first to prepare your money for the treatment.

As it is now, you fly home tomorrow.  Then you come back again? Ask around and then go home again? And then fly back again for the operation? Why not spend a day or two now to go to Lam Wah Ee Hospital and Loh Guan Lye Hospital and ask the doctors there about the cost of the operation and what else to do?

Comments:  There is a saying, Only fools learn from experience, the wise learn from the experiences of others. Granted, by the way she presented herself, PG is not an “educated” woman. But a wise person need not be educated!  Her sister suffered the same problem like her – and did PG ever learn anything from that tragedy? It is yet another tragedy if she does not.

Each of us lived our lives differently. Some see the glass half empty, while others see the glass half full. When faced with a problem, we have that choice to be negative or positive. If we want to do something, we have all the reasons to do so but if we don’t want to do something we can also find all the reason not to do it.

There is one mind-bogging fact that I learn when dealing some patients from Indonesia. Many of them come to Penang in search for a cure for their cancers. They checked into the hospitals and undergo scanning procedures, biopsies, etc. When all are done the doctors suggested a treatment regimen.  They back out. They refuse surgery, chemo, radiotherapy or medication. The pack off and go home the next day! I often ask aloud – why spend all the money and time to go through all these preliminary investigations if you don’t want any treatment?  PG went to see a doctor who did the preliminary investigation. Then she came to see us. The next morning she wanted to go home without wanting to do anything. What is the whole idea? It baffles me. And such case happens very often.

Breast Lump: Get It Out

Let me reproduce an e-mail which I received from a lady in Italy on 26 June 2010.

Dear Dr. Teo,

My sister has a lump in her left breast. She found out about this lump, it was the size of a dollar coin, three years ago. Last year when she finally decided to tell us, her family, about it, it was already one breastful, 8cm in diameter. But she has decided not to do any surgery. It’s hard to accept her decision. My parents are very sad, but I’m trying to live with this. I know she’s very afraid but tries to act as if nothing’s happening.

I succeeded to bring her to a hospital to have a breast USG while I was home last year. I live in Italy and she lives in Jakarta, and it’s a bit complicated when you’re far from each other.

I’m writing to ask whether we could consult you. Reading from your website, I haven’t found anyone who hasn’t done any surgery prior to taking your herbs. Is it necessary that we do a complete blood test and bring it to you? The only medical record we have is the USG result done last year.

If you could give us some of your time, I’d like to arrange a visit with you for my sister in August 2011.

Thank you very much,

Yours truly,

YL, Italy

Reply: She has to remove the tumour. It is too big. Herbs cannot make the tumour go away.

Once in a while over the years, we have ladies coming to us with tumour(s) still in their breasts, like the case above. They had these tumour(s) for some months or years and did not do anything about it (them).  Okay, some did something like going to see certain alternative practitioners who assured them that there was nothing to worry about. They were told, Take this or do this and the lump will go away! And they believed these practitioners. Sad tragedy follows.

If you are one such lady, let me tell you this: Don’t be dumb! If you have a lump or lumps in your breast, please go and see a doctor and have it determined if it is malignant or not, i.e. whether it is a cancer or not.  If it is a cancer, my next advice is: Have a surgeon remove the tumour or your whole breast.

After surgery, it is a different “ball game” whether or not you want to undergo chemotherapy or/and radiotherapy. But to me, surgical removal is a wise option in dealing with a breast tumour. I recall many instances of ladies who came and “asked me to agree” that they don’t go for surgery. I told them: There is no way I would agree with that.   You come to me for advice and I give you my advice free of charge, based on my years of experience dealing with breast cancer. Some of them were disappointed because I insisted that they go for surgery. Some became  angry with me for not “supporting” them.

These are two main reasons why I thought the tumour has to be removed surgically.

  1. It is better to have the tumour removed for psychological reason. After the surgery, the lump is gone. You don’t have to see or feel it is there in your breast anymore. But if the lump remains in your breast, every day or perhaps every time of the day, you are being reminded of your “fatal disease”. Would that not make life miserable for you?
  2. There is no guarantee that herbs, change of diet, exercise, prayer, supplements, etc., can make a malignant tumour disappear. The bigger the tumour, the chance of it disappearing is even more remote. A lady told me that after taking herbs for some months the tumour in her breast “burst.” Another lady said her tumour “dropped” out and left a hole in her breast! All these do not solve the problem. Some patients say the herbs seemed to stop the tumour from growing but in other instances, the tumour kept growing in size. See the pictures below and decide for yourself if this is what you want.

 

We hope we have made CA Care’s position clear. Please go for surgery and have the cancerous lump removed. After this is done, we can discuss whether or not you want to undergo chemotherapy, radiotherapy or take tamoxifen, etc. You have the option to make that decision.

We shall present you with two more reports on breast lumps – so, stay tuned.


Cancer: What It Takes To Be A Winner

Anne (not real name) is from Indonesia. She was diagnosed with lymphoma and underwent eight cycles of chemotherapy. She suffered severe side effects. The treatment did not cure her. About five months after the completion of her chemotherapy, the cancer recurred. There was a 2x2x3 cm mass in her left cheek and a swelling in her left neck. The doctor asked her to undergo radiotherapy and chemotherapy again. She refused.

She came to CA Care for herbs and changed her diet. After two months, Anne came back to Penang and reported that her health had improved tremendously. We then put Anne on the e-Therapy for a week. Her health improved further. A detail account of her healing is reported in another write-up, Lymphoma: Herbs and e-Therapy Brought Her Back to Good Life Again After Eight Chemos.

At the end of her stay in Penang, we pointed out to Anne that her improvement is all about herself. It was her attitude and her choice that made her well! We and people around her can only help but ultimately her success or failure depends entirely on herself – the patient.  Listen to our conversation that day.

There are three important lessons we can learn from this case.

1. Enough is enough. Eight cycles of chemos did not cure her cancer. She was asked to go for more chemos plus radiation. Anne took a step back and re-evaluated her path. What could more chemo do for her given that eight cycles did not help? Do you want to say enough is enough, or do you want to allow yourself to be led like a lamb to the slaughter? Of course, you and you alone will have to make THAT CHOICE  and bear the consequences of  your decisioin.

After the chemos Anne suffered pains. The only thing the doctor could do was to prescribe her painkillers and gastric medication for her bad stomach. She started to read the websites. She heard horror stories from friends about how patients died after the chemos, and she reflected on her own experiences. To Anne, chemotherapy had adverse side effects. It did not cure her. So she decided not to go through it again. She was afraid. Her husband said, She decided to go for Dr. Chris’ herbal therapy.

2. Get your priority right. Help yourself first before others can help you. Anne came to seek our help. She benefited tremendously from the herbs and change of diet. We did not expect Anne’s healing to happen so soon. But it did. We thank God for this blessing. On the night of her second visit here, we asked Anne if she would stay a few days longer in Penang so that she could do the e-Therapy. Anne readily agreed – I would stay here for as long as you want me to do so. It was indeed a positive attitude that brought more healing to her.

Many patients come to Penang. They would go shopping or go elsewhere first. On the last day of their stay, they would drop by CA Care. The next day they are booked to go home. Given such a situation, there is nothing much we could do to help them. Where and what is their priority? We told Anne, That night when you came, we did not plan to put you on the e-Therapy at all. If you had decided to go home the next day you would have missed your healing! But you made the right choice of wanting to stay back. And you benefited from the e-Therapy.

3. Read and gather information for yourself.  A friend gave Anne our book. She read it. Then she went into our websites. She read the healing stories. She was inspired by the story of a lawyer who had lymphoma like herself. Anne said, I read her story and I prayed and ask God if this was the way to go. Then I decided to go for herbs. I don’t want more chemo.

Unfortunately not many people are like Anne.  We receive many e-mails every day from almost every corner of the globe. Most of them expect information to be dished out to them on a silver platter. It becomes obvious to us that they don’t read. All that they wanted to know are already written in our websites – www.cacare.com or www.CancerCareMalaysia.com . They just need to read them.

Of course, there are those who just like to sit in front of the computer in the comfort of their home and expect us to send them herbs. And then want to know answers for every problem that might crop up. They seem to throw their problems at us and expect us to do the chores for them.  Go to our website: www.ADayWithChristeo.wordpress.com and these are examples of such e-mails.

This e-mail just came in while I was writing this article:

Dokter  Chris, kenapa dada pak sakit sampai kepunggung. Sudah beberapa hari tidak bisa tidur. Miring ke kanan sakit, miring ke kiri juga sakit. Saya R, anaknya di Jakarta (Doctor Chris, why is that my father has been having pains in the back for the past few days until he was not able to sleep. Could not turn to the right or left).

My reply: Before this no pain? What did he do wrong? Bad diet? Before this he was doing fine. The question you need to ask is: What did he do wrong just before the pains occurred?

Iya dokter, makan makan papa sedikit salah. Karena sebelumnya kondisi tubuhnya lemah tidak ada tenaga. Jadi dia ada makan sedikit pantangan untuk memulihkan kondisi tubuhnya. Apa yang harus kami lakukan dokter? (Yes doctor, a bit of wrong diet. He felt he did have energy. So he ate foods that were “forbidden”. What do we do now?)

I did not want to be cruel by telling him to go and jump into the sea. So my answer was, Take it easy. Let us hope that the pain will go away with time. Try the Pain Tea. Hope it helps. I did not remind him to stop taking the bad food, believing that he has learned it the hard way.

Let us remind you this. Cancer is not just about a tumour in your breast, lung or liver. It is about you, as a human being. There is this quotation, There is no incurable disease, only incurable people.

Unfortunately our experience tells that only 30 percent of patients who come to us benefit from our therapy, the remaining 70 percent cannot. We emphasize the word again, CANNOT. You may wish to ask us why cannot. We hope patients know that one of the most important criteria for success is the person himself. It is not just about the herbs. Many patients come to us with a very high expectation for finding a magic bullet. There is none here.

We have refrained from giving advice or prescribing herbs through the net. It is just a futile effort. If your problem is serious enough, or if your loved one is precious enough, come and see us face to face. Bring along your medical reports and we shall try to help you out. By doing this, we would be able to assess the patient (or those taking care of the patient) as a person.

After knowing the medical history, we would then prescribe the herbs. Prescribing herbs is a very simple thing to do. We often tell patients, After talking to you for five minutes, we would probably know if we can help you or not. Perhaps, most patients don’t even understand what we meant by this. Patients come looking for a magic bullet. They want to find a cure on their own terms. They carry so much baggage and they don’t realize that.

Our experience tells us that if you want to heal yourself, one most important thing you must do is CHANGE – change your attitude, your lifestyle and your diet. There is no two ways about it.

We can only guide you, but patients must take care to heal themselves!

Lymphoma — The Patient from Hell: A Review

I decided that I am not going to buy any more books when we were in the US this time. But it was not to be. My daughter drove me to two bookshops in Houston, Texas and Durham, North Carolina. I ended up buying nine books instead of the usual 30 to 40 books while on a trip like this. But I am glad that I did this.

One of the books I bought has an interesting title, The Patient from Hell. This 300-page book was written by Professor Stephen Schneider, Professor for Interdisciplinary Environmental Studies, Professor of Biological Sciences, Professor (by courtesy) of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and a Senior Fellow in the Woods Institute for the Environment at Stanford University. Dr. Schneider was the world’s leading expert on climate change and global warming. He had consulted with federal agencies and/or White House staff in the Nixon, Carter, Reagan, G.H.W. Bush, Clinton and G.W. Bush administrations.

In 2001, Dr. Schneider was diagnosed with mantle cell lymphoma, a rare type of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He was treated by Dr. Sandra Horning, a leading expert on lymphoma – “the best person in the world for treating what you have”. Dr. Horning is also from Stanford and is a professor of medicine.

This book gives a blow-by-blow account of Schneider’s journey with cancer. It documents how a great mind – a climatologist, discussed, debated or argued with another leading light of medical science, the oncologist – Professor Sandra Horning. From the questions and answers during their consultation sessions, we can decipher the many truths about lymphoma and its treatment, done at a world-class hospital.

Mantle Cell Lymphoma and Treatment

  • A perfectly healthy Schneider noticed a star-shaped black and blue mark on the inside of his upper right arm while bathing. Further evaluation revealed “a few swollen lymph nodes, and they didn’t really hurt, but I knew I couldn’t continue to deceive myself … (I) was going to be poisoned. And I had agreed to it.”
  • CT and PET scans were done followed by a biopsy of the lump. It was a mantle cell lymphoma. Before chemotherapy, Schneider underwent a bone marrow biopsy to know the extent of the spread.

“Sandra explained that the fact that I had lumps both above and below my diaphragm was a good indication that I had cancer in my marrow and that it was already a stage 4 cancer … for mantle cell, reaching stage 4 is pretty common.”

  • Schneider received the “new” Stanford’s chemotherapy regimen using  CHOP + Rituxan (C = cyclophosphamide, H = hydroxyl daunorubicin or Andriamycin, Oncovin or vincristine and P = prednisone)” This treatment is also available here.

“Before Stanford’s new protocol had been implemented, 50 percent of her (Dr Horning) mantle cell lymphoma patients were dead within two years, and 90 percent didn’t make it past the five-year mark. With the new protocol, however, she hadn’t lost a patient in four years.”

  • After three cycles of chemo, CT scan showed that the lumps had disappeared. Sandra said,” You’re in full remission after only three chemos; it’s a remarkable achievement.” Schneider continued with chemotherapy and in total had six cycles.
  • Although in remission Schneider was told that the cancer cells might still be hiding somewhere in the body – perhaps the bones and behind the eye balls. To be sure, Schneider had to undergo a bone marrow transplantation (BMT).
  • BMT required that the whole body be treated with radiation followed by two lethal chemo treatment using megadoses of Cytoxan and another drug known as VP-16. Then “nearly all my blood would be sucked out … put into a centrifuge machine that would spin it until the medium- to heavy- weight particles were trapped and removed, and then the amount needed to keep me alive would be injected back into me.”
  • “Of course, there was the ever-present concern about what was going to come next, how quickly my cancer was being brought under control, and most important, if I would ever completely get rid of it.
  • Sandra said, “We never use the word ‘cure’ just remission. We’re very hopeful you will have a long and strong remission.”

Final Outcome

I was extremely happy to read this book, especially how the best brains pally against each other. I am seeing experts arguing in a cool and civilized way. What a great treat. I would like to say this to both the medical and alternative practitioners: Let us not insult each other, instead let us try to consult each other for the good of our  patients.

To know what really matters,  I “googled” Stephan Schneider lymphoma, hoping to get the latest updates. It is sad to say that in spite of all the best efforts, Dr. Schneider died on 19 July 2010, after an apparent heart attack on an airplane while en route to London from a scientific conference in Stockholm. He was 65.

In short, Schneider survived for nine years after his cancer diagnosis and treatment.  Did medicine really cure his cancer? Is this not something like people use to say, The operation is a success but the patient died of complications?  “Cytoxan had its dangers; it was known to deteriorate heart and lung condition, the cost-benefit calculus was not going to see me getting away scot-free.” Schneider received a lot of that drug and he knew the odds.

 Comments and Advice

Throughout the book, Schneider expressed his opinions about medical treatments –  based on what he had gone through. Let me quote some of his observations:

  • “ As a patient, I also gained firsthand experience with the system in which these professionals must maneuver, and I learned that the bureaucracy and hidebound attitudes embedded in that system are far from optimal – for doctors or for patients.”
  • “Too often, a patient’s treatments are performed “by the book” rather than being tailored to the patient’s specific needs. To put it more bluntly, much of the care that today’s patients receive is medicine by the numbers.”
  • “Most physicians – and patients – act as if the patient’s role is simply to take orders and be cooperative. Tradition suggests that only medical experts should decide on what treatment course to take; patients are presumed both incapable of material contribution to such decisions … But sometimes the patient knows better, at least about how the patient feels and what the patient needs.”
  • “Medicine entails ascertaining what might happen with or without intervention – what various treatments might do to alleviate certain conditions; what side effects might be generated by the treatments; and how the roulette is set up – that is, what probability of success can be assigned to each alternative.”
  • “It is up to you to decide with your doctors what treatment options are best for you and whether or not the side effects of the ‘cure’ are worth it given the probability of success; it’s not just an expert judgment. “
  • “Let me repeat: Choosing what risks to take is not a medical decision. You will be qualified to make choices about how you wish to face these risks. After all, it is you who, for better or worse, will be cured, become sicker and suffer side effects … That decision should be the patients’ choice because the trade-offs are personal value judgments, NOT medical science. All medicine can do is tell us the numbers – probabilities – but to make the choice is the patients’ right.”
  •  “Many important things in life… are a gamble. I often think of life as a roulette wheel containing both happy and nasty outcomes. No matter what we do, sometimes the roulette wheel presents us with lousy results. While we can’t always prevent undesirable events from occurring, I do think there is always something we can do to narrow the width of the slots that represent poor consequences and widen those that imply good outcomes. “

Our success stories with lymphoma: Click this link:  https://cancercaremalaysia.com/category/lymphoma/

 1.       Lymphoma Recurred Two Years After Intensive Chemo – Took Herbs and Remained Well

Siew (A948) was 20 years old when he suffered high fevers on and off in 1996. On CA Care Therapy 2002.  As of 2011, in perfect health.

2.       NHL-Kidney: Cancer-free after Six Months On the Herbs

Peter (not real name) shared his story with us in July 2000. He was diagnosed with lymphoma at 50 years old.  He started to take our herbs in 1999, and up to this day (2011) he is still doing fine. He was asked to undergo bone marrow transplantation and he said no! What could have happened if he had the BMT?

3.       The Story of Devi: A lady lawyer about 40 years old, afflicted by Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

(Reproduced from our book:  Cancer Yet They Live).   Devi was diagnosed as having lymphoma. After finishing all medical treatments she came to CA Care on 18 August 1998 and started on the Cancer Care Therapy. It is 2011, and she is in perfect health and still taking the herbs!

Lymphoma Recurred Two Years After Intensive Chemo – Took Herbs and Remained Well

Siew (A948) was 20 years old when he suffered high fevers on and off in 1996. There was also a lump on the left side of his neck. He consulted a Chinese sinseh who told him that this was due to heatiness. Since the problem persisted,

The treatment consisted of the following:

Induction Phase

  1. Vincristine on days 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29.
  2. Daunorubicin on days 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29.
  3. Prednisolone on days 1 to 22.
  4. L-asparaginase on days 15 to 28.

After the induction phase, treatment rested for 2 weeks and phase 2 started as follows:

Phase 2

  1. Cyclophosphamide on days 26 and 50.
  2. Ara C (andriamycin) on days 13 to 16, 43 to 46, 50 to 53 and 57 to 60.
  3. 6-MP, throughout cranial irradiation.
  4. MTX
  5. Cranial irradiation for 15 times.

After completion of Phase 2, treatment rested for 2 weeks and continued with:

Phase 3

  1. Mitoxanthrone on days 2 and 3.
  2. Ara C on days 1 to 4.

On 31 July 1997, Siew’s liver enzymes were elevated and HbsAg was reactive. His   doctor thought this was probably due to blood transfusion related hepatitis. Further chemotherapy was withheld. Siew’s liver function returned to normal and the ultrasound of his abdomen was also normal. A Bone Marrow Aspiration (BMA) done on 17 September 1997, showed no evidence of infiltration.

From 1 October 1997, Siew was treated with MTX, L-asparaginase, folinic acide and methotrexate. On 29 October 1997, another BMA was performed and the result was negative. More chemotherapy treatments followed on regular basis until May 1998.

Siew was on oral medication in 1999. In 2000 he seemed to be well and was not on any medication. In July 2000, Siew came to seek our help. He was prescribed some herbs but that first visit was also his last visit to us.

About 2 years later, in March 2002, Siew came back to see us again. He presented with:

  1. Feeling of heaviness in his head.
  2. Tiredness.
  3. Swellings on the right side of his neck. There were pulling sensations with slight pains.

We suggested that Siew go back to his doctors at the hospital for further medical treatment. Siew flatly refused. He told us that the doctor wanted to do a biopsy of the lump. He also knew that he would most likely have to undergo chemotherapy again. Siew said that in the past he had been very lucky to get out of the hospital alive. While in the hospital receiving treatment, he saw many patients in similar situation did not make it and died.

We respected Siew’s decision to opt for herbs instead of chemotherapy. We cautioned him that the lumps in his neck may not go away. And there would be no guarantee that he would be better either. Siew and his wife understood the risks he was taking.

Siew felt better after one week on the herbs.  His head did feel heavy anymore. The lumps in his neck seemed to loosen up and there were no more pulling sensations. However, he still felt tired.

After about two months on the herbs, Siew noticed that the neck swelling seemed to increase in size. Also, there were additional lumps. However, Siew’s health was good.

After about a year on herbs, Siew reported that he had less episodes of fevers compared to previous time. However, sometimes he felt heaty. Our Heat Flu herbs helped him resolved this problem. At an earlier occasion, Siew showed us there were 3 lumps forming a loose cluster in his neck. But by then, two lumps had disappeared. The size of the remaining lump has gone smaller.

As of this writing, April 2009, it has been 7 years since Siew decided to abandon medical intervention and came to see. During this period, he took our herbs very religiously and kept to our recommended diet. Siew appeared well and did not suffer any problem. He is well to this day.

On 12 April 2009, we had a short chat with Siew and his wife. Following are excerpts of our conversation.

Chris (C): You look good.

C: You had cancer in 1997?

S: Yes. There was a lump at my neck. I went to GH for my chemo.

C: How long was your chemotherapy?

S: About 2 years, in and out of hospital.

W: After that it came back. In one and a half years, there was a big lump again.

S:  Now there is also a lump.

W:  But it is very small, so very tiny.

C: Let me see. Why is it red?

S:  I touched it.

W: Cannot feel it any more. Last time, I could easily feel it. It was much bigger.

S:  Last time, I can feel it as soon as I place my hand on the neck. Now, I have to really feel for it. I have to press into the neck to find it.

W: Like you say: Live with it.

C: In these seven years, do you have any problems?

S:  Not really. Sometimes I may have a bit of fever.

W: Very seldom now. Last time, it was very often.

C:  I remember, you used to have fevers very often.

W: In agreement.

S:  When I get a headache, the fever will also come.

W: But it is nothing serious.

C: So, after the chemo, there was a recurrence?

W: The doctor wanted him to go for biopsy. But he ran away.

(Everybody laughing)

C: The doctor recommended chemo?

S: But they wanted to do a biopsy first.

W: I brought him out of the hospital.

S: She brought me home. She helped me run away.

C:  What made you do that?

W:  We already know that it is cancer. What is the point of doing another biopsy? It does not make sense.  That was how I thought then. So, I brought him here. I don’t like the idea of disturbing the lump.

S:  To me it is alright to do the biopsy. But after that, they want me to do chemotherapy. I do not want to do anymore chemotherapy. My wife’s way of thinking gave me a way (a choice) to refuse chemo.

W:  He did not want to do any more chemotherapy as he suffered badly when he had his chemo before.

C: Was chemotherapy so terrible?

W: He even fainted on the road at one time.

S:  It was a black out – but it was only for a short period of time. It was during my chemotherapy days.

W: And his liver was also affected. There was nothing wrong with his liver before the chemotherapy. The doctor said he had hepatitis and all sorts of thing. They wanted him to take more medications. Since he had a choice, he chose to come here. We did exactly what you told us to do. He drank apple juice and juice extracted from the leaves of seven needles plant and all that.

C:  I remember. When you first came, I was also worried for you.

S:  At that time, I was only twenty plus years old.  Now I am already thirty plus years old.

W: But the most important thing is the food he eats.

S: If I were to go for chemo, I cannot do any work.

C: You mean, the two years during your chemotherapy, you did not work?

S:  Yes, I did not work.  You see, I cannot eat well. I vomited. I felt weak.

C: What about your memory?

S: Not bad.

W: You forget very easily. You do not have good memory.

S: Of course I can remember whatever happened a day or two ago. But for things that happened too long ago, I don’t remember very well.

W: He does not remember faces. Cannot recognize people he met.

C: Compare to the time before your chemo. Is there a difference in your memory?

S & W: Yes. There is a difference.

S: I forget more easily. I am not as sharp as before.

W: He is quite slow.

S: (In agreement) Yes. When I talk, it is not like before. I do not speak as fluently as before. Sort of become a bit blunt. Not as sharp as before.

W: And his hair is not as much as before. It had thinned a lot. And it had not grown back to as much as before.

S: When I talk, at times I cannot express myself well. I could not find the words to say whatever I wanted to say.

C:  Before your chemotherapy, do you experience this?

S:  No, never.

W: The only thing is he cannot eat what everybody else eats.

C:  Don’t think so much about eating.

S:  That is not important, that I am alive is good enough.

Comment

We have documented a similar case with Devi. She had a relapse soon after chemotherapy was completed. She took herbs and regained her health. It has been 12 years and Devi is still doing fine, leading a normal life. So Siew’s healing is not a fluke shot! It is a repeat of Devi’s case. Repeatability and this is what science is all about!

As of 2011, Siew is in perfect health and still taking the herbs. He has a very caring and supportive wife.

The Story of Devi: A lady lawyer about 40 years old, afflicted by Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

(Reproduced from our book: Cancer Yet They Live)

 


Sometime in June 1997 Devi was diagnosed as having lymphoma. After finishing all medical treatments she came to CA Care on 18 August 1998 and started on the Cancer Care Therapy. On 18 March 1999 we met up with Devi and documented her conditions on video tape. The following are excerpts of our conversation.

Q:  What happened to you?

 A:  I was diagnosed as having lymphoma two years ago.  There was a conflict over the treatment I was to receive.  One oncologist said I could be cured by radiation. A few others felt that chemotherapy was the best solution.  I opted for chemotherapy.

After my first dose of chemotherapy, my entire digestive system was badly affected.  I spent two weeks in hospital, dosed with morphine.  They could not discover why I was reacting that way. 

Q:  Why were you on morphine?

A:  Because I was in pain.  The moment I consumed food, I had very severe pain.  I was lying in the hospital for two weeks until one day I went berserk because I had an overdose of morphine…I was not getting any better.  I have a nice surgeon who performed the operation and when he visited me I told him that I was not getting any better.  He agreed. It doesn’t look like you are.  Do you want to be discharged?, he asked. So, I discharged myself. 

I went to a clinic that practised chelation therapy and the doctor asked me what sort of diet I was on? I was told to stop taking solid food and to go on fruits, vegetables, semi-solids and fluids. Within two days on the recommended diet, the pain was gone.

Q:  Did you take any other medication? 

A:   No. I was only on the diet, no medication whatsoever. I was on fruits, vegetables and semi-solids.  Within a month, my digestive system was back to normal.  After that month,  I had to decide whether I wanted to go back for my next course of chemotherapy. I was really afraid of even considering chemotherapy.  The doctor thought that it was best that I went back for radiotherapy.  I went for 30 cycles of radiotherapy and then an extra five cycles.

Q:  You stopped chemotherapy totally?

A:  Yes.  I did not want any chemotherapy. The radiotherapy was done five days a week, continuously. 

Q:  After the radiation, what happened to you?

A: Comparatively,  I handled the radiation quite well.  After radiation, I was sent for a scan and the doctor said there was no evidence of cancer.  That was it, I thought that was the end.  I never even conceived that the cancer (was) coming back again.  I thought I was cured. Exactly a year later, I had a relapse of the lymphoma. 

Q:  After the radiation, you thought you were cured.  Did you go back to your old diet?

A:  Yes, I went back to my old lifestyle. I forgot about the fruit juices.  I had a relapse of the cancer, this time in the abdominal region. There was no pain, but a feeling of uneasiness in the abdominal region.  I was sent for a CT scan.  They detected tumours in the abdominal region.  The doctor said radiation was out.  I went for six cycles of chemotherapy.   The problem I faced during the chemotherapy was that after each session of the chemotherapy, even for the first dose, my white blood count used to drop to 0.7 … really rock bottom.

Each time my blood count went down, I was in the hospital for at least five days.  I was given a series of injections to boost the blood count. The chemotherapy I had was one session every three weeks.  

After six sessions of chemotherapy, I went for a scan.  There was no sign of cancer. I was alright.

However, I  was feeling lost again after the chemotherapy. There was a fear in me, like what would happen if the cancer comes back.  It had come back the previous time.  Would there be any drug or anything that I could go on taking that could keep the cancer at bay? The doctor said there was really nothing that I could do. Go for a check-up, look out for signs and if there was anything, go for a scan.

Q: Did you go for check-up regularly?

A:  Yes.  Firstly, it was every month.  Then every two months. 

Q:  Why then, do you go for the herbs?

 A:  As I said earlier, after the chemotherapy that is the end of the road.  Medically, they have nothing else to offer you. When I was in the hospital I heard patients talking about the rodent tuber. But nobody had really tried it out.  So, I told myself that if medical science had nothing to offer me after this, the only other option available to me would be to move to nature. I had this feeling in me —  we are so busy trying to develop things to cure ourselves that very often we overlook that the answer to all our cures is actually out there in nature.

I felt that I had nothing to lose by trying the rodent tuber.  And that was when I came to see you.

Q:  When you came to see me, were you feeling alright?

A:  No, when I came to see you, I had just finished my six cycles of chemotherapy and I was feeling very weak. 

Q:  When you first started taking the herbs, what was your initial reaction?  Were you sceptical about it? 

A; Quite honestly, I was a bit sceptical.  But at the same time, I thought it was my only hope. When you have an illness like cancer, you would grasp at any straw that is being held out to you.

Q:  After taking the herbs, did you find confidence or get any help at all?

A:  As time went on, I could actually feel my body recovering much faster. I felt much better. I was healthier and much more alive.  I used to be half-dead.

Q:  Do you really feel better or is it just a placebo effect?

No, no, no.  I could really feel my body responding. For one thing, I could really feel, I had more energy.  When I was undergoing my chemotherapy, and when I had finished my chemotherapy, there were times when I feel like I did not want to get out of my bed.  I just got up to eat and then went back to my bed again.  But after taking the herbs, I could feel myself building up energy and I was more active.  And right now, I am healthy enough and I have even gone back to work. 

Q:  Before you took the herbs and while you were on medical treatments, did you go back to work? 

A:  No …  for seven months. 

Q:  When you were on the herbs you began to pick yourself up?

A:  Yes, I had more energy.  I was more alive and hope started to build up.  It affected me psychologically as well.  I began to feel I was getting better.  I went back to life the way it should be instead of just lying in bed. So, I started work and I am back full-time.

Q:  How many months have you already been on the herbs?

A:  About six months. 

Q:  What about your diet?

A:  I am more of a vegetarian now, I keep off red meat and sea food except for fish. I eat fruits and vegetables.  

Q:  Some people say that if I cannot take my favourite food, life if not worth living. What is your comment to that ?

A:  What I have to say to those people is, life is worth more than just your favourite food.  It is a very small sacrifice to make.  Life is much more that just food. 

Q: You were a meat eater before and now you are a vegetarian.  Many people say that if you don’t  eat meat, you have no strength.  What have you got to say about that?

A;  No, not really.  In fact, I feel much healthier now that I cut meat out of my diet.  I have not lost energy at all.

On the subject of spirituality, Devi has this to say:

Many people are sceptical about God. … You ask a lot of people and they say they do not believe in God. But one thing I do know. I noticed that what really helps me out, apart from the diet and  the herbs were religion and prayer.  They gave me a lot of inner strength and belief.  I found that it made a world of difference when I started praying, Before, I wasn’t an atheist, nor was I praying regularly. At times when I hit a real low, I would pray and I would meditate. That really helped to alleviate me out of my depression.  Sometimes, I find the relief quite instantaneously. 

Q: What kind of relief?

A: When you are talking about depression.  It just hits you.  When I was undergoing chemotherapy and my blood count dropped,  I would be so listless, I could hardly eat anything. I had a feeling that I was not going to make it. It was then that I started going into prayer and meditation.  When I finished I was more calm and the “I am not going to make it feeling” wasn’t there anymore.  You feel that you can handle this kind of thing.

Q:  You have been taking the herbs for the last six months, do you find at any one time during this period that  you feel depressed and that you are not going to make it?

A:  No.

Q:  You are confident that you are going to go through it?

A: Yes.

Q:  Do you go for your medical check-up?

A: Yes.

Q: So far so good?

 A: Yes.  I told my doctor that I was on herbal treatment, meditation and prayer.  And during the last check up, he asked me if I am still on the herbs, prayer and mediation ? … I said, yes, very religiously.  And he just laughed!

Note: As of this writing – 2011, Devi is still doing fine and is still taking the herbs!

CANCER: How to Make Decisions to Increase Your Odd of Winning

We make decisions every day. Some decisions are just over trivial matters. For some people, their decisions can be a “mother” of all decisions – especially if you or your loved one is being diagnosed with dreadful diseases like cancer.  The consequence of your decisions can be a matter of living or dying.  I always say this to cancer patients, Listen to whatever comments or advices others give you, but remember that at the end of it all, you and you alone are going to bear the consequences of that decision. YOU suffer or you die, NOT them. 

Out of curiosity, before setting out to write this article I “googled”, How to make decisions to increase your odd of winning. The returns obtained were about roulette, blackjack, poker, betting, slot machine and investment, nothing about cancer!

The reality is that obtaining a cure for cancer is just like “striking the jackpot” (quoting a well known oncologist in Singapore).  His statement implies that undergoing cancer treatment is not much different from going to a casino.  The outcome is as uncertain as rolling the die. There would be losers and winners. And we know the odd of winning is very low indeed.  In fact, any honest and seasoned oncologist would not even use the word “cure” for cancer treatment – they only talk about remission.

Researchers, scientists, doctors, etc. follow different protocols when making decisions. But the essential element is the same – it must be based on research data. By studying the data we hope to be able to increase our odds to win.

Theorist Versus Frequentist

Professor Stephen Schneider (in The Patient from Hell) explained this very well.

“In every course I teach I like to demonstrate the difference between two ways of thinking by using the example of a coin toss. I flip a coin onto the back of my hand and cover it. “What is the probability of the coin under my hand is heads?” “One-half”, someone always shouts out. “How do you know?” “Well, the coin has two sides”. You’re a theorist!

“Suppose you didn’t understand the coin toss theory and didn’t realize that there was an equal chance of flipping heads or tails? You just keep flipping it and count the number of heads and tails. You’re a frequentist! You want to put together a frequency chart … make a table with a column for heads and a column for tails and them you want to flip the coin multiple times. If you flip it often enough and the coin is unloaded, you’ll end up with frequency statistics showing an approximately 50 percent chance of flipping heads or flipping tails.”

“This is how scientists like to work: They like to have masses of data they can use to create probability distributions that depict the likelihood of potential outcomes… then scientists can make estimates that have high confidence levels. It’s the same in medicine. Doctors like looking at data from clinical trials performed on hundreds of patients over many years, which can provide clear evidence as to whether certain treatments are effective, on average.”

“Unfortunately, the questions … can’t be solved using … frequency data, because they involve many components of deep uncertainty.”

Professor Schneider concluded:

“Some scientists, including many medical doctors, still seem to be living in the nineteenth century in this respect, thinking that for any question, infinite sets of replicable experiments should be performed, providing them with data from which they can calculate probabilities … and “scientifically” tackle the problem at hand. Unfortunately, in the real world, as topics of inquiry become increasingly complex and involve questions about the future, scientists do not always enjoy the luxury of extensive, comprehensive and reliable frequency data when they need them.”

Intuition and Commonsense

At CA Care, I have a different view about how to solve problems.  While data based on clinical trial is a good way to indicate our chances of obtaining certain benefits or survival, etc., the data need NOT apply to you as a patient. For example, if you undergo chemo, the 5-year survival rate is 30%. You may belong to that 30% who survived or you may belong to the 70% who don’t survive. Nobody can tell for sure which group you belong to. So research data like that only provides you with a confidence level, saying that what you are going to do has a certain degree of probability that you are right.

So at CA Care I tell cancer patients to make decisions based on intuition and common sense.  Experiences show that at times certain thing happens beyond the understanding of science, yet the “heart” seems to “sense” it. Patients come to me asking if they should undergo chemotherapy or not. My answer is: What does your heart say? I do not ask, What did your doctor say or what did your relatives or friends say. My advice is, Follow your heart or the Inner Voice within you.

This does not mean that I ask you to ignore scientific data. Bear in mind that I was once a researcher and a scientist. But I also know that science deals only with the physical realm. You and I and life are made up of the sum total of the physical and spiritual realms.  The spiritual realm is superior to the physical realm. The spiritual realm impacts the physical realm. Science believes the opposite – the physical is everything and the spiritual does not exist and is totally ignored.

So for any life and death decision, I believe you cannot ignore your spiritual self. Also, I urge you to use your commonsense. There is a saying, Educated men need not be wise, and wise men need not be educated. Each of us is capable of making wise decision – you don’t need to be a scientist to make wise decisions. In order to guide you to make decisions, I say you need to consider the pros and cons –  a more scholarly term is to carry out a Cost-Benefit Analysis. Count your costs and weigh them against the benefits. Decide for yourself what you really want out of this life. Doctors have their own perspectives of what is good for you. Their value judgment may differ greatly from yours or may be even opposite of yours.  Following totally the doctors’ advice means you totally agree with their value judgment. Is this what you really want?

The function of CA Care is to provide you with honest, unbiased information of the various options available to you. Having done that, it is up to you to make your own decision based on what you think is right for you. We do NOT talk the language of doctors. We don’t think like them too. But this does make us anti-doctors. CA Care is not anti-doctors.  Everyone who comes to see us is advised to consult his/her doctor first.  If you want to do chemo, radiotherapy, etc.  and etc., go ahead and do it. The only thing we tell you is, You are responsible for the consequences of your decisions. Don’t use our herbs your scapegoat. If is most unfair to come back and blame us when things go wrong. Unfortunately some patients do that.

I am not alone in advocating such practice.  Let me quote Professor Schneider again:

“What is “dangerous” is a value judgment …  It is the policymakers  who need to decide whether risks are acceptable … or should be ignored …. We scientists can provide policymakers with information on which they can better make these decisions. In a medical setting, the science comes from medical research studies and doctors’ opinion based on their experience with data on, and knowledge of the subject. The “policymakers” are the patients, who, working together with their doctors, must make value judgment about what health risks to take.”

Experience of a Near-Missed Flight

Let me relate what happened to us a few days ago while wanting to fly home from the US. Our flights involved Delta 1097 from Raleigh-Durham (RDU) to Los Angeles (LAX) – Taipei – Penang. It does not take a scientist to know that if Delta 1097 is delayed, we would have missed the other connecting flights. I knew where the “weakness” was. And we must be well prepared for it.

From the Airline’s website, we studied the history of Delta 1097. For the past eight days (Table below) DL 1097 had always left RDU at about 8 pm and arrived LAX by about 10 pm.  Since we have to be at the check-in counter of China Airlines by about 12 midnight for the connecting flight to Taipei, I figured out I have ample time. So our risk of missing the connection is very slim. There would be no problem!   So my daughter bought the Delta ticket with full confidence that everything would be alright.

27-June
Raleigh-Durham (KRDU)
Los Angeles
09:56PM EDT
11:35PM PDT
4:39
26-June
Raleigh-Durham  (KRDU)
Los Angeles
08:15PM EDT
09:59PM PDT
4:44
24-June
Raleigh-Durham  (KRDU)
Los Angeles
07:51PM EDT
09:54PM PDT
5:03
23-June
Raleigh-Durham  (KRDU)
Los Angeles
08:39PM EDT
10:31PM PDT
4:52
22-June
Raleigh-Durham (KRDU)
Los Angeles
08:48PM EDT
10:38PM PDT
4:50
20-June
Raleigh-Durham  (KRDU)
Los Angeles
08:12PM EDT
10:22PM PDT
5:10
19-June
Raleigh-Durham (KRDU)
Los Angeles
08:07PM EDT
10:04PM PDT
4:57
17-June
Raleigh-Durham (KRDU)
Los Angeles
07:52PM EDT
10:07PM PDT
5:15
16-June
Raleigh-Durham (KRDU)
Los Angeles
08:12PM EDT
10:12PM PDT
5:00
15-June
Raleigh-Durham (KRDU)
Los Angeles
08:10PM EDT
10:04PM PDT
4:54

Somehow on the evening of 25 June, I did not feel good about our flight home on 27 June. Something in me – my intuition – was saying that something was going to go wrong.  I requested our daughter to find an alternative flight – probably taking the flight a day before or a flight in the morning on the same day. This would mean we could be in Los Angeles well ahead of time. I was fully aware that my request made my daughter “go crazy.” Daddy must be mad to cook up something like this. Why push the panic button unnecessarily? This is what they call “borrowing worry.” But anyway, we tried to “fix” my concern the next day. Unfortunately we could not find any slot in spite of the many possible flights out of RDU.

Looking at the flight data above, the worse delay that had ever occurred so far was on 22 June. The flight was delayed by about an hour due to poor weather in Atlanta – thus causing a chain reaction. My son (in training to be a scientist too, doing Ph.D. in Cancer Biology at M.D. Anderson!) assured me that based on the above data, there should NOT be any reason why I should lose my sleep. He predicted the flight would go as schedule. The previous delay was due to weather condition. But in my case, the weather was fine.  Disruption by weather condition in summer is rare.  So in theory the odd against serious flight delay is minimal in my case.  So, we made a “scientific decision” just like oncologists do when they give patients chemotherapy or radiotherapy.

Before going to the airport, I was tracking the flight schedule at home. Everything seemed to be okay. With confidence, on 27 June, we drove to the airport to catch our DL 1097. It was about 5 pm then and we were about to arrive at the airport. My daughter’s mobile phone rang. She picked it up. Then there was a sober silence.  I asked,  Delta called? Flight delay?   Irene (a Clinical Psychology Ph.D. intern at Duke University), being a very gentle lady that she always is, said, Papa, please don’t panic. Yes, the flight was delayed until 9.15 pm! In actual fact, it was not really 9.15 pm. The flight only took off at 10 pm.  This was the worst delay ever recorded. I told my daughter, My intuition turned out correct. We will take it easy. This thing happened for a reason. But it  not as critical as those cancer patients whose lives have been turned upside down and inside out after being told they have cancer. Take it positively.

In theory this delay put the probability of us missing our connecting flight as extremely high. I remember thinking what would happen to all those cancer patients who wanted to see me on Friday, I July afternoon. They had bought their tickets to fly in from Indonesia and Singapore hoping to see me.  They would be disappointed.

Our “fighting” instinct took over.  We were supposed to go for our dinner first before arriving at the airport. We had already checked in on-line. Because of what had happened we drove straight to the airport. We talked to the Delta people and asked for possible alternative routing or airline. Unfortunately, there was no other option left. We still have to take Delta 1097 and bet on our luck.

Imagine the predicament I would face – what was I to do after landing in Los Angeles in the middle of the night? Where to go? How to find another flight to come home?

To cut the story short, we did not miss our connection! On Wednesday 27 June we landed home safely in Penang as scheduled. How did we pull this off?

These are the reasons why.

  1. We did not panic and kept our cool. Instead of cursing Delta, we accepted the situation.
  2. We started to take positive actions to solve the problem – taking the bull by the horn! We drove to the airport right away instead of going to dinner first. We had to find the solution to our problem and did not allow the problem to revolve by itself or taking it “lying down.”
  3. We talked to the Delta staff. David, the gentleman who handled our case, was very helpful but he could not offer any alternative flight. They were either all full or not suitable.  But one thing David did right, which I believe helped increased our odd at “winning”. David offered to transfer our baggage from Delta to China Airlines without us having to wait at the baggage area and collect it personally. This is something the airline does not normally do because we have separate tickets for both flights from different airlines. No doubt about it, if we have to wait to collect our baggage, we would definitely miss our connecting flight.
  4. Then, we worked out a back-up plan, should we miss the connecting flight. This provided us with peace of mind. We knew exactly that we would have to do. The fear of being left stranded in the big Los Angeles airport in the middle of the night evaporated. After this was sorted out, we went for our dinner. I ordered an extra-large bowl of Vietnamese noodle – and there were no butterflies in my stomach!
  5. Looking at my watch before the plane was about to land in Los Angeles, I felt we would miss the connecting flight. I made another move.  I relayed our problem to the flight attendants and asked for help.  I requested to pick up my hand-on and let us be the first ones to get out of the plane. The male steward listened to my request and shrugged his shoulders. Either he did not understand me or he was dumb or was not the helpful type. I then talked to the female attendant in charge and she understood me.  She made an announcement requesting other passengers to hold on to allow us to leave first.  I looked at my watch again. We only had 10 minutes to get out of the plane and rushed from Terminal 5 to Terminal 3 where China Airlines is. That was a big deal.
  6. My daughter took another positive step. She informed the China Airline counter about our problem. So when we arrived at the check-in counter at 12 midnight, we were attended to right away.
  7. Three weeks earlier, when my wife and I arrived at the Los Angeles airport, I did my homework. In preparation for such anticipated problem, I took time and walked around to study the layout of the airport. I made sure I know how to get to the International terminal from the Delta terminal.  I had to turn left not right! So I have done my homework well ahead of time.

What a relief after being given the boarding pass by China Airlines. There was no more fear that we would miss our flight!  My wife and I went through the security check.

Feeling relieved, I became complacent. I blindly followed other passengers to the boarding gate and couldn’t careless to check what our depart gate was, as printed on our boarding pass. After all the planning and rushing, you believe that Chris Teo would do such a silly thing? We ended going to the wrong end of the terminal. The China Airline boarding gate was on the opposite end of the terminal.  I should have checked first and turned right instead of left. I did not do that and was complacent. I should not have followed other passengers blindly! Again, it was a mad rush. The plane took off about 30 minutes late, not because of my fault though – it was a full-load and that took time to get everyone on board.

Lessons We Can Learn

I have never been in such a predicament before. But I must say, my predicament was not anywhere near what cancer patients experience after being told that they have cancer. I am also not saying that the way I solve my problem is the best way. You may have your own way – so be it. Nevertheless, I believe there are some basic ingredients in every successful endeavor – whether missing a plane flight or having cancer.  These are some important points to remember.

  1. Don’t panic when confronted with a problem.
  2. Everything in life happens for a reason. Later on you may want to find that reason but for the moment, it is not the time to find that reason. No need to ask why. No need to find a scapegoat.
  3. Take positive actions to resolve the problem. Give your best shot. This is your problem. If you do not show much interest to help yourself, don’t expect others to help you.

I receive e-mails from patients every day. Indeed I felt disappointed reading some of them. Many like to throw their problems at me and expect me to solve their problems while they sit in front of their computers at home! My answer has always been: If I can help you, please come and see me. If you cannot come and see me, how do you expect me to give you my full attention?

Please read the e-mails below.

  • Hi Dr Teo, Thank you for your prompt response. I am from Singapore. In fact, I had placed an order for Rodent Tuber capsules from one supplier in Malaysia as my mother had problem taking the grinded fresh rodent tuber plant since she complaint of biting on the tongue and throat. Besides this plant, she is constantly seeking TCM treatment.

Reply: That stuff cannot possibly be from CA Care. We don’t do things like that. Patients need to come and see me with all the medical reports before we give out our herbs.

  • Thanks for your reply. I had gone into your homepage. In my mom’s case, there was no biopsy done. It’s merely from the X-ray done that the doctor concluded that it’s advanced stage lung cancer (both sides). If I can get hold of the X-ray results and emailed to you, is it possible for you to give some recommendation?

My reaction: How serious or valuable is her mother’s life? Sitting in front of a computer is not going to help much.

 4.    Formulate a back-up plan in case the first plan fails. This is the reason why I often tell patients, If you do not get any better or benefit after two weeks of taking the herbs and changing your diet, please go to someone else for help.  

Goh is a 58-year male with multiple myeloma. He received 22 cycles of chemo and suffered a relapse. He was asked to undergo 32 cycles more of chemo. After 6 cycles of the second round of chemo, he gave up due to severe side effects. What does commonsense tell you about such a case?

5.    Share your problems with others. There may be opportunities that you may not know about.  If presented courteously, those in the position to help may offer extraordinary help to solve your problem. In my near-miss flight, David at the RDU airport and the female flight attendant had contributed positively. Without their help I am sure we would have missed the connecting flight.

6.    Do your homework. This again is one thing that upset me after reading e-mails from patients. People who wrote me did not read our website carefully enough. Most of the things you need to know about cancer and how to go about it, can be found in our website. What you need to DO is just read them – and I know most of them don’t read. They want me to serve them the information on a silver platter. Remember that knowledge is power. There is a Chinese saying: Dig your well before you become thirsty. Do that if you are wise.

7.    Don’t be complacent. I almost had to pay for my own foolishness. Many cancer patients become complacent after they get well – they think they have already solved their problem. Such people would then go back to their old ways and fall into the same hole again. Cancer can recur. To me, there is no such thing as a permanent cure for cancer.  So don’t be misled.

Let me give you one example. There was this elderly lady with colon cancer. She refused chemotherapy and was with us for more than three years now. She was doing very well. Lately, she told her family that she was fed up taking the herbs besides having to take care of her diet. She and her family came to see us. I gave her a big smile and laughed. And I said, It is fine with me. It is your life and if you wish to “go home early” that is okay too.  After all many of us believe that living in this world is nothing else but suffering. But if you want me to agree to what you want to do, I must say you are foolish. Why do you want to change something that has made you well in the first place? Anyway, if the cancer comes back, you can always go for chemo. You have not done that yet!  The problem with cancer is that we do not know when it will strike back again. There is no room for complacency.