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From: seifert@mako.UUCP (Snoopy)
Newsgroups: net.med
Subject: Re: Unconventional Cancer Therapy
Message-ID: <575@mako.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 7-Feb-85 11:24:57 EST
Article-I.D.: mako.575
Posted: Thu Feb  7 11:24:57 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 9-Feb-85 06:44:38 EST
References: <532@tesla.UUCP> <690@wucs.UUCP> <6104@rochester.UUCP> <8013@brl-tgr.ARPA>
Reply-To: seifert@mako.UUCP (Snoopy)
Organization: The Daisy Hill Puppy Farm
Lines: 48
Keywords: Laetrile
Summary: 

In article <8013@brl-tgr.ARPA> abc@brl-tgr.ARPA (Brint Cooper (CTAB) ) writes:
>
>The Laetrile didn't hurt him physically.  His case was rather advanced
>when diagnosed and he lived for 3.5 years more--sometimes ill in the
>hospital, sometimes well enough to work and travel.
>
>My points are:
>
>	Mom and Dad were desperate and would grab at any "promise."
>While it didn't hurt Dad, it might have caused someone with a less
>severe case to opt for it rather than a therapy with at least a
>statistically good chance for success.
>
>	While they could afford the money they paid for the Laetrile, 
>many old and frightened people shell out their last funds for it.
>
>	Laetrile is made from peach pits!
>
>	It's time we blew away the "medical conspiracy" theory.  
>
>Brint

Laetrile is one of the less common B vitamins. (I forget which one)
Hard to imagine a B vitamin hurting anyone.  (if you get more than
you need, your body dumps the extra)

Nutritional type therapys are much better, since they work *with*
your body, instead of *against* it, as drugs tend to do.

Alternative treatments often get a bad rep bacause people turn to
them after conventional treatment fails.  The cancer (or whatever)
is much worse at this point, and the conventional treatment has
seriously weakened the body.  At this point, it's too late for *anything*
to work. (except a miracle, see net.religion.your-favorite)

Drugs work reasonable well for contagious diseases and such.
They don't work so well for cancer, heart disease and such.
Nutritional methods work quite well, but they are slow, and
we don't know nearly enough about nutrition at this point,
having ignored it in favor of drug therapy.  I wonder what the
cancer rate would be if we all ate properly, and noone smoked,
etc.  Much lower, I know that.

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