Lung Cancer: After Surgery, Chemo and Radiation, the cancer spread to his healthy lung

CK is a 62-year-old male from Kuala Lumpur. He and his wife came to see us with copies of his medical reports neatly filed in a folder. This is a very pleasant couple who is now helpless and directionless. This is what happened.
1)  20 December 2015: Had food poisoning after taking expired red wine. 
2)  21 December 2015: Consulted a GP who discovered “cracking sound” in his left lung.
3) 22 December 2015: CT scan of chest showed a 3.2 x 5 cm mass in the left lung.
4)  2 January 2016: A CT-guided biopsy confirmed a bronchoalveolar adenocarcinoma.
CK was referred to a cardio-thoracic surgeon in a “heart hospital.”
5)  14 January 2016: PET scan confirmed carcinoma of the left lung with no associated locoregional or distant metastasis.
6)  23 January 2016: Admitted to the “heart hospital” for lower lobe lobectomy, i.e. surgery to remove a quarter of the lung.
The surgery was a “success” and histopathology report showed:

1. a) Aortic wall adventitia was infiltrated by tumour.
2. b) One pulmonary lymph node showed tumour metastasis.
3. c) lower lobe of left lung — invasive adenocarcinoma with predominant bronchoalveolar and papillary pattern.

7)  February to June 2016: Underwent 4 cycles of chemotherapy and 20 sessions of radiotherapy.
Things seemed to be okay after all these treatments but CK had chest pains, coughs and fever. He was prescribed “strong” antibiotics.
8) 30 March 2017 — after slightly more than a year.
Follow up CT scan showed multiple nodules and patchy opacities in the upper and lower lobes of right lung.
Radiologist suggested: Differential diagnosis: lung metastases and pneumonia. Suggest close follow up CT lung after a course of antibiotics.
CK went back to his surgeon about this new development. The surgeon was pretty sure that the spots were not cancer related.
9)  1 June 2016:  CT scan of chest. The radiologists wrote the following:
CT on 23 March and 30 March 2017 were reviewed. The current CT is about 2-3 months after  the previous CTs. The current CT showed the following:

1. a) The ground glass opacities in the right upper and lower lobes of the lung appears more dense and larger.
2. b) Newer small nodular lesions are seen in the right upper and lower lobes.

Based on the above observations, the radiologist was of the opinion that this new development was a metastasis or recurrence. However, ground glass opacities may  be due to drug induced lung changes and infection.
The changes in the left upper lobe (note: left lower lobe was removed) are suggestive of non-neoplastic process and fibrosis. If DXT (radiotherapy) was given, these could be due to that treatment.
10) 18 September 2017: Went back to the same GP again (as in 2). “Cracking sound” at the lower part of my good lung.
Cancer marker in December 2016 was 16. In July 2017,it was 173.
CK and his wife decided not to go back to his doctors again. Because it will just be repeating the same procedures all over again — another biopsy and more chemo.
Total cost of treatment = RM130,000 of personal savings.




Comments 
I had my first lesson about lung cancer some 22 years ago. The second patient of CA Care is VJ. He had lung cancer and had one side of his lung removed and underwent treatments at the “cancer hospital.” I was at the hospital and saw him suffer and eventually died.. Surgery did not cure lung cancer. Treatments received in the cancer hospital also did not cure lung cancer.
My second lesson about lung cancer came a few years later when the mother of my student underwent radiotherapy for her lung cancer. Yes, I encouraged her to go for the treatment. After completion of her treatment she died. Lesson number two, radiation does not cure lung cancer. To understand why, just go to the market and buy a piece of lung. Bring home and place the lung over fire and see what happen! The lung hardened — and is this not why the patient cannot breath?
Over the years, I have seen this story being repeated over and over again. In the case of CK, it is another one of those cases I have come across over the years.
Can herbs cure CK’s cancer? No. Can we help him? May be. CK’s problem recurred less than 2 years after treatment. After spending RM 130,000 he got nothing out of it.
Perhaps some people would want  to tell you that if you don’t go for treatment, you would die sooner. Nope — I don’t believe so. Over the years, I have patients who led a much better life if they do nothing.
Perhaps you may want to read some of the articles I have written earlier:

1. He Died Of Lung Cancer — Treated by the Best Oncologist in One of the Best Hospitals in the World

2. Medically Given Up Lung Cancer: She died after 5 years on CA Care Therapy

3. Lung Cancer: Six to 12 Months to Live. Must do chemo, that’s the only way. With herbs still alive after 2 years!

4. Lung Cancer: Given Honest Answers Patient May Run Away from Chemotherapy

5. Two Billion Rupiah, Chemo And Surgery Failed. Oncologist said, “More chemo, you just have to trust me!”

6. Lung Cancer: Chemo Experiments That Failed and Failed

 

 

7. Lung Cancer Success Stories

My advice to CK.
Don’t give up hope yet. We shall do our best. If you can sleep, can eat, can move around and have you no pain, don’t ask for more. To that CK and his wife totally agreed. In fact that was what they hope for when they came to seek our help … “to have quality life.”



May God bless you.

 

"Do No Harm" By Dr. Yoshitaka Ohno

Do No Harm
By Dr. Yoshitaka Ohno

Giving people hope in order to enjoy a healthier, longer, and fuller life has been Dr. Yoshitaka Ohno’s mission since he left his medical practice in Japan over 20 years ago. He knew he could not practice the kind of medicine that was causing so much suffering to his patients. Japan’s medical system had become much like other western systems. It involves mostly drugs and surgery. It supplies misery rather than hope.

Dr. Ohno’s journey away from conventional medicine led him to what his mother called "humanitarian medicine." It allowed him to bring together six generations of medicine from his father’s family, and six generations of spiritual leadership from his mother’s family. He felt very fortunate to be the product of what has led him to mind/body/spirit medicine. This new medicine is based on having a close relationship with nature. Unless we pay attention to our natural environment and respect it, there will be no life left for our future generations. We are already killing nature. Soon it will be too late.


This book is the story of one doctor’s struggle to live his vision of humanitarian medicine. It is a journey through the pain of modern medicine, and the arrival at a new way of offering hope to people who are suffering. 

DO NO HARM

by Yoshitaka Ohno, M.D., Ph.D.

The Story of a Doctor's Struggle to Live His Vision of Humanitarian Medicine

She looked at me calmly. She was almost too calm. She had surrendered herself totally to her decision. There was no fear in her voice or in her eyes. She was resolved in her conviction to die. She got up from her bed and closed the door quietly, wanting privacy so no one else in the hospital would hear.

"Please help me die, Dr. Ohno. Please show mercy and help me die. I have asked you to stop giving me the anticancer drug. I can't take it anymore! I know you don't want to watch me suffer. Every time you inject me with this drug, I know you are also suffering as you watch me suffer. The other doctors have always ignored me while I struggled with the agony. But your eyes have always shown me such concern. You are the only doctor who has shown me such compassion."

When I decided that my patients were being given too much of a dangerous drug, I decreased the dosage. But other doctors on the staff would change my order and raise the dosage without notifying me, because they knew that would make them look good to the Chief of Medicine.

She continued to talk to me as if I were her son. She stopped and took another sip of her tea. During the silence, I started thinking about what she was saying. It was true that I was struggling and I was showing the fatigue from my internal battle. I was not sleeping well. As tired as I was, I would lie in bed, unable to sleep. Then I would get up and sit at my desk. I would think about her and how I could help her. I often thought to myself, "Why did I become a doctor?"

When I first became a doctor, I seemed to be able to find ways to help my patients. But now, instead of being a healer, I felt more like a murderer. I knew my struggle would continue if I didn't find a better way to help my patients like her, who continued to suffer the pain and indignity of a death that I was causing.

As I watched this woman collapse in sobs while she continued to plead, a part of me was dying. But I knew that I now had to present her with the cruel facts. I spoke to her with tears in my eyes, as honestly and kindly as I could.

"Your cancer has already metastasized through your body, even to your brain. I am sorry but I am recommending that you go to hospice because there is nothing more we can do. The damage is irreversible. The more chemotherapy you are given, the sooner you will die. This drug not only kills cancer cells, but also destroys the healthy cells. You need to stop because the side effects are worse and are causing too much suffering."

Just then the Chief of Medicine of the hospital entered the room. He must have heard me because he said, "Dr. Ohno, I will take care of this patient. I can help her. Please have this patient signed over to my care."

The Chief of Medicine looked firmly at the suffering patient and began. "Dr. Ohno is right, but I think I can save you with a new drug I developed. It is still in the experimental stage, but it kills only cancer cells and has no side effects"

His words were totally unexpected by her. Her expression went from despair to hope. She began to cry with tears of joy. The Chief of Medicine stood there with the same arrogant and smug look I had come to know since arriving at the hospital. However, despite the deep emotion of hope that filled the room, I was both sad and angry. I knew that his anticancer drug had very strong side effects and would cause this poor woman even more suffering.

This was the first of what was to prove to be many rude awakenings for me. After years of medical school and training, of struggling to find humane ways to treat people, I was now facing the grim reality of having to allow my superior to treat patients as though they were experimental animals. It was obvious that he had no empathy for terminally ill people. I wanted desperately to step in and disagree, but I knew it would be futile and would spell the end of my medical career.

As I watched my patients suffer in agony from taking anticancer drugs, I was experiencing my own torment as well. I was becoming consumed with the memory of my mother's words to me after my father's death. The memory of that tragic period of my life started to overwhelm me. My father was a very famous surgeon who died when he was 42 years old. He worked long and hard to keep his hospital operating at its peak. His dedication cost him his life. He died of an aneurism during surgery.

This book is about the times in my life when I had to encounter many struggles in order to gain greater insight and appreciation of the final outcome. While I report the horrors I experienced during my years of practicing medicine in Japan, I also show how I was able to find a way to answer the cries of despair of my patients. This was not easy. It required that I make a decision that would put me at risk and force me to leave my practice. But during this process, I learned to become a better doctor, more concerned about the welfare of my patients rather than the rewards of fame and fortune, which, unfortunately, have become the driving force of modern medicine.

I did not have to take this road. It would have been easier to follow the program and do what my superiors told me to do. I come from a very prominent family in Japan and have always had choices and opportunities. But the values given to me by my family led to my decisions, which, though distressing at first, brought me to what I believe is my destiny.

I believe that there has always been an invisible force within me, guiding my direction and encouraging me to discover my true calling in life. As I have proceeded on my journey, there is one principal factor that has continually surfaced. This factor is contribution, the act of giving to others, directly from one's heart. This affects not only the recipient, but something of equal importance: the essence of our being.

I also believe, more than anything else, that my mission to help humanity is derived directly from giving people the awareness of how vitally important contribution is to the soul of the benefactor. My vision has become a vehicle that can assist people to gain an understanding that, as they direct their energies to give of themselves with a pure and open heart, they will ultimately fill an emptiness that resides deep within their spiritual center.

Through years of study and experimentation in seeking better ways of delivering good health care, I found the significant interrelationship between health and nature, and its impact on the quality of life. The best example is our precious water supply. After you read this book, you will become more knowledgeable about water; all water is not the same. You will learn that the quality, content, and even the structure of the water in your body can make the difference between sickness and health.

In order to test this theory, I tested many water sources. While I was conducting research in Japan, I discovered a naturally magnetized water that was being used by a prominent physician with his patients suffering from serious diseases, many which I had also been treating. As I observed and studied these patients, it became apparent that this water was unique and had therapeutic benefits.


We think of the human body as ... 

Yoshitaka Ohno, M.D., Ph.D., Founder and President

Ohno Institute on Water and Health

Dr. Ohno is a native of Osaka, Japan, where he received his education and training in medicine and neuropathology. Early in his medical career, he began searching for ways to stop the suffering of his patients with diseases that could not be treated successfully by standard medicine, and thus had to be managed with multiple drugs. He began to realize that the side effects of these drugs were creating serious chronic problems, as well as increasing the body’s deterioration. After extensive study he became convinced that the condition of the body’s water was directly related to the state of the body’s health.

After leaving his medical practice, he continued his studies but found that the Japanese medical community was not placing much emphasis on chronic diseases found commonly among the aging population. He decided to enter the United States and accept a position at AMC Hospital in Denver, Colorado, where he could continue his research in geriatric pathology, including MRI studies on the relationship of water and cellular degeneration. His work led him to investigate the neuropathology of Alzheimer’s disease. As a result of his work, he received the Community Leadership Award from the Colorado Alzheimer’s Association in 1987 and the Humanitarian Award from the Alzheimer’s Disease International in 1993.

After returning to Japan in 1990, he discovered a naturally magnetized water that was being used by a prominent physician to treat serious, life-threatening diseases. As these patients recovered, Dr. Ohno became convinced that this water was unique. He pursued numerous clinical studies with this water, both in Japan and the United States. In 1998, Dr. Ohno founded the Ohno Institute on Water and Health, a non-profit research and education center for studying the effect of naturally magnetized water on health and aging. He has been requested as a speaker at several health conferences and has published several articles in professional journals on his findings.


Dr. Ohno resides with his wife and three children in Chagrin Falls, Ohio.



I noticed that there were very few books about 
water and health. Even in Japan there were many books in bookstores about water.  Perhaps it is bacause water in Japan is such a precious commodity that there is much more awareness of water and the environment.  In this nation there seems to be a little interest about the importance of clean water in our bodies.  It is no wonder that people continue to get sick easily and don't know why.  Even when people are aware of the dangers of water contamination, they do not know about the effect water has on the human body.

We think of the human body consisting of muscles, bones and nerves.  But everything in our body is made up of almost all water.  Our body is made up of 70% water, for average size adult. Too much of our health education is about drugs and the effects certain drugs have on the body. This is based on Solid Paradigm. How often do we hear about water and its effects on our health?  All the foods we eat consist of water.  Good water produces good crops that keep us healthy.  When we eat vegetables that have been grown in a contaminated field from chemicals and polluted soil , we are nor providing our body with nourishment, but poison. When we eat poultry, beef, pork or fish that has been contaminated from a poor water source, are we not poisoned as well?  

The awareness in this nation is slowly growing.  Since so little is taught about the importance of water in the human body, it is easy for people to contaminate their bodies without being aware of what they are doing.  Since we are the unity of a mind-body-spirit relationship, it makes sense that not only is our body contaminated by poor water , but our mind and our spirit as well.  When we do not take proper care of our body hydration, the body cannot remain in a balanced state. water helps balance our body, and when we are balanced physically, our emotions are much more stable.  We become less irritable and angry, and our spiritual energy is much more alive. 

  "Danger Past, God Forgotten"

  It is amazing to me that is usually takes a life crisis for people to wake up and understand how vital water is . Most people ignore how important our water resources are until they experience  a problem in their life.  The earth is also made up of 70% water. But 94% of our water supply is salt water.  Only 6% of our earth's water is fresh water. Of this 4% is in the form of glaciers.  This leaves approximately 2% fresh water on earth for human consumption.  If we continue to ignore water as the very precious commodity it is, we are in danger of destroying not just our bodies ; we are in danger of also destroying our home planet, Earth. 

Many people have called me the "Water Doctor" , saying that all i know is water. All I want to talk about is water.  I try to be understanding, but without knowledge about the importance of water, my words sound too simplistic  to have any merit. 

I had gotten used to people laughing at me and telling me that my ideas are not reality.  I am used to the feeling of alienation and exclusion, so attempts to discourage me have not affected my determination. I continue to focus on the benefits of the water I discovered, and I tell people about this water anytime I have the opportunity to do so.  Usually, when I meet someone witha health problem, or they tell me about someone in their family witha health problem, they say they have tried every kind of conventional medical treatment available. But after seeing no improvements, they have lost hope.  I am always eager to help them.  I will explain the special qualities of the water , and how the water I discovered here can help them.  When I get this opportunity , people will isten to me. 

One day a woman visited the health center because she was looking for a good facility to care for her sister who had Alzheimer's disease.  She toured the facility but was terribly disappointed when she realized she would not be able to afford the cost of care.  I was very impressed with her devotion to her sister, and I took a few minutes to talk to her about her sister's state of health.

" I understand that your sister is suffering from Alzheimer's disease. I supposed that even though you have tried to do a good job in taking care of her at home, her symptoms are getting worse.  I can see that you look very tired from the strain of taking care of her.  I would like to tell you something that can help your sister.  It is naturally magnetized water.  I have had good results giving this water to Alzheimer's patients,: I explained to her.

"Doctor Ohno, I have tried everything I can think of !  I cannot afford to bring my sister to health center and I cannot take care of her by myself anymore.  Let me try your water and see if at least this helps her.  Any improvement to her health will be appreciated !"

I delivered a case of the water to her home the next day. i instructed her to have her sister drink one bottle of water each day and to record any differences she saw in her sister's behaviour. 

After one month, she reported that her sister's cognitive functioning had improved.  Her eyes no longer looked dull, but sharp and alert. Her appetite had improved dramatically and she was able to walk much better.  After two months of drinking the water daily, she again began to distinguish people and recognize who they were! 

"Who am I ?" she asked when she and her sister visited me.

"You are my sister !" she answered.

"Doctor Ohno ! I cannot tell you what it means to me to have my sister recognize me again !  I have to tell you, i was really skeptical before trying your water . I am so glad you approached me and told me about your water !  I need you to explain what is happening to my sister and why this water is able to help her. " 

" I am so happy that your sister is improving so nicely ! Thank you very much for asking this question ! It has not been often since I came here that someone has wanted me to explain to them about this water . I believe that this water can help people with any disease, not just Alzheimer's ! 

I answered her as simply as I could. 

"There are 100 billion cells in the human brain, and the brain is made up of 90% water. One of the reasons Alzheimer's disease occurs is because of contamination of the water which composes the brain.  When the brain cells become contaminated, they lose electrons.  the brain cells then cease to function and they cannot send the information correctly.  This happens because the contaminated cells become disorganized and unstable.  SO the signals that normally create impulses that travel from one cell to another cell are no longer  in a stable environment and are unable to transfer information correctly.  My theory is that if we can improve the water in the brain, we can improve the responses of the brain.

The reason why naturally magnetized water helps to improve cognitive functioning, like memory, is because the water is highly organized. Once this water enters the cells of the brain, the cells become organized and the impulses once again connect.  Keep in mind this is a very simplistic explanation  , but it helps to give you an idea as to why the water is helping your sister." 

She was very surprised to hear my explanation. " I would never have believed your theory until I saw the results ! I am a chemist and I can see where the quality of the water would definitely impact the functioning. I just have never really thought it would affect it to that extent! "

"If you were not a chemist then perhaps you would not have understood my idea, I responded."

"Doctor Ohno, if you have so much trouble getting studies done at Health Center here and they do not appreciate  what this wonderful water could do for their patients, why don't you open up your own clinic ? Just think of the people you could help ! "

I was so appreciative of her suggestion. I had met very few people who were as kind and understanding as she was.  The compassion she had given to her sister , and the concern she was extending to me was heartfelt. 

Doctor’s Politics Affect Your Care

Doctor’s Politics Affect Your Care



I already know that this newsletter is going to upset many people--especially those who don't read beyond the title. Everyone likes to believe that their political views are carefully thought out, rational opinions formed by their awareness of the world around them and a mastery of facts. In other words, they are the result of absolute free will and are therefore entirely independent of all other aspects of their lives. Anything that challenges that opinion, which is effectively a challenge to free will, and especially anything that contains the words Republican and Democrat, really upsets people. In other words, anything that even implies that our politics might be influenced by our fundamental psychological or even genetic makeup or, even worse, that our political proclivities might shape how we view the world and the decisions we make, is going to bring out the dogs of war.

But if we are honest about it, we all intuitively know that political beliefs do indeed spill over into nonpolitical domains such as consumer spending, choice of romantic partner, and job hiring. That said, what we're going to talk about today is something quite different but nevertheless touches on the same hot buttons. A new study suggests that the political beliefs of our primary care physicians may predict their professional decisions--at least for certain health questions.1 According to the study, when it comes to politicized health issues like marijuana and abortion, it turns out that a physician's partisan identity is highly correlated with his/her treatment decisions. Because physicians regularly interact with patients on politically sensitive health issues, and because the medical profession is increasingly politicized (e.g., state governments are regulating politicized aspects of medicine), it is necessary to understand how your doctor's political worldviews might impact their decisions, recommendations, and actions in the medical examination room when it comes to your diagnosis and treatment. That understanding should then inform not only how you filter their recommendations but also whether or not it's in your best interest to look for a new doctor.

The political beliefs of our primary care physicians may predict their professional decisions.

So, setting aside the question of free will for the moment, which really isn't being called into question by this study, let me suggest that you read through to the end of the article as there are real lessons to be learned from the several studies we're going to talk about--real lessons that can affect the health care you receive.

With that in mind, let's take a look at the newly released study in question.


Republicans, Democrats, and Doctors

The co-authors of the study, Eitan Hersh, an assistant professor of political science, and Matthew N. Goldenberg, MD, an assistant professor of psychiatry, linked the records of over 20,000 primary care physicians in 29 US states to a voter registration database, thus obtaining the physicians' political party affiliations. They then contacted 1,529 of them to participate in the study, ending up with a sample of 231 doctors--both Democratic and Republican primary care physicians--whom they then surveyed. The survey involved the physicians evaluating nine patient vignettes which they were told were recounted by patients as part of a complete physical. Three of the vignettes addressed especially politicized health issues (marijuana, abortion, and firearm storage). Specifically, the vignettes presented scenarios such as a healthy-appearing 38-year-old male patient who "acknowledges using recreational marijuana three times per week" or "who is a parent with two small children at home" and "acknowledges having several firearms at home." And yet another fictional patient said she had two abortions in the past five years. Those vignettes were interspersed with some more neutral complaints like obesity, depression, or not wearing a motorcycle helmet.

Hersh and Goldenberg then asked the physicians to rate the seriousness of the issue presented in each vignette and how they would treat the patient. The physicians who responded did not know that the survey was about their politics. Rather, they thought it was about how they administer the patient interviews that primary-care doctors give patients before they first treat them. On the politicized health issues--and only on such issues--Democratic and Republican physicians differed substantially in their expressed concern and their recommended treatment plan. (It should be noted that the study controlled for physician demographics like age, gender, and religiosity, patient population, and geography.)

According to Hersh and Goldenberg, "The evidence suggests that doctors allow their political views to influence their professional decisions in the medical exam room. Just as patients choose physicians of a certain gender to feel more comfortable, our study suggests they may want to make a similar calculation based on their doctor's political views." It's important to note that this is not an insignificant issue as physicians frequently interact with patients about politically salient health issues, such as drug use, firearm safety, and sexual behavior.


Perhaps not too surprisingly, Republican physicians expressed more concern than their Democratic colleagues about the vignettes on marijuana use and abortion whereas the Democratic physicians were more concerned about the vignette related to firearms. Democratic doctors were less likely to discuss the health risks of marijuana or highlight its legal risks or encourage the patient to cut down their usage.  On the other hand, they were more likely to urge patients not to store firearms in the home, whereas the Republican physicians were much more likely to discuss the health and legal risks of marijuana and to advise the patient to cut back. They also were twice as likely as Democrats to discourage patients from having more abortions in the future and 35 percent more likely to discuss mental health in connection with abortions. Interestingly, Republican physicians were also significantly more likely to ask their patients if they were storing their firearms safely, though Democrats were more likely to urge them simply not to have them in the home. It should be noted that research shows that counseling by doctors can help promote safe gun storage. On the other hand, studies show that a majority of doctors choose not to go there. Again, physicians of both parties similarly rated the vignettes on non-political issues like depression, alcohol abuse, obesity, and not wearing a motorcycle helmet.



Effect of "Republican" on seriousness of issue. (PNAS)

The study concluded that physician partisan bias can lead to unwarranted variation in patient care. Thus, awareness of how a physician's political attitudes might affect patient care is important to both physicians and patients alike. As Goldenberg noted, "Given the politicization of certain health issues affecting countless patients, it is imperative that physicians consider how their political views may affect their professional judgments. The evidence calls for heightened awareness among physicians and more training concerning our biases in how we address politically salient health issues." As the authors write in the study, "To be clear, we cannot say with any certainty what the root cause of partisan differences in treatment is. However, regardless of the underlying mechanism that affects physician judgment, the evidence suggests a clear effect from the patient's perspective."

In summary, "Just as a patient may seek out a physician of a certain gender to feel more comfortable, the evidence suggests that a patient may need to make the same calculation regarding political ideology." Of course, a Republican or Democratic doctor would likely live in an area where the majority of his or her patients were of the same party. Still, if a contentious health issue is discussed during an appointment, it might be the provider's political beliefs talking, rather than their medical training. In certain cases, according to the study's authors, it might be worth getting a second opinion--perhaps a few towns over.

That said, although I would tend to agree with the study's observations, I'm not sure I agree with their recommendation, at least as stated. But before we go there, let's take a look at the elephant in the room. (And yes, the pun was deliberate.)

The Elephant in the Room

Hersh said he hopes the study will open up a dialogue about how political bias affects medical decision-making and make practitioners more aware of ways in which their personal beliefs might affect the care they give patients. Depending on the study's response, he says, he might even consider making his data on physician names and party affiliations public. This would be important because until the political data can be effectively linked to actual outcomes, the true extent of how politics affect physicians' decisions won't be clear. Unfortunately, he is likely to encounter resistance, especially among the large number of doctors who don't think that their political views inform their practice decisions. As Rep. Phil Roe (R-Tenn.), a retired obstetrician-gynecologist who co-chairs the GOP Doctors Caucus,4 told the Washington Post, "I never once treated a Republican or Democrat cancer in my life. When a patient walked into my office, I didn't know if they were a Republican or a Democrat, and I honestly didn't care."5 Roe went on to tell the Post that he hopes patients will seek out the best care available regardless of their doctor's political affiliation. "Party affiliation should have nothing to do with patient care."

And he is correct. Party affiliation should have nothing to do with patient care. Unfortunately, his pronouncements on the study have nothing to do with the study's actual conclusions. They are a red herring. In fact, the study has nothing to do with Republican or Democratic cancer. All the study is saying is that certain mindsets that are frequently, but not exclusively, associated with party affiliation do have an effect on physician decision making.

In fact, other research has shown that this is even more ingrained than you might think--that there is frequently a genetic factor to political leanings. A study, conducted by researchers out of the University of California, San Diego and Harvard University, identified a particular gene that seems to predispose certain people to a more "liberal" outlook.6 (We will talk more about what a "liberal" outlook actually means in a moment.) Data from more than 2,500 volunteers in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health was analyzed to compare people with the R7 variant of the DRD4 gene.7 Keep in mind that a person's political bent has always been assumed to be a product of their environment and social background, not their genes. And while environment and background certainly have a large impact on each person's beliefs, this study strongly indicates there is something going on behind the scenes in our DNA that influences us right down to our core values. Research has established that approximately 38% of us possess the R7 variant of the DRD4 gene. And please keep in mind that scientists hasten to add that neither version of the gene is better than the other -- if one were superior, natural selection most likely would have eliminated the inferior form.





Now let's talk about what we mean by "liberal," at least as far as this study is concerned. In fact, "liberal" in this case does not refer to which candidate you vote for but, rather, refers to a penchant for novelty seeking behavior. Earlier studies have determined a link between the R7 variant and novelty-seeking behavior. People with the variant may be more likely to try new experiences and take some risks. In other words, the study is saying that those who are more likely to be comfortable pushing boundaries and trying new things can be defined as liberal. And those who don't, who like to play it safe, can be defined as conservative. And again, neither is superior when it comes to genetic survival. On the one hand, playing it safe could have certainly been advantageous to prehistoric man if wild animals were about. But being willing to try new things and push out into new territory would have been advantageous if food supplies were strained in your familiar environment. Each tendency can be advantageous depending on the circumstances.

In any case, now researchers are applying the new findings to this information and suggesting that when people with the R7 gene variant have also had an active social network, they may be more likely to seek out their friends' opinions on political subjects and be open to a wider range of lifestyles, creating a more liberal position politically. And that's the tie-in to politics. However, having the variant does not guarantee a final resting point on the political spectrum. For example, if either the variant form of the gene is not there or the adolescent years were not socially popular ones, then the person can fall anywhere on the political spectrum. The findings were the same across age, gender, ethnicity, and background differences. The bottom line is that we're only talking about tendencies here. There are indeed conservative Democrats and liberal Republicans (I believe they're called RINO's...Laughing). Again, we're not really talking about politics. We're talking about a fundamental, psychological way of viewing the world that merely gives people a predilection to end up in one party or another--not a guarantee.

In fact, more than half a century of research in genetics, neuroscience, and psychology has demonstrated that human behaviors, including social and political attitudes, are influenced by genetic and neurobiological factors. However, these findings have not been widely accepted or incorporated into the dominant paradigms that explain the underlying causes of political ideology. This has been attributed in part to measurement and sample limitations, as well the relative absence of molecular genetic studies.

In addition, there's the 2012 study that combined evidence from over 12,000 twins pairs, ascertained from nine different studies conducted in five democracies with the data from three genome-wide association studies on political ideology.8 In other words, it was not a small study. It concluded that political ideology constitutes a fundamental aspect of one's genetically informed psychological disposition.

So what does this mean for doctors? Well, let's return to Rep. Roe's statement: "When a patient walked into my office, I didn't know if they were a Republican or a Democrat, and I honestly didn't care." We should now be able to see that this statement is irrelevant. We're not actually talking about party affiliation. We're talking about genetically informed psychological dispositions that can inform how doctors choose to treat certain conditions--not that they differentiate between Republican and Democratic patients. And yes, people of certain dispositions tend to gravitate to certain political parties that support that disposition--but again, that's only a tendency, not a certainty. In any case, those same psychological dispositions tend to lean doctors towards conclusions and treatments in line with that disposition.

But What Does the Mean to Me?

At this point, let's just throw politics completely out the window, which should simplify the discussion and remove the emotional heat from it. Let's just acknowledge that different doctors will vary in:

What treatment options they recommend in certain situations
Where they fall on the risk vs safety continuum
Now things become much simpler, which allows us to establish some physician selection guidelines.

Surgery

When it comes to surgery, there are essentially two kinds: standard and cutting edge, high risk.

For standard surgical procedures, you probably want a conservative doctor who follows the safest protocols available. When it comes to routine surgery, you don't want a risk taker.
For more cutting edge or experimental surgeries, you probably want a surgeon who is comfortable playing in unfamiliar territory. If the surgical technique involved is not routine, you want a doctor who thrives when playing outside their comfort zone.
And by all means, check out your surgeon's rating for the particular procedure you're looking to have them perform. Why in the world would you choose a doctor to operate on you who isn't very good at performing the operation and tends to leave lots of bodies on the operating table? And for that matter, be sure and check out the safety score for the hospital where your surgeon is going to be performing the procedure. They provide your doctor's support team.

Primary Care Treatment

On the other hand, when it comes to general medical diagnosis and treatment, you probably want a doctor who lines up with your view of health and nutrition.

>If you're into herbs and alternative health, find a doctor who is friendly (or at least not hostile) to those protocols. Why would you want to put yourself in a position where you're constantly fighting with your doctor about the medications he/she prescribes or the supplements you want to take?

>If you're a strong believer in the virtues of toeing the medical line, then track down the most medically astute doctor you can find--regardless of their opinion of alternative health.

>If you smoke marijuana or use birth control, find a doctor who doesn't fight you about it or look askance at your lifestyle.

>If you don't believe in antidepressants or any other class of pharmaceutical drugs, then don't go to a doctor who refuses to explore alternative treatments--even alternative medical treatments--with you.


>And, as with surgeons, even when selecting a primary care physician, it's a good idea to check out how the doctors you're looking at rate with previous patients.

If you find that you are with the wrong doctor, don’t hesitate to change physicians. It's your life, not your doctor's.


The bottom line is that when medical skill is the priority, find the most skillful doctor you can find--regardless of political outlook. When looking for a primary care physician who will work with you on an ongoing basis, find a doctor of like mind and similar disposition. And if you find that you are with the wrong doctor, don't hesitate to change physicians. Remember, it's your life, not your doctor's.

Do No Harm By Dr. Yoshitaka Ohno

Giving people hope in order to enjoy a healthier, longer, and fuller life has been Dr. Yoshitaka Ohno’s mission since he left his medical practice in Japan over 20 years ago. He knew he could not practice the kind of medicine that was causing so much suffering to his patients. Japan’s medical system had become much like other western systems. It involves mostly drugs and surgery. It supplies misery rather than hope.

Dr. Ohno’s journey away from conventional medicine led him to what his mother called "humanitarian medicine." It allowed him to bring together six generations of medicine from his father’s family, and six generations of spiritual leadership from his mother’s family. He felt very fortunate to be the product of what has led him to mind/body/spirit medicine. This new medicine is based on having a close relationship with nature. Unless we pay attention to our natural environment and respect it, there will be no life left for our future generations. We are already killing nature. Soon it will be too late.

This book is the story of one doctor’s struggle to live his vision of humanitarian medicine. It is a journey through the pain of modern medicine, and the arrival at a new way of offering hope to people who are suffering.

PREVIEW: 

DO NO HARM

by Yoshitaka Ohno, M.D., Ph.D.

The Story of a Doctor's Struggle to Live 

His Vision of Humanitarian Medicine

She looked at me calmly. She was almost too calm. 

She had surrendered herself totally to her decision. 

There was no fear in her voice or in her eyes. She 

was resolved in her conviction to die. She got up 

from her bed and closed the door quietly, wanting 

privacy so no one else in the hospital would hear.

"Please help me die, Dr. Ohno. Please show mercy 

and help me die. I have asked you to stop giving 

me the anticancer drug. I can't take it anymore! I 

know you don't want to watch me suffer. Every time 

you inject me with this drug, I know you are also 

suffering as you watch me suffer. The other 

doctors have always ignored me while I struggled 

with the agony. But your eyes have always shown 

me such concern. You are the only doctor who has 

shown me such compassion."

When I decided that my patients were being 

given too much of a dangerous drug, I decreased 

the dosage. But other doctors on the staff would 

change my order and raise the dosage without 

notifying me, because they knew that would make 

them look good to the Chief of Medicine.

She continued to talk to me as if I were her son. 

She stopped and took another sip of her tea. 

During the silence, I started thinking about what 

she was saying. It was true that I was struggling 

and I was showing the fatigue from my internal 

battle. I was not sleeping well. As tired as I was, I 

would lie in bed, unable to sleep. Then I would get 

up and sit at my desk. I would think about her and 

how I could help her. I often thought to myself, 

"Why did I become a doctor?"

When I first became a doctor, I seemed to be able 

to find ways to help my patients. But now, 

instead of being a healer, I felt more like a murderer.

 I knew my struggle would continue if I didn't find a

 better way to help my patients like her, who 

continued to suffer the pain and indignity of a death 

that I was causing.

As I watched this woman collapse in sobs while 

she continued to plead, a part of me was dying. 

But I knew that I now had to present her with the 

cruel facts. I spoke to her with tears in my eyes, as 

honestly and kindly as I could.

"Your cancer has already metastasized through 

your body, even to your brain. I am sorry but I 

am recommending that you go to hospice because 

there is nothing more we can do. The damage is 

irreversible. The more chemotherapy you are given, 

the sooner you will die. This drug not only kills 

cancer cells, but also destroys the healthy cells. 

You need to stop because the side effects are worse 

and are causing too much suffering."

Just then the Chief of Medicine of the hospital 

entered the room. He must have heard me because

 he said, "Dr. Ohno, I will take care of this patient. 

I can help her. Please have this patient signed over

 to my care."

The Chief of Medicine looked firmly at the 

suffering patient and began. "Dr. Ohno is right, but

 I think I can save you with a new drug I developed.

 It is still in the experimental stage, but it kills only

 cancer cells and has no side effects"

His words were totally unexpected by her. Her 

expression went from despair to hope. She began

 to cry with tears of joy. The Chief of Medicine 

stood there with the same arrogant and smug look

 I had come to know since arriving at the hospital.

 However, despite the deep emotion of hope that 

filled the room, I was both sad and angry. I knew

 that his anticancer drug had very strong side

 effects and would cause this poor woman even 

more suffering.

This was the first of what was to prove to be 

many rude awakenings for me. After years of 

medical school and training, of struggling to find

 humane ways to treat people, I was now facing

 the grim reality of having to allow my superior

 to treat patients as though they were 

experimental animals. It was obvious that he 

had no empathy for terminally ill people. I wanted 

desperately to step in and disagree, but I knew it 

would be futile and would spell the end of my 

medical career.

As I watched my patients suffer in agony from taking

 anticancer drugs, I was experiencing my own 

torment as well. I was becoming consumed with 

the memory of my mother's words to me after my 

father's death. The memory of that tragic period 

of my life started to overwhelm me. My father was

 a very famous surgeon who died when he was 

42 years old. He worked long and hard to keep 

his hospital operating at its peak. His dedication 

cost him his life. He died of an aneurism during 

surgery.

This book is about the times in my life when I had
to encounter many struggles in order to gain greater
insight and appreciation of the final

outcome. While I report the horrors I experienced 

during my years of practicing medicine in Japan, I 

also show how I was able to find a way to answer 

the cries of despair of my patients. This was not 

easy. It required that I make a decision that would 

put me at risk and force me to leave my practice.

 But during this process, I learned to become a 

better doctor, more concerned about the welfare 

of my patients rather than the rewards of fame 

and fortune, which, unfortunately, have become 

the driving force of modern medicine.

I did not have to take this road. It would have been 

easier to follow the program and do what my 

superiors told me to do. I come from a very 

prominent family in Japan and have always had 

choices and opportunities. But the values given 

to me by my family led to my decisions, which, 

though distressing at first, brought me to what I 

believe is my destiny.

I believe that there has always been an invisible 

force within me, guiding my direction and encouraging

 me to discover my true calling in life. As I have 

proceeded on my journey, there is one principal 

factor that has continually surfaced. This factor is 

contribution, the act of giving to others, directly 

from one's heart. This affects not only the recipient, 

but something of equal importance: the essence of 

our being.

I also believe, more than anything else, that my 

mission to help humanity is derived directly from 

giving people the awareness of how vitally 

important contribution is to the soul of the benefactor.

My vision has become a vehicle that can assist

people to gain an understanding that, as they

direct their energies to give of themselves with a 

pure and open heart, they will ultimately fill an

emptiness that resides deep within their spiritual 

center.

Through years of study and experimentation in 

seeking better ways of delivering good health care,

 I found the significant interrelationship between 

health and nature, and its impact on the quality 

of life. The best example is our precious water 

supply. After you read this book, you will 

become more knowledgeable about water; all 

water is not the same. You will learn that the 

quality, content, and even the structure of the 

water in your body can make the difference 

between sickness and health.

In order to test this theory, I tested many water 

sources. While I was conducting research in Japan, 

I discovered a naturally magnetized water that was

 being used by a prominent physician with his 

patients suffering from serious diseases, many

 which I had also been treating. As I observed

 and studied these patients, it became 

apparent that this water was unique and had 

therapeutic benefits.

About Author:Yoshitaka Ohno, M.D., Ph.D., 

Founder and President

Ohno Institute on Water and Health

Dr. Ohno resides with his wife and three children in

 Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

Published:

10/9/2001

Format:

E-Book

Pages:

172

Size:

E-Book

ISBN:

978-0-75964-052-8

Print Type:

B/W

Are You a Victim of This Nearly One Trillion Dollar Scam?

Last spring in a scathing criticism of the U.S. healthcare system, bNet.com columnist Ken Terry predicted that "waste and cruddy medical care" will continue to drive up health care costs until policymakers address the prevalence of deadly medical errors and needless treatments.
The story was driven by statistics showing that  physicians order tests and procedures that, in too many cases, are totally unnecessary.
The fact is, on your next routine medical checkup, you have a 43 percent chance of undergoing an unnecessary medical test.
Collectively, these additional tests cost the U.S. health care system a staggering $700 billion a year, with just three of them – X-rays, CT scans, and biopsies – costing an extra $47 million to $194 million a year.
What's most disturbing is that these unnecessary tests often lead to even more tests that lead to unnecessary procedures – and even surgeries – that ultimately could cause harm or death.
According to a physician interviewed by CBS News:

"It happens all the time. The patient has no symptoms and doesn't smoke, but he gets a routine chest X-ray. If there is a small shadow, doctors are obligated to look further. That X-ray becomes a CT scan. That may show a small little nodule. The next thing you know, the patient ends up with a cardiothoracic surgeon who wants a needle biopsy, or even an open surgery. In a lot of these cases he comes up with nothing; a benign nodule or something."

'A Drumbeat of Disheartening Reports'

These unnecessary tests are both crippling the American health care system and killing us – literally and figuratively – through its distorted way of addressing symptoms rather than the cause of disease. In 2007, the U.S. was paying roughly twice what Canada, France, and the United Kingdom were paying per capita for health care. And according to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the method in which U.S. doctors get paid – something called "fee-for-service" – encourages them to order unnecessary tests and procedures.
 Terry summed it up this way:

"In just one recent day, there were news stories about the widespread misdiagnosing of Alzheimer's disease, needless biopsies of patients suspected of having prostate cancer, cases of people contracting HIV during colonoscopies, and incidents in which babies received whole body irradiation instead of targeted X rays …  There's a drumbeat of disheartening reports about the gap between theory and practice in medicine … The  real shame of it is that so many patients are either harmed or not helped, diverting resources that could benefit others."

Your Chances of Getting Cancer from this ONE Medical Test is 1 in 250

A recent study showed that 83 percent of health care providers said the reason behind the extra tests they do is fear of being sued. But I believe there's another factor at work: in March 2011, the nonprofit group Public Citizen released a study showing that it's financial incentive, NOT fear of being sued that's driving unnecessary tests:

• Self-referring physicians (who have a financial interest in the testing procedures they refer patients to) are up to seven times more likely to order X-rays – although their interpretations are usually less accurate than regular radiologists'
• Self-referrers are also twice as likely to order other tests, and 40 percent more likely to order more complicated tests
• Use of one test – CT scans – increases by up to 300 percent when a physician has one of these machines in the office, or has a financial interest in one

Despite the well documented dangers and warnings that CT scans should be limited to life and death situations only, one in five Americans get this scan every year,.Statistics show that anyone who gets a CT scan has a 1 in 250 chance of getting cancer from it – the equivalent of a jumbo jet crashing every day.
How would you feel about flying if you knew a jumbo jet crashed every day, killing everyone on board?  Is that really the kind of life-and-death situation you'd expect your health care provider to be putting you in?  , Please take control of your health by avoiding these dangerous scans especially since their use  scans has increased 330 percent since 1996.

Hospitals: Still the Most Dangerous Place

In her book, "Overtreated: Why Too Much Medicine Is Making Us Sicker and Poorer," Shannon Brownlee talks about the number of people who die in hospitals due to incorrect care, drug dosage or hospital-acquired infections. Even with new safety regulations in place, 180,000 hospitalized Americans still die every year from largely preventable causes – and the worst part about it, Brownlee says, is that as much as a third of that care does nothing to improve your health!
What happens is that you often get the tests we talked about above because of what your physician's specialty is, not because that's necessarily the test you need. For example if you have low back pain and see different specialists you will get different tests: rheumatologists will order blood tests, neurologists will order nerve impulse tests, and surgeons will order MRIs and CT scans..
But no matter what tests you get, you'll probably end up with a spinal fusion because it's one of the "more lucrative procedures in medicine," Brownlee says – even though the best success rate for spinal fusions is only 25 percent!
Angioplasties and certain types of chemotherapy with similar low success rates are just as prone to be ordered, Brownlee says, because that's where hospitals' investments lie. You see, they have all this equipment and they need to use it to get a return on it – but they also need to get you out of there as quickly as possible, so they can get the next patient in. What ensues is a type of aggressive patient therapy that can end in disaster: according to the Office of Inspector General for the Department of Health and Human Services, 1 in 7 Medicare recipients will be harmed every year as a result of the medical care they received in the hospital.

Classic Example of Why So Much Unnecessary Costs are Generated

Everybody agrees this needs to stop, including the New England Journal of Medicine, which recently used a fictional operating room joke to illustrate how unnecessary medical care drives up healthcare costs. The tale is about an orthopedic surgeon and an anesthesiologist who are scheduling the use of an operating room. "There is a fracture; I need to fix it," the doctor says. He's evasive with the details at first, but in the end he admits the "patient" is a 97-year-old woman who fell, broke her leg, went into cardiac arrest – and died. The macabre humor speaks to the problems of the medical system today – and one of those problems is defining the difference between need and want when it comes to medical procedures.
The fictional surgeon said he needed to fix the fracture. But the truth was, he only wanted to – and obviously, sometimes there's a big difference between need and want, with financial interests being the real deciding factor. That's why it's important that you, as a medical consumer, be your own advocate when it comes to health care decisions.
You can do this by:

• Asking questions when your doctor orders tests: what is each test for? Who will do the test? Are there any side effects? What if you don't get the test – how necessary is it to your care? Is the test "just to be sure," or is there a proven, scientific reason for doing it?
• If your doctor wants to do a procedure after the tests come back, ask the same questions all over again, including: Do you have a definitive diagnosis justifying the procedure? Are there any negative effects that I need to know about this procedure? What is the success rate of this procedure? What is the worst case scenario if we simply don't do it?
• If you go ahead with the tests and procedures, and your doctor wants to do a surgery or other type of intervention as a result, ask the same questions once more, and then:
• Ask, do I NEED these tests/procedures/surgery, or do you simply want them – and if so, for what reasons?

I admit some of these questions seem repetitive. But they NEED to be asked each and every time, for every single test performed on you. Remember, it's not only YOUR decision whether to get any or all of these tests and procedures, but your RIGHT to seek a second opinion somewhere else.

Natural is Better, and Less is More

Brownlee is adamant that the U.S. health care system can do better. Since the United States ranks 46^th in the world in infant mortality and 49^th in life expectancy, it's obvious that money doesn't buy health. The answer, then, to better health – and avoiding unnecessary tests and procedures in the first place – must be something else.
When it comes to figuring out what that "something else" is, I don't think there's anyone in the medical community anywhere who doesn't agree that simply changing your lifestyle can go a long way toward "fixing" a number of chronic conditions. As identified by the NIH, five life-changing factors that can do this are:

• Following a healthy diet
• Maintaining an optimal body weight
• Engaging in regular physical activity
• Not smoking
• Keeping alcohol use to no more than one drink per day for women, and two drinks per day for men

That's not an impossible list. You've been hearing it from me for ages, but I'm thrilled that health officials are finally joining in, and trying to help you stay out of the hospital by giving you advice that really works! The great thing about these behavior changes is that they don't cost extra money to do – and they're almost guaranteed to save you money in the long run. I would add a few things to this list, though.

What Constitutes a Healthy Lifestyle?

Of all the healthy lifestyle strategies I know of that can have a significant impact on your health, normalizing your insulin and leptin levels is probably the most important. There is no question that this is an absolute necessity if you want to avoid disease and slow down your aging process. That means modifying your diet to avoid excessive amounts of fructose, grains, and other pro-inflammatory ingredients like trans fats.
In addition to the items mentioned above, these additional strategies can further help you stay healthy:

• Learn how to effectively cope with stress – Stress has a direct impact on inflammation, which in turn underlies many of the chronic diseases that kill people prematurely every day, so developing effective coping mechanisms is a major longevity-promoting factor.
  
  Meditation, prayer, physical activity and exercise are all viable options that can help you maintain emotional and mental equilibrium. I also strongly believe in using energy psychology tools such as the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) to address deeper, oftentimes hidden emotional problems.
• Optimize Your Vitamin D Levels to between 50 and 70 ng/ml.
• Animal based omega-3 fats – Correcting the ratio of omega-3 to healthful omega-6 fats is a strong factor in helping people live longer. This typically means increasing your intake of animal based omega-3 fats, such as krill oil, while decreasing your intake of damaged omega-6 fats (think trans fats).
• Get most of your antioxidants from foods –Good sources include blueberries, cranberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, cherries, beans, and artichokes.
• Use coconut oil – Another excellent anti-aging food is coconut oil, known to reduce your risk of heart disease and Alzheimer's disease, and lower your cholesterol, among other things.
• Avoid as many chemicals, toxins, and pollutants as possible – This includes tossing out your toxic household cleaners, soaps, personal hygiene products, air fresheners, bug sprays, lawn pesticides, and insecticides, just to name a few, and replacing them with non-toxic alternatives.
• Avoid prescription drugs – Pharmaceutical drugs kill thousands of people prematurely every year – as an expected side effect of the action of the drug. And, if you adhere to a healthy lifestyle, you most likely will never need any of them in the first place.

Incorporating these healthy lifestyle guidelines will help set you squarely on the path to optimal health and give you the best shot at living a much longer life.  Remember, it's never too late to take control of your health. And when you do go to the doctor, know that it's OK to ask questions and opt for less medical intervention while choosing a more natural way of healing your body – you should NEVER think that you're not supposed to, or can't, ask questions of the person you've entrusted with your body.