Thursday, May 21, 2009

Chemo, Religious Belief, Natural Remedy, or Death

"The Hausers are Catholic, but also believe in the natural healing philosophy of the Nemenhah Band, a Missouri-based religious group that believes in methods advocated by some American Indians. Colleen Hauser testified in court that she believed chemotherapy is a form of poison and that she had been trying to "starve" Daniel's cancer with supplements, an organic and sugar-free diet and high-alkaline water."


When should COMMON SENSE trump FAITH?

Shared Brian E. Payne.

21 comments:

MUATA NOWE said...

Reader Response:

Clarify: Are you saying that chemo is a common sense approach? I hope not, especially considering how this toxic substance kills and prevents the regeneration of non-specific cells in the body. Anything that knocks the hair off your body, can't be good for you. AZT is nothing more than a failed chemo drug. When it failed to "cure" cancer and actually caused the proliferation of more cancer, it was shelved, until so-called HIV arrived on the scene. Then it was repackaged and is, today, prescribed to unsuspecting victims who promptly develop "AIDS-like" conditions, including cancer, hair loss, weight loss, redistribution of fat, kidney and liver damage, etc.

Don't believe me, look it up. Check out the side effects. They don't hide this information. We hide it from ourselves. Spectrum Chemical and Sigma Chemical are two of the companies that currently produce AZT and sell it to the real drug dealers, the original gangstas of the dope industry. Read the Material Data Safety Sheets and you will expose the truth that has been hidden in our faces. Hide things in the open. There people are less likely to find it.

Also, considering that chemo has a history of seemingly "curing" one cancer, only to trigger another either immediately or years later, I say what more of us need to do is get government out of our business, and stop passing judgment on other people using information we don't have a clear understanding about. I would never take chemo or radiation. It's not a viable option and the only thing gained is more money for those who sell this less than stellar drug. Stop letting these seemingly well-meaning people play with your emotions.

-NAY

MUATA NOWE said...

Muata responds to NAY:

The use of chemo has saved millions of lives. I am in a position to acknowledge that. The statistics are there. However, I am not a medical doctor or a researcher of the affects of chemotherapy. What I do know: if the evidence is there that chemo can save a life, why not utilize it? Natural remedies have proven to work also. My uncle is benefactor of a few. Prayer and faith for some works - but it has not worked for countless Sudanese children and it did not work for millions of African slaves. So, here is what I gather (the choices): Prayer/faith, chemo, or natural remedies. With my current intellect and antaganism toward prayer/faith, I would select:

Chemo

Despite the dangers you have listed.

This one is all about choice. I certainly do not like that the government has position itself as the decision maker...but, if the judge is upholding the law with compassion, I fully support him trying to save a child's life. The Creator, I believe wants life to be upheld/saved.

-Muata

MUATA NOWE said...

Reader response:

I say they are crazy. Law enforcement agents need to rescue Daniel from his foolish mother and get him back into chemotherapy.

I have a pure vegan diet. As a result my cholesterol dropped from 295 to well under 100. I was borderline diabetic with borderline high blood pressure. Both returned to normal. I had a serious fall when out walking and everyone was amazed and how quickly my facial bruises healed. Doctors are always amazed at what good shape I am in for a 62 year old. Medical research verifies vegetarian/vegan and Mediterranean diets are best for the human body. There are persons who have had terminal cancers with no further medical treatments recommended by doctors, They have fully recovered with a vegan diet.

However, should I become ill and medical treatment is recommended, being the sensible person that I am, I would certainly adhere to the doctor's recommendations. Years ago, one of my church member's former husband died because he refused a blood transfusion. He was Jehovah Witness and blood transfusions were not allowed.

I do not understand such limited thinking. Medical treatment is just one of God's many gifts to humanity.

-DBW

MUATA NOWE said...

Cancer Survivor AJ responds:

i've had this argument over and over again, and honestly, until someone is faced with cancers tormentous grip - i honestly don't think they have a leg to stand on in the argument.

it's great dialogue for those who want to wax poetic... but check me out.

i had several people tell me to go 'natural' in the beginning - while the doctors told me, i needed chemo before the cancer got to a certain point.

i was - according to the doctors at Emory (which by the way is the 3rd best cancer center in the country) within 11 weeks of my life, and the growth of the tumor needed to be stopped.

the 'natural' doctor i visited recommended diet, exercise, different fruits, etc - which woulda been good if i were in phase 1 or 2 of my cancer. he said it would 'slow growth' and in 6-8 months the tumor 'probably' would've gotten smaller.

however, i was in phase 3... and phase 4=death.

and lemme mention - the closer you get to phase 4 the faster it spreads.

knowing this - who, (unless they wanted to risk their lives) would turn down chemo? what's losing hair? it grows back. my taste buds are damaged, but i'll live with that. i lost weight, i've gained it back.

everyone has a choice - and not all cases are the same but in my case...

I. Chose. Life.

chemo was the conduit.

just my experienced opinion.

be easy, be blessed, and get regular check-ups.

early detection gives you more options.

AJ

www.theaspot.com - sign up!

MUATA NOWE said...

Muata responds to AJ:

AJ-
Your response is appreciated, and I have always valued your story. Keep telling it. You are a walking testimony. You are saving and refreshing lives just by walking around as a survivor.

It would be great to hear from someone who believes their cancer was eradicated via natural remedies.

-Muata

MUATA NOWE said...

Reader NAY responds to Muata:

When we look at the statistics of how many have lived and what constitutes having lived following chemo, we also have to look at how many have perished. Of course, that gets muddled, because though a person dies of the effects of chemo, it is recorded that they died of cancer. Because I work at the so-called "premier national health agency in the world," I make good use of the statistical data available on many diseases and infections. And when I read it, I read it with a critical, discerning eye, not an all-accepting eye just because this agency put it out there.

I, too, have witnessed my share of loved ones and others who have died and it has been reported that they died from cancer, when I know well that they were outwardly healthy until being told of the cancer and beginning the treatment. Within months, their health declined significantly and they expired. I have one acquaintance who underwent chemo. Five years and two months to the date, the cancer returned. You know what? She was still considered a "cancer survivor," another term used carelessly, because she survived five years cancer free.

She's now in her second battle and has gone the chemo route again with no success. Her husband informed us just last week that she may be entering hospice. Sadly, I have to say that following the chemo, many people continue to eat, drink and subject themselves to the very things that might have caused the cancer in the first place. This is what occurred with her. Now, that she realizes how serious chemo is, it's too late. Even her specialist admits that many people die from the effects, but that it isn't well documented because it's usually blamed on the cancer itself. It angers her husband because they used him to persuade his wife that chemo was her best and only option. He doesn't say so, but he probably also harbors a sense of guilt.

We just lost one in January and are in the stages are losing another (in addition to the friend I just mentioned). Both would have had more time had they sought other methods. Neither had fast-growing cancers. Neither even knew they had cancer until they went for a routine physical. One, we are skeptical that she even had cancer, since there were never any second opinions and most of the diagnosis was done from an "I think" perspective by a DOCTOR. My grandmother, who died at 82, lived with a cancerous growth for over 25 years. She refused chemo. She refused drugs. And she didn't die from cancer! She died from an intestinal blockage.

So, no, I don't see chemo as the way out. I see it as the way that is forced upon us, whether we're young, old, rich, poor, Black or other. And because we don't have the needed information, we then make decisions that can forever alter our lives. Sometimes I harken it to us running, dying, trying to live and live longer, yet doing the very thing that will hasten our death. That is what chemo and radiation represent for me. For every story of triumph, there are many more that get silenced by death and statistics that don't tell the full story.

Also, this judge is no researcher. He, like so many Americans, takes the word of people who don't always have the best of intentions or the real knowledge (MD, PhD, MPH, etc., does not a knowledgeable person make). And he does it, not because he's evil, but because he does not have the time or maybe even the intellectual capacity to evaluate the material properly. This is why I do not see him as qualified to make such a decision. Prayer won't make cancer go away; and in the long term (and short term for many thousands), neither will chemo. Both can be blind in their applications--one more so than the other.

I ain't gonna go into the subject of what the Creator wants, because that'd be a whole nother fiery discussion. You should start that one soon. ;-)

-NAy

MUATA NOWE said...

NAY responds to AJ:

"I. Chose. Life.

chemo was the conduit."

Your statement says that you CHOSE it, not that a court system decided it for you. If that was your choice, that was your choice. You had that right. But to take a child and force a poison into their system with no guarantees but those given you by so-called doctors and specialists who ONLY consider chemo, is too far a stretch for the rational mind. At least, it should be.

Not only that, this judge is willing to place this child into the hands of strangers who don't have the same familial ties to this child. Who will have the toxic drug administered to this child and watch him die from it, if need be, because it's what the courts demanded. What does this do to the motivation of this child to be ripped from all he's known and sent to somewhere he's never been? Does that help his health any? We have to see past the surface of this issue to the future of this issue. The ethical issues involved here.

Cases such as these set a precedent for other matters. To give that kind of power to people with no real questions being asked, with unequivocal trust, is not an intelligent move. Now, given that this mother could be a little waxed in the head--and which ones wouldn't be when it concerns their child?--we still must look at the precedent this court is attempting to set. What are the ramifications for future cases similar in scope to this? If the courts can force chemo, and we already know they're forcing AIDS drugs, then what's next? When does it stop? When do we stop giving them the power to decide our lives?

-NAy

MUATA NOWE said...

Muata shares info:

Read what the parents believe:

http://www.nemenhah.org/internal/about_us.html

Notice part of the 'declaration': "that you will First Do No Harm"

Isn't the mother doing harm by running and refusing a method to save her son's life?

The more I research I do the more it is revealed to me that the mother may not be upholding the tenets of the Nemenhah Band appropriately:

"As much as we would like to stand boldly and declare our own authority is in the true spirit of Self-Determination, we do recognize that we live in a nation with its own laws that we ought to respect and uphold. The Law of the Land (AIRFA, NAFERA, RFRA, etc.) strictly dictates what may be represented as a Native American Tribe, Band or Traditional Organization, and these dictates are the norms under which we must operate and we do intend to always position the Nemenhah within these constructs."

-Muata

MUATA NOWE said...

NAY responds to Muata:

OK, B, you're saying that like America upholds its own tenets. When it comes to tenets and matters of the heart, the heart is going to win out. This woman isn't operating from tenets. She's operating from the right to choose for her son. I say she should be left to do that, even if it means leaving the country. If her son should die that is for her to work out. This is a damned if you do, damned if you don't situation. Not one we can dice up to our liking.

-NAY

MUATA NOWE said...

Muata responds to NAY:

Please don't take it that way. I don't respect America in the arena of adhering to their tenets (constitution).

However, if one is going to declare he/she is a believer/follower of a faith or set of beliefs he/she needs to function accordingly. But, many chose and make decisions that are in contradiction of the declaration thus making them hypocrites. This woman is dancing around with the standards set forth in the charter. Picking and chosing...most of us, particularly religious folk, are familiar with this.

This is a further indication to me that important decisions like becoming a member of a certain faith is made with a flimsy heart and not with the concreteness of the mind (right and wrong). Intellect.

-Muata

MUATA NOWE said...

AJ responds to NAY:

I understand the place you're coming from. There are risks in any decision you make - whether chemo is chosen, or the 'natural' treatments are the choice.

I don't want to go on too much as I've had this conversation several times - but, could you provide statistics to those who underwent 'natural' treatments, and what their deaths are attributed too?

just curious...

-AJ

MUATA NOWE said...

Reader Response:

The Nemenhah elders are calling for her to come back and 'surrender'. As a doctor, I come across this from time to time in adults mainly( the Lord will heal me or weed will cure my Glaucoma). All you can do is educate the patient and hope the don't go blind or die. I have learned that you probably won't change someone's mind unless tragedy happens.
Chemo is poison to the body and not specific for the tissues in which the cancer usually lies in. That's why folk start to loose hair, weight, etc. It does work though. There are newer forms of cancer halting treatments performed now and being developed that target specific cancer cells in the body. The mother may not know this or the doctor may think they can't afford it/ or insurance won't cover 'experimental treatments'.

-LU

MUATA NOWE said...

Muata responds to NAY:

Without prolonging this, can't we agree that chemotherapy saves lives? Isn't this the reason the judge is requiring that the mother returns? Also, I am of the opinion that the state should provide additional protection to children. If this is done with a good faith effort, shouldn't we support it? In this case, it may just save a life.

-Muata

MUATA NOWE said...

NAY responds to Muata:

How many lives does chemo save? Give me hard numbers, not estimates? These numbers do not exist.

How many lives are taken due to the side effects of chemo, yet reported as having died from cancer? These numbers do not exist.

The only numbers at our disposal are ESTIMATES, and I know this because I work in one of the agencies where this information comes from. Not just work there, but actively evaluate the information. A small sample is taken of the population and then numbers are extrapolated from this. We cannot prove that millions of lives have been saved due to chemo, because the real numbers DO NOT exist.

And even if we went by death certificates, not all of them state the actual cause, which could well be the chemo. That leaves us with a false sense that we know how many are saved when we really don't. We also have to take into account those who make it through their first "dance" with chemo, only to have it as a "partner" years later and this time lose, as in the case of my friend.

Because someone has been through chemo, and this isn't meant to put anyone does, does not mean they truly understand everything about the drugs administered, the disease, etc. Most times, the information provided is slanted in favor of chemo, leaving all other treatments out.

I know many people who take drugs every day, yet have no idea what's in them or their side effects. Most people don't do that kind of research. And though some know the ingredients, they've never researched each ingredient to find out its relevant side effects. They take the word of doctors and specialists who they believe know more when that's not always the case.

I stand firmly that unless a situation involves some type of abuse, government, including judges, should stay out of it. The more intervention capability you give them, the more power to choose you lose. This whole case is about more than simply administering chemo to one boy. That's the point we continue to miss. This is about setting a legal precedent that makes it easier to come after you and you and you and. . . .

We are not fortune tellers and the chance of this child surviving chemo is not set in stone and grows more tricky with each round of treatment. If it kills him, if the cancer returns, as lymphomas are known to do, then what do we have to say--all those who believe the courts have a right to inject this child in opposition to his parents and himself?

Is it more about the quality of our lives or the quantity? I am far from a bible thumper, but one thing comes to mind as more and more of us reach for the chemical potions for every ailment: he who seeks to save his life shall lose it.

-NAY

MUATA NOWE said...

Reader Response:

My father had cancer. He went through Chemo and was considered in remission at the time of his death. He died in the hospital in September of 2005. His cause of death was listed as "Sepsis", A bacterial infection.

Who is at risk for Sepsis? People whose immune systems are not functioning well because of an illness (such as cancer or AIDS) or because of medical treatments (such as chemotherapy for cancer or steroids for a number of medical conditions) that weaken the immune system.

The chemotherapy killed the cancer, but it also severely weakened his immune system. He spent the last month of his life in the hospital trying to fight off infection after infection, but his body was to weak to do so because on the weakened immune system caused by chemo.

A very dear friend of mine has a 3 year old daughter with cancer. She was diagnosed at 2 years old. She was on chemo for several months. She was weak and sick all the time and could not play with friends because of the fear of catching something else because of her weak immune system. Her quality of life was not really worth living and the tumor was not shrinking. To live, but to live in pain and sheltered. My friend, her husband, and the rest of the family decided to no longer continue chemo. They wanted her life here, no matter how long it was, to be happy. Undergoing chemo would not allow that because she was always sick when she was taking the chemo. The Doctor's thought that they were crazy and were reluctant to remove the tube from her chest. When they did remove the tube, they notified in Hospice, which my friend refused.

That was 2 years ago. She will be 4 years old on May 31st. They are doing natural remedies and a special diet for the the entire family and Meena and is doing great.. See the attached pictures. The first during/after chemo, the second, long after they discontinued chemo. The tumor has shrunk tremendously and the doctors at Duke are asking her to document everything that she is doing. We don't know what the future holds, but she is living a happy, normal life. She's not constantly in hospitals, weak, or unable to play with her friends.

Many say chemo has saved their lives. It may be factor of what type of cancer and where in the body it is. I don't know, but if faced with the decision, I don't think that I would choose chemo. However, I would not rely on faith and religion to save my life. I hope that because of my faith, I will end up in the right place when I do leave this earth.

-AJ

*Muata will not post pictures of child.

MUATA NOWE said...

Reader Responds to AJ:

she (child), and her family will remain in my prayers!!

to chemo, or not to chemo - - to live, or not to live.....

i don't envy anyone who has to make the decision, and don't know what decision i would make if i found myself in a position to have to do so.

i do know that good, clear, comprehensive education about proper health and nourishment is a must for each of us and i think needs to be made a part of all school curricula. also, going back to nature is not a bad idea - too many chemicals in everything we use.

peace & blessings,

-SM

MUATA NOWE said...

Reader Responds to SM and AJ:

Not only is she beautiful, but so is her story, one that moved beyond chemicals and trusted in what nature already offers in abundance. Too many people panic and end up using the very thing that takes their life, because they believe it will lengthen their life. This is a brave and intelligent family who displayed a living love for their child. Thanks for sharing!

-NAY

MUATA NOWE said...

NAY responds to SM:

I definitely agree that too much chemical waste has been intentionally placed in the majority of conventional products on the market. I cannot imagine that it's easier to do it the chemical way. I do know it's more profitable. ;-)

I don't think school can begin to replace what should be taught in the home about proper health and nutrition. If we leave it to the education system, we can't be sure it'd ever be taught correctly and without unnecessary, yet consequential, government and big pharma influence.

-NAY

MUATA NOWE said...

SM responds to NAY:

i agree school cannot replace, but it can supplement, and for some it is the only means of knowledge - - knowledge made more readily available is never a negative.
:-)

-SM

MUATA NOWE said...

Muata comments:

The government wins out:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,521889,00.html

"Colleen and Anthony Hauser now say they understand their son needs chemotherapy. A doctor's exam showed the tumor, which is located in his chest, has grown and is pushing against his trachea, causing pain."

The constitution lays the ground for for us to rebel...but we will not do it! The government knows this. We punks...

-Muata

MUATA NOWE said...

NAY responds to Muata:

Those were my exact thoughts. Once again, they use the fear of prolonged life to get you to take the very thing that can shorten your life. It's the way Amerikka does business. I'm guessing there are some very happy original gangsta drug dealers and "practitioners" tonight. I wouldn't be surprised if they toasted to the loot that will come their way from this, and the idea that they can continue their armed medical takeover of the minds and bodies of the people. The latter was their ultimate motive in the first place. Be careful what we wish for. Always be careful.

-NAY