Regression of Cancer of the Rectum After Intensive Meditation

Abstract

A Chinese patient with documented hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) satisfied the criteria of Everson and Cole for spontaneous regression of malignant tumors. Subsequently he survived a tumor-free period of at least 13 years. During the period of regression, shrinkage of liver coincided with a rise of SGOT to a level comparable to that reported for patients with liver cancer during hepatic arterial ligation and cytotoxic therapy. Post-regression liver biopsy from the site of the previous tumor revealed relatively uninflamed HBsAg positive tissue without dysplasia. The case provided the positive end of the survival spectrum in HCC, evidence that regression of HCC might occur by involution rather than maturation, and histologic data suggesting that regressed HCC might be replaced by surrounding tissue instead of leaving behind dysplasia.

Case Details

Personal Characteristics

The patient is a 64-year-old man, himself a professional in psychological healing.

Clinical Characteristics

At the time when he first consulted me, over 12 months ago, he was scarcely able to use his bowels at all and was having an enema each day. He had to get up six or eight times each night to pass urine. His general health and strength were deteriorating. A surgeon had diagnosed carcinoma of the rectum, and this had been proved by biopsy taken per anum. The photomicrograph shows an adenocarcinoma infiltrating tissues beneath the muscularis mucosae.

Remission Characteristics

In two weeks he reported the first signs of improvement. In six weeks he was able to discontinue the use of the enema, and had regained the use of his bowels to the extent of passing stools which he described as like a pencil. In two months he was sleeping the night through without getting up. At this stage he was extremely confident that he had beaten the growth, and he went for a month’s holiday to another state.

Treatment & Mechanisms

Proposed Remission Mechanisms

The extreme reduction of anxiety in these patients triggers off the mechanism as that which becomes active in the rare spontaneous remissions. This would be consistent with the observation that spontaneous remissions are often associated with some kind of religious experience or profound psychological reaction.

Non-Clinical Treatment

He was led into intensive meditation, which he captured quite readily through the help of his own professional experience. In addition to seeing me daily, he was required to meditate by himself for one to two hours each day.

Additional Notes

The patient is a sensitive man of thoughtful disposition, and quite venturesome by nature. He ponders the problems of his professional work, he writes poetry, and he is an expert hang-glider. This is a sport demanding the utmost courage, in which the glider jumps off a cliff edge into a strong wind while suspended from a kite-like contraption, and is carried upward by air currents. His sensitivity and professional background have made the meditation easier for him, and his courage has helped in yet another skirmish with death.