marichiko

No cure for cancer? Some cancers are indeed difficult to treat and some are incurable - for example, lung cancer is a nasty one, so is pancreatic cancer. I have a friend who HAD (note past tense) breast cancer and got chemo as well as a lumpectomy to have the tumor removed. She has been cancer free for 10 years now. Skin cancers can be cured early on, simply by cutting out the malignancy. This happened to my Dad who had a small mole on his face turn cancerous. The doctors cut it out and he lived for another 20 years to die of something NON-cancer related at age 80.

Cancer which has metastasized is generally a death sentence. But catch the cancer early enough, and there are now very good survival rates with appropriate medical treatment.

You have made the premise that cancer is caused by lack of the "nutrient" B17. You give the cancer free lives of earlier peoples as proof of your statement, and offer the hypothesis that they got more B17 from their diets than modern man currently does.

Dear Virginia,

There is NO Santa Claus! Life is not fair, and we can't make the false true by shouting, "We believe" at Tinker Belle when we go see the play, "Peter Pan" at age 40.

There is no such thing as "vitamin" B17.

Laetrile is the trademark of a compound of two parts glucose and one part cyanide. There is no vitamin B17, "B17" is a trade name created for laetrile by a laetrile proponent. It is naturally present in the kernels of apricot pits and a number of other stone fruits and nuts. There is no RDA but doses vary from 0.25 g to 1.0 g a day.

It is believed to have cancer controlling and preventative properties. Apparently normal cells can tolerate small quantities of cyanide but cancer cells succumb to it.

Cyanide has no value in sustaining human life. In small amounts it injures, in larger amounts it kills. No law prevents promoters from trade-naming nutritionally worthless or poisonous substances.

Cyanide is rapidly absorbed from the intestine and diffuses throughout the body, knocking out respiration in cells. Eating about 25 apricot kernels can cause headaches, dizziness, nausea, drowsiness, a sharp fall in blood pressure, breathing difficulties, coma and death.

There have been documented cases of people dying after taking as few as five laetrile tablets. Not more than 1.0 gram should be taken at any one time.
-[Herbert, J., (Chief Hematology & Nutr. Lab. Bronx VA Medical Center) : Nutrition Cultism - Facts & Fictions. 1981]

I feel a bit floored, myself. You call the scientific method "political jargen"? You are not interested in anything which might disprove you your favorite pet superstition. If you, personally, wish to ignore the findings of modern science and medicine, that is YOUR problem. However, when you post this superstitious propaganda on the Internet for who knows what gullible and desperate person to read, then you may be contributing to their unnecessary or early death. From what University did you get your degree in science from? What was your field of study?

Please, please, please - to anyone who might chance across this thread now or in the future; if you have been diagnosed with cancer, seek treatment from a licensed MD. Do NOT throw your life away over some quack theory.

If you are concerned about cancer prevention, do some of the things I outlined above: Eat organic foods, check your home for asbestos, quit smoking, avoid contact with strong chemicals of any sort, try to live in the least polluted environment possible, and have a yearly check up from your licensed MD. Woman over 40 should get mammograms, and woman of any age need yearly pap smears, men should get checked for prostrate cancer. If you have a mole which changes shape or color, call your doctor. Eat a variety of nutritious foods with an emphasis on whole grains. Please.