People who paved the way for you!
This marks my 49th year of good health after terminal cancer. This short pictorial should reassure you that you are not alone. Very competent people paved the way for you!
Dr. John Beard
believed that enzymes in the pancreas routinely destroyed trophoblasts or renegade cells. Beard contended that when the pancreas failed in its responsibility to kill cancer cells, it logically followed that enzymes would have to be injected into the system to do the job. But it wasn’t till later, based on the work of Dr. Ernst T. Krebs that the formula was potent enough to work.
Dr. Ernst T. Krebs
decided to conduct experiments based on Dr. Beard’s work with pancreatic enzymes as a possible cancer treatment. He combined proteolytic pancreatic enzymes with the apricot kernels and discovered that the cyanide in the apricot kernels was only released in the presence of cancer cells. This one discovery is why Laetrile users are not toxic even with an IV of six grams per day.
Dr. William Donald Kelly
was an Orthodontist who believed that toxic foods can cause cancer to grow but a proper diet (organic, mostly fresh fruits and vegetables) caused our own immune systems to work more effectively. He recommended proteolytic enzymes to break down the protein coating on cancer cells so our immune systems could recognize cancer cells and eliminate them. He claimed an unaudited (Independent Review Board) success rate of 96% past five years.
G. Edward Griffin
is a Detroit-born radio personality who became interested in cancer therapy, especially the cancer cell suppression capability of Laetrile, or Vitamin B17. He believed cancer to be a nutritional deficiency and could be eliminated with a strict organic, fresh food diet and the use of Laetrile. His conservative views on individual liberty have made him a target for the One World Order proponents
Pastor John Ballentine
was a First Sergeant in Patton’s army and an American Legion Chaplain. He pastored many conservative churches in Minnesota. Pastor Ballentine was a proponent of cancer patients going to Mexico to get a more natural approach with diet and substances like Laetrile. While he was maligned for his conservative views, many credit him with saving their lives.
Pastor McLachlan
and many from the congregation of the First Baptist Church supported Rick Hill’s trip to the Oasis of Hope Hospital in Tijuana after he left the Mayo Clinic. This small group of dedicated believers raised all the money needed. Those considering Integrative care will probably find that their insurance won’t work. Your family, friends, church or temple, and fund raising organizations like Go Fund Me may help you financially.
Dr. Ernesto Contreras, MD
was an early pioneer of Alternative cancer treatments starting in the early 1960’s. He ardently defended the use of Laetrile, Enzymes, and an organic diet. Dr. Contreras along with Dr. Max Gerson and Dr. Josef Issels were the three early physicians in the movement who were forced to defend their methods in many court battles.
After his death in 2003, his son, Francisco Contreras, MD studied in Austria to get his Surgical Oncologist degree, speaking three languages fluently. He took the reigns from his father and became the Chairman of the Oncology department at Oasis of Hope Hospital. They have seen over 100,000 patients with three times the success of most protocols.
Frank Cousineau
met his wife Chayo when she was working at Oasis of Hope. They and Lorraine Rosenthal started the Cancer Control Society in 1965. Since then, they’ve conducted their annual convention near Los Angeles over Labor Day weekend showcasing the latest innovations in cancer therapies. Frank and his wife are featured in Daniel Kennedy’s Chasing Windmills. Daniel is the CEO of the Oasis of Hope Hospital and a filmmaker.
who went before us…”
When we make progress, it can well be said that to do so, we are standing on the shoulders of the tall men and women who came before us. The novel ideas they thought of were copied and perhaps improved so that we could use them.
This is especially true of the healing arts. Medicine in general is a progressive concept that should be based on the scientific method of testing concepts until proof can be repeated. The arcs the healing arts have taken go back to Tribal Shamans and even Medicine Men of ancient history. But in more modern times there has been a lot of change.
Some of this history affected me directly. For example, in 1859 Dr. Mayo (founder of the Mayo Clinic) set up his first medical practice in a small home in Le Sueur, Minnesota. In August 1862, during the height of the US-Indian Dakota War of 1862, Dr. Mayo volunteered to go to the relief of besieged New Ulm, where he helped care for the wounded. It was in the very city of New Ulm, that I was diagnosed with cancer and was referred to the Mayo Clinic for extensive diagnosis (stage three, high grade, embryonal cell carcinoma) and treatment.
While I was at the Mayo Clinic, an acquaintance of mine, Dr. John Ballentine, a Baptist Pastor, wrote me and suggested I leave the Mayo Clinic before having mandatory chemotherapy and go to Tijuana, Mexico. When I asked why in the world anyone would do that, he said some clinics there did more testing and would use my immune system for defense instead of toxic drugs. Most of this theory came from historical tribal cultures who didn’t have “modern drugs” but instead got their healing ingredients from the plant kingdom. Dr. Ballentine had studied the research of Dr. William Donald Kelly who wrote a short pamphlet entitled, One Answer to Cancer. G. Edward Griffin wrote the classic A World Without Cancer which reflected the research of Dr. John Beard who wrote of the “trophoblastic theory of cancer.” All these authors said cancer was mostly a disease of civilization brought on by the lack of healthy living.
That Fall, I was scheduled to start my chemo in three days so I didn’t have much time to decide if I would take the chemo at Mayo or travel to Tijuana for a more organic, natural approach to therapy using diet, detox, and Laetrile (from apricots). Much to my family’s chagrin, I left for TJ.
We arrived at the Oasis of Hope Hospital in October of 1974 and would stay one month. My doctor was Ernesto Contreras, Sr. This hospital is now a five-story building across from the bullring in Playas back then and today. Dr. Contreras’ son, Francisco Contreras, a surgical Oncologist, is the head Oncologist. The filmmaker, Daniel Kennedy, recently released a documentary, Chasing Windmills graphically and historically traces the colorful and brave history of the founding of Oasis of Hope Hospital.
After a month of treatment, I returned to New Ulm, MN, and began a life-long quest for better health and a new passion: offering H.O.P.E (Helping Other People Escape) to others struggling with disease. Shortly thereafter, I went to Hippocrates in Boston, Massachusetts, and studied nutrition under Ann Wigmore. I discovered the Cancer Control Society which offers an annual convention in Los Angeles on Labor Day weekend which I began attending and was invited to give my testimony. This began a lifelong friendship with the President of CCS, Frank Cousineau. Doctors from all over the world lectured there who believed in Holistic, Integrative, and Functional medicine. Disciplines like Chinese Acupuncture, Nutrition, Colon Hydrotherapy, Chiropractic, Naturopathic, and even soft-tissue massage were represented both on stage and in the booth area. This was a learning bonanza! Years later, I wrote The Cancer Conundrum, lectured at health conventions, on radio shows, and even for a Senate investigative committee on alternative medicine.
Today, the Internet has introduced us to health series like Ty Bollinger’s The Truth about Cancer. My website, The Cancer Call Center, is designed to put me in touch with mostly stage-four cancer patients who have tried more traditional therapy like chemo and radiation and may be open or at least curious about alternative approaches.
So, people like me didn’t just appear. We were coached and taught by hundreds of trailblazers. Currently, many traditional HMOs and PPOs offer Functional Medicine departments like the Cleveland Clinic headed by Dr. Mark Hyman. One such functional medicine clinic in San Diego is the Advanced Functional Medical Clinic. The pendulum is swinging towards more natural approaches even using light and frequency as did Dr. Royal Rife here in San Diego many years ago. The view from atop their shoulders is indeed wonderful!