German New Medicine

I don’t pretend to understand German New Medicine (GNM) from the short time I spent at a retreat on the topic, but then I often don’t understand conventional medicine either, so this post is not meant to be a critique. The quotes below are from websites I found and not associated with the retreat I attended, but will lead to more information about GNM.

http://germannewmedicine.ca/home.html,   http://www.newmedicine.ca/overview.php and http://germannewmedicine.ca/documents/metastasis_theory.html. 

My own personal comments are in blue.

“Dr. Ryke Geerd Hamer, formerly of the Universities of Munich and Tubingen in Germany, founded the German New Medicine after extensive research and a therapeutic practice dating back to 1979.”

“After twenty years of research and therapy with over 31,000 patients, Dr. Hamer finally established firmly, logically and empirically how biological conflict-shock results in a cold cancerous or necrotic phase and how, if the conflict is resolved, the cancerous or necrotic process is reversed to repair the damage and return the individual to health."

”He established that such a sudden shock affects not only the psyche, but impacts at the same time (visible on a brain scan) the part of the brain that corresponds biologically to the specific trauma. Whether the body responds to the unexpected event with a tumor growth (cancer), with tissue degeneration, or with functional loss, is determined by the exact type of conflict shock. So far, Dr. Hamer has been able to confirm these discoveries with over 40,000 case studies. Since HEALING can only occur after the conflict has been resolved, German New Medicine therapy focuses on identifying and resolving the original shock.”

While I’ve certainly had my share of disappointments in my life, I’ve had very few actual ‘shocks’, so I have a hard time making a connection here. The biggest shock I’ve received was the cancer diagnosis itself. Part of the time I spent at the retreat felt a bit like group therapy and I’m not at a place where I want to analyze what emotional trauma may or may not have caused my cancer. I’m just interested in ways to be at peace and enjoy my life, however long it may be.

“German New Medicine does not dispute the existence of second or multiple cancers. But, as we now learn to understand, second cancers are not caused by “spreading” cancer cells, but are the result of simultaneous or further conflict shocks, involving the organ that is biologically linked to the respective conflicts. This applies, without exception, in every case of cancer.”

I have a hard time with this because I’ve been led to believe that the difference between metastatic breast cancer and new primary cancers can be pathologically identified. My original lung tumor was tested after the surgery and was determined not to be lung cancer. Further tumors in my lungs have responded to hormone therapy, which lung cancer would not.

“Lung cancer is biologically linked to a “death-fright conflict”. As a secondary cancer, lung cancer is most often the result of a diagnosis or prognosis shock perceived as a death-sentence.”

As mentioned above, according to GNM, I have lung cancer, not metastatic breast cancer. It came 10 years after my original diagnose, so I don’t think it can be traced back to a prognosis perceived as a death-sentence. I don’t want to die, but I am not afraid of death.

“Bone cancer is, according to Dr. Hamer’s findings, linked to “self-devaluation conflicts”, which cancer patients typically experience because of feeling “worthless”. During the conflict-active phase, the bone(s) or joint(s) closest to where one feels.”

Again, according to GNM, I have bone cancer as well, not metastatic breast cancer. I don’t feel worthless or self-devalued. I may have struggled with inadequacy issues when I was younger but, with time, I think I have developed a healthy sense of self-value and worth.

When I mentioned at the retreat that I have pain in my rib (I didn’t dare say that I’m about to start radiation!) I was told that the pain was a good thing because it meant that it was in the ‘healing phase’. Couldn’t it also mean that it’s getting worse? Healing itself may be painful, but I think that the cancer weakening the bone and causing them to fracture is bound to be more of a source of pain. My latest MRI says that there is a "met lesion involving C5 vertibra with almost complete and replacement of the normal marrow signal". Somehow that doesn't sound like a healing phase to me.

There was a young woman there who had received a very poor prognosis for cancer (I believe it was lymphoma) and is now healthy and cancer free because of GNM. However, we’ve all heard numerous stories of people who did high-dose chemo, or alternatively did nothing, and who are well today. Lance Armstrong’s cancer spread to his lungs and brain and he survived. However, no two cancers are alike. Metastatic testicular cancer is considered curable; metastatic breast cancer is not.

I guess what it all boils down to is that everyone has to do what is right for them. I wouldn’t criticize anyone for exploring and believing in GNM, but I now know it’s not right for me. My plan is to combine traditional medicine with whatever else I find that is helpful and adds to the quality of my life.