Mind Over Medicine by Lissa Rankin M.D. has quote I'd like to share.

'There's proof that doctors might facilitate your recovery, not so much because of the treatments they prescribe, but because of the authority you ascribe to them'.

How about a story of the power of the mind and belief?

Dr Philip West and his patient Mr Wright.
Mr Wright had an advanced cancer called lymphosarcoma.
All treatments failed.  Mr Wright's neck, chest, abdomen, armpits and groin were filled with tumors the size of oranges, his spleen and liver were enlarged, and his cancer was causing his chest to fill up with two quarts of milky fluid every day, which had to be drained to get Wright to breathe.
The doctors didn't expect Wright to live til the end of week,

Mr Wright desperately wanted to live and he placed his hope on a new drug called Krebiozen.
Wright begged his doctor to treat him with the new drug.

However, it was only being offered in clinical trials to people who had more than three months to live.
The cancer Mr Wright had was too far developed and he was much too sick to qualify.

He pestered his doctor for the drug over and over and over, believing it may be a miracle cure.
And this is the power of belief beginning to show it's efficacy.
Dr West reluctantly gave in and injected Wright with Krebiozen. Screen Shot 2015-11-29 at 11.58.20 PM

Dr West performed the procedure on a Friday. and believed Wright would be dead by Monday.

To the doctors utter shock, the following Monday, Dr West found his patient out of bed and casually walking around.  According to Dr Klopfer, Mr Wright's "tumor masses had melted like snowballs on a hot stove" and were half their original size.

Ten days after the first dose of Krebiozen, Mr Wright left the hospital cancer-free.

Mr Wright praised Krebiozen as a miracle for two months.

However, scientific literature regarding the clinical trials of Krebiozen began reporting their results which stated that the drug was ineffective.  Mr Wright trusted what the science literature published and he went into a deep depression and his cancer came back.

This time, Dr West, recognizing the power of belief and it's effects on restoring health, genuinely wanted to help save his patient.  Dr West then committed a sneaky act and lied to his patient by telling him that some of the initial supplies of Krebiozen had been deteriorated during shipping, making them less effective.  He then continued to tell Mr. Wright that a new batch of highly concentrated ultra-pure Krebiozen had been scored and was available.  This was a total lie, but the doctor was banking on the placebo effect to restore Mr Wright's health.

Dr West then injected Mr Wright with distilled water.

A miracle happened.  Again.  The tumors melted away, the fluid in his chest disappeared and Mr Wright was feeling great again for another two months.Screen Shot 2015-11-29 at 11.15.16 PM

The American Medical Association then published the results of a nation wide study of Krebiozen which had proven that the drug was completely worthless.

Mr Wright read that news, and lost all faith in his treatment.

His cancer came back and he died two days later.

Doctors might facilitate your recovery, not so much because of the treatments they prescribe, but because of the authority you ascribe to them.

Sources:  http://web.as.uky.edu/statistics/users/rayens/A&S100_Resources/PlaceboStudy.pdf

The Science of Emotions - Dr Fahad Basheer
Mind Over Matter by Lissa Rankin M.D.

 

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