Literature by Robert Gorter

We are open to the possibility that everything is true unless proven false.

Robert Gorter, MD, PhD.

This perspective offers hope and opportunity. It allows an open minded scientific application of not yet accepted but possibly beneficial cancer treatment approaches.

As in the usual statistics, to tell a patient has only a 10% chance of survival in one or five years is to play God and to have the hubris to belief that you understand all the factors that contribute to recovery and healing. For the individual it is never 10%, the patient either recovers (complete remission), continues to live with (partial remission, or stable disease), or dies from the cancer (progression) or the complications of the treatment. In reality, our knowledge is much more limited, we can almost never predict the exact outcome when a cancer is diagnosed early although the probability of the predictions improves with the severity of the illness. Despite the average gloomy statistics, some patients have recovered from every known cancer and are alive today even when the prognosis appeared to be fatal. For example, in 2005, Harmen Wagenmaker from the Netherlands had inoperable bile duct cancer (cholangiocarcinoma) with massive liver and pancreatic metastases with severe jaundence (icterus) and anemia, and was given less than three months to live. The only intervention Harmen underwent originally at the hospital was the insertion of a stent to improve bile flow to the gut. At the Medical Center Cologne, after eight months of non-toxic treatment with hyperthermia and dendritic cell vaccinations, Harmen had his first scan which documented complete remission and now, more than three years later, he is still in complete remission and continuous to live a full and active life.

(see video documentary: www.dendritic-cells.org)

Cancer is a dynamic process—it can grow, stop growing, shrink and even disappear. It is an ongoing balance between cancer cell creation and our body’s immune activity which identifies and eliminates cancerous cells. This book describes a clinical approach that has successfully treated and in numerous cases induced remission, or stopped the progression of the cancer. It offers a non-toxic, pro-healing approach that supports and enhances the natural self-healing functions in the body. Ideally, this approach should be offered as the first treatment approach when patients are diagnosed instead of waiting till traditional cancer treatments have been unsuccessful. The same principles hold true for prevention of cancer.

From our perspective, the present day model of cancer treatment is incomplete as it focuses mainly on destroying the already present cancer cells. We recommend that the treatment model is broadened to include enhancing the body’s intrinsic cancer fighting mechanisms—the immune system as well as reducing exposure to carcinogenic live styles (physical and emotion patterns that suppress the immune system) and substances that have been highly associated with cancer (smoking, smoked and burnt foods like barbecue, dyes and pesticides, and estrogens).

There are many unknown factors that contribute to the recovery and survival from a cancer diagnosis. We recommend that patients do anything to reduce exposure to carcinogenic substances and processes, and enhance the immune system. At the Medical Center Cologne in Germany and at its satellite clinics, the Cologne Model developed by Robert Gorter, M.D., PhD., who himself in 1976 recovered from a poorly-differentiated, stage IV Germ Cell carcinoma by using exclusively non-toxic treatment and without the use of any chemotherapy or radiation. Thus, this treatment modality is based – in part - upon self-experience and includes hyperthermia and dendritic cell vaccinations as a mechanism to enhance immune function.

Healing includes at least two fundamental processes: the external process by which medical procedures treat the cancer and the internal process by which the patient mobilizes his/her own immune system. Researchers Carlyle Hirshberg & Mark Barasch (1995) explored the internal factors that patients reported to contribute to their spontaneous remission of cancer are shown the table 1.

Belief in a positive outcome 75%
Having a fighting spirit 71%
Acceptance of the disease 71%
Seeing the disease as a challenge 71%
Taking responsibility for the disease and its outcome 68%
Renewed desire and will to live 64%
Positive emotions 64%
Faith in a higher power to heal them 61%
New sense of purpose 61%
Changing unhealthy habits and behaviors 61 %
Having a sense of control 59%
Lifestyle changers 59%
Self-nurturing 57%
Good social support 50%

Table 1. Most important psycho-spiritual factors associated with remission of cancer. Adapted from Daniel (2005)

From our perspective the common factors are:
Embracing the illness as an opportunity to grow and change
Taking control
Finding meaning and love in life

Patients are NOT passive; they actively seek and participate in treatment that makes sense to them and also support their own health and immune system by practicing self healing techniques as researched by Hirschberg and Barasch (2005) and listed in table 2.

Prayer 68%
Meditation 64%
Exercise 64%
Guided imagery 59%
Walking 50%
Music and singing 50%
Stress reduction 50%

Table 2. Self-healing practices that patients reported that contributed to their remission and survival of cancer. Adapted from Daniel (2005).

The patients made choices and actively embraced their illness to enhance a health promoting meaningful lives. Even when patients embrace life and live each moment fully, it does not promise that they will live forever and not die from cancer. What it does promise is that they will experience a meaningful life however short or long. Death is not a failure of medicine; it is the normal transition in life and a transition none of us can escape. The important challenge is to life to the fullest.

To increase the probability of cancer survival, we recommend that we learn from the patients who had remission. Thus, take charge and actively participate in the healing process and optimize non-toxic treatment approaches that boost the natural self-healing capacity of the human body as described in this book. At the same time, embrace your illness as an opportunity to live a meaningful and purposeful life. Make everyday count (“Carpe Diem”).

Ask yourself when you wake up, are you looking forward to waking up, just as when you were in “love”, or do you feel being again placed on a treadmill dreading the onset of another day. Health is promoted when you want to live and wake up to welcome a new day; when there are too many joyful exciting new things still to explore. To enhance this pro-healing attitude and other self-healing strategies, we highly recommend reading and exploring the practices both in this book and the following books:

Daniel, R. (2005). The cancer directory. London: HarperThorsons. ISBM 0-00-715427-5 Hirschberg, C. & Barasch, M. (1996). Remarkable recovery: What extraordinary healings tell us about getting well and staying well. New York: Riverhead Trade. ISBN-13: 978-1573225304 LeShan, L. (1999). Cancer as a Turning Point. Plume; ISBN: 0452271371 Van Overbruggen, R. (2006). Healing psyche: Patterrns and structdure of complementary psychological cancer treatment (CPCT). IBookSurge, LLC, ( www.booksurge.com) ISBM: 1-4196-4737-7

Look at the accompanying DVD documentaries of cancer patients who have survived and created meaningful lives after receiving a fatal prognosis or for more recent information at the websites:

www.medical-center-cologne.com
www.kanker-actueel.nl
www.dendritic-cells.org

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