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When cruising in our car we see different signs on both sides of the road. Some signs notify us on the correct speed limit; some read, “Yield” and some signs show directions. There’s one that tells us, “Restricted!” that may mean don’t go here by mistake, don’t continue on here or there’s danger here! So you might not as well continue. Well, this Hoxsey herbal treatment is like this warning.
The Hoxsey Herbal Treatment
The regimen of the Hoxey herbal treatment includes two types of herbal mixtures- a brown tonic to be taken by mouth and a caustic paste of yellow powder for external use which can burn the skin.
The Horse who Knew
This alternative herbal treatment is one of the oldest alternative cancer treatments in the US. It started in 1920 by Harry Hoxsey. He marketed an herbal mixture believed to treat cancer. The formulation was handed down by John, his grandfather.
Harry Hoxsey’s granddad observed a tumor disappear from a horse’s leg when it began to eat some wild plants. The grandfather collected these plants and made a brew. What started from a horse became a profitable family business. Legal battles had been fought for 40 years which was finally ended by the FDA in 1960. Earlier in 1956, the FDA has warned the public on the false promises of the treatment and called it as fraudulent giving false hopes to poor cancer sufferers.
Today you’d think the ruling of the FDA stopped the Hoxsey business to call it quits. But wonder of wonders, there’s still a clinic in Tijuana promoted by Bio-medical center that markets the herbal concoction. And of course, it’s marketed in the internet where cancer patients are blindly misled on its claims and buy it.
The Cancer Treatment
The herbal tonic is a mixture of supplements and herbs. The herbs consist of pokeweed, burdock root, licorice, barberry, buckthorn bark, stillingia root, red clover, prickly ash bark, potassium iodide and cascara. This tonic is supposedly for internal cancers and taken by mouth.
For external cancers, a paste is used made from a mixture of antimony trisulfide, zinc, blood root, arsenic, sulfur and talc.
While under this treatment, a patient is given a list of food restrictions. The patient should not eat pork, vinegar, tomatoes, pickles, carbonated drinks or soda, alcohol, white flour, sugar and salt.
Clinical Trials and Studies
Like most alternative treatments, clinical trials are inconclusive if done. There might have been some changes in the mixture; some data are missing; and isn’t effective. Additionally, lab studies on animals show no difference found in tumor growth and size.
Likewise, reviews were conducted by medical bodies. The National Cancer Institute, the American Cancer Society, and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center among others found no conclusive evidence that the Hoxsey herbal treatment is effective on cancer.
Bottom line
Let’s not be fooled by alternative treatments that are without any evidence on its efficacy to treat cancer. Good marketing techniques and sometimes spurious testimonies can convince us that this treatment works, especially if we’re so desperate for a cure. Let’s stick to our standard cancer treatment and get our money’s worth. While doing so, we should continue with our diet of 5-10 servings of fruits and vegetables daily. And let’s take time for a 30 minute of daily exercise. That way we have a greater chance of coming out the winner in our fight against cancer.