Living Proof: A Medical Mutiny (Hardcover)

A Time to Heal: Teaching the Whole Body to Beat Incurable Cancer by Beata Bishop 5.0 out of 5 stars (3)  £6.49

What to Eat if You Have Cancer (revised): Healing Foods that Boost Your Immune System by Maureen Keane 5.0 out of 5 stars (1)  £6.59

Anticancer: A New Way of Life by David Servan-Schreiber 4.9 out of 5 stars (8)  £9.59

Beating Cancer with Nutrition: Optimal Nutrition Can Improve the Outcome in Medically-Treated Cancer Patients by Patrick Quillin 4.5 out of 5 stars (2)  £13.64

Eat to Beat Cancer: A Nutritional Guide with 40 Delicious Recipes by Rosy Daniel 4.2 out of 5 stars (4)  £8.44

› Explore similar items

Review
What do you do when you are informed out of the blue that you have cancer and that unless chemotherapy is started immediately you will die within months? Many people would panic but not Michael Gearin-Tosh. A 54-year-old Oxford lecturer and lifelong procrastinator, he spent weeks consulting different specialists, medical journals and papers, receiving conflicting opinions as to whether he should have chemotherapy. All agreed on one thing - that there was no cure for his myeloma (cancer of the bone marrow), only treatment. Yet one specialist stated unequivocally that if he touched chemotherapy he would be 'a goner'. Diagnosed in June, the author finally decides to start chemotherapy at the end of August. He then swiftly reverses this decision on receiving a tape from an American specialist on 'The Metabolic Approach to Cancer Therapy'. Going against the advice of a world authority on myeloma who states it's crucial to start chemo at once, he embarks instead on a strenuous regime derived from the radical Gerson treatment: detoxification, juicing and coffee enemas, backed up by injections of liver juice, acupuncture and Chinese bone breathing exercises. Blessed with a seemingly endless cornucopia of friends, the author is helped both by their continuing research and practical support and by his own enormous discipline and determination. He does have his despair and black days but doesn't dwell on them. Given a prognosis of at best, two to three years, he is still alive - without chemotherapy - eight years later. Gearon-Tosh asks: 'Are people who refuse treatment 'crazy' as doctors have written? Or would chemotherapy have killed me by now?' This isn't a book with all the answers and he doesn't claim his route would be right for everyone. It has raised a vociferous raft of criticism, underlining not only the deep divisions between alternative and orthodox medicine but the terrible predicament of patients who must choose between them. The book emphasizes how very little is still known about the workings of the human body. It reveals something of the complexity of cancer research and discusses a possible paradigm shift in the growing recognition that our emotions are inseparable from our physiology. The writing is lucid, often lightly humorous and pitches up interesting insights along the way from such diverse sources as Vaclav Havel, Chekhov and Queen Elizabeth I. A full case history of the patient is included, together with details of his treatment. Given that cancer now touches so many of our families and friends, this is a book that everyone should have on their shelf. (Kirkus UK)

Product Description
At the age of 54, Michael Gearin-Tosh discovered he had bone marrow cancer. This is the story of his quest to manage and overcome his illness; his determination to not to be coerced into joining programmes of invasive treatments; and his resolve to stand up to the NHS, specialists and colleagues who encouraged him to follow the conventional route as a cancer patient. The author selected a number of regimes and devised his own routine and diets, and six years on he still survives, despite being told he should "expect to die soon". This is not a "how-to" book, but an account of one man's quest to listen to his inner voice of intuition.

Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover

Search inside this book:

9 Reviews 5 star:  (8) 4 star:  (1) 3 star:    (0) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 4.9 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews   32 of 32 people found the following review helpful: 4.0 out of 5 stars An alternative analysis of orthodox medicine, 23 Feb 2002 By  "juliet_j" - See all my reviews On the day this book was published I heard the author speaking on the radio and I wanted to find out more about his struggle for life. Michael Gearin-Tosh is a literary Oxford Don who was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 1994. Instead of having the standard chemotherapy (as recommended) he eventually devised for himself a program of therapies based on different theories. His approach included diet therapy, a lot of vitamins and trace elements, coffee enemas, Chinese breathing and visualisation exercises and acupuncture. After 7 years he is still alive and stable, although the myeloma is still present. It is possible that this could have happened anyway, but at diagnosis his expected prognosis was 6-9 months without treatment. I found it both easy and compelling to read. As a nurse I find it of immense benefit to me to see a thinking man's experience of medical treatment. I was intrigued to see how he analyses the words and language that Drs use in medical consultations and journals to expose hidden meaning beneath it. I would recommend this book to anyone who is interested in reading about life experiences and choices. The book also includes an essay by Michael Gearin-Tosh about how people's temperment and attitudes to treatment can affect how well they do when treated, and a fairly technical case history of his illness. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   26 of 26 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars A moving account of an Odyssey through cancer, 6 Feb 2002 By  James Byrne (Liverpool, UK) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)    When Michael Gearin Tosh,an Oxford Don, learned he had myeloma, a cancer with a very low survival rate, he rejected chemotherapy in favour of Gerson therary combined with an oriental breathing exercise. This book is a moving and revealing account of how alternative therapies have helped him defy the odds and remain alive and healthy for the last 8 years. The book is controversial as some cancer specialists say it will cause patients to reject life saving chemotherapy for unproven alternatives. However, the point of the book remains valid. Whether you choose chemotherapy, surgery or an alternative approach if you put your whole being into it, mind, body and soul, you have a much greater chance of success. The mind and body are inseperably linked when it comes to healing and alternative therapies should not be dismissed as rubbish. The author is "Living Proof" that they can work, even though we are only just beginning to uncover the science behind them. This book is wonderfully written and a great read. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   34 of 35 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars The patient who refused to be passive, 20 Mar 2002 By A Customer If you are in a state of shock after diagnosis with cancer which the books describe as "incurable" and you have no medical training, how can you possibly believe that your "temperament and instincts" are significant "when a world of zillion-dollar research sees your illness as a vast problem"? Michael Gearin-Tosh recounts how he did listen to his instincts and how, after much research, debate and consultation, he resisted the barrage of professional voices telling him to have chemotherapy. According to the standard prognosis for his condition (multiple myeloma) chemotherapy was the only option and might give him two near-normal years, but he was likely to die in the third. That would have been 1997. In 2002 he is happily alive to publish this elegant, witty and hugely helpful book. He does not raise false hopes; he does not rubbish orthodox medicine, but he argues powerfully for the right of every person to make informed choices in medical matters. Sometimes medical intervention may be desperately urgent, but in many cases a little time for reflection and research into the options will not be damaging and might just be life-saving. The book combines the intensity and emotion of a 12-month post-diagnosis journal with reflective and practical comment written from the perspective of an eight-year survivor. Gearin-Tosh does not make claims for the strict detox regime he still follows (founded on the Gerson diet it involves fresh vegetable juices, vitamin and mineral supplements and coffee enemas, plus acupuncture and Chinese breathing exercises)and does not regard himself as "cured". All he has proved, he says, is that he is not dead. He has also shown that, for all its miracles, modern, hi-tech medicine needs to take more account of the power of the mind and the spirit. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this) Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review › See all 9 customer reviews...		Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars Must read I've just finished this book in a matter of hours. This is a must read for any cancer patient or carer, particularly those affected by Myeloma. Read more Published 1 month ago by J. Crewdson 5.0 out of 5 stars A must read book for anybody thinking twice about traditional cancer treatment Having just had a bone marrow test and blood transfusion for my very low haemoglobin, to see if my MGUS had progressed to multiple myeloma, I was delighted to receive and read... Read more Published 12 months ago by F. Ince 5.0 out of 5 stars A must for all myeloma sufferers I read this book soon after being diagnosed with Myeloma and this was fortunate because it gave me the strength to believe in and act on my own instincts... Read more Published on 5 April 2007 by Carol Madden 5.0 out of 5 stars A Compelling Read Once I started this book, I couldn't put it down. Gearin-Tosh has a very easy to read style. All credit to him for doing his own research and not allowing himself to... Read more Published on 27 May 2006 by Book Worm 5.0 out of 5 stars fascinating this is a brave account of a man who dared to question medical authority. Very useful information on how raw food and certain breathing techniques have helped to challange the... Read more Published on 1 Sep 2002 by lapwing 5.0 out of 5 stars Surviving using constructive skepticism When you are diagnosed with cancer, most "conventional" doctors will urge you to start chemotherapy (or similar treatment) at once. Read more Published on 11 Mar 2002 by Patrick Merlevede Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews › See all 9 customer reviews...

books to help you on the cancer journey: A list by amberimpus   random brilliance: A list by Mr. J. Maccallum-stewart "pomskua"   Books to Change your Mind and Life: A list by sainte-carmen Create a Listmania! list

Search Listmania!

• Books > Biography > Social & Health Issues > Living with Cancer & Other Illnesses
• Books > Health, Family & Lifestyle > Medical & Healthcare Practitioners > Surgery > Surgical Oncology
• Books > Science & Nature > Medicine > Diseases & Disorders > Oncology
• Books > Science & Nature > Medicine > Medical Sciences A-Z > Surgery > Oncology Surgery
• Books > Scientific, Technical & Medical > Medicine & Nursing > Medical Sciences A-Z > Surgery > Oncology Surgery

• Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
• I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
• I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.