Melanoma Miracles
by Ginny Fraser

In 2001 I was diagnosed with Stage IV malignant melanoma, with tumours in my brain, spleen, stomach and lungs. I was given six months to live. What saved my life was a radical programme of alternative treatment, including much of what Phillip Day speaks about in his books and talks.

Although this was not my first brush with melanoma, it took me totally by surprise as I had been well for five years. I had had two previous bouts of melanoma. The primary was a mole on my arm back in 1993, which I had excised (along with a chunk of my arm) and then got on with my life without really any introspection about why I had got cancer and what I could do to make sure it didn't come back. Then three years later a tumour was found in the lymph nodes under my right arm. I had surgery to remove the affected nodes, and realised I couldn't just ignore it like I did last time. The approach I chose was the Gerson Therapy, which I did intensively for two years to make sure I was really clear.

So, when I went back to the Marsden five years later neither my doctors nor I were really expecting any melanoma to be showing up to account for my symptoms of squiffy vision, dizziness and profound exhaustion.

I was pretty quickly put onto 16 mg per day of dexamethozone (steroids), and went away for Christmas to contemplate my next steps. My spiritual beliefs have always played a big role in my life, and the Christmas break included a spiritual retreat which provided a great opportunity to muster my inner resources and develop the self-belief and determination to do all I could to get better.

The quest for the best treatment began shortly after my Christmas, by which time I was swollen up with the steroids, with a ravenous appetite and a face like a chipmunk. I enrolled friends in researching the Internet for melanoma treatments (there is SO much out there, and a lot of it is quite upsetting to read, so it's a great task to delegate). After much research I ended up choosing a naturopathic treatment with London-based doctor, Etienne Callebout.

At the same time I was also researching radiotherapy (not knowing at that time that there was any alternative and being pretty scared by the stories of side-effects like early onset of Alzheimer's and brain damage that can result from it). In February 2002 I embarked on a course of whole-brain radiotherapy, daily for two weeks with weekends off. It was easy, painless and took just a few minutes to be "zapped". Its side effects were not so pleasant. I could only walk like an old lady - very slowly. I felt sick and my hair fell out. I was totally exhausted, would sleep in the day and evening then wake at 2am, ravenous. On a few occasions I was "bonkers", which was really scary.

Apart from the radiotherapy, the Marsden could offer me no treatment for the body tumours that had any decent chance of success. There were some chemotherapy agents, but with such low effectiveness that even my doctor told me not to bother. So everything at this point rested on the success of the radiotherapy. A few weeks after the treatment finished I got the results. They were not good. According to the scans, the tumours had not responded.

That was a tough meeting. You always know when it's bad news by the look on the doctor's face the minute they come in the room. The good ones deliver bad news with compassion and empathy. The bad ones either overdo the phoney caring or don't even try, escaping this uncomfortable time as quickly as they possibly can.

Regardless of the bad radiotherapy result, I knew I couldn't give up, and I began Dr Callebout's regime a month or so after radiotherapy ended. He is a qualified medical doctor, homeopath and specialist in alternative treatments for cancer. He admitted he hadn't treated anyone with my level of cancer before but said he would give it a go.

Emotionally this whole time was very different to anything I would have imagined. I felt very strong. I felt incredibly supported. Friends wrote, visited, including four friends who separately travelled from the US to spend time with me. People gave me money. And Stacey, my friend and lodger, chose to spend the time taking care of me. I felt very spiritually connected and supported. I was brought up a Christian and felt a very intimate source of support from Jesus. My mother wrote to dozens of contemplative Anglican orders and asked the nuns to pray for me. The esoteric church I belong to also provided huge energetic assistance. I really felt Grace was extended to me in a big way. I had a new sense of serenity. It was as though all the areas I normally obsess about - money, men, work, was I good enough, was I pretty enough, was I clever enough - they all seemed to wither away in the face of this huge challenge - will I live or will I die? I actually felt very happy, despite the physical difficulties I was undergoing.

The regime I took on was tough, but as I was a survivor of the Gerson Therapy (13 juices a day and five coffee enemas - for two years), I knew I could hack it. My regime consisted of a pure diet - organic vegetables, nothing processed, no booze, no coffee etc. Six freshly squeezed vegetable juices per day, three coffee enemas daily, castor oil rubs, Epsom salts baths, ice packs and hot packs and a footbath in mustard and cayenne pepper. I also had to take 122 tablets per day to boost my immune system and begin to dissolve the tumours.

My tablets included large doses of B17 (Phillip Day has written about these extensively); handfuls of digestive enzymes (as recommended in the Kelley-Gonzales approach) and numerous supplements to boost my system generally.

It was a tough regime, but it felt great to be the one responsible for my own recovery. The sense of empowerment far outweighed the hassle of what was physically involved. But best of all, it worked.

I had a CT scan around four months later which showed that all the tumours had either reduced significantly or disappeared altogether. The hospital took credit for the brain tumours claiming that radiotherapy effects often take a while to kick in and that the previous scan was done too early to show a true result, but they were flabbergasted by the reduction in the other areas where I had had NO conventional treatment. They were surprised, but not interested enough to ask me in any detail exactly how this had been achieved. The term "spontaneous remission" was used - which I have since learned is a commonly heard blanket term used by unenlightened medics for any improvement not caused by conventional medical treatment.

The other day I heard another corker on my regular check-up visit to RMH. This time the doctor commented that the disappearance of the tumours in my body "could well be attributed to the brain radiotherapy"! I've got to the stage now where I am no longer angry about this approach, all I can do is laugh at the sometimes complete reluctance to see any value in anything other than their terrible trio of treatments (surgery, chemo and radiotherapy).

I continued working on my "spontaneous remission" for a further seven months, and a scan in November 2002 showed that everything had gone, bar a small abnormality in my spleen. As I write today in June 2005 I am enjoying excellent health. In fact, in August I am going on a trek in the Himalayas. I still juice, eat organic and do enemas and will always take good care of my health.

Before I got sick I worked as a coach (a bit like a counsellor) and facilitator (running training courses). Now I am using those skills (in combination with my cancer experience and research) to offer coaching support to people affected by cancer who want to take a proactive approach to their recovery. I work over the telephone or face-to-face looking at the two elements Phillip is examining on his current Attitude Tour - the physical and the mental, and how to make changes in both that will lead to wellness on every level.

Someone once said that during their experience of cancer they had wished there was someone like a midwife who could be with them - someone knowledgeable and kind - who could be their witness and their supporter. That's what I wished I'd had and what I am offering to anyone affected by cancer.
Ginny Fraser ginnyf@tiscali.co.uk
Tel: +44 (0)1483 201020