Mistletoe is a popular so-called alternative medicine (SCAM) often advocated for cancer. It has featured regualarly on this blog:
- A cancer patient died after taking a herbal mixture containing mistletoe
- A systematic analysis of the mistletoe prescriptions used in clinical studies
- Prof Harald Walach reviews mistletoe and arrives at a positive conclusion
- Mistletoe treatment for cancer is useless and should be discouraged
- Mistletoe for cancer: Does it improve patients’ quality of life?
- Mistletoe for cancer: the saga continues
- Mistletoe, a cancer therapy? You must be joking!
- Suzanne Somers has died – another victim of so-called alternative medicine?
Now concerns about the safety of mistletoe therapy have re-surfaced.
One man was diagnosed with a neuroendocrine neoplasia of the terminal ileum that had metastasised diffusely to the liver. The patient also developed symptoms of carcinoid syndrome (flushing, sporadic diarrhoea and bronchospasticity). Somatostatin analogue therapy was started after surgical treatment in 11/2020.
The patient had independently started mistletoe injection therapy. After six weeks, he complained of several localised reactions at the injection sites, each with a very itchy ‘hazelnut-sized’ hardening. He was then advised to halve the mistletoe dose and continue the therapy. However, the local findings did not improv; the physician therefore prescribed a further dose reduction.
As a result, the local findings improved, the patient increased the dose. 30 minutes after the injection of the high dose, he felt an increasing feeling of warmth, tingling, nausea and discomfort, as well as shortness of breath and an urge to defecate. When he went to the toilet, he also experienced visual disturbances and dizziness, and eventually fell unconscious. The emergency doctor called by his wife admitted him to the nearest hospital with the diagnosis of anaphylactic shock. After inpatient diagnostics – with exclusion of a cardiopulmonary event – and successful treatment, the patient was able to leave the hospital on the second day.
Mistletoe therapy has become more popular as a supportive cancer therapy. Therefore, rare but serious to life-threatening side effects should be known to the therapists and patients, the doctors of the patient stress. The most common adverse events of mistletoe therapy are skin reactions at the injection site (pruritus, urticaria, redness ø ≤ 5 cm). One review noted that the rate of serious adverse events from mistletoe therapy was < 1 per cent. According to the above-mentioned guideline, the following are very rare side effects:
- hypersensitivity and anaphylactic reactions,
- intensification of autoimmune reactions,
- local lymphoma infiltrate at the injection site.
14 Responses to Mistletoe, a cancer SCAM, can cause an anaphylactic shock
Leave a Reply
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
So it’s OK to post anecdotal evidence now is it?
Yes, safety data almost exclusively relies on case reports!
Great, in future I might present some anecdotal evidence myself.
If it relates to the risks of SCAM, please do!
You are ALWAY ONLY presenting anecdotal evidence to promote SCAM.
@Mutus Bellator
Maybe you could volunteer to participate in double-blind randomized controlled safety trials? And of course you can bring all your like-minded friends as well!
I read a case report about a guy who underwent Homoeopathic treatment for cancer and was totally cured.
Just thought I’d throw that anecdote in.
not relevant, I said SAFETY!
To a camist (an exploiter of the vulnerable), the patient made a full recovery is an unexpected, undesirable, adverse event.
Camist is not a word in any dictionary. The meaning of this made up word therefore depends on the intention of any user.
It could therefore be used to describe someone who helps the vulnerable.
This is another case of Attkinsism. (exploiter of Camists)
Dear Jac Kass,
Camistry: complementary and alternative medicine.
Camists: those who practice CAM
Camees: their patients
See:
Dr. Richard Rawlins Reveals the Real Secrets of Alternative Medicine
By Harriet Hall, MD (18 October 2016)
Science-Based Medicine
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/dr-richard-rawlins-reveals-the-real-secrets-of-alternative-medicine/
Pete Attkins
Obviously the Oxford dictionary has not yet caught up with the creative writings of Richard Rawlins.
Meanwhile quoting such a reference is a case of Attkinsism I am afraid.
Attkinsism is similar to the condition known as Foot in Mouth. A harmless but uncomfortable condition for the Attkinsee although easily cured by removing the foot from the mouth.
Mutus Bellator wrote: “So it’s OK to post anecdotal evidence now is it?”
Before posting, make sure that you fully understand the importance of the following:
1.
2. Adverse events versus side effects
Any health problem that occurs after a treatment is considered an adverse event following the treatment. An adverse event can be a true adverse reaction, also known as a side effect, that is related to the treatment; or a coincidental event that happened after the treatment.
So what are you trying to say Pete?