The Scientific World Journal
Rationality and irrationality in Ryke Geerd Hamer’s system for holistic treatment of metastatic cancer.
The Scientific World JOURNAL
Volume 5 (2005), Pages 93-102
doi:10.1100/tsw.2005.16
Review Article
Søren Ventegodt (1),(2),(4)
Niels Jørgen Andersen (3),(4) and
Joav Merrick (5)
(1) The Quality of Life Research Center, Teglgårdstræde 4, DK-1452 Co, DK-1452 Copenhagen K, Denmark
(3) Norwegian School of Management, Sandvika, Norway
(4) The Scandinavian Foundation for Holistic Medicine, Sandvika, Norway
(5) National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Division for Mental Retardation, Ministry of Social Affairs, Jerusalem and Zusman Child Development Center, Division of Pediatrics and Community Health, Ben Gurion University, Beer-Sheva, Israel
Received 16 November 2004; Revised 14 January 2005; Accepted 15 January 2005
The aim of this paper is to examine if the “medical laws” found by the German physician Ryke Geerd Hamer are substantiated by contemporary holistic medical theory. He developed a psychosomatic theory after a personal emotional trauma that he believed resulted in his subsequent development of a testicular cancer.
From our analysis, it is clear that the two most fundamental principles of Hamer’s work, the psychosomatic “iron law of cancer” (Hamer’s first “law”) and the principle of pathogenesis being reversed into salutogenesis (Hamer’s second “law”), are well-established principles of holistic medicine today. Hamer’s understanding of symbols in medicine, virus and bacteria, and the evolutionary process itself (Hamer’s third, fourth, and fifth “law”) differs a great deal from both traditional and contemporary holistic medical theory and we did not find them substantiated. Hamer’s understanding of cancer metastasis was built on these failing principles and therefore not substantiated either.
Altogether, it seems that Hamer’s thinking was basically sound as the most fundamental principles of his work were built on an understanding very similar to holistic medical thinkers of today. We found his postulate that metastatic cancer patients can be healed or their health improved by using his system of holistic medicine likely to be true, at least for some motivated patients. This must be tested scientifically, however, before being accepted. His presentation of his system and work has been idiosyncratic and highly provocative, which has alienated him from the whole medical community.
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Who is Joav Merrick?
Joav Merrick, M.D., MMedSci, D.M.Sc, (born in 1950 in Copenhagen, Denmark) is professor of pediatrics, child health and human development affiliated with the Zusman Child Development Center, Division of Pediatrics, Soroka University Medical Center, Ben Gurion University, Beer-Sheva, Israel and the Kentucky Children’s Hospital, University of Kentucky, Lexington, United States and the medical director of the Division for Mental Retardation, Ministry of Social Affairs, Jerusalem, the founder and director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Numerous publications in the field of pediatrics, child health and human development, rehabilitation, intellectual disability, disability, helath, welfare abuse, advocacy, quality of life, public helath and prevention.
Ministry of Social Affairs and Social Services
Immigrated to Israel in 1989 to take up the position of Attending Physician at the Department of Pediatrics and Director of the Child Protection Team, Chaim Sheba Medical Center, Tel-Hashomer, but in 1991 appointed the Medical Director of the Health Services for the Division for Mental Retardation (DMR) in Israel under the Ministry of Social Affairs and Social Services responsible for the medical care of over 10,000 persons with intellectual disability in more than 60 residential care centers and 60 community related residential care facilities (hostels, protected apartments) and also another 20,000 persons with intellectual disability living at home, but provided community services in about 400 places around Israel.
National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
From 1998 the initiator and also the director of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, an academic virtual research institute on children, the disabled and the intellectually disabled in Israel affiliated with the Office of the Medical Director, Health Services, Ministry of Social Affairs and the Department of Pediatrics, Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, Mount Scopus Campus, Jerusalem, Israel.
Academic editorial work
On the Editorial Board of the “International Journal on Child Abuse and Neglect” from 1984-94, but continues to perform referee work.
From 1999 Editorial Board of the International Journal of Religion, Disability and Health published by Haworth Press, New York. From 1999 review work for the Israel Medical Asssociation Journal (English Journal) and from 2000 the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health published by De Gruyter Publishing House (Berlin and New York).
From 2001 review work for the International Quarterly Public Health Review (Int Scientific Publications, Tel Aviv), Journal of Intellectual Disability Research (Blackwell Science, Oxford) and several other international journals.
From 2002 on the editorial board of the Internet Journal of Pediatrics and Neonatology (Internet Scientific Publications, Ispub.com) and the International Nursing Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability (internet journal launched in 2004 by the Developmental Disabilities Nurses Association, Blaine, Washington).
From 2003 the Principal Editor of the “Child Health and Human Development” domain of the on-line Scientific World Journal and in 2006 the Principal Editor of TSWJ-Holistic Health and Medicine published by Scientific World Ltd operating from Finland.
From 2005 the Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal on Disability and Human Development published by De Gruyter Publishing House (Berlin and New York).
From 2007 and 2009 the editor-in-chief of the International Journal of Child Health and Human Development (Nova Science, New York), the International Journal of Child and Adolescent Health (Nova Science), the Journal of Alternative Medicine Research (Nova Science), the International Public Health Journal (Nova Science) and co-editor of the Journal of Pain Management (Nova Science).
From 2007 the editor-in-chief of the book series Disability Studies and Health and Human Development (Nova Science) and from 2010 of the book series Health, Medicine and Human Development (De Gruyter).
Academic publications
At this stage in life close to a total of 2,000 published articles, chapters in books, educational material, radio- and television programs on child health, human development, disability, intellectual disability, rehabilitation, health, mental health, welfare, abuse, advocacy, quality of life and prevention.
More than fifty books published (children’s books, textbooks, yearbooks, edited books) on a wide variety of topics, like “Children and the Emergency Room”, “Incest”, “Child Abuse”, “Child Sexual Abuse”, “Children in Alcohol- and Drug-abusing families”, Children at risk”, “Childhood” and “Child Development”, “Suicidal behavior in adolescence”, “The Scandinavian Textbook on Social and Community Pediatrics”, “The Scandinavian Textbook on Child Abuse and Neglect” and “Principles of Holistic Medicine”.
Awards
Received the Peter Sabroe Child Award for outstanding work on behalf of Danish Children in 1985 and the International LEGO-Prize (“The Children’s Nobel Prize”) for an extraordinary contribution towards improvement in child welfare and well-being in 1987.
Interview with Dr. Hamer from Jan. 2010 (Sandefjord, Norway) where he mentions the article in "The Scientific World":
