Fighting Cancer from Within : How to Use the Power of Your Mind for Healing
by Martin L. Rossman, M.D.
Book Review

Martin L. Rossman, M.D., a medical school professor with 30 years of medical practice, has revolutionized the way cancer is treated. "Research indicates that there are skills and attitudes that are helpful for people with cancer," he says, and "these skills can be learned." [page 17]

Of course, his approach includes dealing with fear [18], the use of support groups [51] and other conventional aspects, but that's not all. He has acted on scientific evidence that the human body responds in definite ways to what are sometimes called imagery or visualization exercises.

What is imagery? Dr. Rossman says, "It's simply a way of thinking that uses sensory information for processing." [84] During these exercises, instead of using our brains to process linear thoughts composed of reasoning or other sentences, we choose to have our brains process streams of sensations, either pulled from memory or input directly from the sense organs. Sights, sounds, feelings, smells or tastes can be "words" in this kind of thought.

To be more specific, we're talking about guided imagery (you have some sort of plan or script) and evocative imagery (you have chosen an objective, a specific self-improvement). [57]

The reader is probably aware that these techniques are often used for stress reduction. You can acquire the ability to take "regular interruption of chronic stress with relaxation 'mini-vacations.'" [85] But can it do more than give your serenity? Lab research says yes. It can improve your health. It doesn't merely improve the health of one whose ailment is psychosomatic. A cancer patient can benefit from it. "Beyond relaxation, imagery can be used to stimulate your immune system and alter blood flow to areas of the body, two major mechanisms of healing." [85]

The author identifies 17 advantages of guided imagery [83-84], some of which are general, e.g., it is enjoyable, promotes peace of mind and courage, and it is certainly more productive than worrying. However, several of the advantages are directly related to medical treatment and recovery. These mental exercises reduce the nausea and other side effects of radiation therapy and chemotherapy. Most importantly -- some may still say that it's a controversial statement, but the research data has come in, and the conclusions are overwhelming -- visualization exercises strengthen the body's immune system, and boost the probability that you can heal yourself.

For example, Dr. Rossman cites a paper in the March-April 1993 issue of the International Issue of Neuroscience, entitled The Psychophysiology of Voluntary Immunomodulation, by Hall, Minnes and Olness. [87, 259] The conclusion of 22 well-performed laboratory studies is that guided imagery improves the operation of the immune system. The author comments:

"They demonstrated that people doing imagery aimed at stimulating the immune response against cancer or chronic viral illnesses increased not only the number of circulating killer cells (the immune cells specifically charges with eliminating cancer cells) but increased their aggressiveness when encountering an abnormal cell or virus. The immune system responds to chemical signals generated by the brain, the gut, or other immune cells. Those chemicals (interferons, interleukins, and others) can heighten or reduce the activity level and aggressiveness of the immune defender cells, and help direct the cells to areas where they are most needed. Since the brain is a major source of these chemical signals, why not use it to turn your immune system on to high alert and high level activity against cancer?" [87]

I have quoted that paragraph to show that Dr. Rossman isn't telling his patients to use the powers of the mind based on justifications that may be questionable. Unlike many self-help authors, he does not rely on mysticism or the supposed existence of an immaterial "life force", the existence of which has never been demonstrated scientifically. Rather, although we may choose to visualize a "life force" or "Inner Guide" or some other mystical element, if we find that it works for us, we are really making pragmatic use of the fact that the human body responds physically to image-thoughts, nonverbal thoughts. A specific field of medical research called psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) has appeared in recent years, and its job is to work with the capacity of human beings, by thinking, to alter, in a way beneficial to health, the electrical and chemical activities of the brain, glands, and even individual cells. The effects are real, and one may call the process mysterious, but so is gravity mysterious, and so are many other things which are essentially physical.

Although you might not consider a historical discussion to be the first priority, reading "A Brief History of Imagery in Healing" [88-94] might benefit the patient by providing a context, a feeling of attachment with others across time who have use visualization techniques to improve health, including some Native American societies and the ancient Greeks.

In addition to stimulating the body's mechanisms to heal itself, one who practices imagery also has a powerful way to become free from pain. The brain secretes natural pain-killers called endorphins, which are similar in chemical classification to morphine. [209] Rossman provides us with a script [210-217] for an imagery exercise, phrased in a way that will be recognizable by anyone familiar with stress-reduction or self-hypnosis tapes, etc., starting out with the usual, "Take a comfortable position , and let yourself begin to relax...." But this script is unlike any other you may have seen or heard before. It's purpose is literally to turn on an "endorphin drip." [210] The mental exercise increases the level of the body's natural anti-pain medicine.

The author notes, "UCLA assistant professor of anesthesiology David Bressler likes to say that the brain is the world's greatest pharmacy, and imagery is the key that unlocks it." [209]

Note how the author takes care in determining the objective of an imagery script, and in determining how specific that objective should be. His "All-Inclusive Healing Imagery" [124-130] is structured differently than either the "Dialogue With Pain" [217-224] or the Endorphin Drip Imagery [210-217].

A patient with cancer or any other chronic condition has much to gain and nothing to lose with Dr. Martin Rossman's technique. The immune system will operate more efficiently, pain and the side effects of treatments will be reduced, and the individual will receive such subjective benefits as confidence and peace of mind.

Book review by Mike Lepore for crimsonbird.com     ---     See more health books

288 pages. 12 chapters. Each chapter is followed by a summary in the form of a list. 5 pages of bibliographic notes. 6 pages on additional resources, including helpful national organizations. 7-page index. No illustrations.

2-page foreword by Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D., professor of clinical medicine at the University of California.