Low-dose radiation, on the other hand, might be both a preventive measure and an effective treatment, not through direct toxicity but through enhancing the body's own defenses. The reason for the subjunctive mood is that adequate research on the topic has been foreclosed by radiation phobia. Promising results, buried in data tables, may not be mentioned in abstracts and summaries. Definitive research is not on the horizon-at least not in the U.S.A.
In his presentation at the DDP meeting in Las Vegas, Myron Pollycove, M.D., of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission highlighted the following:
In mice genetically predisposed to mammary tumors, TBI alone reduced the incidence from about 72% in controls to about 42%. Restricting calories to about 70% of ad libitum intake reduced incidence even more, to around 28%, and the two interventions combined, to about 17%. At the meeting, Dr. Arthur Robinson also commented on an experiment demonstrating tumor suppression in poorly nourished mice (see www.nutritionandcancer.org).
Dr. Pollycove concluded: ``Clinical trials of LDR [low-dose body irradiation] immunotherapy for patients with breast, prostate, colon, ovarian cancers, and lymphomas are needed in the United States. Successful implementation of these trials would provide a long sought major advance in cancer therapy. Public recognition of hormesis would terminate radiation phobia. Ending the enormous expenditure of many billions of dollars for needless protection from low dose radiation, would also furnish funds needed for health care and medical research that includes low dose radiation immunotherapy of cancer and infectious diseases.''
[A copy of Dr. Pollycove's 42-page handout is available for $4, and an audiotape of his presentation for $8.]
Are there any radiation oncologists in the U.S. who would offer LDR-an ``off- label'' use of an approved treatment-to cancer patients on a self-pay basis, as insurers are unlikely to cover it? Please call if you know of any.
Curtis Caine, M.D., an anesthesiologist from Jackson, MS, had these comments on the maneuver (``close your mouth, breathe through your nose, and cough!'') described in the March issue:
The Nigro Maneuver is great to have among the tricks to try. But the nasal inhalation will get air by the obstruction (whereas oral inhalation won't) only if the bolus is in the oropharynx (i.e. supraglottic) with a little space behind/around it. Understand the mechanism: one needs a compressed air explosion behind the obstruction. One model is the chinaberry popgun I made at age 5. Take an 18-inch piece of bamboo with an internal diameter a little smaller than a chinaberry, a 16-inch piece of broom handle, and a pocket full of chinaberries. Whittle down the distal 12 inches of the broom handle (the ``ramrod'') to fit into the bamboo. Load a chinaberry into the breech and push it all the way into the barrel with the ramrod. Place another berry into the breach and advance it gently a few inches into the barrel. Then forcefully and rapidly jam the ramrod home. With a bang, the distal berry is propelled 20 to 30 feet, delivering a stinging blow. The second berry is now in a position to be the next projectile. It is the compressed air between the two that does the job. (Caution: a shot at close range could put out an eye.)
I am puzzled as to why Dr. Nigro has had to employ the maneuver so frequently. One predisposing condition is an upper denture, which covers the hard palate so that a large bolus of food is not appreciated.
An historical note: Al Ochsner's son died alone in a restaurant men's room, where he had run when he choked at a dinner meeting of doctors. He was but a few feet away from experts who could have performed a Heimlich maneuver.
For washing fruits and vegetables and disinfecting surfaces such as countertops and wooden cutting boards, here is an economical and safe procedure suggested in Science News of August 8, 1998: Obtain two clean spray bottles, such as that used for dampening clothes for ironing. Fill one with 3% hydrogen peroxide (the strength widely available for wound cleansing) and one with white or apple cider vinegar. Spritz raw foods first with one, then the other (the order doesn't matter), then rinse. It is said that this combination destroys Salmonella, Shigella, and E. coli better than chlorine disinfectants. The sequential use is ten times as effective as using only one of the solutions, or of mixing them in the same bottle. It is especially important to cleanse all surfaces that have come into contact with raw poultry, given the high rate of Salmonella contamination.
Radio talk show host Bob Heckler of WXBH Albany, NY plans to broadcast audiotapes from the meeting in Las Vegas, both by air and by Internet at www.wxbhradio.com, and also to do interviews with our speakers. Check www.oism.org/ddp for the schedule, or call (520) 325-2680.
Meeting tapes should be available by August 15.
Jim Pinkerton's account of the meeting is at www.techcentralstation.com (July 16).
DDP, 1601 N. Tucson Blvd. Suite 9, Tucson, AZ 85716, (520)325-2680