What Is Homeopathy, and Does It Benefit Cancer Treatment?

Homeopathy combines homeos (similar) and pathos (suffering) and rests on “like cures like.” First used in the 18th century, it is among the most common complementary medicine methods. A practitioner is a “homeopath,” and the recommended agent a “remedy.”

Its origins lie in an interesting observation. In the past, malaria was a major public health problem (and remains so in societies with low sociocultural levels). Symptoms include fever, chills and sweating. The most common antimalarial drugs, quinines, also cause fever, chills and sweating when overused, that is, quinine poisoning. This led to the idea, “Does like cure like?”

Homeopathic medication is believed to affect the vital forcein the same way as disease. The vital force supposedly reacts to disease and its homeopathic remedy with similar or differing intensity. Principles include:

• Like cures like
• Use only one drug
• Always use the lowest dose
• The remedy’s potency increases with dilution
• Use only homeopathic medication

1 part medicine, water is added to make 10 parts for 1X, 100 parts for 1C, or 50.000 parts for 1Q. After dilution and shaking, the main mixture is absorbed into lactose tablets. Homeopaths consider it very safe and noninteracting with current drugs because of extreme dilution.

Is There Scientific Evidence for Homeopathy?

In the London Cholera Epidemic in 1854, of 90 patients treated homeopathically, 73 allegedly recovered, whereas only about 40% receiving standard cholera drugs survived. Later studies could not support these results.

In modern times, many clinical studies have investigated the ability of homeopathy to treat diseases. None of these investigations obtained evidence that homeopathy cures any disease, including cancer, that could be considered strong evidencestrong and reliable.

A 2005 Lancet article compiled 110 homeopathy studies questioning whether it treats diseases and whether benefits reflect the placebo effect. This is an effect arising from suggestion and belief in a pharmacologically inactive drug.

The review found homeopathy’s treatment power incomparably weaker than modern drugs. Some studies observed improvement in general condition, interpreted as placebo effects.

In conclusion, benefit beyond placebo has not been scientifically or clinically proven. Homeopathic drugs are generally considered harmless because they contain no active substance. Using them instead of standard cancer treatments would seriously endanger patients, so we do not recommend this.