Researchers such as Dr Gershom Zajicek, of the HH Humphrey Center of Experimental Medicine and Cancer Research in Israel, believe that cancer begins as a metabolic disturbance (Zajicek G, Cancer is a metabolic deficiency, in Iversen OH, ed, New Frontiers in Cancer Causation, Washington, DC: Taylor & Francis, 1993: 81- 96). This is at odds with the conventional view that cancer is the cause of metabolic disturbances. According to Zajicek's writings, encompassing the medical, philosophical and practical aspects of cancer survival, cancer is normally kept in check by what he calls the ‘wisdom of the body’, a term first coined in the 1930s (Cannon WB, The Wisdom of the Body, New York: Norton, 1932).
In a healthy body, balance is maintained and cancer never develops or, if it does develop, it is kept in check by the homoeostatic systems of the body. In addition, he proposes that there is more to cancer than the tumour (Anticancer Res, 1999; 19: 4907-12) and that the disease is not a separate entity from the person. Thus, attacking the disease with conventional methods is akin to attacking the person and, ultimately, reduces the chances of survival. In contrast, boosting the individual's physical and emotional coping mechanisms can lead to either remission or the body’s learning to ‘live in peace' with its cancer. Zajicek’s theories have been published (Med Hypoth, 2001; 57: 243-8; Med Hypoth, 1986; 21: 105-15; Med Decis Making, 1993; Jul-Sept: 245-6), and his ideas can be accessed on www.what-is-cancer-com.