Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1924-04-14
X-Ray For Cancer.
Writer Cites Instance Where
Relief Was Afforded.

bacillus has since resulted In such
/ successful control of that disease,
| once the chief destroyer of the hui
man race, that it's death toll now
| ranks below that of cancer. Who is
| going to find out the cause or can
| cer-perhaps a simple thing, after all
! and help US get rid of 1t? 1t il said
| that CELSIUS, a Greek physician, treat
! successfully as il is treated today.
+, Extraordinary measures must be
| taken to cope with such a battling
malady. --.
The writer, who is only a layman,
takes much interest in this subject
because a lady relative is a victim OF
this dread disease, and he feels that
| there are certain circumstances OF
| her case which should be made Known
| for the public good. Had she known
| two years ago what she has since
| experienced she would have been
| spared much suffering and expense.
We have been taught that nothing
but carly discovery and removal by
forded any hope of cure. Some still
| claim cures through local applica-
tions or internal doses. Meanwhile
the mortality still keeps steadily
| going on. Perhaps ono third Of those
| operated upon by the knife live five
4
fails to cautertze the lymphatfc YES
| sells at the time of operation the
malignant matter escapes and gets
! into the general circulation quite
often. The man who operated in this
case evidently did not know that he
| should have touched the main lynn
| phatfc vessels with a wire heated to
| wilderness by the electric current to
seal them against such escape, Of the
virus, for it did escape and 1t was
like fire in dry stubble.
In May, 1922, the lady noticed that
her left breast was charging, all
though there was no pain and no
sign Of hardening of the flesh. Her
| family doctor told her his fears and
| sent her to a well known surgeon,
who, upon examining the breast, said
he saw no sign of malignant growth,
but told her to return three weeks
later. The family doctor told her by
all means not to delay, land she went
to another surgeon, who said: mo
human being can say that there is
malignant growth in that breast, but
the retracted nipple is a bad sign.
The breast should be removed"
1t was terrible shock to the
poor woman. To know that such a
thing is fastening itself upon ones
vitals is enough to depress the stout
est heart, but she was brave and
at once submitted to an operation.
The breast was found to be full of
| cancerous growth, which extended
even into the armpits whence the
glands were removed. The surgeon
said the chances of recurrence of
the disease were about even. The
surgical wounds healed, but in March,
1923. the right breast had to be
removed Again the wounds healed,
but in the meantime, and previously,
the patient had been suffering from
skin trouble. In January, 1924,
ulcers appeared on the wounds of
both breasts, which a skin specialist
assured her was the usual result of
an operation of that kind When he
saw the breast at the end of Febru-
airy, however, he said: Il can do
nothing more for you. There is no
no hope for you except in treatment
three years ago your case would
have been absolutely hopeless" He
called up a surgeon at a hospital
and told him he was sending him
d case OF carcinoma en- cuirasse"
An X-ray examination was made
at the hospital. The surgeon a big,
kindly man of magnetic presence,
took the lady's husband aside and
said to him: There is in your wife's
left lung, which is involved by
me.aStasls from the cancer of breast.
and l fear there is no hope for
her" When asked how It would
have been if she had been brought
there six months earlier he said.
An! that might have been a differ
ent matter" Pie lady had been suf-
ferlng from severe cough and
shortness of breath and thought she
had asthma The cancer was not
suspected as the cause of the lung
trouble.
Exposures were made of fifty min
utes each, every day, twelve in all.
with current of 100000 volts at
five mile amperes. The treatments
were suspended when it was found
out that the powerful current was
upsettlng the stomach and were dis
continued for thirty days to await
results. which today, three weeks
later, are as follows: The distressing
cough has practically ceased, the
ulcers are nearly all healed. the skin
fouoie Is almost gone, the patients
appetite and strength are increasing
and she sleeps well for the first time
in a long while
III metastasiS does not set up in Soma
other internal organ, she may get well
Inc cost was not more than that OF a
pain. and bloodless. Whatsver the final
outcome may be, it is sure that tenn
porary relief has been given When il
is remembered that Roentgen's discoy
cry OF the A-ray was made lesstthan
tWenty-eIght years ago, and that the
present hlgh-powered apparatus has
but recently been put in use there is
much to hope for when further i'm
provements are made in methods and
machinery.
Let us. find out the predisposing
causes Of cancer. No surgeon ever
ask ed this lady any questions about
her past life or family history, or as
to the diseases from which she had
suffered. Perhaps in her clinical his
tory key may be found to the origin
or her cancer There should be reg
istration of all cancer cases and A
QUESTIONABLE prepared so that in
each case the patients history may
be secured as to treatment for all
diseases and other pertinent facts. If,
as now generally believed cancer is
neither contagious nor inherited. IL
must be the result of certain predis-
posing causes, and the sooner these
causes are learned the better we will
be prepared to fight it. 1t bears hard
est upon the nobleSt and most de-
serving, the mothers and wives of
the race, and is distinctly q disease
or civilization practically unknown
in the wilds of Africa
A leading surgeon, interviewed
on this subject recently by the writer
said:
"One death in every ten of women
and one in every fifteen of men is
caused by cancer. The increase of
this disease is more apparent than
real, for. two reasons: Human life is
lengthening, and as cancer preys
principally upon the old, moro cases
are reported Then, too we have
sure means OF diagnosis and cases
of cancer are reported where former
~ other diseases would have been
suspected Millions of people have
died of cancer in the past and no.
body knew what allied them Here
tofore, there has been no record ed
case Of cure of cancer en- cuirasse, in
which the malignant growth appears
in several places at once, but the
powerful x-rays give hope now, even
in such cases. One of the main things
is for surgeons to determine when a
case of cancer is inoperabie. To cut