Abdominal Pain in Oncology

Marion Debus

Last update: 12.06.2019

Abdominal pain in the context of tumor disease can have many different causes. For a general description of the understanding of pain and the various options for treating it, please refer to the corresponding chapter in “Internal Medicine” by Matthias Girke (1, p. 821 ff) and to the Vademecum of Anthroposophic Medicines (2).

The various pain qualities – cramping, burning, piercing or colicky pain – are characterized by the soul body intervening too strongly and holding fast in different ways, resulting in a pathological process of consciousness in the diseased organs which is experienced as pain. This pathological intervention of the soul body can be relieved or diverted with appropriate plant, mineral or organ preparations, as well as with external applications and certain qualities of touch in rhythmical massage therapy. It is not uncommon for such interventions to result in a significant reduction in or even complete discontinuation of the use of conventional painkillers.

Bibliography

  1. Girke M. Internal medicine. Foundations and therapeutic concepts of Anthroposophic Medicine. 1st ed. Berlin: Salumed; 2016.
  2. Association of Anthroposophic Physicians in Germany, Medical Section at the Goetheanum (eds.). Vademecum of anthropsophic medicines. 3rd English ed. Munich; 2017. www.vademecum.org

Research news

Case series: Topical application of Viscum album extract in keratinocyte carcinomas shows remissions 
A retrospective case series examined the safety and clinical effects of topical application of 10% lipophilic Viscum album extract (VALE) in individual cases of cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC), basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and actinic keratosis (AK). The study population consisted of 55 patients with 74 skin lesions. Risk factors, concomitant therapies and diseases, adverse drug reactions to VALE and other relevant information were documented. As a result, the clinical response rate was 78% for cSCC, 70% for BCC and 71% for AK. The complete remission rates for individual lesions were 56% for cSCC, 35% for BCC and 15% for AK. Overall, the results suggest that VALE is a safe and tolerable extract, and complete and partial remissions of ceratinocyte carcinomas were observed with its use. The article is published in Complementary Medicine Research: 
https://doi.org/10.1159/000537979.


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